Purim/Fast of Esther

Question:

Hello,

1. Is one permitted to shower on Purim?

2. If shaving is not recommended on minor fast days, is it okay to shave the night before (because the fast does not start until the morning? or is that prohibited because the holidays start the night before? For example could someone shave at 8 pm the night before the fast of esther begins the next morning?)

3. Is vaseline/chapstick permitted on minor fast days? (if it was put on the night before and remained on through the next day?)

thank you very much

Answer:

1. It is permitted to shower on minor fast days, however scrupulous individuals refrain from taking a hot shower, and even from the night before the fast.
2. Shaving is permitted on minor fast days. Please see the following link https://dinonline.org/2018/12/23/can-you-wash-clothes-and-get-a-haircut-on-a-minor-fast-day/
3. Similar to washing oneself, some pious individuals will abstain from anointing themselves on other fasts, however there is definitely no problem even for the pious person to keep an anointed cream on the body during a fast day. Even on Yom Kippur or Tisha B’av there is no need to remove creams that were applied before the fast.Have a happy Purim

Sources:

O:CH 550-2, M:B 552-6.