Shulchan Aruch: Chapter 3 - Conduct in Lavatory

SECTION 3 Conduct in the Lavatory. (1–11)

1 One should also conduct himself modestly when entering a lavatory,1 uncovering himself only to the extent required and not even a moment before the time required. This should be done only when he is seated,2 and only a handbreadth from behind and — to allow for urination — two handbreadths in front. The wording in some editions [of the Talmud] indicates the reverse.3 A woman should uncover nothing in front, and either a handbreadth or two handbreadths behind herself, according to the different versions [mentioned above]. In practice, one should uncover as little as possible.

2 Two men should never enter [a lavatory] at the same time.4 Instead, one should sit alone, closing the door behind him so that no one else will enter. If he is afraid to stay there alone another person may place his hand on his head through a window, but without conversing with him, for as an expression of modesty one does not converse in a lavatory.5 Therefore, if one cannot close the door, and another person desires to enter, they should communicate by making sounds, but should not speak.

However, the Sages ordained that women who go to a permanent public lavatory,6 e.g., of the kind that existed in the fields at those times or that exist in the courtyard of a synagogue in these regions, should enter two or even more at a time and should speak to each other so that their voices will be heard outside. Thus a man will refrain from entering and finding himself secluded with them.

3 If a person relieves his bowels in an open place, such as a field, he should distance himself 7 [from others] to the extent that his uncovered body cannot be seen from the front or from behind. He does not have to distance himself so far that he cannot be seen at all; even if he can be seen from afar, this is of no consequence.

If one is behind a fence, or in a yard behind the walls of a house, there is no need to distance oneself. Even if someone hears him breaking wind, the requirements of modesty do not impose any restriction. (Though most people find this embarrassing, if one is not disturbed by it [it is of no consequence], as was the case in the Talmudic era (see sec. 103[:2] and Terumas HaDeshen, Responsum 16).)

4 All the laws of modesty concerning a lavatory must be heeded at night just as during the day, except for the requirement to distance oneself in a field or the like. At night there is no need to distance oneself at all, and one may relieve oneself even in urban public places.8

If there is a [private] corner one should relieve oneself there, provided no one else is present. If, however, there is another person there, even a non-Jew,9 it is forbidden to relieve oneself in his presence — i.e., if he is close enough to be observed, even if his uncovered body cannot be seen — for it is considered immodest to be observed from nearby.

5 The above applies to elimination. Urinating, however, is permitted10 even in public and by day, for [one who contains himself] risks sterility. Therefore, in time of need, it is forbidden to postpone [urinating] out of modesty, though one should move to the side.11 This applies even to a woman in the presence of her infant son.

6 If a person relieves himself in an open place that is not surrounded by partitions,12 he should face the south with his back to the north, or vice versa. He should not have his back to the west or to the east,13 out of reverence for the Divine Presence,14 which abides in the west, facing east.15 This is why the east is referred to as “the front” and the west, “the back,” as reflected in the verse,16 “You have hedged me behind and in front.” The south is thus called the right, or teiman.17

It is permissible to have one’s back to the southwest, the northwest, the southeast, or the northeast, provided that one’s orientation is more north-south than east-west;18 if not, this position is forbidden.

Where possible,19 it is preferable to make a point of facing south with one’s back to the north, and not the opposite, so that one will not be easing oneself in the direction of Jerusalem and the site of the Beis HaMikdash. This applies in most of these countries20 that are located more to the north of Jerusalem than to the west, and even more so in those countries which are located directly to the north of Jerusalem.

7 The above applies when one eases oneself in an open place.21 Where there are partitions,22 however, or even only one partition,23 [even] in the west,24 one should sit next to that partition with his back to the west, towards the partition. If the partition is to the east, he should sit next to it with his back to the east. Thus there is no need to be particular [about directions] in the lavatories25 that are built in homes or in courtyards. Even if there is no partition other than the wall of the lavatory itself, this is considered as a partition.

However, since some authorities maintain that no partition can remove the restriction against facing east or west, it is advisable to take their reservations into consideration where possible. The initial and preferred option should thus be to build a lavatory which will not require one’s back to be towards the west or the east,26 but rather to the north.27

The whole of the above discussion pertains to elimination. As to urinating, one may face any direction,28 even west or east in an open place.

