Kommentar zu Nazir 3:8

מי שאמר הריני נזיר מגלח יום שלשים ואחד – for an unspecified Naziriteship is thirty days.

Introduction We have already had several opportunities to mention that a nazirite vow of unspecified duration is thirty days. Our mishnah deals with two related rulings.

ואם גלח יום שלשים יצא – for part of a day is considered an entire day.

If one says, “Behold, I am a nazirite,” he shaves on the thirty-first day. If he shaved on the thirtieth day, he has fulfilled his obligation. One who takes an nazirite vow of unspecified duration should shave on the thirty-first day, after he has observed thirty full days of naziriteship. However, if he shaves on the thirtieth day, he has still fulfilled his obligation to complete his naziriteship. This is because observing part of the day is counted as if he had observed the full day. Since he observed part of the thirtieth as a nazirite, it can count. You might note the similarity between this rule and the customs of shiva (the seven days in which one mourns close relatives). The seventh day of shiva is only observed in the morning because of this principle, that part of the day is as the full day. After “sitting shiva” in the morning of the seventh day, people customarily end shiva.

הריני נזיר שלשים יום אם גלח יום ל' לא יצא – for since he specified thirty complete days as stated.

[If, however, he says] “Behold, I am a nazirite for thirty days,” and shaves on the thirtieth day, he has not fulfilled his obligation. In this case he specifies that he will be a nazirite for thirty days. Since he said “thirty days” he must observe thirty full days. Should he shave on the thirtieth day he will not have fulfilled his obligation.

ואם גלח יום שששים חסר א' יצא – that the thirtieth day of the first Naziriteship counts [both] to here and to there and since the thirtieth day of the first [Naziriteship] is counted also from the second Naziriteship, it is found that the thirty days of the second [Naziriteship] cease with sixty [days] minus one.

Introduction This mishnah continues to illustrate the principle which we learned in yesterday’s mishnah, that observing part of the day as a nazirite counts as a full day’s observance. Yesterday we saw that this means that one who shaves on the thirtieth day has fulfilled his obligation. Today’s mishnah deals with one who has made two nazirite vows.

If a man vows two naziriteships, he shaves for the first one on the thirty-first day, and for the second on the sixty-first day. If he shaved for the first on the thirtieth day, he can shave for the second on the sixtieth day. If he shaved on the day before the sixtieth, he has fulfilled his obligation. If one vows two naziriteships, the best thing would be to shave on the thirty-first day, and then begin counting the second naziriteship that same day. If he does so, he will shave for the second naziriteship on the sixty-first day. However, if he shaved for the first naziriteship on the thirtieth day, he can shave for the second on the sixtieth day, and he could even shave on the fifty-ninth day. This would mean that he shaved for the first on the thirtieth day, and then began counting the second that very day, and twenty-nine days later shaved, counting part of the fifty-ninth day as the completion of the second naziriteship. Note that the thirtieth day is in all cases counted for both naziriteships.

For this was the testimony that Rabbi Papias testified concerning one who vows two naziriteships, that if he shaved for the first on the thirtieth day, he is to shave for the second on the sixtieth day. And if he shaved on the day before the sixtieth day, he has fulfilled his obligation, the thirtieth day counting towards the required number. This section is a mishnah in tractate Eduyoth 7:5. It states the same thing as we just learned. This is probably the older version of the way the halakhah was preserved. The halakhah was later developed into the above section.

נמצא יום שלשים סתר את הכל – for he was defiled in the midst of the days of his Naziriteship, and we don’t say that the thirtieth day counts both for here (i.e., the first Naziriteship) and there (i.e., the second Naziriteship), since part of a day is considered a complete day, but rather, when he shaved and brought his [hair] sacrifices on that day.

Introduction When a nazirite becomes impure he renders void the entire term of naziriteship that he has already observed. He must purify himself in the standard procedure, which takes seven days. He then shaves, brings a bird sacrifice and then he begins to count again (see Numbers 6:9-12). Our mishnah deals with one who has become impure on the thirtieth day of his nazirite period. This person has not yet brought the sacrifices which he brings at the end of his naziriteship.

ר"א אומר אינו סותר אלא שבעה – for he holds that we say that part of a day is considered as a whole day and it is as if he became defiled after fulfilling [his Naziriteship], and defilement after fulfilling [his Naziriteship] according to Rabbi Eliezer does not lose anything other than seven [days].

