Doing laundry after midday on Tisha b’Av

Question:

I am a counselor in a camp and am currently home and will need to leave for camp immediately after Tisha b’Av is over. All of my clothing are dirty due to the prohibition of washing them during the nine days and I desperately need to do laundry before I leave. I won’t have time to do laundry after Tisha b’Av is over, so my question is if I am permitted to do laundry after midday on Tisha b’Av in this situation? A friend of mine is in the same situation and her father said that it is permitted to do so.

Answer:

One may not do laundry on Tisha b’Av itself, even after midday. Furthermore, initially one should not do laundry until after midday of the 10^th of Av, although in your case, due to your plans of immediate travel, you may be lenient to do laundry as soon as Tisha b’Av takes leave. In the event that you absolutely cannot arrange for laundry to be done after the leave of Tisha b’Av due to your travel plans, and it is not possible for you to do laundry in your arrival location, then you may be lenient to do laundry through a Gentile on Tisha b’Av after midday. This means, that the Gentile is to turn on the button of the washing machine.

Explanation:

Doing laundry on Tisha b’Av faces two Halachic issues, the first being the prohibition against doing work on Tisha b’Av, and the second being the general restriction against laundering clothing during the nine days, as if one may not launder clothing during the nine days then certainly one may not do so on Tisha b’Av itself. Now, with regards to the work prohibition on Tisha b’Av, it applies only until midday while after midday, there is no longer any prohibition against doing work. Based on this, it was customary of women dating back generations to do housework after midday and prepare their home for the coming of Moshiach. Their housework would include washing the dishes, mopping the floor, and some would even launder their clothing. The Poskim who record this custom of washing the clothing, completely reject it, stating that anyone who asks must be told it is forbidden to do so. The reason for this is because the arrival of midday on Tisha b’Av simply lessens some of the mourning restrictions related to Tisha b’Av itself, but not to those related to the period of the nine days. Hence, if it is forbidden to do laundry throughout the nine days certainly it is forbidden to do so on Tisha b’Av itself even after midday. Nonetheless, we find a discussion in the Poskim with regards to years that Tisha b’Av falls on Thursday, in which case there is not much time left after Tisha b’Av to wash clothing for Shabbos. Tosafus is of the opinion that in such a scenario, it is permitted for one to wash the clothing in honor of Shabbos starting from midday of Tisha b’Av itself, meaning on Thursday after midday. This ruling of Tosafus was taken to task by the Beis Yosef in his commentary on the Tur stating that it is a great wonderment to permit laundry on Tisha b’Av itself, and after bringing many proofs from the Talmud against such a position, he concludes that one may not rely on this ruling at all. The Bach likewise concords with the position of the Beis Yosef against Tosafus that it is forbidden to be done. However, the Taz, who was the son-in-law of the Bach, defends the position of Tosafus and explains that after midday of Tisha b’Av has the status of the next day, just as we see with regards to slaughtering meat and preparing for the after fast meal which is not permitted on Tisha b’Av but permitted from midday. Hence, anything that is permitted the next day after Tisha b’Av already becomes permitted after midday. It is seemingly based on this Tosafus and Taz that some have concluded that in the time of need it is permitted for one to do laundry past midday of Tisha b’Av. However, there are several arguments against this conclusion. First of all, the Taz himself concludes that all this is just a theoretical defense of the position of Tosafus, however according to our custom to prohibit laundry even on the 10^th of Av, which is the next day, then certainly it is forbidden to do so on Tisha b’Av itself even after midday. Accordingly, even the Taz does not practically allow one to rely on this leniency of Tosafus. Furthermore, even the theoretical defense of the Taz, and initial ruling of Tosafus, is only with regards to Shabbos clothing that are being cleaned Lekavod Shabbos. However, nowhere do we find a source to be lenient in this for somebody’s who’s traveling to launder all of his clothing after midday. On the contrary, the Taz in the conclusion of his commentary brings from the Bach that even one who is traveling during the nine days and will not have any opportunity to clean his clothing after Tisha b’Av, may only launder his Shabbos clothing. Furthermore, all this was only in accordance to one opinion however the mass majority of all the Poskim, including the Rama and Magen Avraham, completely reject the position of Tosafus and prohibit doing any laundry on Tisha b’Av itself. Accordingly, there is no room to permit a Jew to do laundry on Tisha b’Av even after midday. However, we do find in the Achronim a leniency regarding doing so through a Gentile after midday of Tisha b’Av in a case that one will not be able to launder his Shabbos clothing on Friday. Based on this, at the very most, we can only permit to do laundry after midday through a Gentile in the event that one is traveling, and even this is a bit of a stretch, as in today’s times it is perfectly possible for one to take his dirty clothing with him and do laundry by his destination, despite its lack of convenience. We don’t have a source to be lenient in this simply because of lack of convenience, and hence at the very most we can only allow it to be done through a Gentile.

