Category Shifts in Halacha

(Mishnah:) During the week that the Ninth of Av falls on, it is forbidden to have a haircut and to launder.

R. Hamnuna raised an objection: ON THURSDAY IT IS PERMISSIBLE IN HONOUR OF THE SABBATH.5 What is permissible? Shall I say it is to wash clothes for immediate wear?6 Where does the honour of the Sabbath enter into it? It must surely mean, washing clothes for storing [till Sabbath], and this is permissible only on Thursday but not during other days of the week! — In reality [the Mishnah refers] to the washing of clothes for immediate wear and it speaks of a case where a man has only one shirt. For R. Assi said in the name of R. Johanan: When a man has one shirt only he may wash it in the middle days of the Festival.7 So too it has been stated: R. Benjamin said in the name of R. Eleazar: The restriction applies only to washing clothes for immediate wear but washing clothes for storing is permissible. An objection was raised against this: It is forbidden to wash clothes before the ninth of Ab even for storing them until after the ninth of Ab. And our [Babylonian] laundry work is like their [Palestinian] plain washing, but flaxen garments are not included in this prohibition against laundry work. This is indeed a refutation.

(1) On the eve of Passover [from] close to [the time of] the afternoon offering, no one must eat until nightfall. Even the poorest person in Israel must not eat [on the night of Passover] unless he reclines. And they must give him no fewer than four cups of wine, even [if he receives relief] from the charity plate.

A woman next to her husband does not need to recline, but if she is an important woman, she needs to recline ...... Rabbi Yehoshua ben Levi said: Women are obligated to drink four glasses of wine on the Seder Night.