עברית
Halachot and Customs
Is it permitted to discard fingernails on the floor?
Question
Is there a halachic prohibition regarding throwing away fingernails? What is the reason they may not be discarded like hair? I once heard about someone who died and was judged for not burying the fingernails he clipped, and he returned in a gilgul because of it. Based on that story, my question is: if my fingernails accidentally broke and I did not find them, is there any remedy for this so that, Heaven forbid, I will not be prevented from receiving reward in the World to Come? ...
Answer
Indeed, it is forbidden to throw away fingernails. One should either burn them, throw them into the trash, or flush them away. Since after they are removed from the body, a spirit of impurity rests upon them, they can harm a person who steps on them, especially pregnant women. I do not know the source of the story.
However, one should make an effort to discard them in the ways mentioned above, but one should not become alarmed over every fingernail that goes missing; you will do your best. This is not yet a mitzvah from the Torah or from the Sages. Rather, it is an important and desirable practice. With great tzaddikim, one is particular even about this.
