This article is about commandments in Judaism. For the Jewish rite of passage, see Bar Mitzvah and Bat Mitzvah
Mitzvah (Hebrew: מצוה "commandment", pronounced [ˈmɪtsvə]; plural, mitzvos or mitzvot; from צוה tzavah "command") is a word used in Judaism to refer to the 613 commandments given in the Torah and the seven rabbinic commandments instituted later for a total of 620. The term can also refer to the fulfilment of a mitzvah.
The term mitzvah has also come to express an act of human kindness. According to the teachings of Judaism, all moral laws are, or are derived from, divine commandments.
The opinions of the Talmudic rabbis are divided between those who seek the purpose of the mitzvot and those who do not question them. The latter argue that if the reason for each mitzvah could be determined, people might try to achieve what they see as the purpose of the mitzvah, without actually performing the mitzvah itself.
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