Smart light on Shabbat

I hope this message finds you well. I recently encountered a challenging situation over the weekend while staying in a hotel and I am seeking your guidance. During Shabbat, we found ourselves confined to our room because the room was equipped with an automatic light that would turn off whenever we exited. Unsure of the appropriate action to take, we chose to remain in the room for the entire Shabbat to avoid triggering the light. Could you please advise us on what we could have done differently in this situation?

As we know, performing or activating any melacha on Shabbat is not allowed. However, there are cases where if a melacha happens on its own and one has no intention of initiating it, it is sometimes permitted, but understanding the detailed guidelines of this complex halacha is essential.

For example, if you are walking down the street and a sensor from a nearby house turns on a light as you pass, do you need to cross the street to avoid it? The answer is no. Since you have no use for the melacha and did not intend for it to occur, you can continue on your path.

In the event that such a sensor is in your own home, it would clearly be prohibited to intentionally pass by and activate it. Regarding your specific situation, the question is whether you need to exit a room, which will trigger the sensors to turn off the lights. This scenario is known as "pesik reishe," where, although you might not care about the lights going off, your action will directly cause them to do so. Since this results in the lights being turned off, it is viewed as if you have actively turned off the lights, which is forbidden on Shabbat. Thus, you would be required to stay in the room throughout the entire Shabbat. Understandably, one might question, "What kind of Shabbat will it be if I'm stuck in a room?" It's important to appreciate that adhering strictly to Shabbat laws in such a situation is considered honoring the Shabbat (kavod Shabbat), and each moment spent in compliance is viewed as fulfilling a significant mitzvah.

An alternative solution is for someone to switch places with you so that there is always someone in the room, preventing the sensor from being activated. For instance, I recall someone who faced this issue in a hotel room; they managed the situation by taking turns to stay in the room so that the lights would not be turned off.

Another option is that one should ask a non-Jew to enter the room then the Jew can leave and afterwards the non-Jew can leave (this is permitted since it is considered amirah le’akum on an issur that is done by pesik reisha)

Nevertheless, there are instances where if one is trapped in a particularly uncomfortable place, such as a toilet, (not able to do any of the above options) and it is very difficult to stay there for the entire Shabbat, then there is room for leniency. This is based on the pesak of the Mishnah Berurah, siman 316, se'if 5, in the name of the Chayei Adam. The Shulchan Aruch Orach Chayim, Hilchot Shabbat, siman 316, se'if 1, discusses not trapping a bird in a way that grants full control over it. If trapping occurs in a room where control over the bird is limited, it is "Patur aval assur"—not biblically forbidden but rabbinically prohibited.

Therefore the Mishnah Berurah writes, if a bird enters a room, closing the window is not considered a Torah-level trapping since complete control over the bird isn't achieved. Nonetheless, it is rabbinically forbidden. However, if leaving the window open would cause discomfort from the cold that comes in through the open window, then closing it is permitted because the Chayei Adam notes that a melacha mi’derabanan done without any intention for the outcome, and with a completely different intention, is allowed in such cases, even if it results in an inevitable melacha (pesik reishe).

As we learn from the Mishnah Berurah, in cases of distress where the melacha is rabbinic, one can act to alleviate the situation, as the intention is not for the outcome of the melacha. Likewise, in the context of turning off a light, which is considered a melacha derabanan (one of the reasons that it is miderabanan is that the Talmud tractate Shabbat page 134a writes that extinguishing hot iron rods is a melacha derabanan; similarly, those who hold that electricity causes the iron to heat up, and is a melacha of mavir, however turning it off will be considered a melacha derabanan) and by leaving the bathroom, one has no intention and no interest in turning off the lights, so one can be lenient to leave the bathroom on Shabbat, even though it will cause the light to turn off.

Wishing you well.

Shulchan Aruch Orach Chayim, Hilchot Shabbat, siman 316, se'if 1

Mishnah Berurah, siman 316, se'if

Chayei Adam

Talmud Tractate Shabbat, page 134a