Shaving Chest Hair

I heard there are special heterim for chassanim…lol

Honestly, go ask a rov this is not the place to ask such a question.

Chosson:

No.

i thought men view their hair as symbol of their masculinity….why would they wanna shave??? unless ur dating a hairy guy im not sure why ud even ask?!?!

“could be included included in the issur of “V’loy Yilbash Gever Simlas Isho”

bein_hasdorim

What if its become acceptable by men, is it then still considered beged isha?

Also, what if the wife likes it? Shalom Bayis 😀

apy

Thanks for posting!

(I didnt understand half of that)

sac – What type of heter is shalom bayyis? You cant be oiver on the gtaryag mitzvos for “shalom bayis” Where are you getting this source from?

If a man’s chest hair is mee’es to his wife, and it’s a real problem, a posek will probably matir to shave. The main problem for a man concerning cosmetics is to make himself look younger.

And cutting off your few strands of white hair (only)…?

Moderators must be at a moderators convention the things that have been making it online lately. The CR is degenerating into a supermarket tabloid. I think its time to rejoin fantasy football league, and use my travel time that way instead of the CR.

apy

I love the new YWN!

BP Totty

Well this topic is discussed in Halacha,does that make some Halachos “on the edge?”

I really can’t believe the blatant ameratzus going on here. Please do NOT make up halachos if you never learned the sugya at all and never even looked up the Shulchan Aruch.

The sugya is in mainly based in Nazir 58b-59a.

It is %100 muttar, l’chol hade’os, to shave chest hair using anything but a razor, and that is the STRINGENT position of the Shulchan Aruch. Many rishonim hold even with a razor, but for all practical purposes, the SA in YD 182:2 says it is muttar without a razor, i.e. the same as shaving the face.

Regarding armpits, the SA follows the stringent opinion in the rishonim that any kind of shaving is assur, but qualifies that this is only ????? ???? ??????? ???? ??? ????. The Rema says that in a place that men also do it, it is muttar l’chatchila. R’ Akiva Eiger on the spot says that with regard to this we look at the goyim to see what is normal and follow that. Please do not dismiss what I am saying without seeing it inside. I am not sure if in America it is possible to say ??? ??????? ???? ??? ????. Therefore I do not think even the issur on armpit hair is so clear-cut.

The ikkar is you should ask a rov, but please everyone, stop making snap judgments about halachos you apparently have no clue about.

Ok maybe I was a bit rash and shouldn’t have snapped at everyone like that. I could have made my point in a nicer way, and I sincerely apologize to everyone. But I still stand by my point.

Halocho or not, take it from a male… the very question raises suspicions. End of story.

And Sac,, I gotta admit, you make the CR interesting!

Still, I can’t seem to reconcile the Sac who “lives on the edge” with the Sac that wrote such a nice thing about her father in another thread.

And I’m still waiting for your answer to the “heimish-chassidish-modernish-flexidish” question.

Or are you too complex to be limited to either of these tags?

I’m pretty sure it’s assur. But as always, all halacha li’maseh shailos should be asked to your LOR, not to anonymous CRers that may or may not have a clue what they’re talking about.

“For reasons of Sholom Bayis or even better hygiene – why not?”

If it’s assur, its assur regardless. If it’s muttar, there’s no need for these reasons. I’m not sure what difference these justifications should make (or, for that matter, what hygiene issue there is with chest hair).

“And if women have a mustache or chin hair, are they committing the aveira of beged ish if they likewise remove that hair?”

No, its beged isha for a man precisely because women do it. If something is assur because of beged ish/isha to one gender, by definition it’s muttar (as least beged ish(a) wise) to the other.

BPT, would you say “feh” if a girl is turned off at the sight of chest hair, and asked her husband to shave it off? Obviously it is not something she would know about him before they got married. I am just interested in the halachic aspect of this. I am not in favor of men doing this, but if it is not up to me or you, AND if the halacha could be found to be matir in this area, then what business is it of ours if it is done, especially if it would be for purposes of Sholom Bayis, and not for z’nus?

oomis, if a girl is turned off at the sight or feel of chest hair, and asked her husband to shave it off, it may not fall within the criteria of beged isha. Again, I would think under these circumstances, a Rav would matir.

How does shaving chest hair improve speed? (And I always though those Olympic swimmers were just naturally hairless.)

Mother in Israel, swimmers shave (probably arms and legs too) to reduce drag.

OK, I suppose if we had a frum olympic swimmer with sholom bayis problems, we could make a case for shaving.

But Oomis – for a wife to say she finds her husbands chest repulsive? Boy, have we got a dire need for a Rov to intervene. But not for the shaving heter.

Sorry, I’m just not on board with this one.

“congregation ahavas achim”.

Very funny APY!

And Homeowner – I should correct myself. In a case of medical necessity, I’m sure a heter would be forthcoming and proper.

But from the OP, it seemed to imply this was coming at us from a cosmetic view, not medical

Yes, I do remember that gemorah. But its the wifes who are doing the plucking, not the husband who thinks he’ll look better w/o body hair.

Besides, who in their right mind wants two wives? Between that story, and the “aishes yifas tohar / shtei nashim /ben sorre ‘umoreh senario, I can’t imagine the upshot to having an additional spouse.

Thats different. What tumult is about is a social / cosmetic move.

But Oomis – for a wife to say she finds her husbands chest repulsive? Boy, have we got a dire need for a Rov to intervene. But not for the shaving heter. “

You should not be judgmental BP, about what women find attractive or not. And I would tend to think that no Rov would touch this one with a ten foot pole (and I do not know any woman who would be able to easily discuss this with a rov, anyway).

Plenty of men would be repulsed if their wives did not shave their legs and underarms. Why should a woman not likewise be allowed to have preferences in how her husband is groomed whether it is facially or otherwise? Thw bottom line is that he should be attractive to her (as is proper). The question is and was, it is ASSUR for him to shave his chest? It’s not for us to criticize any woman who doesn’t like chest hair. This is something a frum woman would not likely know until she is married. We are not talking about something outlandish here. Whether I think a guy should do this or not, if it is within halachic parameters, it is none of my business to say yea or nay.