[If] someone says to another: “Konam, whatever benefit I might derive from you, unless you come and take for your children one kor of wheat and two barrels of wine,” such a person can annul his neder without recourse to a sage, if he says to him: “Did you say [that] other than for my honor? That is my honor!” Similarly, someone who says to another: “Konam, whatever benefit you might derive from me, unless you come and give my son one kor of wheat and two barrels of wine” —- R' Meir says: It is binding until he gives; the Sages, however, say: This person, too, can annul his neder without recourse to a sage, if he says: “It is as if I have received.''  [If] they were urging him to marry his sister's daughter, and he said: “Konam, whatever benefits she derives from me forever”; likewise, [if] one was divorcing his wife, and said: “Konam, whatever benefit my wife derives from me forever,” they are permitted to have benefit, since his intention was only for marriage. [If] he was urging another to eat with him, [and] he said: “Konam, your house, with respect to my entering [it]”; [or] “a drop of your cold water, with respect to my tasting [it],” he is permitted to enter his house and to drink his cold water, for his intention was only for eating and drinking.

R' Eliezer says: They may find grounds to annul a neder for a person with the honor of his father and his mother; the Sages, however, forbid [it]. Said R' Tzadok: Before they find grounds to annul the neder for him with the honor of his father and his mother, they should do so with the honor of God. If so, no nedarim! The Sages agree with R' Eliezer, however, that —- for a matter between him and his father and mother —- they may find grounds to annul his neder with the honor of his father and mother.

R' Eliezer also said: They can find grounds to annul a neder on the basis of an unexpected development; the Sages, however, prohibit it. How? [If] he said: “Konam, my having benefit from So-and-so,” and he became a scribe, or was shortly to marry off his son, and he said: “If I had known that he would become a scribe, or that he was about to marry off his son, I would not have made the neder!”; [or if one said:] “Konam, this house, with respect to my entering [it],” and it was made into a synagogue, [and] he said: “If I had known that it would be made into a synagogue, I would not have made the neder!” —- R' Eliezer permits it; the Sages, however, forbid it.

R' Meir says: There are things which are like unexpected developments, and are not like unexpected developments; the Sages, however, do not agree with him. How? [If one] said: “Konam, my marrying So-and-so, because her father is evil,” [and] they told him: “He died,” or that he had repented; “Konam, this house, with respect to my entering because an evil dog is in it” or “because a snake is in it,” [and] they told him: “The dog died,” or that the snake had been killed —- these are things which are like unexpected developments, but are not like unexpected developments. The Sages, however, do not agree with him.

R' Meir also said: They can find ground to annul his neder from what is written in the Torah, and they say to him: “If you had known that you transgress `You shall not take vengeance' (Lev. 19:18), or `You shall not bear a grudge' (ibid.), or `You shall not hate your brother in your heart' (ibid. v. 17), or `You shall love your fellow as yourself' (ibid. v. 18), [or] `That your brother may live with you' (ibid. 25:36) —- perhaps he will grow poor, and you will not be able to support him [would you have vowed?]” If he said: “Had I known that this was so, I would not have made the neder!” —- it is permitted.

They can find grounds to annul a man's neder by [reason of] his wife's kesubah. It happened once that a person made a neder prohibiting benefit from his wife, and her kesubah was four hundred dinars. He came before R' Akiva, who obligated him to pay her kesubah to her. He said to him: “Rabbi! Father left eight hundred dinars, my brother took four hundred, and I took four hundred. Is it not enough that she should take two hundred and I, two hundred?” R' Akiva said to him: “Even if you have to sell the hair on your head, you must pay her kesubah to her.” He said to him: “Had I known that this was so, I would not have made the neder.” Thereupon, R' Akiva permitted her.

They can find grounds to annul a neder by [reason of] festivals or Sabbaths. At first they used to say: Those days are permitted, but all the other days are forbidden —- until R' Akiva came and taught that a neder which has been nullified in part is nullified in its entirety.

How? [In a case where someone] said: “Konam, what benefit I derive from any of you,” if one of them is permitted —- they are all permitted. “What I benefit from this one and from this one,” if the first one is permitted —- they are all permitted; if the last one is permitted —- the last one is permitted, but all the others are forbidden; if one in between is permitted —- from him and down are permitted, from him and up are forbidden. “What I benefit from this one is korban, and from this one, korban” —- grounds to annul each neder are needed.

[If one said:] “Konam, wine, with respect to my tasting [it] because wine is bad for the bowels,” [and] they said to him: “But isn't old wine good for the bowels?” —- he is permitted aged wine; and not only is he permitted aged wine but all wine. “Konam, onions, with respect to my tasting [them] because onions are bad for the heart,” [and] they said to him: “But isn't village onion good for the heart?” —- he is permitted the village onion; and not only is he permitted the village onion, but also all onions. It once happened, and R' Meir permitted him all onions.

They can find grounds to annul a person's neder by [reason of] his own honor or the honor of his children. They say to him: “If you would have known that tomorrow they would say about you: `Such is the habit of So-and-so —- he divorces his wives,' and about your daughters they will say: `They are daughters of a divorced woman; what did their mother see to bring about her divorce?' [would you have vowed?].” If he said: “Had I known that this would be so, I would not have vowed!” —- it is permitted.

[If one says:] “Konam, my marrying So-and-so the ugly,” and, in fact, she is good looking; “dark,” and she is fair; “short,” and she is tall —- he is permitted her. [This is] not because she was ugly and became good looking, or dark and became fair, or short and became tall, but because the neder was an error.  It happened once that someone made a neder prohibiting benefit from his sister's daughter, and they brought her to R' Yishmael's house, and made her beautiful. R' Yishmael said to him: “My son, regarding this woman did you vow?” He said to him: “No.” Thereupon, R' Yishmael permitted [her]. At that time R' Yishmael wept and said: “The daughters of Israel are beautiful, but poverty makes them ugly.”  When R' Yishmael died, the daughters of Israel raised a lament, saying: “Daughters of Israel, weep over R' Yishmael.” And so, too, it says about Saul (II Samuel 1:24): Daughters of Israel, weep over Saul.

A naarah who is betrothed —- her father and her husband revoke her nedarim. [If] the father revoked [a neder], but the husband did not revoke [it, or if] the husband revoked [it], but the father did not revoke [it], it is revoked; certainly [this is so] if one of them confirmed [the neder].

If the father dies, the [sole] right does not fall to the husband. If the husband dies, the [sole] right falls to the father. In this matter, the power of the father surpasses that of the husband.  In another matter, the power of the husband surpasses that of the father, for a husband can revoke [his wife's nedarim] even after she has been a bogeres, while the father cannot revoke her nedarim once she becomes a bogeres.

If she vowed while she was betrothed, [and] was divorced on the same day [and] betrothed [again] that same day, even to a hundred [men] —- her father and her current husband revoke her nedarim.  This is the general rule: As long as she had never entered into a state of independence for even one hour, her father and her current husband revoke her nedarim.

It was the custom of scholars [that] as long as one's daughter had not left him, he would say to her: “All nedarim which you have made in my house are revoked.” And so, too, the husband —- before she would come under his authority —- would say to her: “All nedarim which you have made prior to coming under my authority are revoked,” for once she comes under his authority, he cannot revoke [them].