Bana'im were a minor

Jewish Jews (, , ), or the Jewish people, are an ethnoreligious group and nation, originating from the Israelites of History of ancient Israel and Judah, ancient Israel and Judah. They also traditionally adhere to Judaism. Jewish ethnicity, rel ...

sect and an offshoot of the

Essenes The Essenes (; Hebrew: , ''ʾĪssīyīm''; Greek: Ἐσσηνοί, Ἐσσαῖοι, or Ὀσσαῖοι, ''Essenoi, Essaioi, Ossaioi'') or Essenians were a mystic Jewish sect during the Second Temple period that flourished from the 2nd cent ...

during the second century in

Palestine Palestine, officially the State of Palestine, is a country in West Asia. Recognized by International recognition of Palestine, 147 of the UN's 193 member states, it encompasses the Israeli-occupied West Bank, including East Jerusalem, and th ...

. Other minor sects of Judaism include Hypsistarians, Hemerobaptists and the

Maghāriya The Magharians (, 'people of the caves') or Maghāriya were, according to Jacob Qirqisani, a Judaism, Jewish sect founded in the 1st century BC, 1st century BCE. The group apparently earned its name because it stored its books in caves, including ...

. The name Bana'im occurs only in ''Mikva'ot'' 9:6. The Bana'im put heavy emphasis on the cleanliness of clothing, they believed that garments cannot even have a small mudstain before dipping in purifying water. There exists considerable debate around their activities in Palestine and the meaning of the name, some believe that they would put heavy emphasis on the study of the creation of the world, while some believe that the Bana'im were an Essene order employed with the ax and shovel. Other scholars instead have suggested that the name of the Bana'im is derived from the Greek word for "bath". In this case the sect would be similar to the Hemerobaptists or ''Tovelei Shaḥarit''.

References

{{Reflist Apocalyptic groups Jewish asceticism Jewish religious movements Judaism-related controversies Messianism Mandaeism Mandaeans Israelites Extinct Jewish sects