Tishah B'Av hefsek

if one has to do a hefsek on tisha baav, is one allowed to take a regular shower before or is it like how one does it on shabbos?? what about soap?? and what does one do for erev tisha baav??

Dear questioner,

Thank you for your question.

On Tishah B'Av it is prohibited to come in contact with water for pleasure, but it is permitted to wash oneself minimally in order to get rid of dirt. Therefore, it is permitted to wash in preparation for the hefsek taharah. You should minimize your contact with water as much as possible and limit it to the vaginal area only.  You would only use soap if you found it necessary for cleaning the vaginal area.  If you find this difficult, you could also use baby wipes or hygienic wipes, and then perform a hefsek taharah as usual.

For a hefsek taharah during the nine days, in addition to the above, you could shower in lukewarm water.

In either scenario, you would change to clean white underwear.

This internet service does not preclude, override or replace the psak of any rabbinical authority. It is the responsibility of the questioner to inform us of any previous consultation or ruling. As even slight variation in circumstances may have Halachic consequences, views expressed concerning one case may not be applied to other, seemingly similar cases.

If you have further questions or comments about this email, please click here to Ask the Yoetzet.

The Nishmat Women's Health and Halacha is a public service of Nishmat, The Jeanie Schottenstein Center for Advanced Torah Study for Women. This project and others like it are made possible by contributions from people like you. If you have benefitted from the service, and wish to enable us to help others, click here to donate.