Asking about tiny specks
21 July, 2015
Question:Thank you for this very helpful resource.
I understand that even the tiniest dark speck on a bedika cloth must be shown to a Rav but I almost always notice some sort of speck, maybe because I examine the cloths very carefully (should I not be doing that?). It's usually obvious that it's not blood but just dust or a fiber from clothing. When I show these specks to my Rav, they never turn out too be blood (and he usually comments on what good eyesight I have).
I feel silly showing them so often to the Rav and, based on conversations I've had with other women about this, it seems that most women either don't look at the cloths so carefully or don't show such miniscule specks to their Ravs. So, a few days ago, I it was day 5 of my shiva nekiim and I saw one of these very tiny specks and decided it wasn't worth showing the Rav and discarded the cloth. I mentioned it to my Rav later and he said that if I thought it was a clothing fiber, it was fine. The problem is, I don't know if that's what it was, but it definitely didn't look at all like blood and most women probably wouldn't have even noticed it. I've since been to the mikveh and am feeling that I may have done the wrong thing (I know that transgressing the laws of niddah is very serious). Am I being unnecessarily concerned?
Answer:Based on what you write, you need not be concerned.
Examining a bedikah cloth with care is proper; it is also proper to disregard specks on a cloth that do not appear to be blood. Especially given your rav's response to you, it would seem that his experience with you has been that these specks are often ones you can assess yourself.
In the future, you may want to check the cloth for pre-existing specks before doing a bedikah. This may help reduce the number of specks you find on bedikot.
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. All health and health-related information contained within Nishmat's Women's Health & Halacha Web site is intended to be general in nature and should not be used as a substitute for consulting with your health care professional. The advice is intended to offer a basis for individuals to discuss their medical condition with their health care provider but not individual advice. Although every effort is made to ensure that the material within Nishmat's Women's Health & Halacha Web site is accurate and timely, it is provided for the convenience of the Web site user but should not be considered official. Advice for actual medical practice should be obtained from a licensed health care professional.
For further questions or comments:
The Nishmat Women's Health and Halacha Site 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 benefited from the service, and wish to enable us to help others, click here to donate.
Users of Internet filtering services: This site discusses sensitive subjects that some services filter without visual indication. A page that appears 100% complete might actually be missing critical Jewish-law or medical information. To ensure that you view the pages accurately, ask the filtering service to whitelist all pages under yoatzot.org.