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DAAT · LEVEL 4 — DAAT HARAV (CHABAD) & HALACHA LEMA'ASSE

שולחן ערוך · יורה דעה

Siman 183 — The Foundation of Niddah: Makor, Hargasha, and the Seven Clean Days

סימן קפ״ג · דעת הרב והלכה למעשה

יסוד דין הנדה ושבעה נקיים

שיטת הצמח צדק וחב״ד · פסק הבית יוסף והרמ״א · נושאי הכלים והפוסקים בזמננו

🕯️ דעת הרב · פסק הלכה ולמעשה 🕯️

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Daat HaRav (Chabad) & Halacha lema'asse

The shitah of the Tzemach Tzedek and Chabad on Niddah,
then the halacha lema'asse of the nossei kelim and the contemporary poskim

Subject:
שולחן ערוך יורה דעה סימן קפ״ג (סעיף אחד)
יסוד דין הנדה: מקור, הרגשה, שבעה נקיים

Register:
Taharat haMishpacha is an intimate and weighty subject.
We expose the sugya and the shitot ; we never rule on a personal case.
For any application: consult your Rav (or a Chabad Rav / Dayan).

Writing and iyun:
הרב יוסף חיים סממה · DAAT

How to read this level. Siman 183 is the foundation of all the laws of Niddah (Taharat haMishpacha): a woman whose blood comes from her מקור with הרגשה is a niddah, and counts seven clean days. This level has two parts. (1) Daat HaRav — the Chabad shitah: unlike kashrut, here there is a genuine Chabad halakhic tradition, whose authority of reference is the Tzemach Tzedek. (2) Halacha lema'asse: the general pesak (Beit Yossef, Rama, Shach, Taz, Sidrei Tahara, Chochmat Adam, Aruch haShulchan) and the contemporary pesak (Taharat haBayit, Shiurei Shevet haLevi, Badei haShulchan). We cite only real and attested positions ; where a specific Chabad ruling is not established with certainty, we present it at the level of principle. Every concrete application (lema'asse) concludes with the referral to your Rav (or a Chabad Rav / Dayan): this subject is never decided alone.

📑 תוכן העניינים

שורש הסימן — מקור, הרגשה, עקירה (סעיף אחד)
פסק המחבר והרמ״א — מסגרת ההלכה ביסוד הנדה
שיטת הצמח צדק וחב״ד — דעת הרב על טהרת המשפחה
הרגשה דאורייתא — שלוש ההרגשות (פתחי תשובה)
מקור הדם — דם מקור מול דם מכה / כתם
שבעה נקיים — חומרא דרבי זירא ובנות ישראל
פנויה ונשואה — איסור נדה וחיוב כרת (ריב״ש, רמ״א)
פסיקת הספרדים בזמננו — טהרת הבית, ילקוט יוסף
פסיקת האשכנזים — חכמת אדם, ערוך השולחן, שיעורי שבט הלוי
מקרים מודרניים — הרגשה מול כתם, מקור הדם, רפואה
סיכום מעשי וטבלאות — ולמעשה, שאל את רבך

📜 The Text of the Shulchan Aruch — Single Seif (סעיף אחד)

אִשָּׁה שֶׁיָּצָא דָּם מִמְּקוֹרָהּ, בֵּין בְּאֹנֶס בֵּין בְּרָצוֹן — טְמֵאָה ; וְהוּא שֶׁתַּרְגִּישׁ בִּיצִיאָתוֹ. וּמִיהוּ מִשֶּׁתַּרְגִּישׁ בּוֹ שֶׁנֶּעֱקַר מִמְּקוֹמוֹ וְיָצָא — טְמֵאָה, אַף עַל פִּי שֶׁלֹּא יָצָא לַחוּץ ; וַאֲפִלּוּ לֹא רָאֲתָה אֶלָּא טִפַּת דָּם כְּחַרְדָּל — יוֹשֶׁבֶת עָלָיו שִׁבְעָה נְקִיִּים.

הגה: כַּאֲשֶׁר יִתְבָּאֵר מִשְׁפָּטָן לְקַמָּן סִימָן קצ״ו ; וְאֵין חִלּוּק בֵּין פְּנוּיָה לִנְשׂוּאָה לְעִנְיַן אִסּוּר נִדָּה (ריב״ש), כִּי כָּל הַבָּא עַל הַנִּדָּה חַיָּב כָּרֵת.

