Please note that the content of this book primarily consists of articles available from Wikipedia or other free sources online. A mechitza in Jewish Halakha is a partition that is used to separate men and women. The rationale for a partition dividing men and women is given in the Babylonian Talmud (Sukkah 51b, 52a). A divider in the form of a balcony was established in the Temple in Jerusalem for the occasion of the Simchat Beit Hasho''evah (Water Drawing Ceremony) on Sukkot, a time of great celebration and festivity. The divider was first established to preserve modesty and attention during this time.