2,741. A Condition to Void Vows

Hilchos Nedarim 2:4

Let’s say that someone made a condition before taking a vow, saying that he rescinds or cancels any vow that he might make for the next ten years, after which he made a vow. If he remembered his condition when he made the vow, the vow takes effect because by making it, he withdraws his condition. However, if he didn’t remember his condition until after making the vow, the vow is null and void even if he thought of the condition and kept it in mind. Even though he didn’t rescind his vow orally, he made a retraction that preceded the vow and he stated it orally then. The Rambam cites a divergent opinion that rules stringently, requiring one to recall his condition immediately after making a vow.

Hilchos Nedarim 2:5

Let’s say that someone made a condition voiding his vows for a year or for ten years and he subsequently made a vow, recalling at the time of his vow that he had made a condition but forgetting the subject of his condition and its details. If he says that he is proceeding according to his original intentions, his vow doesn’t take effect because he has voided it. If he doesn’t make a statement to that effect, he has voided the condition in favor of the vow because he remembered that there was a condition when he made his vow but he made it anyway.