Chapter 68:7-9
The Laws Pertaining to Traveling
7. A traveler who eats in the place where he lodges should check that the
master of the house and the members of his family are observant and
strictly kosher. Should he desire to eat meat in a place where he is
unaware of the standards of the ritual slaughtering, he should carefully
check to see who the shochet [ritual slaughterer] and the Rabbinic
authority supervising him are. In this age of great sins, many stumbling
blocks have arisen regarding such matters.
8. When a person recites his morning prayers while traveling, he should be
careful to wear a tallis godol as he would in the synagogue, because it is
unlikely that his tallis koton will be of the required size. If he is
making his journey on foot, he should stand still when reciting the verses
Shema Yisroel... Boruch shem k'vod malchuso l'olom vo'ed, so that he can
concentrate properly. If he is riding an animal or traveling in a carriage,
it is permissible [to continue without stopping the carriage].*
* {The Misgeres Hashulchon 8 and the Mishnoh B'ruroh 63:10 require a person
riding an animal to stop to recite these verses. The Pri Megodim maintains
that a person driving a carriage (in contrast to the other travelers)
should also stop for these verses. Many modern authorities say that a
similar law applies to a person driving a car.}
With regard to the Shemoneh Esreh prayers, even a person riding in a
carriage should attempt to stand. If [it is impossible for him to do so,
and] it is very urgent that he continue his journey, he may recite the
Shemoneh Esreh while seated and bow in a seated position. However, if
possible, it is preferable to stand for at least the first three and last
three blessings. Nevertheless, it is preferable to recite the Shemoneh
Esreh at alos hashachar (the first appearance of the sun's rays), than to
pray in this manner.*
* {This leniency applies only to the recitation of the Shemoneh Esreh. One
should not put on tefillin or recite the Shema until it becomes
sufficiently light to recognize a colleague, as explained in Chapter 17,
Law 1.}
Similarly, concerning the afternoon service, it is preferable to pray half
an hour after midday, if one will be able to stand properly, rather than
wait [to recite these prayers after mincah k'tanah, as described in Chapter
69, Law 2].
(The minimum distance for which one is required to search for water to wash
one's hands and to pray together with a minyan is mentioned in Chapter 12,
Laws 5 and 8.)
9. The laws pertaining to a person who is traveling and cannot find water
for the ritual washing of the hands before eating are mentioned in Chapter
40, Law 14.
Chapter 42, Law 19 states that a person who eats bread may not leave his
place until he recites the grace after meals. Also, Chapter 44, Law 6
states that the grace after meals should be recited only when sitting.
[Nevertheless, these laws are relaxed for a person on a journey.] If a
person continues on his way while eating, he is permitted to continue his
journey while reciting the grace. If he were forced to wait [to recite
those blessings], he would not be able to concentrate. However, if he sat
down to eat, he is also required to recite grace while seated.
