Basis for Hafarat Nedarim

Nedarim (11) | Yisrael Bankier | 12 years ago

There are two ways that a neder can be absolved: hatarat nedarim and hafarat nedarim. The first involves a chacham and was the focus of last weeks issue. With the beginning of the tenth perek we began discussing hafarat nedarim. A father has the ability to meifer his young daughter’s neder. Similarly a husband has the ability to meifer his wife’s neder. We will learn that a husband’s ability however is restricted only to those nedarim that either causes his wife pain or impact on their relationship. We have previously discussed the difference between hatarat nedarim and hafarat nedarim (see “Hafarat and Hatarat Nedarim”, Volume 3, Issue 23). In this article we will focus on the husband’s ability to perform hafarat nedarim. 

The *Ran * (*Nedarim * 82b) explains that it is possible to differentiate between the two types of nedarim that a husband can meifer. For nedarim that are self-afflicting or cause the wife pain (inui nefesh) the key is that that it will bother the wife. For nedarim that can impact their relationship (beino l’veinah) his licence is that it bothers him.

A legal implication of this difference is when his wife makes a nederthat is only partially an inui nefesh or beino le’veina. For the former, since it is dependent on her, the husband cannot partially meifer the neder – it is entirely suspended. For the later however, since it is dependant in the impact on him, he can meifer the component of the neder that impacts on their relationship.

The Gemara (79b) also raises a difference between the two types of nedarim. If a husband is meifer a neder that has an inui nefesh then it is suspended indefinitely regardless of changes in circumstance. For nedarim that are beino le’veina, hafara only suspends the neder until she marries someone else. (It remains suspended after divorce as the neder might prevent them from remarrying.)

R’ Akiva Eiger (Yoreh Deah, 234:55) deals with case where the wife make a neder that would be defined as beino u’veina, however she stipulate that the neder would take effect after they divorced. Can a husband meifersuch a neder? He cites the Ran (85) who provides two answers. The first is that since issue of beino le’veina has no impact during their marriage, the husband cannot meifer that neder. The second answer is that he can, as the neder will prevent remarriage.

R’ Akiva Eiger continues that he later found a Yerushalmi that maintains that there is no difference between a neder that has inui nefesh or is beino le’veina and hafara for both has an effect indefinitely. The difference however is only with respect a neder that is made during marriage but stipulated only to take affect after divorce. For nedarim that are beino le’veina the husband would not be able to meifer the neder. The Yerushalmi is therefore clear on this issue.

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