Avel

HILCHOT EVEL

They include four mitzvot: one positive commandment and three negative commandments:

They are:

1. To mourn for one's close relatives; even a priest must become impure and mourns for his close relatives. A person should not mourn for individuals executed by the court. For this reason, I have included these laws in this book,2 for they relate to the mitzvah of burying the dead on the day of their passing which is a positive commandment.3 2. For a High Priest not to become impure because of his close relatives;

3. For him not to enter under the same shelter as a corpse;

4. For an ordinary priest not to become impure because of a corpse except for that of his close relatives. These mitzvot are explained in the coming chapters.