Commentary for Berakhot 35:4
מתו אין אבל משמרו לא
He whose dead [is lying before him] is exempt, but [so it may The be inferred,] not the watcher. But lo, there is a teaching :
Abraham Cohen Footnotes to the English Translation of Masechet Berakhot
The Jewish custom is not to leave the body alone until burial, there being somebody always present to "watch." See Oesterley and Box, p. 332. The reason is to protect the body from mice. Cf. below.
Ask RabbiBookmarkShareCopy