On entering a bath-house one should say, ‘May it be Thy will, O Lord my God, that Thou cause me to enter in peace and depart in peace, and that Thou cause me to return [to my house] in peace, and deliver me from this heat and its like in the future’.¹ How should he conduct himself² before entering? He removes his shoes, then his hat, then his cloak, then his girdle, then his shirt and finally his underwear. When he finished washing and left [the bath] and is handed a towel, he should dry his head and then the rest of his body. When he is given the oil³ he should oil his head⁴ and then the rest of his body. He then puts on his underwear and his shirt, binds his girdle, dons his cloak, [puts his hat on] and finally his shoes. [If he has his son with him or his servant, they put on the shoes for him.]⁵ He puts on the right [shoe] first and then the left, and when he removes them he takes the left off first and then the right.⁶ It is the same in connection with the tefillin: he puts on that of the hand first and then that of the head,⁷ and when he removes them he first takes off that of the head and then of the hand.⁸

footnotes: ¹ Cf. Ber. 60a (Sonc. ed., p. 376). ² i.e. in what order should he undress himself. ³ This is a necessary part of one’s toilet in hot countries. ⁴ Because it is ‘the king of all the limbs’, Shab. 61a (Sonc. ed., p. 286). ⁵ To spare him the fatigue. The words within brackets are inserted by GRA and H. ⁶ The right half of the body being stronger, more honour must be shown to it. Removing the left first is likewise a mark of honour to the right because the right shoe remains longer on the foot. ⁷ Cf. Deut. 6, 8, where the hand is mentioned first. ⁸ Cf. Men. 36a (Sonc. ed., p. 224).

Who enters a bath-house should not knead⁹ or scrape¹⁰ or urinate on the marble floor.¹¹ It once happened that they begged Rabban Gamaliel, who was weak, to urinate on the marble floor but he refused.¹², ‘oil’, seems to indicate a corruption of mashtin, ‘to urinate’.] Rabban Simeon b. Gamaliel said: He who urinates on the marble floor is the companion of an ass, and he who eats in the street is like a dog; some say that he is unfit to give evidence.¹³ In the case of a privy he who is inside must give way¹⁴ to him who enters;¹⁵ but in the case of a bath-house he who is about to enter must give way¹⁶ to him who is inside.¹⁷ One may not bring into the bath-house oil in a glass vessel because of danger.¹⁸ One may not spit in a bath-house because of danger.¹⁹ One may not spit anywhere in the presence of others.

footnotes: ⁹ i.e. massage strongly. ¹⁰ With a strigil to invigorate the circulation. Cf. Shab. 147a (Sonc. ed., p. 747) where this is forbidden only on the Sabbath. Perhaps here it is only forbidden in the presence of many but not in the inner room where few people congregate (so NY). Another reading is ‘or have his limbs broken’, by a very vigorous massage. ¹¹ In the presence of others, but he must retire to a corner. ¹² [The translation is conjectural and suggested by the context. As it stands the text is unintelligible, but shemen ¹³ Lack of self-respect may lead to one testifying falsely. Cf. Ḳid. 40b (Sonc. ed., p. 203). ¹⁴ i.e. hurry himself. ¹⁵ Because to hold oneself back endangers health. ¹⁶ i.e. wait. ¹⁷ He must wash himself completely with hot and then cold water before leaving the bath-house. Cf. DEZ VIII, p. 588. ¹⁸ In case the glass breaks. ¹⁹ Someone may slip over it.

One may cite the rules appertaining to a privy in a privy and the rules appertaining to a bath-house in a bath-house.²⁰ One should not extend a greeting²¹ in a place where people are undressed²² but only in a place where the majority present are dressed.²³ If most of the persons present are dressed it is as though they are all dressed; if the majority are undressed it is as though they are all undressed. A man may not give greeting to his fellow in the bath-house on account of danger, and if one does greet him he should say, ‘It is a bath-house!’ Others say that he may return the greeting and it does not matter.

footnotes: ²⁰ Cf. ‘A.Z. 44b (Sonc. ed., p. 221), ‘One may not discuss questions relating to Torah in a bath’. ²¹ lit. ‘inquire [after one’s peace] and reply’. ²² Cf. Shab. 10a (Sonc. ed., p. 36) where ‘peace’ is said to be one of God’s names. ²³ So GRA. i.e. not in the inner chamber of the bath-house but in the outer chamber.

A man should not let his feet [dangle] in a bath-tub while he lies stretched out [naked], because it is immodest. A man should not say to his fellow in a bath-house, ‘Rub me in well with your hand’, and he who says so will not depart from there unscathed. R. Judah said: This only applies when there is little water,²⁴ but when there is plenty of water it is all right. It is discreditable for a man to read [the Shema‘] twice²⁵ twice. If he repeats the whole sentence he is to be silenced, because it may appear as if he addresses himself to two Powers, similar to the dualism of the Persians, a God of light and a God of darkness. NY suggests a reading ‘to wash himself twice’. or to immerse [in a ritual bath] twice.²⁶

footnotes: ²⁴ When the rubbing may arouse unclean thoughts. ²⁵ Cf. Ber. 33b (Sonc. ed., p. 210, n. 7) where this applies only where he says each word of the Shema‘ ²⁶ Because people may suspect that he associates too much with women, a ritual bath being required after a seminal emission.

If a man covers himself in his cloak and stays in the room where they sweat he is as if he robbed the public.²⁷ He who washes himself in cold water and then sluices himself with lukewarm water is as if he robbed the public.²⁸ And if one did rob the public what should he do?²⁹ He should go and dig wells, ditches and grottoes, or repair highways and streets,³⁰ and then he will be forgiven.

footnotes: ²⁷ He prevents another from using the bath. ²⁸ To wash oneself first in hot and then in cold water is beneficial to the body; to use up hot water after having already washed with cold is waste of water. ²⁹ To make redress. ³⁰ And so provide water for the general public among whom the aggrieved persons are to be found.