Many prominent authorities (including Rav Yosef Shalom Eliashiv, Kovetz Teshuvot 1:32 and Rav Moshe Shternbuch, Teshuvot VeHanhagot 1:459) understand the Chafetz Chaim in his Likutei Halachot to the third perek of Makkot (Ein Mishpat, number 7) as forbidding electric shavers. If this understanding is correct, it adds great weight to those who believe that halacha forbids all electric shavers. The Chafetz Chaim’s rulings are highly authoritative and carry great importance. However, it is far from clear that the Chafetz Chaim is speaking about the kinds of electric shavers used today—as evident from Rav Yisrael Belsky’s Shulchan Halevi, pages 126-127.
The Chafetz Chaim forbids shaving with a “mashinka,” the Russian word for a machine or a mechanical device. The common assumption is that this refers in this case—to an electric shaver. However, a review of the history of the breakthroughs in shaving in the early 20th-century casts considerable doubt on the veracity of this understanding.
The father of commercially available electric shavers, Colonel Jacob Schick, applied for a patent on his newly-developed electric shavers in 1929. The patent was granted in 1930 (https://patents.google.com/patent/US1757978). Colonel Schick made his new invention commercially available in 1931, in the United States (https://www.britannica.com/technology/razor).
The Likkutei Halachot were published in 1922, after the Chafetz Chaim returned to his home in Radin following World War I’s end (as he writes in the introduction to the volume of Likutei Halachot that includes his comments on Masechet Makkot). Accordingly, it is highly unlikely that the Chafetz Chaim refers to electric shavers. Rather, he might be addressing double-edged safety razors, as some have suggested. A review of the development and popularization of this breakthrough product might support this understanding of the Chafetz Chaim.
The Wikipedia article on “safety razors” states:
“A safety razor is a shaving implement with a protective device positioned between the edge of the blade and the skin. The initial purpose of these protective devices was to reduce the level of skill needed for injury-free shaving, thereby reducing the reliance on professional barbers.”
Safety razors were popularized in the 1900s by King Camp Gillette’s invention, the double-edge safety razor. Gillette’s invention became the predominant style of razor during and after the First World War, when the United States Army began issuing Gillette shaving kits to its servicemen.
Soldiers had to be clean-shaven for their gas masks to be effective; for them, shaving could mean the difference between life and death. Thus, the American and British armies ordered millions of safety razors for their soldiers since older razors were incompatible for use in World War I’s trenches. Soldiers became accustomed to safety razors and brought them home since discharged soldiers were permitted to keep their shaving kits. Thus, after World War I, safety razors soared in popularity. Accordingly, it is possible and even likely that after World War I’s end, what the Chafetz Chaim actually came out against was the double-edged safety razors. Today, all poskim forbid men to shave their faces with a safety razor.
Rav Yisrael Belsky presents another understanding of the Chafetz Chaim. He writes (Shulchan HaLevi page 127): “Recently, a model of a mechanical shaver from the Chofetz Chaim’s time was discovered, and it appears that the device in question cut the hair in the manner similar to that of a razor rather than that of a scissors. This was attested to by an expert in the field, who examined the machine carefully. It is, thus, quite likely that the Chofetz Chaim’s opinion concurred with Rav Moshe (Feinstein, who permitted using modern electric shavers even if they leave a clean cut as they cut more like scissors and not like razors).”
Rav Michel Shurkin (Meged Givot Olam, page 96) arrives at the same conclusion regarding the Chafetz Chaim’s intention. Colonel Schick abundantly clarifies in his patent that his electric shavers work as scissors. The Chafetz Chaim most likely would, thus, have permitted electric shavers since they cut in a scissors-like fashion. In his Biur Halacha (251:1 s.v. afilu misapar yisrael), the Chafetz Chaim requires men to leave only a bit of hair on the peyot harosh (edges of the head—the peyot). This ruling implies that regarding the peyot hazaken (the face), it is permissible to leave a clean shave, as long as a scissors device is used and not a razor (such as the safety blade or the type of mechanical shaver described by Rav Belsky). Indeed, the Chafetz Chaim—in his Machaneh Yisrael, Maamarim 13 and Nidchei Yisrael 26:1—explicitly permits the use of “misparayim kein taar,” a device which cuts in a scissors-like fashion, on the beard.
Undoubtedly, the Chafetz Chaim strongly urged Jewish men to grow full beards. Nonetheless, he agrees with the Shulchan Aruch (Yoreh Deah 181:10), and its major commentaries, that baseline halacha permits using a misparayim kein taar to shave one’s beard, even if it leaves a clean shave.
The Chazon Ish—who died in 1953—did see modern electric shavers, and many report that he forbade them. He followed the Chatam Sofer, who requires that we be able to fold over the hair of the peyot harosh and that a clean shave is forbidden on the peyot hazaken. By contrast, there is no clarity on what type of shaver the Chafetz Chaim addressed. As noted, it is highly unlikely that he refers to a machine similar to the electric shavers that Colonel Schick introduced to the commercial market in 1931. Moreover, his writings indicate that he believes baseline halacha permits using electric shavers. Thus, we cannot include the Chafetz Chaim among the poskim who forbid using electric shavers.
Removing the Chafetz Chaim from the list of those who forbid electric shavers dramatically changes the perspective on electric shavers’ permissibility. Rav Elyashiv and Rav Shternbuch’s strict stance regarding electric shavers stems from their assumption that the Chafetz Chaim forbids them. We have shown that the historical record supports Rav Belsky and Rav Shurkin’s differing understanding of the Chafetz Chaim.
While we deeply respect the Chazon Ish’s view, many American gedolim disagree. Thus, we have the halachic right to follow Rav Moshe Feinstein, Rav Yosef Dov Soloveitchik and the long list of American gedolim who permit using electric shavers. Although the Chafetz Chaim strongly urged Jewish men to wear a full beard, Jewish men who follow baseline halacha and use electric shavers need not be concerned that our practice contradicts the Chafetz Chaim’s ruling.
Rabbi Jachter serves as the rav of Congregation Shaarei Orah, rebbe at Torah Academy of Bergen County, and a get administrator with the Beth Din of Elizabeth. Rabbi Jachter’s 16 books, including a brand new book on Sefer Devarim, may be purchased at Amazon and Judaica House.