If one says, “Behold, I am a nazirite,” and becomes impure on the thirtieth day, he renders void the whole period. Rabbi Eliezer says: only seven days are void. According to the first opinion, even though he has reached the thirtieth day, and thereby completed his nazirite vow of unspecified duration, since he has not yet brought his sacrifices, his becoming impure renders the whole period void. He now has to become pure, shave and bring sacrifices and then start counting again. Rabbi Eliezer holds that this does not void all of the days which he has already served. Rather he waits seven days, during which he purifies himself and then brings the end of naziriteship sacrifices. According to Rabbi Eliezer, since on the thirtieth day he could have offered his sacrifices before he became impure, it is as if he completed his naziriteship, he just can’t offer his sacrifices until he becomes pure.

הריני נזיר שלשים יום נטמא יום ל' סתר את הכל – whether according to Rabbi Eliezer or according to the Rabbis, for since he said, “I am a Nazirite for thirty days,” everyone agrees that we require thirty complete days, and we don’t say in this that part of a day is considered a whole day. And Rabbi Eliezer who holds that a person (i.e., a Nazirite who is defiled on the fulfilling [the vow] exactly, loses only the thirtieth day and does not lose it all, we derive it from a Biblical verse, as it is written (Numbers 6:13): “This is the ritual of the nazirite: On the day that his term as Nazirite is completed.” If he is defiled on the day of completion, give him the Torah of Naziriteship, meaning to say an unspecified period of Naziriteship is thirty days; here that he said: “I am a Nazirite for thirty days,” and he was defiled on the thirtieth day which is the day of completion, since he lost all thirty, he lost everything. But the Rabbis also who dispute that of Rabbi Eliezer and state that someone who is defiled on the day of completion has lost everything and even if he counted a few days here, for when he said, “I am a Nazirite for thirty days and was defiled on the day of completion, since he also lost the thirtieth day, he lost everything; therefore, whether according to Rabbi Eliezer or according to the Rabbis, he lost everything, and in everything where Rabbi Eliezer and the Sages dispute, the Halakha is according to the Sages.

[If one says,] “Behold, I am a nazirite for thirty days”, and becomes impure on the thirtieth day, the he renders void the whole period. However, if he vows to be a nazirite for thirty days, he must serve a full thirty days, as we learned in yesterday’s mishnah. In this case if he becomes impure on the thirtieth day, Rabbi Eliezer would agree that he has rendered the entire naziriteship void. He must become pure and then start counting again.

הריני נזיר מאה יום נטמא יום מאה סתר את הכל – The Rabbis, according to their reasoning, that state that if he was defiled on the day of completion, it is as if he was defiled within his time [of the vow], and loses everything.

Introduction Yesterday’s mishnah contained a debate between Rabbi Eliezer and the Sages concerning a case in which a person who had made a nazirite vow of unspecified duration became impure on the thirtieth day, the last day of his naziriteship and the day on which he could shave. Today’s mishnah contains two debates over one who took a one hundred day nazirite vow and became impure on the one hundredth day. Note that when one specifies an amount of days, he can only shave the day after, in this case on the 101st day.

ר"א אומר אינו סותר אלא ל' – for he (i.e., Rabbi Eliezer) holds that if he was defiled on the day of completion, he only loses thirty [days].

[If he says,] “Behold, I am a nazirite for one hundred days,” and becomes impure on the hundredth day, he renders void the whole period. Rabbi Eliezer says: only thirty days are void. The Sages (the first opinion) hold that if a nazirite becomes impure before he has completed his naziriteship, he voids all of the days he has already served and must start counting over after he becomes pure. This is true even if he has served longer than the minimum thirty days. Rabbi Eliezer holds that one who becomes impure on the day that his naziriteship is completed does not void his entire term, but rather only thirty days. In other words, he must go back and serve another naziriteship, but it need only be a naziriteship of minimal length. This is the same as his opinion in the second clause of yesterday’s mishnah, but in that case the Sages would have agreed because the vow was only for thirty days. In the first clause of yesterday’s mishnah he said that becoming impure renders void only seven days. The difference is that that was a case of a nazirite vow of unspecified duration and hence he could have brought his sacrifices on that very day.

נטמא יום מאה ואחד – according to the Rabbis, he loses thirty [days], for they decreed that the one-hundred and first day which is the day of shaving, is on account of the one hundredth day. But nevertheless, they were not more stringent than him to make it like the one hundredth day which is the day of completion on which he would lose everything, and they decreed that he would lose only an unspecified Naziriteship which is only thirty days.

If he becomes impure on the hundred and first day, thirty days are void. Rabbi Eliezer says: only seven days are void. If he becomes impure on the day after his naziriteship has been completed but before he brings the sacrifices, the Sages hold that he must become pure and then serve another thirty day naziriteship, the minimum length of any naziriteship. Because he served his full term, he need not serve the entire 100 days. Rabbi Eliezer again holds that since he has completed his full term, becoming impure before bringing the sacrifices doesn’t void anything. He need only wait seven days until he becomes pure, and then he may bring his nazirite sacrifices.