The principle. A woman whose blood comes out from her מקור (uterine source), whether under compulsion (באונס) or naturally (ברצון), is טמאה (a niddah) — provided she feels it (הרגשה) at the moment it comes out. Once she feels that it has detached from its place and emerged, she is טמאה even if it did not exit to the outside ; and even a single drop the size of a mustard seed (כחרדל) → she counts seven clean days (שבעה נקיים).

Rama: the details of the count are in siman קצ״ו ; and there is no distinction between an unmarried and a married woman regarding the prohibition of niddah (Rivash), for "whoever cohabits with a niddah is liable to karet."

— Shulchan Aruch, Yoreh De'ah 183:1 · Talmudic basis: נדה (makor, hargasha) and the chumra of Rabbi Zeira (Niddah 66a) · Sefaria YD 183:1

1. שורש הסימן — Makor, Hargasha, Akirah

The foundation. Siman 183 opens the laws of Niddah and sets out their three pillars. (1) מקור: only blood from the uterine source renders a woman טמאה — bleeding of another origin (a wound, מכה) is a separate matter, treated under stains (siman 190). (2) הרגשה: the sensation at the moment the blood detaches is the deOraita condition ; without it, a stain found is only deRabbanan (כתם). (3) עקירה / יציאה: the טומאה arises at the akirah (detachment from the makor), even without exit to the outside. And a single drop כחרדל suffices to count seven clean days.

Ones and ratzon (Taz s.k. 1). The Taz clarifies the two modes: באונס — the blood comes out due to compulsion (for example a jump or exertion) ; ברצון — it comes out naturally, in the ordinary way. In both cases, once there is הרגשה, the woman is a niddah. This is the universality of the principle: it is not the circumstance that determines the טומאה, but the very fact that blood from the makor detached and that she felt it.

"Even if it did not exit to the outside" — the moment of טומאה

The Mehaber rules that the woman is טמאה as soon as she feels that the blood detached from its place (akirah), even if it has not yet exited to the outside (the bayit hachitzon). The Pitchei Teshuva (s.k. 2) brings the question of the Brit Avraham: for the טומאה, must the blood also pass from the bayit hachitzon outward, or does the akirah from the makor suffice? — a point of iyun referred to siman קפ״ח. In practice, we hold to the text: the felt akirah suffices.

2. פסק המחבר והרמ״א — The Map of the Siman

Siman 183 has only a single seif (סעיף אחד), yet it founds all the practice. The Mehaber establishes the principle (makor + hargasha → niddah → seven clean days) ; the Rama (הגה) adds two decisive points: the referral of the count to siman קצ״ו, and the universality of the prohibition (unmarried and married, liability to karet). Here is the map, as it emerges from the text itself.

Element	Concept	Ruling (anchored in the text)
מקור	Origin of the blood	Only blood from the makor renders טמאה (Shach: derashah "מקור דמיה"). Other origin → stains, siman 190.
הרגשה	The sensation	deOraita condition: "והוא שתרגיש ביציאתו." Without הרגשה → stain (deRabbanan). Three kinds of הרגשה (PT s.k. 1).
עקירה	Detachment	טמאה from the akirah of the makor, "even if it did not exit to the outside" (Taz). Brit Avraham question (PT s.k. 2) referred to siman קפ״ח.
כחרדל	Quantity	Even a drop "the size of a mustard seed" suffices (PT s.k. 3: Shev Yaakov, Keter Kehunah ; dry blood).
ז׳ נקיים	The consequence	One counts seven clean days (chumra of Rabbi Zeira / benot Yisrael). Details of the count → siman קצ״ו.
פנויה ונשואה (Rama)	Scope	No distinction regarding the prohibition of niddah (Rivash), for whoever cohabits with a niddah is liable to karet.

כלל הפסק של הסימן :
דם הבא מן המקור, בהרגשה, מטמא משעת העקירה — ואפילו טיפה כחרדל — ומחייב שבעה נקיים (חומרא דרבי זירא, בנות ישראל). ואין חילוק בין פנויה לנשואה, כי כל הבא על הנדה חייב כרת. וכל פרטי המעשה (משפטן) לקמן סימן קצ״ו.

3. שיטת הצמח צדק וחב״ד — Daat HaRav

Note on method (important). This part presents the Chabad halakhic approach to Niddah. Unlike kashrut, here there is a genuine tradition of Chabad pesak. We present it at the level of principle and of the authorities ; we attribute to the Tzemach Tzedek and to no Rebbe any specific ruling, responsum number, or minhag that we could not verify. For the detail of a case, the Chabad practice is to turn to a Chabad Rav or a Dayan.