We will now address the allowance we gave in our ruling for laundry to be done as soon as Tisha b’Av is over. Ideally, and as we mentioned above, the laundry prohibition continues until midday of the 10^th of Av, and hence on what basis is it permitted to be done right after Tisha b’Av? So, the answer to this is that in truth the main restriction that remains after Tisha b’Av is only with regards to eating meat and drinking wine. All of the other restrictions are not explicitly mentioned in the Shulchan Aruch, but are recorded in the Nosei Keilim as also being part of the after Tisha b’Av restrictions, for which reason Ashkenazim are accustomed to keep all the restrictions until midday of the 10^th. However, there are indeed opinions who rule that all other restrictions are permitted, and due to this, in a time of need we are lenient. Accordingly, in a case that one is traveling right after Tisha b’Av and it will be extremely inconvenient to do laundry in his location of destination, then we can permit laundry to be done as soon as Tisha b’Av is over.

Sources: See regarding the laundry prohibition throughout the period of the nine days: Michaber 551:3-6; Mishneh Taanis 26b; See regarding the prohibition of doing laundry even after midday on Tisha b’Av: Forbidden: M”A 551:18; Taz 551:14 in his conclusion; Beis Yosef end of 551 [rejects Tosafus]; Bach 551; Darkei Moshe 551:6; Taanis 29b; Ran Taanis 9b; Levush 551:16; Beir Heiytiv 559:37 in name of Kneses Hagedola [rejects custom of women]; Kaf Hachaim 551:79; Or Letziyon 3:27 [permits Bigdei Ketanim after Chatzos, but not others]; Permits in certain cases: Tosafus Taanis 30a [permits Shabbos clothing]; Taz 551:14 [Defends Tosafus but concludes stringently]; Permit by Shabbos clothing through gentile: Siddur Yaavetz; Machazik Bracha 551:9; Zechor Leavraham 3:56; Ben Ish Chaiy Devarim 7; Kaf Hachaim 551:79; See regarding the extension of the restrictions until midday of the 10^th: Michaber and Rama 558:1; Tur ibid “It is a Minhag Kosher to avoid meat…only to revive the soul, so he be near mortification”; Abudarham p. 253 in name of Rosh, brought in Beis Yosef 558, that the Rosh would not eat meat on the night of the 10^th; Hagahos Maimanis Taaniyos 5, brought in Beis Yosef ibid, that there are people who fast from eating meat until midday of the 10^th; Bach 558; Maharash Lurya 92; Maharil 125; M”A 558:1 regarding music; M”A ibid and Bach 558 and Taz 558 in name of Rashal 92 regarding bathing, haircuts, and laundry; Taz 551:14 regarding laundry; Levush 559:10; Elya Raba 559:31; Machazik Bracha 558:1; M”B 558:3; 551:37; Kaf Hachaim 551:76; 558:6; Piskeiy Teshuvos 558:2 based on Mekor Chaim of Chavos Yair includes all matters kept during the nine days. Other Opinions: Some Poskim rule that only meat and wine are forbidden. [Bach 558 and Taz 558:1 in name of Minhagim of Tirana; Mamar Mordechai, brought in Biur Halacha 558 “Ad”] See also Michaber 551:4 “It is permitted for one to get a haircut and do laundry immediately after the conclusion of the fast [of Tishe Beav].” See regarding being lenient to do laundry before midday of the 10^th for one who is traveling: Piskeiy Teshuvos 558:2