ור"א אומר אינו סותר אלא שבעה – and he goes according to his reasoning that even on the thirtieth day, he did not decree when a person says, “I am a Nazirite for an unspecified time.”

ואינו מביא קרבן טומאה – for as it is written a sacrifice for defilement, it is written for a pure Nazirite who was defiled; nevertheless, if he was warned about it, he is liable for whipping.

Introduction As we have already mentioned, if a nazirite becomes impure, he must bring a sacrifice and begin to recount his naziriteship. Our mishnah deals with a person who takes a nazirite vow while he is in a graveyard, a place of high impurity.

יצא ונכנס עולין לו מן המנין – and he brings a sacrifice of defilement; but our Mishnah is explained in the Gemara (Tractate Nazir 19a) as follows: if he left the cemetery and sprinkled on the third and seventh days and immersed [in the Mikveh] and became purified from his defilement and he began to count the days of his Naziritieship, even though he went back and entered afterwards into the cemetery, they count for him from the number those days which he counted after he purified, for since his purification interrupted whether [we are dealing with] the first days that he was a Nazirite and he is in the cemetery, or whether [we are dealing with] the latter days and even though he returned and entered the cemetery, the defilement of the cemetery do not cause him to lose the number of the days that were counted while in a state of purity, for the Nazirite does not lose other the twelve days defilements that are mentioned regarding it. And that which is stated furthermore, and he brings a sacrifice of defilement, this is how it should be stated: if he was defiled again with one of the defilements that the Nazirite shaves and brings the sacrifice of defilement and he loses [those days].

If one takes a nazirite vow while in a graveyard, then even if he remains there for thirty days, these do not count, and he does not have to bring the sacrifice [prescribed] for impurity. This person took a nazirite vow while standing in a place of impurity. Therefore he cannot even begin to count the days of his naziriteship. As long as he stays in the place of impurity he has not yet become a nazirite. Therefore, he also does not need to bring a sacrifice of impurity, which he would have been obligated for, had he been a nazirite and then became impure.

ר"א אומר לא בו ביום – meaning to say, if on that selfsame day that he immersed [in a Mikveh] and became pure, on that same day he became defiled with one of the defilements that [causes] the Nazirite to shave, he does not lose that same day, as it is written (Numbers 6:12): “The previous period shall be void [since his consecrated hair was defiled],” the defilement does not cause him to lose until he will have two days of Naziriteship counted and the same law applies with a Nazirite in general who was defiled on the first day of the count of his Naziriteship, for the defilement does not cause him loss of the that day, but rather completes for him the number of the days of his Naziriteship, and the Halakha is according to Rabbi Eliezer.

If he leaves it and re-enters, [the period] counts, and he must bring the sacrifice [prescribed] for impurity. Rabbi Eliezer says: not [if he re-enters] on the same day, for it says, “But the former days shall be void,” (Numbers 6:12) until there are former days. However, if he leaves the graveyard, and then becomes pure (which takes seven days) he now begins to count the days of naziriteship. If after he leaves he re-enters the graveyard, he is now a nazirite who has become impure and is obligated to bring the requisite sacrifices. Rabbi Eliezer holds that if he returns to the graveyard (or is otherwise made impure) the same day that he began to count his naziriteship, the day is not lost and he does not bring impurity sacrifices. After he becomes pure, he goes on counting from where he left off. This halakhah is derived by means of a midrash on the word “days”. In order to void that part of the naziriteship which was previously observed, there must have been full days which were observed.

והשלים את נזירותו ואח"כ בא לארץ – for Naziriteship is not practiced other than in the Land [of Israel] because of the Levitical uncleanness of the heathen countries, and whomever made the vow of Naziriteship outside the land [of Israel] we obligate him to ascend to the Land of Israel and practice there his Naziriteship.

Introduction According to the Talmud, the Sages decreed that land outside of Israel is ritually impure, and therefore anyone who walks there or touches the earth is impure. However, this impurity is only considered “derabbanan”. In a sense then, taking a nazirite vow while outside of the land of Israel is like taking a nazirite vow while in a graveyard, the subject of yesterday’s mishnah. The difference is that, because the impurity of outside of Israel is only derabbanan, one who takes a nazirite vow outside of Israel must begin to observe his naziriteship immediately. However, when he comes to the land of Israel, according to the rabbis the only pure land, he must begin to observe his naziriteship over again. In our mishnah, Beth Shammai and Beth Hillel dispute over how much of his naziriteship he must re-observe. This mishnah contains a story about Queen Helena, who was the queen of Adiabene, a country in Asia Minor. There are several other stories about her and her sons Munbaz and Izates, who according to both Josephus and rabbinic literature converted to Judaism, several decades before the destruction of the Temple. One can read more about her in the Encyclopedia Judaica.

