Aninut

Hebrew term used to describe the status of a person in Mourning for a close relative (father, mother, sister, brother, son, daughter, husband, or wife) between that person's death and the actual Burial. During that period, the funeral arrangements must be the prime concern of the onen (i.e., the person in aninut), and he is accordingly not only exempt from but forbidden to perform any other regular positive commandments. Thus, for example, an onen does not read the Shema or pray with Tallit and Tefillin (phylacteries) when the proper time arrives. An onen is also forbidden to eat meat or drink wine. However, should the period of aninut include a Sabbath, these special laws are suspended for the day and the onen fulfills all commandments, as he is in any case unable to make arrangements for burial on the Sabbath. By the same token, a person located in a place where he is unable to attend to any funeral arrangements is not considered an onen in terms of these laws, and is not exempt from the fulfillment of the commandments.

---