## Nazir Daf 8a

###### Nazir 8a:1
[Nazir 8a:1](https://torahapp.org/share/book/Nazir/r/8a:1)

**מַתְנִי׳** ״הֲרֵינִי נָזִיר כִּשְׂעַר רֹאשִׁי״, וְ״כַעֲפַר הָאָרֶץ״, וּ״כְחוֹל הַיָּם״ — הֲרֵי זֶה נְזִיר עוֹלָם, וּמְגַלֵּחַ אַחַת לִשְׁלשִׁים יוֹם.

**William Davidson Edition - English:**
**MISHNA:** If one says: **I am hereby a nazirite like the hair of my head, or: Like the dust of the earth, or: Like the sand of the sea, he is a nazirite forever.** He has accepted a separate term of naziriteship for every hair or particle of dust or sand, which in practice means that he will be a nazirite forever. **And** he **shaves** his hair **once** every **thirty days.**


###### Nazir 8a:2
[Nazir 8a:2](https://torahapp.org/share/book/Nazir/r/8a:2)

רַבִּי אוֹמֵר: אֵין זֶה מְגַלֵּחַ אַחַת לִשְׁלשִׁים יוֹם. וְאֵיזֶהוּ מְגַלֵּחַ אַחַת לִשְׁלשִׁים? הָאוֹמֵר: ״הֲרֵי עָלַי נְזִירוּת כִּשְׂעַר רֹאשִׁי״, וְ״כַעֲפַר הָאָרֶץ״, וּ״כְחוֹל הַיָּם״.

**William Davidson Edition - English:**
**Rabbi** Yehuda HaNasi **says: This** nazirite **does not shave** his hair **once** every **thirty days,** as he has accepted upon himself one long term of naziriteship lasting for as many days as there are hairs or particles of dust or sand. **And who is** the nazirite who **shaves** his hair **once** every **thirty** days? One **who says: It is hereby** incumbent **upon me** to observe **naziriteships like the hair of my head, or: Like the dust of the earth, or: Like the sand of the sea.** Since he used the plural term naziriteships, it is clear that he is accepting distinct terms of naziriteship.


###### Nazir 8a:3
[Nazir 8a:3](https://torahapp.org/share/book/Nazir/r/8a:3)

״הֲרֵינִי נָזִיר מְלֹא הַבַּיִת״, אוֹ ״מְלֹא הַקּוּפָּה״ — בּוֹדְקִין אוֹתוֹ, אִם אָמַר: אַחַת גְּדוֹלָה נָזַרְתִּי — נָזִיר שְׁלֹשִׁים יוֹם. וְאִם אָמַר: סְתָם נָזַרְתִּי — רוֹאִין אֶת הַקּוּפָּה כְּאִילּוּ הִיא מְלֵאָה חַרְדָּל, וְנָזִיר כׇּל יָמָיו.

**William Davidson Edition - English:**
If one says: **I am hereby a nazirite** in accordance with **the capacity of the house, or: The capacity of the basket, one checks** with **him** what he had in mind. **If he said:** My intention was to **take a nazirite vow** for **one long** term of naziriteship, he is **a nazirite** for only **thirty days,** in accordance with the ruling of the mishna that the words long or short are of no account when used in a nazirite vow (7a). **And if he said: I took a nazirite vow without specification,** it is assumed that he meant to accept upon himself terms of naziriteship corresponding to the number of items that fit into the basket, and the smallest items normally placed in baskets are used for this evaluation. Consequently, one **views the basket as though** it were **full of mustard** seeds, which are extremely small, **and he is a nazirite** for **his entire life.**


###### Nazir 8a:4
[Nazir 8a:4](https://torahapp.org/share/book/Nazir/r/8a:4)

״הֲרֵינִי נָזִיר מִכָּאן עַד מָקוֹם פְּלוֹנִי״ — אוֹמְדִין כַּמָּה יָמִים מִכָּאן עַד מָקוֹם פְּלוֹנִי, אִם פָּחוֹת מִשְּׁלֹשִׁים יוֹם — נָזִיר שְׁלֹשִׁים יוֹם. וְאִם לָאו — נָזִיר כְּמִנְיַן הַיָּמִים.

