In Judaism, a neder (נדר, plural nedarim) is a kind of vow or oath. The neder may consist of performing some act in the future (either once or regularly) or abstaining from a particular type of activity of the person's choice. The concept of the neder and the Jewish law related to it, is described at the beginning of the parashah of Matot. Laws A neder is a self-made oral declaration which makes an object prohibited to the person making the vow. The person thus creates a prohibition (issur) having the status of scriptural law (De'oraita), as the Torah states: When the man pledges a vow (yidor neder) to Hashem, or swears an oath (hishavA` shevuah), proscribing a prohibition (le'esor issar) on himself, he shall not desecrate his word; whatever has come out of his mouth he must do. From the phrase "he must do," the rabbis deduced that there exists a positive commandment to fulfill what one said, as well as a negative prohibition not to desecrate one's word. The word "neder" is mentioned 33 times in the Pentateuch, 19 of which occur in the Book of Numbers. Judaism views the power of speech as very strong. It is speech that distinguishes humans from animals, and has the power to accomplish a lot for better or for worse. Due to the strength of a neder, and the fact that one must absolutely be fulfilled if made, many pious Jews engage in the practice of saying "b'li neder" after a statement that they will do something, meaning that their statement is not a binding neder in the event they cannot fulfill their pledge due to unforeseen circumstances. The most common way a neder is made is through verbal pronunciation. But according to some opinions, the performance of an act on three consecutive occasions is akin to a neder. The distinction between neder and shevuah The word neder is often translated into English and other languages as a "vow", while shevu'ah is often rendered as "oath", though no single English word exactly describes either. The neder may be a promise of prohibition or deprivation (neder issar, e.g., "Let all beans be forbidden to me for thirty days"), or a dedication to the Temple (neder heḳdesh, e.g. "I pledge to bring a burnt-offering"). The latter case forbids the object's benefit to the person making the neder, and obligates him to bring it