How many prohibitions apply during the thirty days of mourning (sheloshim)?
Five prohibitions apply during sheloshim: haircut, wearing freshly ironed clothes, marriage, entering joyous celebrations, and long-distance business travel.
Question 2
When mourning for a parent, when may a man get a haircut?
For parents, a man must grow his hair until it becomes visibly disheveled or until his friends rebuke him and urge him to cut it. There is no fixed halachic deadline for parental mourning.
Question 3
During the seven days of shiva, a man's wife dies. Must he observe the seven days of shiva?
Spousal mourning is rabbinic but obligatory. A man mourns his wife with the full seven days and thirty days, and all eleven prohibitions apply.
Question 4
On the seventh day of shiva, when may one position their beds upright?
Beds may be positioned upright from mincha on day 6 (Friday) or on day 7 itself. However, the mourner may not sit on the upright bed until nightfall, since the day still counts as part of shiva.
Question 5
What happens when successive bereavements leave no opportunity for normal grooming?
When mournings pile up without relief, the mourner may ease the grooming restrictions: a razor (not scissors) for hair, water (not soap) for laundering, and cold water (not hot) for bathing.