נזיר בתחלה – he is required to observe in the Land of Israel according to the number of the days that he vowed for his Naziriteship and the days that he observed outside the Land [of Israel] is as if he had not observed his Naziriteship at all.

If one vows a long naziriteship of and completes his naziriteship and afterwards comes to the land [of Israel]: Beth Shammai says that he is a nazirite for thirty days, But Beth Hillel says that his naziriteship begins again. A person took a vow to observe a long naziriteship, meaning one longer than thirty days. After he completed his naziriteship he came to the land of Israel. According to Beth Shammai, after he purifies himself from the impurity contracted outside of the land of Israel, he need only observe another thirty days of naziriteship. According to the Talmud, Beth Shammai reasons that since the impurity outside Israel is only of “derabbanan” status, the Sages only penalize him by making him observe a minimum period of naziriteship. In contrast, Beth Hillel holds that he must re-observe his full term. The original term does not count at all.

אמר ר"י לא היתה נזיה אלא ארבע עשרה שנה – Rabbi Yehuda holds like Rabbi Eliezer wo stated above in our chapter [in Mishnah 4], that [a Nazirite] who became defiled on the day of completion, does not lose other than thirty days, and because of this, it is stated, that Queen Helena who became defiled at the end of fourteen years which on the day of completion, she did not lose everything and was not required to count another seven years, but rather, only thirty days, and because it was not a complete year, it did not count in the total, and this same law applies as if he said, that she was not a Nazirite other than for fourteen years and thirty days.

It happened that Queen Helena, when her son went to war, said: “If my son returns in peace from the war, I shall be a nazirite for seven years.” Her son returned from the war, and she was a nazirite for seven years. At the end of the seven years, she went up to the land [of Israel] and Beth Hillel instructed her to be a nazirite for a further seven years. Towards the end of this seven years, she contracted ritual defilement, and so altogether she was a nazirite for twenty-one years. Rabbi Judah said: she was a nazirite only for fourteen years. This section contains the remarkable story of Queen Helena, who according to some accounts was a nazirite for twenty-one years! She took a nazirite vow that if her son would return safely from war, she would be a nazirite for seven years. When he returned safely, she observed a seven year naziriteship. Afterwards, she went to the land of Israel and observed another seven-year naziriteship, under the instruction of Beth Hillel. When she became impure at the end of her naziriteship, this voided all of her naziriteship, and she had to serve another seven years. With regard to this last fact, Rabbi Judah disagrees and holds that she served “only” fourteen years. Some explain, that according to Rabbi Judah, she did not become impure. Others explain that Rabbi Judah agrees with Rabbi Eliezer who holds that when one becomes impure one only voids thirty days. Therefore, Queen Helena did become impure at the end of her naziriteship, but only served another thirty days. Since these days are insignificant, Rabbi Judah rounds down to fourteen years of naziriteship, still an impressive amount of time, especially for a queen!

אלו מעידים שנדר שתים – two [periods of] Naziriteship and those [witnesses] testify that he took a vow for five [periods of] Naziriteship; at the same time that you state that he took a vow for two [Naziriteships], wwe testify that he took a vow of five Naziriteships, and he states that he did not take a vow at all.

Introduction This mishnah, while ostensibly discussing nazirite laws, is really discussing the laws of testimony. Generally, when two sets of witnesses disagree, two saying one thing and two saying the other, the testimony is invalid. However, if one set says that the defendant owes two hundred, and the other set says he owes five hundred, there is a dispute whether the defendant is liable for the lower amount, based on the principle that all witnesses agree that he owes at least two hundred. Our mishnah deals with a similar case, except it uses naziriteships instead of money.

One who has two sets of witnesses testifying about him: one says that he vowed two [naziriteships] and the other that he vowed five: Beth Shammai says: the evidence is conflicting, and there is no naziriteship at all. But Beth Hillel says: “five” includes “two”, so that he becomes a nazirite for two [naziriteships]. According to Beth Shammai, the testimony is conflicting and therefore it is as if there is no testimony at all. However, Beth Hillel says that there is testimony from all sets regarding two naziriteships, and therefore he must observe two.

בש"א נחלקה העדות – since they contradict each other, their words are voided, and there isn’t any testimony at all.

וב"ה אומר יש בכלל חמש שתים – and he will be a Nazirite for two years.