Negel vasser

Gold Member Joined: Oct 14 2010 Posts: 1225

When do you start washing your child's hands?

I've heard of people doing it on infants, if that is your practice then do you do every single time they wake up? only in the morning?
Do you start as a toddler when they start learning about routine? If this is your practice--do you do it EVERY morning?
Do you teach them when they are preschoolers and can start doing it on their own--when real gil chinuch starts?

Is doing it on young children a chinuch thing? or a kabbalistic thing? Because it's almost impossible to keep their hands tahor in general?

I'm not chassidish in anyway, We wash in the bathroom, not at our bedside. Trying to figure out what to do with my children.

Posted: Sun, May 13 2012, 6:28 pm Post subject: re: negel vasser

I have just the same questions.... I think I'll just ask my grandfather, but I also want the answers! Laughing

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Executive Member Joined: May 17 2011 Posts: 262

I was just wondering the same thing recently- I'd love to hear what others have to say.

Gold Member Joined: Oct 14 2010 Posts: 1225

P.s. my DH is a baal teshuva so we dont necessarily have a clear mesorah.

Executive Member Joined: Nov 28 2010 Posts: 336

I was just reading something about this in one of the magazines (mishpacha? hamodia?) and it said to begin when the child is able to do it himself, not struggle with a baby.
personally, I do it with my toddlers every so often, but don't enforce it daily until they're old enough to do it themself 3/4 years old.
but that because I'm busy. if I only had a toddler I'd probably do it every day!!

Posted: Sun, May 13 2012, 9:53 pm Post subject: re: negel vasser

Ds is 20 months and I wash his hands almost every day. He usually asks me to wash his hands after I wash my hands.

Platinum Member Joined: Oct 14 2009 Posts: 5893

I started doing it when DD was a newborn because she was very yellow and DH said there's some kind of segula that washing negel vasser helps with that...? But then when that stage passed I gave it up because it just made no sense, she had no real schedule of sleeping/waking, no night or day... Now as a toddler she has more of a morning routine, and she sleeps through the night so there's such a thing as waking up in the morning, so we've gone back to it but I'm not sure how consistent it is - sometimes DH takes her out of crib and tends to her in the morning and sometimes I do. So I don't know if she's getting washed every single morning or only when it's convenient, but she's getting exposed to the idea that it's something to do. I guess as she gets older and more aware we'll make sure to do it daily. I consider it a chinuch thing, never really thought too hard about the tumah aspect...

Active Poster Joined: Jan 25 2007 Posts: 30

We start washing their hands when they start picking up food to eat with their fingers. I'm not sure that there is a completely logical explanation for that timing....

Posted: Sun, May 13 2012, 11:29 pm Post subject: re: negel vasser

I waited till DS was old enough to recognize that I do it. Just before age 2 he began to ask consistently if he could do it too.
I don't know the halachik aspect of it, though and I do wonder if I should have asked a shaila when he was younger.

Silver Member Joined: Apr 26 2010 Posts: 983 Location: NJ

We started washing our girls the day they were born (in the hospital). We did ask a shailah about it & were actually told that we do not need to be makpid until bas mitzva. We generally wash only in the morning (not after naps) and I also try to wash after cutting finger nails.
We are not at all chassidish. We do not wash by our beds (bedafka), usually in the bathroom, occasionally in the kitchen.
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Posted: Mon, May 14 2012, 2:22 am Post subject: re: negel vasser

My oldest is almost 8 and still doesn't do it unless we remind him and we don't make a big deal of him forgetting. I'm finding that with our oldest it takes longer for him to "catch on" to these things whereas the younger ones are doing the religious stuff (negel vasser, davening, shema, bentching, brachos) younger and younger b/c they see their older siblings doing it and think it's "cool". My youngest who's 2 stands by the sink already waiting for me to wash his hands and brush his teeth, I'd probably forget if he wasn't doing that!

Gold Member Joined: Feb 05 2008 Posts: 2428 Location: UK

We start from Newborn.

We are chassidish and use negel vasser (not for my kids yet, I either wash them at the kitchen sink, or bring a bowl and cup when they're sitting at the kitchen table.)

I imagine it is for kabbilistic reasons.
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Posted: Mon, May 14 2012, 5:53 am Post subject: re: negel vasser

Ideally I would start when they start having a schedule and sleep through the night, about 6-8 months.
But I am not very consistent. With my dd3 I started washing her every day when she was old enough to stand on a chair and stick her hands in, otherwise it got too messy.

We wash in the bathroom or kitchen sink (if there are no dishes inside) not by our beds.

Posted: Mon, May 14 2012, 10:14 am Post subject: re: negel vasser

My 5 yr old does her brachos and davens twice a day on her own (kah). Is it high time?