**William Davidson Edition - English:**
If one says: **I am hereby a nazirite from here until such and such a place, one estimates how many days** it takes to walk **from here until such and such a place. If** it is **less than thirty days,** he is **a nazirite** for **thirty days,** since this is the minimum term of naziriteship. **And if not,** i.e., if it takes more than thirty days to walk that distance, he is **a nazirite in accordance with the number of days** it takes to walk to that place.


###### Nazir 8a:5
[Nazir 8a:5](https://torahapp.org/share/book/Nazir/r/8a:5)

״הֲרֵינִי נָזִיר כְּמִנְיַן יְמוֹת הַחַמָּה״ — מוֹנֶה נְזִירוֹת כְּמִנְיַן יְמוֹת הַחַמָּה. אָמַר רַבִּי יְהוּדָה: מַעֲשֶׂה הָיָה, כֵּיוָן שֶׁהִשְׁלִים — מֵת.

**William Davidson Edition - English:**
If one says: **I am hereby a nazirite in accordance with the number of days** in **a solar** year, he **counts** 365 consecutive **naziriteships, in accordance with the number of days** in **a solar** year. **Rabbi Yehuda said: There was an incident** where someone took this vow and observed 365 consecutive terms of naziriteship. **Once he completed** all these terms of naziriteship, **he died.**


###### Nazir 8a:6
[Nazir 8a:6](https://torahapp.org/share/book/Nazir/r/8a:6)

**גְּמָ׳** רוֹאִין אֶת הַקּוּפָּה כְּאִילּוּ מְלֵאָה חַרְדָּל וְנָזִיר כׇּל יָמָיו. וְאַמַּאי? וְלִיחְזְיַיהּ כְּאִילּוּ מְלֵאָה קִישּׁוּאִין וְדִלּוּעִין, וְתִיהְוֵי לֵיהּ תַּקַּנְתָּא!

**William Davidson Edition - English:**
**GEMARA:** The mishna taught that if one said: I am hereby a nazirite in accordance with the capacity of the basket, and he did not specifically intend to accept one term of naziriteship, one **views the basket as though** it were **full of mustard** seeds, **and he is a nazirite** for **his entire life.** The Gemara asks: **But why** does one view the basket as though it were full of mustard seeds? **Let us view it as though** it were **full of cucumbers or gourds,** which are much larger. The basket would consequently hold fewer of them, **and there would be a remedy for him,** i.e., he would be able to complete his terms of naziriteship and resume living as a non-nazirite.


###### Nazir 8a:7
[Nazir 8a:7](https://torahapp.org/share/book/Nazir/r/8a:7)

אָמַר חִזְקִיָּה: בְּמַחֲלוֹקֶת שְׁנוּיָה. וְרַבִּי שִׁמְעוֹן הִיא, דְּאָמַר: אָדָם מַכְנִיס אֶת עַצְמוֹ לְדָבָר שֶׁסְּפֵיקוֹ חָמוּר מִוַּדַּאי.

**William Davidson Edition - English:**
In response to this question, **Ḥizkiyya said:** This issue **is taught** as **a dispute** between *tanna’im*, **and** the mishna **is** in accordance with the opinion of **Rabbi Shimon, who said: A person places himself in a state where** the resulting **uncertainty is more stringent than** if there were **certainty,** i.e., an individual willingly accepts conditions that are ambiguous although this may cause him to have to keep more stringent *halakhot* if the uncertainty is not clarified.


