For donations Click Here

Intrusive Thoughts

Question:

What should one do about intrusive thoughts and how bad are they considered to be in Halacha? For example, if one is in the shower, or otherwise in a state of impurity or in an impure place, and suddenly one begins thinking about Torah concepts or in one’s head one thinks of a pasuk with Hashem’s name in it. What should one do and how terrible is this occurrence?

Have a great Shabbos, and thank you very much for your Halachic guidance

Answer:

We should be careful not to think holy thoughts in dirty places, such as a bathroom. Thinking torah thoughts then is not a mitzva but an aveiro. Regarding a state of impurity, it isn’t clear to me what your intention is. If you are referring to when a man is a baal keri, nowadays it is permitted for a man to learn torah and think torah thoughts even if he is a baal keri. When a person is not supposed to have such thoughts, and he has them, he should simply “change the subject” in his mind, which is not very difficult to do.

Best wishes

Sources:

M:B 88-1 Nikios Vkavod Btefillah 9-2.

Leave a comment

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *