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DAAT · LEVEL 1 — INTRODUCTION
Siman קס״ו · The interruption between washing and breaking bread
דין הפסקה בין בציעה לנטילה — must one avoid pausing between the netila and the המוציא ? יש אומרים that one need not be careful, ויש אומרים that one must be careful ; וטוב ליזהר, it is good to be careful ; and a delay of כדי הילוך כ״ב אמה is already called a הפסק
סימן קס״ו · סעיף אחד
דין הפסקה בין בציעה לנטילה
🌱 Introductory level · מתחילים
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This siman deals with a single question: must one avoid pausing between the netila (the netilat yadayim for bread) and the blessing of Hamotzi ? The Choulhan Aroukh brings two opinions (יש אומרים / ויש אומרים) and rules: וטוב ליזהר, it is good to be careful. It also gives a measure: a delay of כ״ב אמה (the time to walk twenty-two cubits) is already a הפסק. Hebrew text, fluent English translation and explanation of the single seif, with a section of practical cases.
Topic: The interruption between netila and Hamotzi — יש אומרים / ויש אומרים, וטוב ליזהר and כ״ב אמה
Source: שולחן ערוך אורח חיים סימן קס״ו · סעיף אחד
Compiled by: רב יוסף חיים סממה
DAAT · daattorah.com
Netilat yadayim opens the meal ; this siman asks whether the blessing over the bread must be immediately joined to it. The underlying principle is תֵּכֶף לנטילת ידים ברכה — "to the netilat yadayim, immediately the blessing" — as one joins the גאולה to the תפילה. The Choulhan Aroukh presents two opinions, then concludes: וטוב ליזהר, it is good to be careful. We study here at the level of principle; for personal conduct, one refers to the custom and to the ruling of the Rav.
📑 Study outline
A. הפסקה בין נטילה להמוציא (the single seif) — the two opinions and the conclusion
B. שיעור ההפסק — the measure of כ״ב אמה
1. Practical case — pausing or speaking between the netila and the Hamotzi
2. Practical case — the measure of כ״ב אמה
+ Comprehension questions and going further
A. הפסקה בין נטילה להמוציא — the interruption between netila and Hamotzi
תֵּכֶף לִנְטִילַת יָדַיִם בְּרָכָה — "to the netilat yadayim, immediately the blessing." Our Sages taught to join the blessing (and the meal) to the netila, without pausing between them — in the manner of סמיכת גאולה לתפילה, where one links the geoula to the tefila. This whole siman turns on one question: does this requirement apply also to the netila for bread, or only to other cases ?
The seif — יש אומרים / ויש אומרים ; וטוב ליזהר
יש אומרים שאין צריך ליזהר מלהפסיק בין נטילה להמוציא ויש אומרים שצריך ליזהר וטוב ליזהר. (ואם שהה כדי הילוך כ״ב אמה מקרי הפסק). (תוספות פרק אלו נאמרין).
There are those who say that one need not be careful about pausing between the netila and the Hamotzi, and there are those who say that one must be careful — and it is good to be careful. (And if he waited the time equivalent to walking twenty-two cubits, it is called an interruption.) — Tosafot, chapter Elou Neemarim.
Two opinions, one conclusion. The first opinion (יש אומרים) is lenient: one need not be careful about pausing between the netila and the Hamotzi. The second opinion (ויש אומרים) is stringent: one must be careful, by virtue of תֵּכֶף לנטילת ידים ברכה. The Choulhan Aroukh concludes: וטוב ליזהר — it is good to be careful. It is thus not a strict obligation by the letter of the law, but a praiseworthy conduct that one adopts.
B. שיעור ההפסק — the measure of the interruption
כ״ב אמה — the time to walk twenty-two cubits
The Choulhan Aroukh adds, in the name of the Tosafot (chapter Elou Neemarim): ואם שהה כדי הילוך כ״ב אמה מקרי הפסק — and if he waited the time equivalent to walking twenty-two cubits, it is called an interruption (הפסק).
How long? The measure is not a fixed duration but a walking benchmark: the time it takes to walk כ״ב אמה (twenty-two cubits / amot). Below this, the delay is not counted as a הפסק ; above it, it is. This is what gives concrete content to the conduct וטוב ליזהר: one takes care that this span of time does not elapse between the netila and the Hamotzi.
The siman in one sentence: between the netila and the המוציא, the Choulhan Aroukh brings two opinions — יש אומרים שאין צריך ליזהר and ויש אומרים שצריך ליזהר — and rules וטוב ליזהר ; and a delay of כדי הילוך כ״ב אמה is already called a הפסק.
Practical cases
Case 1 — Pausing or speaking between the netila and the Hamotzi
Situation: I have washed my hands ; may I wait a little, or exchange a few words, before saying the Hamotzi?
Conduct: by the letter of the law the first opinion is lenient ; but the Choulhan Aroukh concludes וטוב ליזהר — it is good not to pause and to say the Hamotzi right after the netila. One therefore avoids an unnecessary delay and prolonged chatter. For what pertains to the meal itself (such as the Kiddush or a need of the table) and for the details of conduct, see level 4 — Daat HaRav, and one follows one's Rav.
Case 2 — The measure of כ״ב אמה
Situation: from what point does a delay become a genuine interruption?
Conduct: the benchmark given by the Choulhan Aroukh (in the name of the Tosafot) is the time to walk כ״ב אמה (twenty-two cubits). A delay longer than this span is considered a הפסק. It is a convenient pedagogical benchmark ; for practical application and borderline cases, one asks one's Rav.
Comprehension questions
Check your understanding:
- What are the two opinions the Choulhan Aroukh brings on the interruption between the netila and the Hamotzi?
- What is the practical conclusion (וטוב ליזהר), and what is its status — a strict obligation or a praiseworthy conduct?
- What is the underlying principle (תֵּכֶף לנטילת ידים ברכה), and to which other סמיכות is it compared?
- What measure does the siman give for the interruption, and in whose name?
Going further
If you wish to deepen this siman:
📖Join the khavroutha
- 👑 Level 4 — Daat HaRav (the Alter Rebbe): the actual text of the Shulchan Aroukh HaRav on this siman — הֶסַח הַדַּעַת, קִדּוּשׁ וְהַבְדָּלָה בֵּין נְטִילָה לְ״הַמּוֹצִיא״, the measure כ״ב אמה and the psalm ״ה׳ רוֹעִי״
- 🔎 Compare with the previous siman (קס״ה) — one who relieved himself and wishes to eat — and the following siman (קס״ז) — breaking bread and the ברכת המוציא