Peyos Prohibitions

The Rema was highly critical of the Beis Yosef’s explanation of the Tur’s comment. While the Beis Yosef defended the Rambam, he was accepting of the Tur’s question at face value. The Rema wrote, “Heaven forbid to think that our master (the Tur) would suspect that someone as saintly as the Rambam would espouse such a view – that if we did not know the reason for a mitzvah, we would not be obligated to fulfill it. We do not find among any of the sages of Israel such a belief!

“Rather, this (mistaken belief) is only the way of the heretics regarding the Torah, who do not believe in anything unless it agrees with their own reason. Therefore, it is impossible to think that the Tur thought such a thing about the Rambam. Rather, when the Tur wrote ‘this (reason) is not explicit,’ his intent was to say: We should not interpret the reason given in the Torah to limit the prohibition – that is, to say it is only forbidden in the specific instance where the idolaters and their priests do it. Rather, the prohibition applies in all situations. Since the reason is not explicitly stated in the verse, we should not permit the act in any case, even where the suspected reason (idolatrous practice) does not apply.”

When Rebbe Shimon follows his ideology and explains the reasons behind mitzvos, that has halachic ramifications. So, too, the Tur felt that the Rambam by adding an explanation to the mitzvah of peyos was in some way restricting the mitzvah to certain situations. Indeed, the Taz opines, based on the Rambam, that there are certain very limited situations where one can cut off his peyos. The Tur disagrees and rules that no such limitations can be made based on supplying a reason for the mitzvah, especially since it is not found in the Gemara.

There is a machlokes between the Rambam and Rosh about what the prohibition of cutting head peyos actually is. According to the Rambam, the peyos of the head have the same halacha as peyos of the beard. In whatever fashion one cannot cut the peyos of the beard, with a razor, for example, he may not cut the peyos of the head. The Rosh says that the peyos of the head are more stringent than peyos of the beard. One may not cut them closely, even without a razor. The Shulchan Aruch, while seemingly ruling like the Rambam, urges everyone to follow the Rosh. This is the common custom that we do not cut peyos of the head close to the skin.

However, many do not realize that peyos of the head encompass the entire area above the ear and somewhat around it. To comply with the Rosh, you cannot make a nice clean circle around the entire ear. Many barbers like to make a circle. However, the patron should insist that the barber either uses a number 2 guard on the trimmer or use a scissor and not shave that closely in the entire area near the ear. See accompanying pictures.