Doubt about ruling
14 March, 2006
Question:Please, I have a question and just need some reassurance.
I had an ok hefsek, and what I think is an OK moch. It had a small brown stain of a color I'm pretty certain is the same as one he's okayed twice. (I keep good records of when I ask my rabbi and what colors he's said are okay–I've even gone so far as to take pictures of the cloths). It is a tiny stain, and seems only a little lighter than the others perhaps because it is so small.
My rabbi said that if it is the same color as before, then it is ok. (he didn't see the cloth, though) And I understand that, and have been counting my shiva nekiyim assuming the moch was okay (all other bedikot have been perfectly clear).
Now I am supposed to go to mikvah and I am suddenly filled with doubt. Am I being overly-stringent by doubting or should I ask a sheila?
I don't want to make a mistake, but I also don't want to keep putting off going to mikvah, since we are trying to get pregnant with our first baby and my cycles aren't all that long.
Thank you for any help you can give me…
Answer:Do not put off going to the mikveh. Whenever you are concerned, as now, you always have the option of contacting your rav again for reassurance. However, assuming that he is a knowledgeable rav, if he told you directly that the moch dachuk was okay and that he did not need to see it, then he must have been confident that it was not a problem and that you described it accurately. Just as we trust our halachic authorities when they are stringent, we must trust them when they are lenient.
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