Question:
Thank you so very much for your response to my question! https://dinonline.org/2022/01/23/combing-before-tevila/
I’m still not clear on how this is practically required and possible to do. Hundreds of small, short hairs take a very very very long time to “separate” with one’s fingers. (Because some of the hairs are very very short, its very hard/impossible to know if they all made it in the comb and uncomfortable to keep trying, which is why I asked if there is an alternative to combing)
If the area is washed with shampoo, is it okay to assume that any “sticking” that would be there is just wetness from water? They are short so a real “knot” is unlikely, but I guess I cannot be sure that some hairs aren’t stuck together is some other way. If overall they don’t look knotted, is there anything I can do to avoid this?
My sense is that hairs being stuck together is very unlikely? Would even one hair being tangled with another invalidate the tevila?
Answer:
Hello,
Tangled hairs only invalidate the tevila if they disturb the woman (or if the majority of the hairs are visibly tangled, which is more of a theoretical halacha, since practically, the majority of a woman’s hairs are not tangled except in very unusual circumstances).
When the halacha says that the hairs should be separated with one’s fingers, this means to briefly run one’s fingers through the hairs. This should not take more than a few seconds.
I hope this clarifies things. Feel free to contact us if you have anymore questions.
All the best
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