The Mitzvos Hiding in Plain Sight Pt 2

Are We Actually Washing Our Hands?

Rav Rudner then turned to something many observant Jews do several times every Shabbos and Yom Tov — and perhaps every day: netilas yadayim before eating bread.

He cited a story involving the Chazon Ish, who once observed people washing at a family simcha. Afterwards, the Chazon Ish commented on how few people had washed properly.

The point, Rav Rudner explained, isn’t that netilas yadayim is terribly difficult.

It isn’t.

It simply requires attention.

The first issue is chatzitzah: something adhering to the hand that can interfere with the water reaching it. The details are extensive, and questions involving Band-Aids, for example, can depend upon the circumstances and should be discussed with a rav. But the basic rules of chatzitzah apply. Although the standards are not identical to those of mikvah, one must be careful that nothing is covering the hand in a way that prevents the water from reaching it.

But then comes something even more basic:

Did the water actually reach the entire hand?

Try it sometime, Rav Rudner suggested — preferably when you’re not actually washing for bread.

Wash the way you normally do, and then examine your hand.

It can be surprisingly easy to leave a small area dry: along the side of the hand, around the fingers, or in another spot that the water did not naturally reach.

Dry skin can make this even more noticeable.

The solution isn’t complicated. Turn the hand as you pour. Use enough water. Pay attention.

This is not merely a nice chumra. Proper netilah requires the water to reach the entire hand.

A Segulah Straight From the Shulchan Aruch

People are often fascinated by segulos.

After emphasizing the seriousness of netilas yadayim, the Shulchan Aruch writes that although the basic measure of water is a revi’is, one should wash b’shefa — generously.

He then, somewhat uncharacteristically, quotes a teaching from the Gemara:

Rav Chisda said that he washed with abundant water and was rewarded with abundant goodness.

For those looking for a segulah, Rav Rudner suggested, here is one firmly rooted in the Gemara and Shulchan Aruch.

Washing Isn’t Over When You Leave the Sink

Rav Rudner then highlighted a dimension of netilas yadayim that may be even less familiar.

Many people instinctively think of washing as analogous to immersing in a mikvah: before washing, the hands have one status; after washing, they have been “fixed,” and the process is complete.

But that is not quite what is happening.

During a bread meal, one’s hands must remain shmurim — watched.

Throughout the day, our hands have the status referred to as stam yadayim. They move around without us constantly monitoring precisely what they touch.

A bread meal is different.

After washing, one maintains an awareness — even a subconscious awareness — of where one’s hands are going.

Rav Rudner offered a memorable analogy.

A person can, unfortunately, become distracted during Shemoneh Esrei. His thoughts may wander considerably. But he does not suddenly walk away to retrieve a sefer or make a phone call.

Why not?

Because somewhere in his mind he remains aware: I’m in the middle of Shemoneh Esrei.

That, Rav Rudner explained, is roughly the type of background awareness required for one’s hands during a bread meal.

You don’t need to stare at your hands throughout lunch. You can talk and participate normally in the meal. But there should remain enough awareness that if your hand begins to touch something that would compromise the netilah, you catch yourself.

Went to the Washroom During the Meal? Wash Again

This leads to an extremely practical application.

Certain actions during a bread meal require washing one’s hands again.

Rav Rudner cited the Shulchan Aruch’s ruling regarding someone who, during a meal, touches a normally covered part of the body or scratches his head. Similar issues arise when using the washroom or in other circumstances where the hands require washing.

The new washing, Rav Rudner stressed, must be a proper netilas yadayim — with a cup and in the manner required for washing for bread — not simply a quick rinse under the faucet.

Whether a new bracha of Al Netilas Yadayim is recited depends upon the circumstances and is subject to differing views. Rav Rudner discussed the differing approaches of the Mishnah Berurah and the Chazon Ish on this matter, noting that one should follow his or her minhag.