The Straightforward Answer

During a bris milah, the mohel removes the baby boy’s foreskin as part of the mitzvah that began with Avraham Avinu thousands of years ago. What happens to it afterward?

In most medical and mohelim contexts today, the foreskin is treated as removed tissue — just like any other small piece of the body taken off during a surgical procedure. In those cases, it is disposed of appropriately and respectfully.

But in Jewish life, the foreskin isn’t just discarded. There is tradition and symbolism connected to it, and for generations mohalim have approached it with a sense of respect, by burying it.

​

Traditional Sources: Burying the Foreskin

Halachic sources mention the practice of burying the foreskin, much like how one buries hair or fingernails. The idea is that anything that came from a Jewish body deserves respectful treatment.

Ideally, it should be buried a tefach (handbreadth) underground.

Some older customs even specified burying it outside a synagogue, symbolizing a connection between the child’s bris and the holiness of the community’s place of prayer. The Holy Books teach that this burial helps ensure the child’s heart will be drawn toward kedusha — holiness — from a young age.

​

A Time for Prayer

Although the Bris is itself a powerful time to pray, the holy Arizal says that the time of burying the foreskin is as well a special time to pray.

 

A Unique Personal Practice

Every mohel has their way of fulfilling this tradition. In my own practice, I take this custom one step further:I bury the foreskins from the brissim I perform in earth brought from Israel.

Why? If Chazal (our Sages) saw significance in placing the foreskin into the ground near a shul to inspire the child’s soul toward holiness, I thought — what greater holiness is there than the soil of Eretz Yisrael itself? By returning this small piece of the child to the holy earth of Israel, I hope it will symbolically draw his heart toward the spiritual center of our people, the Land promised to Avraham at the very first bris.

Parents often find comfort in knowing that their child’s bris is connected not only to Jewish tradition, but to Israel itself in a tangible way.

 

My Teacher's Problem

Many Mohelim will bring dirt in some sort of container to the Bris. Some Mohelim keep this container in their "sterile" bag. My teacher, Rabbi Aharon Greentzveig z"l said that this is a terribly unsanitary practice. If one wants to bury the foreskin immediately, he must keep everything completely seperate. The sterile bag and the dirt should never make any sort of contact. Therefore, my personal practice is to take the foreskin with me and bury it later.

 

Focusing on the Covenant, Not the Foreskin

It’s important to emphasize that while people may be curious about “what happens to the foreskin,” the foreskin itself is not the focus of the mitzvah. The bris is about the baby entering into the covenant of Avraham Avinu, becoming part of an eternal chain that has united our people for millennia.

The foreskin has no continuing role after its removal. Its respectful burial simply acknowledges that it was once part of a Jewish child’s body and connects the bris to a larger sense of holiness.

 

Modern Context: How Parents Should Think About It

For parents, the takeaway is simple: you don’t have to worry about what happens to the foreskin. The mohel takes care of it — respectfully, quietly, and in line with tradition.

Your role as parents is to focus on the joy of the day, on giving your son a meaningful start in his Jewish journey, and on surrounding him with love, blessings, and community.

 

Final Thoughts

The question of “What does the mohel do with the foreskin?” may seem unusual at first, but it really reflects something beautiful: people want to understand every part of this mitzvah. The foreskin itself is only a tiny piece of tissue, but how it is treated reflects the dignity and depth with which Judaism approaches the body, holiness, and covenant.

When I perform a bris, my goal is always the same: that your son should heal quickly, that the ceremony should be meaningful, and that your family should feel uplifted and inspired.

If you’d like to learn more about what to expect, you can read about the bris preparation process, our FAQ, or see photos of past brissim in our gallery. And of course, you can always reach out through the homepage to ask me directly — no question is too small when it comes to something this meaningful.

​

​