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DAAT · LEVEL 1 — INTRODUCTION
Siman מ״א · Carrying a load with the tefilin (הנושא משאוי)
דין הנושא משאוי איך ינהוג בתפילין — one who carries a load on his head removes the תפילין של ראש until he sets down the load; even a מטפחת is forbidden on the head where the tefilin are, but a כובע or מצנפת is permitted; and if the load is heavy (ד׳ קבין) and presses the tefilin, they must be removed
סימן מ״א · סעיף אחד
דין הנושא משאוי איך ינהוג בתפילין
🌱 Introductory level · Beginners
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After teaching the respect due to the sanctity of the tefilin (siman 40), the Shulchan Aroukh here, in a single seif, settles a concrete case: one who carries a load (משאוי) on his head. He removes the של ראש until he has set down the load, for a load on the tefilin is a בזיון of their sanctity and a היסח הדעת. Even a מטפחת (a cloth) is forbidden on the head that bears the tefilin; but what one is accustomed to place on the head — a כובע or a מצנפת — is permitted. And the Rama adds: even so, if the load is heavy (ד׳ קבין) and the tefilin are pressed (נדחקות), they must be removed. Hebrew text, fluent English translation and explanations of the single seif, with a section of practical cases.
Topic: How to conduct oneself with the tefilin when carrying a load — removing the של ראש, the מטפחת and the כובע, and the heavy load
Source: שולחן ערוך אורח חיים סימן מ״א · סעיף אחד
Compiled by: Rav Yossef Haim Samama
DAAT · daattorah.com
The previous siman taught us the general respect owed to the tefilin — objects of קדושה that must be guarded from any בזיון (see siman 40). This siman draws from it a living case: a man wearing the tefilin must suddenly carry a load on his head. The load would crush or disgrace the של ראש, and turn the mind away from the mitsva. The Shulchan Aroukh therefore teaches how to conduct oneself: to remove the של ראש under the load, to distinguish between what is a habitual garment of the head and what is not, and to remove the tefilin when a heavy load presses them. 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. הנושא משאוי · חליצת של ראש — one who carries a load on his head removes the של ראש until he sets down the load (single seif)
B. מטפחת · כובע · מצנפת — even a מטפחת is forbidden on the head; but a כובע or מצנפת, a habitual garment, is permitted (single seif)
C. משאוי כבד ד׳ קבין — Rama: even so, if the load is heavy and the tefilin are pressed (נדחקות), they must be removed (הגה)
+ Practical cases and comprehension questions
A. הנושא משאוי — carrying a load on the head (single seif)
Original text (single seif)
הנושא משאוי על ראשו חולץ תפילין של ראש עד שיסיר המשאוי.
One who carries a load (משאוי) on his head removes the tefilin of the head (של ראש) until he has set down the load.
מַשּׂאוֹי — “the load” — the משאוי is a burden carried on the head (a sack, a basket, a crate). Placing a load on the head where the tefilin are is a conduct of בזיון (disgrace) toward their sanctity, and it also turns the mind away from the mitsva (היסח הדעת). This is why one first removes the של ראש.
תְּפִלִּין שֶׁל רֹאשׁ — “the tefilin of the head” — the של ראש is the box placed on the head. It is what would be crushed or disgraced under the load; one therefore removes it (חולץ) until the load is set down, and then puts it back. The של יד on the arm is not affected by this load carried on the head.
What this seif says:
- The case: one who carries a load (משאוי) on his head while wearing the tefilin.
- The conduct: he removes the של ראש until he has set down the load.
- The reason: the load on the head is a בזיון of the sanctity and a היסח הדעת.
The seif in one sentence: out of respect for their sanctity, one who must carry a load on his head removes the של ראש until the load is set down — for a load placed there would be a disgrace and would turn the mind away.
B. מטפחת · כובע · מצנפת — what is permitted on the head (single seif)
Original text (continuation of the seif)
ואפילו מטפחת אסור להניח על הראש שיש בו תפילין, אבל דבר שדרכו ליתן בראשו כגון כובע או מצנפת מותר.
And even a מטפחת (a cloth), it is forbidden to place on the head where the tefilin are; but a thing one is accustomed to place on his head, such as a כובע (hat) or a מצנפת (turban), is permitted.
מִטְפַּחַת — “the cloth” — the מטפחת is a fabric, a handkerchief or a cloth that one is not accustomed to wear on the head as a garment. To place it on the tefilin is a בזיון, for it is placing “something else” on them that is not an adornment of the head. Even this small cloth is therefore forbidden on the head that bears the tefilin.