###### Nazir 8a:8
[Nazir 8a:8](https://torahapp.org/share/book/Nazir/r/8a:8)

דְּתַנְיָא: ״הֲרֵינִי נָזִיר עַל מְנָת שֶׁיְּהֵא בִּכְרִי זֶה מֵאָה כּוֹר״, וְהָלַךְ וּמְצָאוֹ שֶׁנִּגְנַב אוֹ שֶׁאָבַד — רַבִּי שִׁמְעוֹן אוֹסֵר, שֶׁסְּפֵק נְזִירוּת לְהַחְמִיר.

**William Davidson Edition - English:**
This is **as it is taught** in a *baraita*: With regard to one who says: **I am hereby a nazirite on the condition that this pile** of grain **will be** found to contain at least **one hundred *kor*, and he went** to measure the pile **and found that it was stolen or lost,** making it impossible to determine whether it contained one hundred *kor*, **Rabbi Shimon prohibits** him to drink wine or cut his hair, **as** he holds that in a case of **uncertain naziriteship** one is required **to** act **stringently.** Similarly, in the case in the mishna, since it is not known whether one intended to accept naziriteship according to the number of mustard seeds in the basket or according to the number of gourds there, he must act stringently.


###### Nazir 8a:9
[Nazir 8a:9](https://torahapp.org/share/book/Nazir/r/8a:9)

רַבִּי יְהוּדָה מַתִּיר, שֶׁסְּפֵק נְזִירוּת לְהָקֵל.

**William Davidson Edition - English:**
Conversely, **Rabbi Yehuda permits** him to drink wine or cut his hair, **as** he holds that in a case of **uncertain naziriteship** one is permitted **to** act **leniently.** The naziriteship does not take effect, since the pile might have contained less than one hundred *kor*.


###### Nazir 8a:10
[Nazir 8a:10](https://torahapp.org/share/book/Nazir/r/8a:10)

רַבִּי יוֹחָנָן אָמַר: אֲפִילּוּ תֵּימָא רַבִּי יְהוּדָה, הָתָם לָא נָחֵית לֵיהּ לִנְזִירוּת. הָכָא נָחֵית לֵיהּ לִנְזִירוּת, בְּמַאי לְסַלּוֹקֵיהּ מִינֵּיהּ?

**William Davidson Edition - English:**
**Rabbi Yoḥanan said: You** can **even say** that the mishna is in accordance with the opinion of **Rabbi Yehuda** because the cases in the mishna and in the *baraita* are not comparable. **There,** in the case discussed in the *baraita*, **he does not** necessarily even **enter** a state of **naziriteship,** as it is unclear whether the pile contained a *kor* of grain. Consequently, he retains his previous status and is not considered a nazirite. Conversely, in the case discussed **here** in the mishna, **he** certainly **enters** a state of **naziriteship,** since he undoubtedly vowed to be a nazirite for some period of time. Consequently, **how** is it possible **to remove** the state of naziriteship **from him** when it is uncertain when his terms end? Therefore, even Rabbi Yehuda would agree that he remains a nazirite indefinitely.


###### Nazir 8a:11
[Nazir 8a:11](https://torahapp.org/share/book/Nazir/r/8a:11)

אַמַּאי לָא? לִיחְזְיַהּ לְקוּפָּה כְּאִילּוּ מְלֵאָה קִישּׁוּאִין וְדִלּוּעִין, וְתִיהְוֵי לֵיהּ תַּקַּנְתָּא. הָא סָלְקָא דַּעְתִּין, נְזִירוּת הוּא דְּקַבֵּיל עִילָּוֵיהּ!

**William Davidson Edition - English:**
The Gemara asks: **Why** is it **not** possible to remove from him the status of naziriteship? **Let us view the basket as though** it were **full of cucumbers or gourds,** as he has accepted at least as many terms of naziriteship as the number of cucumbers or gourds that can fit in the basket, **and** in this way **there will be a remedy for him. It entered our minds** to say that **it is** distinct **naziriteships that he accepted upon himself,** and so once he has completed the minimal number of naziriteships, he should no longer be considered a nazirite unless it can be determined that he accepted more than this number of terms of naziriteship.