Fifteen women exempt their co-wives

Fifteen women exempt their co-wives, and their co-wives' co-wives, from chalitzah and levirate marriage forever. If the widow is forbidden to the brother (e.g., his daughter), there is no yibum - and the deceased's other wife (the co-wife) is exempt too.

1. 1Restate the source in your own words.
2. 2Identify the central distinction and explain its significance.
3. 3Apply the distinction in the exercise without adding a ruling absent from the source.

1. 01·Mishnah / Baraita

   The Mishnah opens with fifteen women whose exemption from yibum and chalitzah extends to their co-wives.

2. 02·The Gemara asks

   To follow the Mishnah, we ask which women its list includes.

3. 03·Raya

   The list begins with his daughter and descendants and continues with his wife’s relatives.

4. 04·Raya

   The Mishnah also lists sisters and a maternal brother’s wife, specifying different family relationships.

5. 05·Conclusion of the sugya

   This page contains only the opening of the Mishnah, so it offers no Gemara debate or conclusion about the exemption yet.