Question:
Hi! on friday nights I sleep with my hair in a very loose ponytail.. it seems to me sometimes a strand of hair is possible to be pulled out, sometimes not Should I lean on the fact I wont? Is this an issue with shabbos. This is one of the only ways my hair will stay good.
Answer:
Hello,
You do not have to worry about this. The reason is, because you did not intend or mean to pull out any hair; you meant to go to sleep, and the hair got pulled out unintentionally.
In Hilchos Shabbos there is a rule, that if we do an action which causes a melacha to happen, if we didn’t intend that it should happen we are not liable for it. This is called a “daver sheino miskaven” a melacha that happened unintentionally. If however the thing you meant to do will inevitably pull our hairs then it is not permitted, because we know that it will for sure pull out hairs. For example using a comb, will always pull out hairs, therefore we don’t comb hair on Shabbos. However putting you head on the pillow and twisting during the night will not automatically cause hairs to get pulled out, therefore it is not a concern.
Best wishes
