Komentarz do Arachin 1:1

הכל מעריכין (dedicate the value of a person or of an animal unfit for the altar) – "הכל" /everyone includes a male who is thirteen years and one day old who did not bring forth two [pubic] hairs, that he dedicates the value of a person or of an animal unfit for the altar, or he is a minor one year before he (or she) reaches majority/adulthood [if it can be shown that the child understood the nature of the vow] (which is based upon Numbers 6:2: “If anyone, man or woman כי יפלא/explicitly utters a Nazirite’s vow to set himself apart for the LORD”), and he is called מופלא/uttering a distinct vow because they examine him if he knows how to utter a vow distinctly and to explain in the name of Whom he made the vow, and in the name of whom he dedicated [to the altar]. And even though it is written (Leviticus 27:2): “[Speak to the Israelite people and say to them:] When anyone explicitly vows/"איש כי יפלא נדר בערכך" [to the LORD the equivalent for a human being],” when he is near his period of maturity/adulthood, he is called a man (i.e., an adult) in this matter. And [the word] "הכל"/everyone that also refers to [the individual who is] the subject of the valuation, including someone disfigured/disgraced and/or afflicted with boils, who is not worth anything [financially]. For you might think that I would say that a vow of assessment of a person or animal dedicated to the sanctuary, as it is written (Leviticus 27:2 -see above), he whose person has a value, can vow the value of a person or an animal, but he whose person has no value cannot (see Tractate Arakhin 2a), which comes to tell us that [the word] "הכל"/everyone that refers to those entitled to dedicate, because it is taken for being dedicated, and those being dedicated is necessary [to teach] to include those who are younger than a month old, which can be dedicated [for a sacrifice] even though they are not the subject of valuation.

Introduction In order to understand our mishnah we must understand the distinction between an “evaluation” and vowing someone’s monetary worth. When a person makes a statement such as “My value is upon me,” he must dedicate to the Temple the sum that the Torah determines to be his/her value. He can also make such a statement with regard to another person, i.e. “So and so’s value is upon me.” However, if he states, “My monetary worth is upon me,” then an actual evaluation of his value must be made. This is done by assessing how much he would be worth as a slave if he was sold in the market. Again, one can also make such a statement with regard to another person, i.e. “So and so’s monetary worth is upon me.” In other words there are two types of evaluation. For the first, where he uses the word “erekh,” or value, we use the Torah’s fixed sum. For the second, where he uses the word “monetary worth” we evaluate his actual worth.

מעריכין – if a person said about someone, “I vow the value of so-and-so,” he gives the value of that individual according to his years as it is determined in the [Torah] portion of valuations, as the vow of value is regulated by the condition of the person whose value is vowed.

All [persons] are fit to evaluate or to be made the subjects of evaluation, are fit to vow [another's worth] or have their worth vowed: priests, Levites and [ordinary] Israelites, women and slaves. Generally, all people can evaluate and be evaluated meaning they can either say, “My value is upon me” or have that said about them by another. In this case, the money they or others will owe to the Temple depends upon the value prescribed by the Torah (Leviticus 27). Similarly, all people can vow to give their or another’s person’s monetary worth to the Temple. This is when they say, “My monetary worth is upon me” or have that said by another person. As we shall see, this is just the general rule. There are indeed exceptions, people who cannot evaluate or be evaluated, vow or be vowed.

ונערכין – if another person said about him, “the value of this individual is upon me” or he said himself, “I vow my own value,” (see Talmud Arakhin 7b).

The tumtum and the hermaphrodite are fit to vow [another's worth], or to have their worth vowed, and are fit to evaluate, but they are not fit to be made the subjects of evaluation, for the subject of evaluation must be definitely either male or female. A tumtum is a person’s who has neither male nor female genitalia and a hermaphrodite has both male and female genitalia. The gender of these two people is in doubt. Both can vow another’s monetary worth or have their worth vowed by another, because vowing one’s monetary worth has nothing to do with establishing a certain gender. They can also evaluate another person by saying “So and so’s value is upon me” because they are considered to be intelligent. The one thing they can’t do is have their value dedicated by themselves or by others because in order to be evaluated one must have a certain gender. This is because the Torah determines the value of a human being partly based on the person’s gender. One without a gender cannot have his/her value determined.

נודרין – if he said: “the monetary value of so-and-so is upon me,” he must give according to what is appropriate to be sold in the marketplace.

A deaf-mute, an imbecile, or a minor are fit to have their worth vowed or be made the subject of evaluation, but they are not fit to make either a vow [of another's worth] or to evaluate, because they have no intelligence. A deaf-mute, imbecile and minor are not considered to be of intelligence and therefore they cannot dedicate anything to the Temple, neither through an evaluation nor a vow. However, they are of value, both according to the Torah’s assessment and as slaves sold in the market, therefore their value or monetary worth can be dedicated.

ונידרין – another person said regarding him: “the monetary value of so-and-so is upon me,” or he himself said: “the monetary value is upon me.”

A person less than one month old may have his worth vowed but not his valuation. The Torah assigns value only to children who have reached thirty days. This is probably because life was so fragile for the first thirty days and so many children would have died (see Leviticus 27:6). Therefore, a child below thirty day’s value cannot be dedicated. But their monetary worth can be vowed because they could be sold on the slave market, even though their value might not be high due to their fragility.

כהנים ולוים – it was necessary for him (i.e., the teacher of this Mishnah) to teach us that they (Kohanim and Levites) are valuated, for you might think that I would say, since it is written (Leviticus 27:8): “[But if one cannot afford the equivalent,] he shall be presented before the priest, and the priest shall assess him,” an Israelite comes before a Kohen but not a Kohen before a Kohen, therefore, a Kohen is not [personally involved] in valuation, for if he is poor, we do not call upon him: “he shall be presented before the priest,” it comes to tell us that Kohanim are included in the laws of Arakhin/valuation, and since it teaches Kohanim [in the Mishnah], it also teaches Levites and Israelites [in the Mishnah].

נשים ועבדים – that the woman pays when she becomes a widow or when she becomes a widow or when she becomes a divorcee, whereas the slave [pays] when he is freed.

טומטום ואנדרוגינוס נודרים ונידרים – for behold they have monetary value.

ומעריכין –(pledge the valuation/dedicate the value of a person or an animal unfit for the altar) – of others, if they said, “the valuation of so-and-so is upon me,” they give the valuation of that individual.

אבל לא נערכין – if he said: “my value is upon me,” or another person said about them: “the value of so-and-so is upon me” (regarding someone who is of doubtful sexual traits or exhibits traits of both sexes), he did not say anything, for a male and a female are mentioned In the [Torah] portion of Arakhin/valuation, until he will be a real male or [she] a real female.

פחות מבן חודש נידר – if [another] person said: “his monetary value is upon me,” because he is worth something fiscally.

אבל לא נערך – for the word ערך/valuation is not mentioned in this [Torah] portion other than with something from one month old and beyond.