In a standard term of naziriteship, the nazirite shaves on the day after the close of his term, the thirty-first day. One who shaved on the final day of his term, the thirtieth day, has fulfilled his obligation. If one vowed to observe two consecutive terms of naziriteship, he shaves for the end of the second term on the sixty-first day from the start of the first term, as that is the thirty-first day of the second term. If one shaved for the first term on the thirtieth day, then even if he shaved for the second term on the fifty-ninth day, he has fulfilled his obligation. This chapter considered different possibilities with regard to the negation of the tally of the days of naziriteship due to ritual impurity from a corpse. If a nazirite comes into contact with a corpse during his term, the impurity negates the days he had observed of his naziriteship. After completing the purification process, the nazirite shaves and begins counting his term anew. The Gemara rules that this halakha applies even if one became impure on the final day of his term. On the other hand, if one contracts impurity on the day following the end of the term, before he has brought his offerings, only thirty days are negated, even if the original term was much longer. If one who had contracted impurity from a corpse, for example one who was standing in a cemetery, took a vow of naziriteship, the naziriteship takes effect immediately with regard to the prohibition against drinking wine or cutting hair, but he begins counting the days of his term only once he completes his purification process. A nazirite who became impure may only start to count his term again once the blood from his sin-offering has been sprinkled on the altar. If one residing outside Eretz Yisrael vowed to observe a term of naziriteship and then observed the entire term outside of Eretz Yisrael, he must observe his term again upon arriving in Eretz Yisrael. This halakha applies even if the vow comprised multiple terms or a lengthy term. The reason for this is that naziriteship kept outside of Eretz Yisrael is considered to be one observed in ritual impurity. Finally, should one vow to keep several terms of naziriteship but forget how many terms he vowed to complete, and witnesses provide conflicting reports as to what he said, the testimony of the set of witnesses who say the smaller amount is accepted.

Speak to the children of Israel, and say to them: When either man or woman shall clearly utter a vow, the vow of a nazirite, to consecrate himself to the Lord. (Numbers 6:2)

This chapter deals with many, varied topics relating to naziriteship. Some of these are novel issues, while other matters have been addressed earlier in the tractate. The underlying theme of these disparate discussions is the naziriteship of women, as the analysis of women’s naziriteship sheds light on the institution as a whole. There are two unique factors involved in the case of a woman who vows to become a nazirite. First, this vow shares a feature common to all vows of a woman, which is the right of her father or husband to nullify the vow. This nullification has further ramifications if another person linked his naziriteship vow to that of this woman before her father or husband nullified it. Additionally, it must be established what is to be done in the case of a woman who intentionally violates a vow that has been nullified without her knowledge, and what becomes of the animals that have been set aside as offerings for this vow. Finally, at what point during the term of naziriteship is the option to nullify a woman’s vow no longer available to her father or husband? A second dimension of a woman’s naziriteship concerns two halakhot that are not explicitly stated in the Torah. A father has the right to establish his minor son as a nazirite and thereby obligate him in all of the restrictions of naziriteship. Furthermore, under certain circumstances, a son may make use of the animals his father set aside for his naziriteship offerings if the father dies and he and the son were both nazirites. The Sages determined that these halakhot apply to sons but not to daughters, and to fathers rather than mothers. Despite the fact that most of the issues raised in this chapter are not limited to women, the applications of these halakhot to women serve as starting points for general discussions about naziriteship.