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What distinguishes a neder (vow) from a shevua (oath)? The Gemara (גמרא) states that neder is an issur cheftza (prohibition on the object) while shevua is an issur gavra (prohibition on the person). Building on the Rambam (רמב"ם)'s formulation, the shiur develops that neder requires a commitment expressed through "harei alai" language, while shevua is a statement of truth about one's future actions. This distinction explains the laws of chatfasa (extension of vows) and why certain formulations work for one but not the other.
The shiur opens with the Gemara (גמרא) on Nedarim 2a discussing the fundamental distinction between nedarim and shevuos: a neder creates an issur cheftza (prohibition on the object itself), while a shevua creates an issur gavra (prohibition on the person). Tosfos raises the question of what practical difference emerges from this distinction. Rabbi Zweig questions why the Rishonim don't focus on the apparent nafka mina (practical difference) regarding chatfasa (the ability to extend a prohibition from one object to another) - since an issur cheftza should allow for chatfasa while an issur gavra should not. The shiur then analyzes the Rambam (רמב"ם) in Hilchos Shevuos (Perek 2, halachos 8-9), where the Rambam discusses two scenarios of chatfasa in shevuos. In one case, a person makes a shevua and his friend says "ani kamocha" (I am like you) without explicitly uttering the word "shevua." In another case, someone swears not to eat a certain piece of meat, then says a piece of bread should be "like that meat." The Rambam rules that while these cases exempt one from punishment (malkos or korban), the second object remains forbidden. A careful reading reveals that the Rambam only states the prohibition applies in the second case (regarding the bread), not necessarily in the first case of "ani kamocha."
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Nedarim 2a
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