A person who touches his feet is required to wash his hands before reciting a Beracha, praying or studying Torah. He may not perform one of these activities before washing his hands. One does not recite a Beracha over this hand washing.
The Halachic authorities disagree in explaining the reason underlying this Halacha. According to one view, washing is required simply for the purpose of cleanliness. Since one’s feet are generally dirty, if he touches his feet he must wash his hands before praying or studying Torah. Others, however, claim that washing is necessary due to the Ru’ah Ra’a (harmful spiritual force) that rests upon one’s feet, and it does not relate to the concern for cleanliness.
The practical ramification of this debate concerns one who touches his feet immediately after bathing or showering, when the feet were perfectly clean. If we attribute the requirement of hand washing to cleanliness, then washing would not be required in this situation. If, however, washing is necessary in order to eliminate the Ru’ah Ra’a, then this Halacha would apply even if one touched his feet when they were clean.
According to the final Halacha, it is proper to follow the stringent view and wash one’s hands after touching his feet even if they were clean. When it comes to touching other parts of the body that are normally covered, washing is not required if this occurred immediately after bathing or showering.
Hand washing is required also after one touches a shoe. Once again, one does not recite a Beracha when washing his hands in this case. This requirement applies to one who touched any part of the shoe, except the laces. One who tied his shoes and ensured not to touch any part of the shoe besides the laces is not required to wash his hands before praying or studying. Furthermore, this Halacha applies only to shoes that had already been worn outdoors. If a person handles shoes or tries on shoes in the shoe store, he does not have to wash his hands, since the shoes he touched had never been worn outside and thus do not require hand washing.
Summary: One who touches his feet must wash his hands, without a Beracha, before he recites a Beracha, prays or studies Torah, even if his feet were clean at the time. One must also wash after touching shoes, unless he touched only the laces, or if the shoes had never been worn outside.