8 Once seated, one should not eliminate hurriedly29 and forcibly open the aperture, lest he cause the anal sphincter to rupture and prolapse. For the same reason, undue pressure should not be applied. One should not clean oneself with a shard that is not smooth and the like, lest he cause a tear or a perforation. For this reason permission was granted to carry small, smooth stones on Shabbos, even though they are muktzeh,30 and even if one has a shard which is not muktzeh. [Similarly,] permission was granted [on Shabbos] to bring thin stones into a lavatory, as many as a handful, to be used in succession until the last one emerges clean. After that, one may not continue to clean with them on Shabbos. Even during the week it is not necessary to clean any further, for this indicates that there is nothing of substance left to clean at the anal opening, where it could be seen when the person sits,31 for he is cleaning himself while sitting, and the last stone emerged clean. Nevertheless, it is praiseworthy to wash that place with water.32

9 A person who feels no inhibition about cleaning himself with his fingers should not use his right hand,33 but his left, because it is with the fingers of his right hand that he ties the tefillin on his left arm. Preferably he should make a point of not using the middle finger34 [of his left hand,] because he winds the tefillin straps around it. A left-handed person who puts tefillin on his right arm and ties them with his left hand, should clean with his right hand.

The above applies to cleaning after eli­mination. It is however permitted to brush off drops of urine even with one’s right hand, and likewise one may use that hand to kill a louse.

10 When one urinates while standing,35 and many drops of urine will fall on his feet if he does not lift his organ, he is permitted to raise it by lifting his testicles. If the drops fall on his feet, he should clean them off immediately with his hands and not walk among people in this manner.36 He should not hold the organ itself to raise it, for “he who holds his organ is considered as if he brought a flood upon the world,”37 lest he become aroused and emit seed wastefully. [This stringency applies] unless he holds the organ from the corona downward, i.e., towards the ground, for this will not arouse him. Alternatively, he may hold [the organ] with a thick cloth, for this too will not arouse him.

When a person is married, and his wife is in the same city as he is, and she is ritually pure, the letter of the law permits him to hold the organ even above the corona. Since he “has a loaf in his basket,”38 he will not be stimulated to improper thoughts or to arousal. Nevertheless, pious behavior dictates stringency.39

Moreover, even according to the letter of the law, permission was granted to a married man to hold his organ only while urinating so that drops of urine will not fall on his feet, but not to scratch it, except with a thick cloth which does not cause arousal.40

11 One who defers relieving himself41 — whether to eliminate or to urinate42 — violates the Rabbinic prohibition [based on the verse],43 “Do not make yourselves loathsome.” The Sages did not, however, require their ordinance to override considerations of public embarrassment. For example, [a person is allowed to wait] until he finds a private place to relieve himself, or until he will not be causing an interruption in Shemoneh Esreh44 or even in [the midst of] the blessings before Shema,45 as will be explained in the laws governing the recitation of Shema and Shemoneh Esreh.46

Some authorities47 hold that the prohibition “not [to] make yourselves loathsome” does not apply to deferring urination.48 This is nevertheless forbidden because of the danger [it might cause], and because it might cause sterility.49

Whenever one can contain himself, whether from urinating or from eliminating, for the length of time it takes to walk a parsah,50 all opinions agree that the prohibition “not [to] make yourselves loathsome” does not apply, nor is there any danger involved.

Some authorities51 maintain that even if a person cannot contain himself for much less than the length of time it takes to walk a parsah, the prohibition “not [to] make yourselves loathsome” does not apply — as long as he does not feel a powerful need and desire to relieve himself. (That is, as long as he is not in a state in which, were he not to hold back firmly and cause the containing force to overpower the desire to relieve himself, the desire to relieve himself would spontaneously overcome the containing force and he would relieve himself without having to strain or exert himself at all, even slightly. If, however, the desire to relieve oneself would not overcome the containing force without his exerting himself slightly, then when he restrains himself and does not exert himself [to relieve himself], he is not considered to be deferring — for he is merely remaining inactive. Thus the prohibition “not [to] make yourselves loathsome” does not apply.)