Shulchan Aruch: Chapter 43 - Laws Relating to How One should Conduct Himself with regard to Tefillin when Entering a Lavatory

SECTION 43 Laws Relating to How One should Conduct Himself with regard to Tefillin when Entering a Lavatory. (1–9)

1 It is forbidden to enter a facility permanently used1 as a lavatory2 to urinate while wearing tefillin on one’s head or arm.3 [This is] a precautionary decreee, [enacted] lest one relieve himself while [wearing] them. In a provisional lavatory, i.e., a place where people do not customarily relieve themselves, it is permitted to urinate while [wearing tefillin]; we are not apprehensive that one will relieve himself there, even if it is a private place.

There are authorities who, as a precautionary measure, forbid urinating while wearing tefillin, even when one is not in a lavatory, lest one vent wind while wearing them, for this is common during urination, and tefillin require bodily purity.4 One ought to be mindful of this view.

When does the above apply? When they are being worn. But when they are in their satchel which one is holding in his hand, all authorities agree that he may urinate [at that time]. For all authorities agree that it is not forbidden to vent wind when they are in their satchel, as will be explained in sec. 44[:1].

If, however, [the tefillin] are not in their satchel but are being held in one’s hand — even if one holds them in his hand by means of a garment — it is forbidden to urinate in a standing position while [holding them]. [This applies] even outside a lavatory,5 lest he use that hand to brush off the drops of urine that [may] fall on his feet6 when he urinates while standing.

2 If, however, [the tefillin] are being held in one’s bosom while he is wearing a belt or if they are bundled up and bound in his clothes so that he need not hold them in his hand (note the explanation above),7 he is permitted — while they are on his person — to urinate, even while standing.

3 If, however, one is urinating while seated or urinating onto loose earth, so that drops of urine not fall on his feet,8 he is permitted to urinate while [holding tefillin] even if they are uncovered in his hand, provided he does not enter a permanent lavatory with them. [This is] a precautionary decreee, [enacted] lest one relieve himself while [holding] them uncovered in his hands, since this is a place where people customarily relieve themselves.

If, however, one is holding [tefillin] in his hand while they are wrapped in his garment, he is even permitted to relieve himself in a permanent lavatory [while holding them].9 He must hold them against his heart, in his right hand — not in his left hand, lest he use it to clean himself — since [the right hand] is not used for cleaning.10

There is no cause for apprehension about brushing off drops of urine from the feet when relieving oneself. It is impossible that one will relieve himself without urinating, for when one strains to relieve himself he will also release urine. Nevertheless, we can assume that one will relieve himself while seated, in which case drops of urine are not a concern.11

[When entering a lavatory with tefillin,] one must be careful to wind the straps in such a manner that they not extend a handsbreadth lower than one’s hand.12 For the straps, too, possess holiness, since the letters dalet and yud of [the Divine name] Sha-dai are permanently formed with them. [See fig. 49]

[After] leaving the lavatory and departing a distance of four cubits from its entrance, one may put the tefillin on [again]. Similarly, before entering, he should remove them [at least] four cubits from the entrance, and bring them in wrapped in his garment and held in his hand.

Even if one enters a permanent lavatory to urinate, he should remove [his tefillin at least] four cubits from the entrance. According to the letter of the law, there is no prohibition against wearing tefillin even within four cubits of actual feces. Nevertheless, since this [person] must remove his tefillin because of the Sages’ precautionary decree, lest he relieve himself while wearing them, he should remove them as soon as he comes to within four cubits of the lavatory, for this is considered as being within four cubits of actual feces, as will be explained in sec. 83[:1]. He may, however, carry them in his hands to the lavatory, and while there hold them [wrapped] in his clothes in his right hand, if he urinates while sitting down or onto loose earth.

If he urinates while standing, he should not bring them into the lavatory unless he carries them in their satchel. Instead, he should give them to a friend. One should not hand his tefillin to a friend if he enters a permanent lavatory to relieve himself while seated. Since our Sages granted him permission to bring them into the lavatory, holding them in his hand [while they are wrapped] in his garment, he should bring them in with him so that they will protect him from harmful forces.13 Besides, it is a mitzvah for him to guard his tefillin himself.

In what situation is a person obliged to remove his tefillin at a distance of at least four cubits before entering a permanent lavatory? When the feces there are visible and not in a trench. If, however, they are in a trench,14 the trench is deemed a separate domain, distinct from the lavatory above it, to which the laws of a lavatory do not apply at all, as will be explained in sec. 83[:4].15 One may enter such a place while wearing tefillin. Nevertheless, before urinating, all authorities agree that they must be removed, as in any permanent lavatory. (Also, [the tefillin] must be covered, as will be explained in sec. 315[:4]).

When do the above [leniencies] apply? When one wishes to urinate. If one wishes to relieve himself, he must remove [his] tefillin at a distance of at least four cubits from the place where he desires to relieve himself, even if it is not a lavatory at all, [such as] one’s courtyard or an open field.