The Tzemach Tzedek — Chabad's authority of reference on Niddah

The Tzemach Tzedek — Rabbi Menachem Mendel Schneersohn (1789-1866), the third Rebbe of Lubavitch and grandson of the Admur HaZaken — is the foremost posek of Chabad, in particular in Taharat haMishpacha. His collection of responsa and pisqei dinim (the Shut Tzemach Tzedek) covers Yoreh De'ah and the laws of Niddah extensively, and it is to him that the Chabad tradition turns first for these questions. At the level of principle, the Chabad school is characterized by great stringency in Taharat haMishpacha and a commitment to the precise study of the laws of Niddah.

Daat HaRav and the foundation of the siman. On the very bedrock of this siman — הרגשה, מקור, שבעה נקיים — the Chabad approach does not depart from the framework of the Shulchan Aruch and the Rama: הרגשה as the deOraita condition, blood of the makor as alone rendering טמאה, and the count of the seven clean days as universal practice. The distinctiveness of Chabad shows mainly in the rigor of the bedikot and harchakot, and in the minhagim transmitted by the Rebbeim — matters of practical detail, verified with a Chabad Rav.

Lema'asse (Daat HaRav). According to the Chabad tradition, in these matters one follows the Tzemach Tzedek and the pisqei dinim transmitted in Chabad, with the rigor proper to the school in Taharat haMishpacha. For applying a real case (הרגשה, מקור, the course of the seven clean days), consult your Rav (or a Chabad Rav / Dayan): this level presents the principle, it does not decide your situation.

4. הרגשה דאורייתא — The Three Kinds of Sensation

Three kinds of הרגשה (Pitchei Teshuva s.k. 1). The Pitchei Teshuva distinguishes three forms: (1) שנזדעזע גופה — her body shudders (Rambam, Issurei Biah ch. 5) ; (2) שנפתח מקורה — the sensation of the makor opening (cf. simanim קפ״ח and ק״ן) ; (3) דבר לח זב — the sensation of a moist flow (responsa of the Acharonim). This הרגשה founds the structuring distinction of all the laws of Niddah: הרגשה → deOraita ; a stain without הרגשה (כתם) → deRabbanan (siman 190).

Why the הרגשה is decisive

The Torah forbids only blood felt at its emergence. A stain found without any sensation does not, by Torah law, have the status of niddah: it is a rabbinic institution (כתם), with its own rules of origin, surface, and color (siman 190). From this flows the entire practical economy: one does not assess in the same way a sighting accompanied by הרגשה and a stain noticed afterward. The detail of the three kinds of הרגשה, and their application to a real case, are delicate questions — not to be decided alone.

Lema'asse (הרגשה). Retain that הרגשה is the deOraita condition of niddah status, and that a stain without sensation belongs to another regime (כתם, siman 190). But recognizing what constitutes a genuine הרגשה, and distinguishing הרגשה from a mere sensation without blood, is precisely what is not decided alone. Consult your Rav (or a Chabad Rav / Dayan).

5. מקור הדם — Makor Blood, Wound Blood, and Stains

The derashah "מקור דמיה" (Shach). The Shach anchors the makor requirement in the verse וְהִיא גִלְּתָה אֶת מְקוֹר דָּמֶיהָ: only blood from the uterine source renders the woman טמאה. Bleeding of another origin — a wound (מכה), an ailment — does not, in itself, carry the status of niddah blood. This is a principle with heavy practical consequences, especially for non-menstrual (medical) bleeding, where the origin of the blood radically changes the status.

Makor blood / wound blood / stain — three regimes

Makor blood with הרגשה: niddah deOraita → seven clean days (our siman).
Wound blood (מכה): blood from an injury or a medical cause — a distinct regime ; attributing blood to a מכה follows precise conditions, often with medical assessment and a rabbinic decision.
Stain (כתם, without הרגשה): a deRabbanan institution with its rules of surface (כגריס), of carrier, and of color (siman 190).

Lema'asse (origin of the blood). The origin of the bleeding is determinative: makor blood (with הרגשה) ≠ wound blood ≠ a stain without sensation. Attributing bleeding to a מכה or a medical cause, and drawing the halakhic consequences, requires an examination of the facts (and sometimes a medical assessment) that only a posek can conduct. Consult your Rav (or a Chabad Rav / Dayan).

