פירוש על נדרים 7:1

הנודר מן הירק. לא מצאתי אלא דלועין – and if it is a species of vegetable, why doesn’t he purchase it for him?

Introduction This mishnah demonstrates one means by which the sages determined what a typical person’s intent might be when he prohibits to himself a specific food.

כן הדבר – and from there I bring a proof. Lest he say I did not find [anything] but pulse. And since I come to consult on the gourd, I can see that it is a kind of vegetable. And the Halakha is according to the Sages.

He who vows abstinence from vegetables is permitted gourds. Rabbi Akiba prohibits. They said to him: And does not a man say to his messenger “Bring me vegetables,” and he replies, “I could find only gourds.” He said to them: That is so! But would he say, “I could find only pulse?” For gourds are included in vegetables, while pulse is not. The argument in this mishnah is whether or not one who vows to abstain from vegetables must also abstain from gourds. In other words, are gourds a type of vegetable? The Sages argue that gourds are not included in vegetables, whereas Rabbi Akiva argues that they are. In order to prove their point, the sages point out to Rabbi Akiva that when a man sends his messenger to the market to buy vegetables, he might come back and say “I could find only gourds.” Gourds are not vegetables, and therefore he did not buy them. Rabbi Akiva responds that the messenger’s words prove his point. The messenger is asking if he should buy the gourds, because the gourds are included in vegetables. He would not say “I could find only pulse (legumes)” because pulse is different from vegetables. In summary, Rabbi Akiva finds the hypothetical response of the messenger to imply that gourds are included under the category of vegetables, whereas the rabbis find his reply to mean that they are not.

He is forbidden fresh Egyptian beans but permitted the dry species. Although the mishnah just stated that pulse is not included under the category of vegetables, wet Egyptian beans are.