Study Nazir folio 31B with parallel Hebrew-English text, traditional commentary, and modern study tools. Free access to Babylonian Talmud online.
Text Excerpt
ואחד בא כנגדן, ואמר אחד: ״הריני נזיר שזה פלוני״, ואחד אמר: ״הריני נזיר שאין זה פלוני״, ״הריני נזיר שאחד מכם נזיר״, ״שאין אחד מכם נזיר״, ״ששניכם נזירים״, ״שכולכם נזירים״ — בית שמאי אומרים: כולם נזירים.
and one other person was approaching them, and one of those walking said: I am hereby a nazirite if this person coming toward us is so-and-so. And another one of them said: I am hereby a nazirite if this is not so-and-so, while a third member of the group said: I am hereby a nazirite if one of you two is a nazirite, and a 4th said: I am hereby a nazirite if neither of you is a nazirite, and another added: I am hereby a nazirite if both of you are nazirites. Finally, the last person said: I am hereby a nazirite if all you who spoke before me are nazirites. Beit Shammai say that they are all nazirites, as by saying: I am hereby a nazirite, they have accepted naziriteship upon themselves even if their statement turns out to be incorrect.
והא הכא הקדש בטעות הוא, וקתני: כולם נזירים! אמרי: סברי בית שמאי הקדש בטעות הוי הקדש, הכא לא.
The Talmud analyzes this Mishnah: But here, it is clearly a case of an erroneous act of consecration, as the statements of some of these individuals must have been incorrect, and yet the Mishnah teaches that Beit Shammai maintain that they are all nazirites. The rabbis say in response: In fact, in general Beit Shammai hold that an erroneous act of consecration is considered consecration, as is evident from this halakha involving nazirites. However, the particular Mishnah here, concerning black and white bulls, is not based on that halakha. Rather, Rav Pappa’s explanation is the correct one.
אביי אמר: לא קא סלקא דעתך דקאים בצפרא, אלא הכא במאי עסקינן, דקאים בטיהרא, ואמר: שור שחור שיצא מביתי ראשון ליהוי הקדש. ואמרו ליה: לבן נפק. ואמר להון: אי הוה ידענא דלבן נפק לא אמרי שחור.
Abaye said a different explanation of the Mishnah: It should not enter your mind that the Mishnah is dealing with one who was standing in the morning and referred to a future event, i.e., that an animal will emerge from the house. Rather, with what are we dealing here? With one who is standing at noon, after the bulls had already left the house, and said: The black bull that emerged first from my house first should be consecrated. And people said to him: A white bull emerged first. And he said to them: Had I known that a white bull emerged, I would not have said black. Therefore, the consecration was erroneous.