Chapter 23 - CARE OF THE BODY AND CLOTHING ON THE SABBATH

It is permitted to warm the body at a fire or to put warm objects on it; see 326:4,6. It is forbidden to wash in warm water even if the body is not all washed at once; but washing only parts of the body in water that was warmed before the Sabbath, washing in cold water after warming the body, and washing in an outdoor hot spring, are permitted (326:1-2,4-5). In particular, ritual immersion is permitted (326:8). It is forbidden to enter a hot bathhouse on the Sabbath, or to use a bathhouse after the Sabbath if it was heated on the Sabbath; see 326:11-13. It is permitted to walk in a public domain even if the body is wet, but this should not be done after washing until the water has dried (see 301:49;326:7;350:2-3). It is forbidden to wash with a depilatory (326:9) or with a substance that dissolves (326:10) or melts (328:22). It is forbidden to rub the body with liquids that are usually used for medicinal purposes (327:1; see Ch.26), or to massage it normally (327:2), or to scrub it except to remove dirt (327:3). On cleaning oneself after going to the toilet see 312:1-6; on using suppositories see 312:7-8; on toilet facilities see 312:9-10. On cosmetics see 303:25; on cleaning, brushing, and braiding the hair see 303:26-27. A person must not cut his hair or nails or remove growths from his body (340:1-2); on using objects that can cut hair see 302:13.

It is forbidden to wash clothes, or to shake water or dirt out of them or pick things off them whose presence is objectionable; see 302:1-2. It is forbidden to fold clothes along their original creases (see 302:3), or to remove them from a tight clothespress (see 302:4), or to rub them in order to clean them (see 302:5-7), but it is permitted to wipe them or scrape them as long as this has no other effect on the clothes or the dirt (see 302:6-9) or on the cleaning instrument (see 337:2). It is permitted to dry or wipe something with a cloth, provided this does not make the cloth very wet or very dirty (see 302:10-12), which may lead to washing it or squeezing liquid out of it (see 301:48;320:15-18;335:1), and provided the cloth does not become stained (see 320:20). For important purposes, a person may wade through water even though his clothes get wet; see 301:3-6,46. He may walk in wet clothes, but after taking them off he must not handle them or spread them out to dry (301:45-47).

It is forbidden to carry anything outside a private domain that is not a garment or an ornament, or wear a garment or ornament that is likely to fall off or be taken off (see 301:7-12,16,35,37,41;303;1-15,20); but nowadays we are lenient about many types of ornaments (see 303:18). Wearing garments outside a private domain is permitted even if they are worn only to protect the body (see 301:13-14,21), and things worn for medical purposes are permitted (see 301:22,24-28,51;303:15,24). It is forbidden to go barefoot if this is not customary, and a person should dress differently than he does on weekdays so he will remember that it is the Sabbath (301:16). On things that a cripple or a person who cannot walk securely is permitted to wear or carry see 301:15-17; on blind people and prisoners see 301:18-19; on wigs, masks, stilts, and hobby-horses see 301:20,50. On TZITZIS (13:1-3) and other things that are commonly attached to the clothes see 301:23,37,39; on things worn in nonstandard ways see 301:29-31,34,36,38 and 303:21; on rigid things see 301:7,21,35,40 and 303:22-23. On carrying valuables or sacred objects see 301:32-33,42-43; on rescuing clothing from a fire see 301:44. If wearing something is permitted, it can be removed in a public domain provided it is not carried (303:16); but if attaching something to the clothes and wearing them in a public domain is forbidden, a person should not attach it to his clothes even in a private domain (303:17), and similarly for most types of ornaments (see 303:18).

Shulchan Aruch, Copyright (c) 2000 Project Genesis, Inc.