כּוֹבַע · מִצְנֶפֶת — “hat” · “turban” — the כובע and the מצנפת are head coverings that one is accustomed to wear on the head (דבר שדרכו ליתן בראשו). It is no disgrace to put them over the tefilin, for that is the ordinary manner of clothing the head, not a foreign burden. They are therefore permitted.
What this seif says:
- Forbidden: even a מטפחת (a simple cloth) on the head that bears the tefilin.
- The reason: it is “something else” that is not a habitual garment of the head — a בזיון.
- Permitted: a כובע or a מצנפת, for it is דבר שדרכו — the usual way to cover the head.
The seif in one sentence: what is not a habitual garment of the head — even a מטפחת — is forbidden on the tefilin, for it is a disgrace; but a כובע or a מצנפת, an ordinary head covering, is permitted, even placed over the tefilin.
C. משאוי כבד ד׳ קבין — the heavy load (Rama)
Original text (הגה — Rama)
הגה: ואפילו הכי אם הוא משאוי כבד ד׳ קבין והתפילין נדחקות צריך להסירן. (ב״י)
Rama: and even so (even if it is a permitted כובע or מצנפת), if it is a heavy load of ד׳ קבין (four kabin) and the tefilin are pressed / displaced (נדחקות), they must be removed. (Beit Yossef)
ד׳ קַבִּין — “four kabin” — the קב is a measure of volume in the Torah; ד׳ קבין denotes a load considered heavy. The Rama thereby sets a marker: beyond this weight, one no longer relies on the head covering being permitted, since the load presses the tefilin.
נִדְחָקוֹת — “pressed / displaced” — when a heavy load presses the tefilin, they may move from their place (מקום) on the head. But the tefilin must remain at their exact spot; if they are displaced, one no longer fulfills the mitsva properly. This is why, in that case, they must be removed — even if the head covering itself is permitted.
What this seif says:
- “Even so”: even with a permitted כובע or מצנפת…
- The condition: if the load is heavy (ד׳ קבין)…
- The risk: the tefilin are נדחקות (pressed, displaced from their place).
- The conduct: they must then be removed.
The seif in one sentence: even under a permitted head covering, a heavy load of ד׳ קבין that presses the tefilin requires removing them, so they be neither disgraced nor displaced from their place.
Practical cases
Case 1 — Carrying a parcel or sack on the head in tefilin
Situation: someone still wears his tefilin and must lift a parcel, a crate or a sack onto his head. What should he do?
Conduct: one who carries a משאוי (a load) on his head removes the של ראש until he has set down the load (single seif), for a load placed on the tefilin is a בזיון of their sanctity and a היסח הדעת. Once the load is set down, one puts the של ראש back on. In practice, one does not place a burden on the head while the tefilin are there; for a concrete case, one asks the Rav.
Case 2 — Putting a hood or a hat over the tefilin
Situation: someone wants to cover his head over the tefilin — with a hat, a turban, or on the contrary a simple cloth. What is permitted?
Conduct: a כובע (hat) or a מצנפת (turban) is permitted over the tefilin, for it is דבר שדרכו — a habitual garment of the head (single seif). By contrast, a מטפחת (a cloth one is not accustomed to wear on the head) is forbidden, for it is placing “something else” on them, a disgrace. And the Rama adds: even a permitted head covering, if it becomes a heavy load (ד׳ קבין) that presses the tefilin (נדחקות), requires removing them.
Case 3 — The respect owed to the tefilin day by day
Situation: beyond this precise case, what does this siman teach us about everyday conduct with the tefilin?
Conduct: this siman is an application of the principle of siman 40: the tefilin are objects of קדושה, and one guards against any בזיון and any היסח הדעת. One does not load the head that bears them, one places on them only what is a habitual garment of the head, and one takes care that they remain at their place without being pressed. For the boundary between what is permitted and what presses the tefilin in a real case, one asks the Rav.
Comprehension questions
Check your understanding:
- Why must one who carries a load (משאוי) on his head remove the של ראש?
- What are the two reasons that explain this conduct (בזיון and היסח הדעת)?
- Why is a מטפחת forbidden while a כובע is permitted?
- What does דבר שדרכו ליתן בראשו mean, and why is it decisive?
- What does the Rama add with the משאוי כבד of ד׳ קבין and the תפילין נדחקות?
Going further
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- 👑 Level 4 — Daat HaRav (the Alter Rebbe): the shitah of the Shulchan Aroukh HaRav — the נושא משאוי, the מטפחת and the כובע, and the heavy load