Bedikat chametz, or bedikas chametz (בְּדִיקַת חָמֵץ, Tiberian: bəḏīqaṯ ḥāmēṡ) is the Mitzva to search for chametz before the Jewish Holiday of Passover. The search takes place after nightfall on the evening before Pesach (the night of the 14th of the Hebrew month of Nisan).[1][2]
In Jewish law, there is an accepted three-step process for dealing with chametz before the Passover:[3]
- Searching for Ĥametz (Bedikat Chametz)[4][5]
- Elimination of chametz (Bitul chametz)[6]
- Removal of chametz (Biur chametz)[7][8]
After the checking ceremony, the chametz is nullified; that is, a declaration is made that any chametz not found during the checking is considered like "the dust of the earth", and the next day the chametz that was found during the checking is burned. (The commandment is to do this through burning, but it can also be destroyed in other ways, such as throwing it into the sea).[9]
- ^ Mishnah tractate Pesachim
- ^ When Pasover starts on Saturday night, bedikat chametz takes place on Thursday night (two nights before Pasover).
- ^ "Getting Rid of Ĥametz - Jewish Tradition". yahadut.org. Retrieved 2024-03-28.
- ^ "01. The Time for Bedikat Ḥametz – Peninei Halakha". Retrieved 2024-03-28.
- ^ "The First Stage: Searching for Ĥametz - Jewish Tradition". yahadut.org. Retrieved 2024-03-28.
- ^ "01. The Mitzvot Associated with Eliminating Ḥametz – Peninei Halakha". Retrieved 2024-03-28.
- ^ "04. The Custom of Bi'ur Ḥametz by Burning – Peninei Halakha". Retrieved 2024-03-28.
- ^ "The Other Stages: Nullifying the Ĥametz and Destroying It - Jewish Tradition". yahadut.org. Retrieved 2024-03-28.
- ^ "Leaven (Hametz)". My Jewish Learning. Retrieved 2024-03-28.