6. שבעה נקיים — The Chumra of Rabbi Zeira, Foundation of Practice

The heart of the siman. By Torah law, niddah and zavah are two distinct regimes: the niddah (blood at the expected days) waits seven days and then immerses ; the zavah (blood outside those days) requires seven clean days before immersion. The chumra of Rabbi Zeira (Niddah 66a) reports that the daughters of Israel (benot Yisrael) accepted upon themselves to treat every sighting of blood — even a drop, even on niddah days — as a possible doubt of zivah. Hence the universal practice today: one always counts seven clean days.

"She counts seven clean days for it." This is exactly what our seif says: even a drop כחרדל entails the count of seven clean days. The force of that acceptance (benot Yisrael were stringent) is that it unified the two institutions: in practice one no longer distinguishes niddah from zavah — every sighting of makor blood (with הרגשה) leads to the seven clean days. The Rama refers, for the details of the count (when to begin, the bedikot of the first and seventh days, the hefsek taharah), to siman קצ״ו.

Lema'asse (seven clean days). The founding practical rule: every sighting of uterine blood with הרגשה → niddah → one counts seven clean days before immersion. But the exact course (the hefsek taharah, the count of the seven days, the bedikot, the timing of immersion) belongs to siman קצ״ו and is always conducted with a Rav. Consult your Rav (or a Chabad Rav / Dayan).

7. פנויה ונשואה — The Universality of the Prohibition

The Rama's gloss (in the name of the Rivash). The Rama stresses, citing the Rivash (brought by the Beit Yossef), that there is no distinction between an unmarried and a married woman regarding the prohibition of niddah. The reason is of the greatest gravity: כל הבא על הנדה חייב כרת — the prohibition carries karet, independently of marital status. The scope of the law is therefore universal ; the subject is treated with the utmost sobriety and always through referral to a Rav.

Lema'asse (scope of the prohibition). The prohibition of niddah and the requirement of the seven clean days are universal (the gravity of karet does not depend on status). For any personal situation — including the time of immersion, marriage, or conversion — the halakhic guidance is always done with a Rav. Consult your Rav (or a Chabad Rav / Dayan / a qualified Yoetzet).

8. פסיקת הספרדים בזמננו — The Contemporary Sephardic Pesak

The contemporary Sephardic pesak (the school of Rav Ovadia Yossef) sets out from the Beit Yossef and the Shach. The practical reference is the Taharat haBayit of Rav Ovadia Yossef (and its abridgment Yalkut Yossef — Taharat haBayit, by Rav Yitzhak Yossef), which expounds in detail the foundations of this siman: הרגשה as the deOraita condition, the distinction הרגשה / כתם, and the count of the seven clean days. The spirit of this school, on stains in particular, tends to make full use of the leniencies that halakhah permits (siman 190) while maintaining the rigor on הרגשה deOraita.

9. פסיקת האשכנזים — The Ashkenazi Pesak

Point of the siman	Sephardic orientation (to be verified)
הרגשה / כתם	הרגשה → deOraita (niddah) ; stain without הרגשה → כתם (deRabbanan, siman 190). See Taharat haBayit / Yalkut Yossef.
מקור / מכה	Makor blood → niddah ; attribution to a מכה under conditions, with medical and rabbinic assessment.
שבעה נקיים	Every sighting (with הרגשה) → seven clean days ; details in siman קצ״ו.

The Ashkenazi pesak sets out from the Rama, the Shach, and the Taz, then from the key commentary of Niddah, the Sidrei Tahara, and the codifiers: the Chochmat Adam (and his Binat Adam) and the Aruch haShulchan (Yoreh De'ah). For the twentieth century, the major practical reference is the Shiurei Shevet haLevi of Rav Shmuel Wozner (on the laws of Niddah), often accompanied by the Badei haShulchan (the reference commentary on the laws of Niddah). All develop the same pillars: הרגשה, מקור, seven clean days.

Point of the siman	Ashkenazi orientation (to be verified)
הרגשה	deOraita condition ; three kinds (PT s.k. 1) ; the Sidrei Tahara and Shiurei Shevet haLevi refine its application.
עקירה / יציאה	טמאה from the akirah (Taz) ; the Brit Avraham question (PT s.k. 2) referred to siman קפ״ח.
Stain without הרגשה	A deRabbanan regime (siman 190) ; the Chochmat Adam and Aruch haShulchan detail its rules.

Chabad within the pesak

For Chabad practice on this bedrock, one turns to the Tzemach Tzedek (whose Shut covers the laws of Niddah extensively) and to the rulings transmitted within Chabad, with the rigor proper to the school in Taharat haMishpacha. We attribute no specific ruling that is not verifiable ; for the detail, one turns to a Chabad Rav or a Dayan.

