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Week 77 - Monday - 14 May 2001

NAZIR: CHAPTER 6: MISHNAH 6

The tiglahat of uncleanness, how so? He would sprinkle on the third and on the seventh, and shave on the seventh, and bring his sacrifices on the eighth. And if he shaved on the eighth - he brings his sacrifices on the same day; the words of Rabbi Akiva. Rabbi Tarfon said to him, What is the difference between this and the metzora? He said to him, This one, his becoming clean is dependent upon his days, and the metzora, his becoming clean is dependent upon his tiglahat, and he brings a sacrifice only if it was after sunset.

Kehati

As has already been taught, there are three definitions of tiglahat regarding the nazir: (1) the prohibited tiglahat - during the period of his nezirut the nazir is forbidden to shave the hair of his head; (2) the tiglahat of uncleanness - if the nazir becomes unclean by a corpse related uncleanness during the period of his nezirut, he counts seven clean days, as is the law for any person who became unclean with a corpse related uncleanness, and after he cleansed himself, he is obligated to shave the hair of his head and to bring sacrifices, as is detailed in Num. 6:9-12; (3) the tiglahat of cleanness - after the nazir completes his period of nezirut in a state of cleanness, he shaves and brings the nazir sacrifices, as the Torah commands (Num. 6:13-20).
After the laws of the prohibited tiglahat were taught in the last section of the previous mishnah, this mishnah teaches the laws of the tiglahat of uncleanness.

The tiglahat of uncleanness - if a nazir became unclean by a corpse related uncleanness, and he is obligated to shave and bring sacrifices, how so - how does he act? He would sprinkle - they sprinkle him with water mixed with the ashes of the red heifer, on the third - day - and on the seventh - day of his uncleanness, as is the general procedure regarding anyone who has become unclean by a corpse related uncleanness, regarding whom the Torah states, "He that touches the dead, even any man's body, shall be unclean seven days" (Num. 19:11), and below, in the same passage, "And the clean person shall sprinkle upon the unclean on the third day, and on the seventh day; and on the seventh day he shall purify him" (v.19); and shave on the seventh - after he was sprinkled upon and he immersed himself on the seventh day, he shaves the hair of his head on the same day, as it is written, "then he shall shave his head on the day of his cleansing, on the seventh day shall he shave it" (Num. 6:9), and bring his sacrifices on the eighth - as it is written in the continuation of the previous verse, "And on the eighth day he shall bring two turtledoves or two young pigeons ... and the kohen shall prepare one for a hatat, and the other for an olah… and he shall bring a yearling sheep for an asham" (Num. 6:10-12).

And if he - the nazir, waited, after he immersed himself on the seventh day, and shaved - only - on the eighth - day, he brings his sacrifices on the same day -the eighth day; the words of Rabbi Akiva - who holds that a nazir who became unclean brings his sacrifices on the day after his cleansing, and not on the day following his shaving.

Rabbi Tarfon said to him, What is the difference between this and the metzora - for it was stated, also regarding the metzora who became healed and cleansed himself, also shaves on the seventh day (the second tiglahat), and brings his sacrifices on the eighth day (Lev. 14:9-10); and if he shaved on the eighth day, the law is that he shall not bring his sacrifices on the same day, but rather on the ninth day, the day after his shaving; and why is the law regarding the nazir who became unclean different, according to your opinion, from that of the metzora?

He -Rabbi Akiva, said to him - Rabbi Tarfon, ~ This one - the nazir who became unclean, his becoming clean is dependent upon his days - the seven days which he counted and on which he was sprinkled, on the third and on the seventh days, and after he immersed himself on the seventh, he is clean, even though he had not yet shaved the hair of his head; therefore, even if he delayed his shaving until the eighth day, he brings his sacrifices on the eighth day, the day following his immersion, and the metzora, his becoming clean is dependent upon his tiglahat -he does not immerse himself until he shaves, and if he did so on the seventh day and did not shave until the eighth day, he is obligated to immerse himself once again on the eighth day, after his shaving,

and he - the metzora, brings a sacrifice - his sacrifices, only if it was after sunset - only if the sun set after immersion; therefore, if he shaved on the eighth day, he may bring his sacrifices only on the ninth day, after he immersed himself on the eighth day and the sun set. According to one interpretation, this last clause, "and he brings a sacrifice only if it was after sunset," does not refer to the metzora, but rather to the nazir, i.e., the nazir who became unclean may bring his sacrifices only if the sun set after he immersed himself. Hence if the nazir immersed himself on the seventh day and the sun set, he brings his sacrifices on the eighth day; but if he did not immerse himself on the seventh day, but on the eighth or the ninth day, he may bring his sacrifices only on the day following his immersion, after the sun set (see Tosafot Yom Tov).

NAZIR: CHAPTER 6: MISHNAH 7

The tiglahat of cleanness, how so? He would bring three animals: hatat, olah, and shelamim, and slaughter the shelamim and shave on them; the words of Rabbi Yehudah. Rabbi Eleazar says, He would shave only on the hatat, for the hatat precedes in every instance. And if he shaved on one of the three - he fulfilled his obligation.

Kehati

This mishnah deals with the laws of the tiglahat of cleanness, and teaches for which sacrifice the nazir shaves his nazir head; Rabbi Yehudah and Rabbi Eleazar disagree regarding this.

The tiglahat of cleanness, how so - what is the procedure for a nazir who completed his period of nezirut in a state of cleanness when shaving his head and bringing his sacrifices? He would bring three animals - as listed in the Torah section about the nazir (Num.6:14): hatat - "one ewe-Iamb of the first year without blemish for a hatat," olah - "one he-lamb of the first year without blemish for an olah," and shelamim - "and one ram without blemish for shelamim," and slaughter the shelamim and shave on them - i.e., he shaves the hair of his head after he slaughtered the shelamim, as it is written, "And the nazir shall shave his nazir head at the entrance to the tent of meeting" (Num. 6:18), which the Sages interpreted to mean, and he shaves his head after the sacrifice regarding which it is written, "at the entrance to the tent of meeting," i.e., the shelamim, regarding which it is written, "and kill it at the entrance to the tent of meeting" (Lev.3:2); the words of Rabbi Yehudah - who holds that the three sacrifices are offered in the order in which they are written in the Torah: hatat, olah, and shelamim, and he shaves only after slaughtering the shelamim (Tosefot Yom Tov; Rambam); other commentators state that, according to the opinion of Rabbi Yehudah, the slaughtering of the shelamim must precede that of the other sacrifices, since the nazir shaves following them (Tosafot; Melekhet Shiomo).

Rabbi Eleazar says, He - the nazir, would shave - was obligated to shave his head - only on the hatat - after the slaughtering of the hatat, for the hatat precedes in every instance - the olah and the shelamim, as it is written, "he shall offer that which is for the hatat first" (Lev. 5:8); therefore, the law is that he shaves following it. And if he shaved on one of the three - even after the olah, he fulfilled his obligation - after the fact, according to all opinions.

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