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It may be possible to make the novel assertion that even though
a person who tears his clothes in his anguish is not a considered a
shoteh in regard to mitzvos and punishments and in regard to the
invalidity of his transactions – but rather as suffering from the gandri-
fas malady – in regard to the piku’ach nefesh he may nevertheless be
deemed a shoteh. Just as a convalescent shoteh is allowed to eat on Yom
Kippur lest he relapse into his state of imbecility and be in danger of
killing himself or others, the woman mentioned by the Beis Yitzchak
who tore her clothes in her anguish, would also be allowed to eat on
3 Yom Kippur. Despite her not being considered a shotah in regard to
mitzvos, punishments and transactions, in regard to the halachos of
piku’ach nefesh, Torah prohibitions may be violated in order to heal
her and save her from the gandrifas malady and from her attack of
melancholy, which might result in her committing suicide or in her
killing others.

Let us now return to our original question: is a person who is se-
riously contemplating suicide considered a shoteh in regard to our be-
ing allowed to violate Torah prohibitions, when there is real concern
that if we do not fulfill his request he will kill himself – particularly
when he has already demonstrated the seriousness of his intention
through a past suicide attempt, like the young woman discussed in
our question.

It appears to me that were it not for the psychiatrist’s opinion that
the young woman is suffering from mental imbalance etc., we would
not consider her a shotah to justify violating Torah prohibitions in
order to save her from suicide. Since she has a reason for wanting to
commit suicide, she is not considered “a shotah” who destroys every-
thing she is given.

Nowadays, we sadly see well known public figures who commit
suicide because they are afraid of being removed from their senior
positions or who kill themselves because they did not attain their de-
sires. Such people are not considered as shotim who destroy whatever
they are given, since there is a reason that they acted as they did, as the
Beis Yitzchak writes and their actions were the product of clear reck-
oning on their part that without the honor they enjoyed or without

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