10. מקרים מודרניים — Today's Practice (with Sobriety)

How siman 183 illuminates practice. Four concepts of the siman situate real cases: (1) מקור — the origin of the blood ; (2) הרגשה — the deOraita sensation, distinct from a stain ; (3) עקירה / כחרדל — the threshold of טומאה ; (4) seven clean days — the universal consequence. All that follows is presented at the level of principle ; nothing is decided here.

Situation	Concept of the siman	Orientation (to be confirmed with the Rav)
הרגשה felt vs a stain noticed without sensation	הרגשה / כתם	הרגשה → niddah (deOraita) ; stain without sensation → the stain regime (deRabbanan, siman 190). The classification belongs to the Rav.
Non-menstrual bleeding (medical cause / מכה)	מקור / מכה	The origin changes the status ; attribution to a מכה follows precise conditions, often with medical assessment, then a rabbinic decision.
A single drop / dry blood	כחרדל (PT s.k. 3)	Even a drop "the size of a mustard seed" entails the seven clean days ; dry blood has its own conditions.
The course of the seven clean days and immersion	ז׳ נקיים	Details in siman קצ״ו (hefsek taharah, bedikot, count) ; always conducted with a Rav.

Lema'asse. These situations are intimate and touch a grave prohibition (karet). They blend factual questions — was there הרגשה, what is the origin of the blood, when does the count begin — that only a posek can decide knowing your situation. The practical rule: do not decide alone, and consult your Rav (or a Chabad Rav / Dayan / a qualified Yoetzet).

11. סיכום מעשי — Summary and Tables

טבלה — the pillars of the siman, in practice

טבלה — who says what (nossei kelim of the siman)

טבלה — Daat HaRav and contemporary streams (to be verified)

Sefaria links (text and nossei kelim)

Concept	In substance	Reference
מקור	Only blood of the uterine source renders טמאה	Shach: "מקור דמיה" ; other origin → siman 190
הרגשה	deOraita condition ; three kinds	PT s.k. 1 ; without הרגשה → stain (siman 190)
עקירה	טמאה from detachment, even without exit	Taz ; Brit Avraham (PT s.k. 2) → siman קפ״ח
כחרדל	A single drop suffices	PT s.k. 3 (Shev Yaakov, Keter Kehunah)
ז׳ נקיים	Every sighting (with הרגשה) → seven clean days	Chumra of Rabbi Zeira ; count → siman קצ״ו
פנויה ונשואה	No distinction ; whoever cohabits with a niddah is liable to karet	Rama in the name of the Rivash

Posek	Decisive contribution (anchored in the corpus)
Mehaber (single seif)	The principle: makor blood (ones / ratzon) with הרגשה → טמאה from the akirah, even if it did not exit to the outside, and even כחרדל → seven clean days.
Rama (הגה)	Referral of the count to siman קצ״ו ; no distinction between unmarried and married (Rivash) — whoever cohabits with a niddah is liable to karet.
Shach (Siftei Kohen)	"ממקורה" — the derashah "והיא גלתה את מקור דמיה": only blood of the makor is טמא.
Taz (Turei Zahav)	s.k. 1: ones (a jump / exertion) and ratzon (the ordinary way) ; s.k. 2: טומאה from the akirah "even if it did not exit to the outside" (cf. siman קפ״ח).
Pitchei Teshuva	s.k. 1: the three kinds of הרגשה ; s.k. 2: the Brit Avraham question (akirah / exit) ; s.k. 3: כחרדל, dry blood (Shev Yaakov, Keter Kehunah).

👈 הלכה למעשה — the golden rule of this level

In substance, retain the three pillars: מקור (origin), הרגשה (deOraita sensation), עקירה / כחרדל (the threshold), which lead to the seven clean days.
Daat HaRav (Chabad): one follows the Tzemach Tzedek and the pisqei dinim of Chabad, with the school's rigor in Taharat haMishpacha ; the detail is verified with a Chabad Rav / Dayan.
Halacha lema'asse: Beit Yossef, Rama, Shach, Taz, Sidrei Tahara, Chochmat Adam, Aruch haShulchan, and the contemporary pesak (Taharat haBayit, Shiurei Shevet haLevi, Badei haShulchan) — all on these same pillars.
And for any real case — הרגשה, the origin of the blood, the course of the seven clean days — halacha lema'asse goes through your Rav (or a Chabad Rav / Dayan / a qualified Yoetzet).