Red heifer
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Cow sacrificed in biblical times
A Red Angus cow which is grown by the Temple Institute for the red heifer sacrifice and burning in the reconstruction of the Third Temple in Jerusalem
The red heifer (Hebrew: ืคึธึผืจึธื ืึฒืึปืึธึผื, romanized: pฤrฤ สพฤdummฤ) was a reddish brown cow sacrificed by Temple priests as a purification ritual in biblical times.[1]
Ritual in the Torah
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The red heifer offering is described in Numbers 19. The Torah specifies that the heifer in question must be without spots or blemish, and never yoked or milked. It is slaughtered and burned outside of the camp. Cedarwood, a herb called ezov, and wool dyed scarlet are added to the fire, and the remaining ashes are placed in a vessel containing pure spring water.
To purify a person, water from the vessel is sprinkled on them using a bunch of ezov (hyssop), on the third and seventh day of the purification process.[2] The kohen (priest) who performs the ritual then himself becomes ritually impure and must then wash himself and his clothes in spring waters.
The Mishnah, the central compilation of the Oral Torah in Rabbinic Judaism, the oral component of the Written Torah, contains a tractate on the red heifer sacrifice and burning, which is the tractate Parah ("cow") in Tohorot, which explains the procedures involved. The tractate has no existing Gemara, although commentary on the procedure appears in the Gemara for other tractates of the Talmud.
According to Mishnah's tractate Parah, the presence of two black hairs invalidates a red heifer, in addition to the usual requirements of an unblemished animal for sacrifice. There are various other requirements, such as natural birth (The caesarian section renders a heifer candidate invalid).[3] The water must be "living" (ie., spring water). This is a stronger requirement than for a mikveh or ritual bath; rainwater accumulated in a cistern is permitted for a mikveh but cannot be used in the red heifer ceremony.