במדבר, פרק ו׳, פסוק ז׳

A person who takes the Nazirite vow ascends to a unique level of holiness, surpassing even that of a regular priest. While a standard priest is permitted to become ritually impure to bury his immediate family, a Nazirite is strictly forbidden from doing so because he wears a divine crown [ביאור שטיינזלץ]. The very term for this vow shares a root with the word for a crown [אבן עזרא]. The long hair grown during this period is not merely an external feature, but a physical declaration of sanctity and separation, showing that the individual views God as the living God [ביאור שטיינזלץ, רש״ר הירש, רלב״ג]. True royalty and freedom belong to those who release themselves from worldly desires; by sanctifying himself from below, the Nazirite receives holiness from above [אבן עזרא, שפתי כהן]. This sacred status is fundamentally tied to his head, remaining fully in effect even if he physically has no hair [תורה תמימה].

Because of this elevated state, the restriction against coming into contact with death is absolute. Although a person's spouse and children are not explicitly listed among the forbidden relatives, the ban naturally extends to them as well [אבן עזרא, צפנת פענח]. However, the restriction is highly specific to the impurity of death. A Nazirite is still permitted to become impure by attending to relatives suffering from other severe conditions, such as leprosy or bodily discharges [פני דוד, בכור שור, חזקוני, תורה תמימה, מלבי״ם]. Furthermore, while he must keep his distance from a dying person, he is allowed to stand in a line of comforters and participate in a eulogy, a leniency not granted to a High Priest [תורה תמימה, מלבי״ם]. The purity laws associated with this vow are specific to the nation and do not apply to groups like the Samaritans [תורה תמימה].

The specific list of immediate family members—father, mother, brother, and sister—initially seems redundant since all contact with the dead is already forbidden. The primary approach among commentators is that this detailed list teaches a profound exception: while the Nazirite cannot defile himself for his closest relatives, he is absolutely obligated to do so for an abandoned corpse that has no one else to bury it [פני דוד, חזקוני, רש״ר הירש, מלבי״ם]. Each family member mentioned adds a layer of severity that is overridden by the dignity of the abandoned dead. The father establishes the basic permission. The mother teaches that even if the Nazirite is also a priest, he must still perform the burial. The brother reveals that this duty applies even if he is a High Priest. Finally, the sister demonstrates that he must stop to bury the abandoned corpse even if he is on his way to fulfill crucial commandments carrying severe punishments, such as circumcising his son or slaughtering the Passover sacrifice [תורה תמימה, רש״ר הירש, מלבי״ם]. These specific commandments actively connect and bind the nation to God, yet the honor of the neglected dead takes precedence over them [תורה תמימה, העמק דבר].

Ultimately, the laws of this vow depend on a state of complete devotion to God as one's sole master. Because the full weight of the vow requires that a person answer to no human authority, a mortal master retains the right to force his slave to break the vow [תורה תמימה]. The Nazirite's commitment is a total submission to God alone, reflected in both his physical appearance and his careful navigation of life, death, and human dignity.