4 All of the above applies when one relieves himself during the day. [Different rules apply] if one relieves himself at night or directly before nightfall when there will not be enough time [before nightfall] to put [the tefillin] on again afterwards.16 [In such a case,] one should not relieve himself while [holding them], even if they are wrapped in his garment. Nor should one enter a permanent lavatory while [holding] them wrapped in one’s garment, even to urinate while seated. [Instead,] one should remove them at a distance of at least four cubits from [the entrance to the lavatory] and place them in their satchel.17

[This applies when] the satchel is a handsbreadth in size. If, however, it is not a handsbreadth in size, it is [not considered an independent entity but as] subsidiary to the tefillin, for it is their designated container.

If one places [the tefillin] in a satchel which is not their designated container, it is not considered subsidiary to the tefillin even if it is not a handsbreadth in size. One may hold the satchel or the container in one’s hands and enter even a permanent lavatory to relieve himself, or to urinate even while standing.

5 The license granted by our Sages to bring tefillin into a permanent lavatory18 even while they are in their satchel applies only to a lavatory in the fields, in which instance it is impossible to conceal [the tefillin] outside the lavatory lest they be taken by passersby.19 By contrast, one may not enter a lavatory in a building [while carrying tefillin] at all, even while they are in their satchel, for it is possible to put them in a safe place.

[Based on] the same [principle], one may not relieve himself in his courtyard while [holding tefillin], even when he is not in a lavatory, and even when they are in their satchel. It is, however, permitted to urinate [in a place] other than a permanent lavatory while [holding them] in their satchel, even in one’s home or courtyard.

6 Even with regard to a lavatory in a field, license was only granted with regard to tefillin, for one wears them the entire day, [including when] he is walking in the fields. [Thus] he cannot take the trouble to return them to his home each time [he must relieve himself], nor can he hide them from passersby in the fields.

In the case of other sacred texts, one may not bring them even into a lavatory in the fields while holding them wrapped in one’s clothes. This [prohibition applies] when one intends to urinate while seated or to relieve oneself, even outside a permanent lavatory, for [those texts] could have been placed in one’s home.20 [If, however, they are] placed in a satchel, they may be brought into a permanent lavatory in the fields if one relieves himself, or if he urinates even while standing. (With regard to [holding them in] a lavatory in one’s home or while relieving oneself in his courtyard, even outside a permanent lavatory, they are bound by the laws which apply to tefillin. [Hence] this is forbidden, even when they are in a satchel.21)

As to a Torah scroll, it is forbidden to bring it into a permanent lavatory even in a field, and even while it is in its mantle, as will be explained in Yoreh Deah, sec. 282.22

All the above [restrictions] apply when one seeks to relieve himself, or when one seeks to urinate in a permanent lavatory, in which instance we are apprehensive that one might also relieve himself. If, however, one enters [a lavatory] without the intent of relieving himself, some authorities permit one to carry [tefillin] into a permanent lavatory even when they are uncovered, and even [when the lavatory] is in one’s home. The same rules apply to other sacred texts. As will be explained, there is an authority who maintains that entering a permanent lavatory [with tefillin] is forbidden when one does not intend to relieve himself, just as it is [forbidden] when one enters to relieve himself. One ought to be mindful of this view.

To what does [this lenient view] refer? To carrying [tefillin] into a lavatory by hand. But, according to all opinions, it is forbidden to enter a lavatory while wearing tefillin on one’s head or arm — even when they are covered — under any circumstance, even when one has no intention whatever to relieve himself, nor even to urinate. For our Sages forbade entering even a bathhouse23 while wearing tefillin. They explained that the sole reason there is no prohibition against entering a permanent lavatory to urinate while wearing tefillin is that though there is cause for apprehension that one may then relieve himself while wearing them,24 [this apprehension is overridden by the fact that] urinating is [essential to] life and it is impossible to do without it.25 The [need to urinate] explains why the Sages would not have troubled one to remove his tefillin. When, however, one enters [a permanent lavatory] without this need, [this logic does not apply].

[With regard to] entering a bathhouse: This [too] is a human necessity.26 Nevertheless, since in any event, one must remove [his tefillin] in a bathhouse when he removes all his clothes, [the Sages] required him to remove [the tefillin] at [its] entrance, so that he not wear them in the bathhouse at all. For the same reason, they required one to remove [his tefillin] at a distance of at least four cubits from a permanent lavatory when he enters to urinate, as explained above.27

7 When do the above [restrictions] apply? With regard to entering a lavatory. With regard to feces outside of a lavatory, one may pass by them while wearing tefillin on one’s head and arm, if one’s path leads that way. There is no need to make a detour [to avoid] them.

For this reason it is permitted, while wearing head-tefillin, to walk in alleys where filth is present, even though feces can be seen.28 According to the letter of the law, there is no need to cover one’s head-tefillin. Nevertheless, it is desirable to cover them with a hat.29

8 Similarly, a doctor is permitted to carry a chamber pot for urine when checking a patient, even though he is wearing head-tefillin. A spiritually sensitive individual should, however, adopt a stringent stance.

9 If one forgot that he was wearing his head-tefillin and relieved himself, he should cover them with his hand until the first impulse is completed,30 for if he would stop immediately, this could lead to dropsy. [When the first impulse ceases] he should go out, remove [both] his arm- and head-tefillin, and reenter.