The Purification Process of Niddah: Difference between revisions

===Exceptions to Waiting Five Days===

# If a woman sees blood in the middle of shiva nekiyim she needs to start again, but she doesn’t have to wait 4 or 5 days before she can do a hefsek tahara. Rather she can do the hefsek tahara that day and then start counting the shiva nekiyim the next day.<ref>Shach 196:22, Taharat Habayit v. 2 p. 419</ref>

# A bride before her wedding according to most poskim doesn't need to wait 5 days before doing a hefsek tahara.<ref>Halachos of Niddah p. 47</ref>

# If a woman saw blood on a Monday and if she would do the hefsek tahara on the fifth day her tevilah night would be Friday night and if the Friday night which would have been her tevilah night follows a Yom Tov, according to some poskim, she may do her hefsek tahara on the fourth day as long as she stopped bleeding by the time of the hefsek tahara. A rav should be consulted.<ref>Pitchei Teshuva 196:15 quotes the Shlah as saying that it is better to do the hefsek tahara on the fourth day to avoid the issue of separating the washing before the mikveh and the tevilah which occurs when her tevilah is on a Friday night that follows a Yom Tov. The Shlah is only lenient if she wasn't with her husband from a day before she saw blood. The Sidrei Tahara 196:42 is lenient even if  the couple was together before she saw blood. Halachos of Niddah p. 45 seems to follow the Sidrei Tahara. Halachos of Niddah p. 45 fnt. 100 quotes Rav Moshe Feinstein as applying this even if it is only one day Yom Tov before Shabbat.</ref>

* The Rosh (Niddah 10:5) writes that a woman should do a bedika each day of the shiva nekiyim lechatchila. This is also the opinion of the Rashba ([http://www.hebrewbooks.org/pdfpager.aspx?req=8922&st=&pgnum=385 Torat Habayit 24a]) and Ramban (Hilchot Niddah 9:23).

* The Mordechai (Niddah no. 737) quoting the Roke’ach (317 s.v. boel) as saying that the women should do a bedika twice a day. The Bet Yosef adds that it seems to be against many rishonim who hold once a day is sufficient. Nonetheless, S”A 196:4 writes that one should check daily twice a day.</ref> For a woman for whom checking twice a day is likely to cause her to see blood because of a wound may check only once on day one and once on day seven. A woman should only do so after checking with a rabbi.<ref>Taharat Habayit v. 2 p. 301 is lenient to allow a woman to only check on day one and seven once if that might cause her to see blood because of a wound on a ketem.</ref>

* If she only checked one day one or seven, even though Shulchan Aruch 196:4 is strict even after the fact, Taharat Habayit v. 2 p. 311 writes that in an extenuating circumstance one could be lenient. See further Aruch Hashulchan 196:25-6.</ref>

# After the fact, if a woman only checked once a day and not twice a day, some poskim hold that is sufficient.<ref>Sidrei Tahara 196:16. Rav Mordechai Willig (Am Mordechai on Shulchan Aruch p. 125) and in [http://www.yutorah.org/sidebar/lecture.cfm/863353/rabbi-mordechai-i-willig/niddah-shiur-13-shivah-nekiim-continued-/ a shiur on yutorah.org (Niddah Shiur 13, min 40-50)] is even lenient initially to avoid a woman causing herself to bleed unnecessarily and also because of how difficult it often is to check before nighttime. He added that if one wanted to be strict one should check the 1st and 7th day twice. Also, the one bedika should be done in the morning.</ref>

# A woman who wants to perform more bedikot than are necessary whether she is in her shiva nekiyim or is tahor is praiseworthy.<ref>Mishna Niddah 13a, Shulchan Aruch YD 196:9</ref>  However, if she has a bruise in that area and might bleed, she should not perform extra bedikot. Additionally, she should not perform extra bedikot before and after tashmish as described elsewhere. <Ref>Badei Hashulchan 196:132-3, Taharat Habayit v. 2 p. 370</ref>

# Ashkenazim are strict about how to treat a ketem (stain) during the first three days of shiva nekiyim, whereas in the last 4 days sometimes a ketem is tahor because we assume that it came from something else. However, a ketem that’s a k’gris or smaller is tahor even in the first three days of shiva nekiyim.<ref>Rama 196:10</ref> If a woman has a bruise in that area that is actively bleeding and stained during the first three days of shiva nekiyim needs to consult a posek.<ref>Rama 196:10 is lenient, but the Shach argues. Badei Hashulchan 196:146 is strict unless this bruise will bleed for a long time.</ref> Sephardim treat the ketem the same during the first 3 days as the last 4 days.<ref>Shulchan Aruch YD 196:10, Taharat Habayit v. 2 p. 372)</ref>

==Sources==

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[[Category:Niddah]]