- Context: I was recently at someone’s Friday night meal and they told me it’s forbidden to speak after washing your hands for bread. I told them the issue is not to be distracted, היסך הדעת. The main concern is you might forget that you washed and get your hands dirty again. It is not so relevant now. We don’t get dirty like that anymore. We need to use our judgment. Light talk is fine. Talking about something that can cause a distraction to the point where you’d forget that you washed and then touch dirt is Halachically required to be avoided (on a Dirabanan level).
They told me, that’s that’s true, but there’s still the idea of not speaking during a Mitzvah, so it’s still forbidden to talk between washing your hands for bread and making the bracha. I personally can think of tons of scenarios where people talk while doing a mitzvah, so I don’t get it and they didn’t have a source.
Question: Can you please explain the concept of not speaking during a Mitzvah and when and why it would be applicable? Thank you!
2. After the host/father makes the blessing for bread during one of the Shabbat meals for example, as you’re waiting for the bread to be passed to you, can you speak? If so, why or why not?
3. Same question as question 2, but what about for kiddush? After the blessing, as you’re waiting for the wine to be passed to you can you speak?
4. And as a general rule, can you talk right after you said a blessing or do you need to wait until you swallowed the food/drink, or at least until it’s in your mouth before you can start speaking?
Thank you!!
Great questions—these come up often, and you’re absolutely right to zero in on hesach hada’at (distraction) as the central halachic concern. Let’s go through this step by step:
1. Speaking after netilat yadayim (washing for bread):
You’re correct: the main issue is hesach hada’at—losing focus and possibly invalidating the washing by touching something dirty. That’s why Chazal emphasized not talking between washing and making the hamotzi. It’s not about a blanket prohibition on speaking during a mitzvah, but rather about guarding against forgetting or disrupting the flow toward the bread.
In practice, light talk that doesn’t distract from the meal or lead to contamination is not inherently forbidden. Many poskim rule that if there’s no real concern of touching something dirty or getting distracted, it’s technically permissible to speak. That said, some choose to remain silent as a personal stringency or expression of respect for the mitzvah process—and that’s totally fine too. But as you said, it’s a matter of judgment, not an absolute prohibition.
As for the claim that “you shouldn’t talk during a mitzvah”—there’s no universal halachic rule that talking is forbidden during every mitzvah. Plenty of mitzvot involve interaction, explanation, or even speech itself. The halacha depends on the specific mitzvah and context.
2. Speaking while waiting for challah after hamotzi was made by the host:
Once the hamotzi is made and you’re waiting for the bread to reach you, the key halachic issue is whether you are yotzei (fulfilling your obligation) through the host’s bracha. If you intend to be yotzei through the host and haven’t yet eaten, ideally you shouldn’t speak until you eat, to avoid a hefsek (interruption) between the bracha and the eating.
That said, in many households, people make their own hamotzi quietly even after the host does—so if that’s your practice, speaking beforehand wouldn’t pose the same issue. But if you rely on the host’s bracha, it’s best not to talk until you’ve eaten at least a bit of bread.
3. Speaking while waiting for wine after kiddush:
Same concept here: if you’re being yotzei through someone else’s Kiddush and haven’t yet drunk the wine, you should ideally refrain from speaking until you taste the wine. The concern is that speech would be a hefsek between the bracha and your fulfillment of the mitzvah.
However, if you’re making your own Kiddush or already drank, the issue doesn’t apply. Again, it’s about maintaining the connection between the bracha and the mitzvah act.
4. Speaking after making a bracha on food:
The general rule is that you shouldn’t speak between making a bracha and putting the food or drink in your mouth. The reason is simple—it breaks the continuity between the blessing and the action. Once the food is in your mouth (and especially once you’ve swallowed), you’ve fulfilled the primary halachic concern and can speak.
In summary:
You’re right that the primary halachic issue in the case of washing is distraction, not some abstract prohibition against talking. While some choose to remain silent out of piety or habit, halacha gives room for judgment. If you’re not causing a disruption or touching something that would invalidate the washing, light talk is not a problem. We should respect both approaches—those who wish to stay quiet as a form of reverence, and those who feel comfortable speaking briefly.