שונא מתנות יחיה: Should one refuse all gifts to merit long life?

 

Question:

My mother-in-law purchased a sheital that she was not happy with that she cannot return and wasn’t able to sell. She wants to gift it to her daughter (my wife) and we are unsure how to correctly apply the idea of שונא מתנות.

Is it as straight forward as: you should refuse all gifts and merit long life? Or do we take other factors into situation? Such as the nachas it will give my mother-in-law whenever she sees her daughter wearing the sheitel.

 

Answer:

In this case it would be appropriate to accept.

 

ראה שו״ת שבה״ל ו, רכט.

 

 

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