Avodah Zarah 28b — the Talmud in English

Rabbi Yaakov felt

pain

in the pika'a

in the anus.

Uri

instructed

Rabbi Ami, and some say

and there are those who say that

Rabbi Asi instructed him

how he should be healed from this:

Let him bring seven red seeds like a worm, [from] the plant called ahala,

he should bring seven red seeds like a worm from the plant called “ahal,” which is used for washing.

And let him gather them,

he should bundle these seeds

in the hollow of the collar,

in the piece of cloth that is cut when the collar of the garment is opened,

and let him wrap around it a hair cord,

he should wrap around it a strap of animal hair,

and let him dip it in white nataf,

and he should dip it in white nataf [a type of perfume],

and let him burn it,

he should burn all these things.

And

the ash that will result,

let him spread it over it,

he should spread it over the place of the pain.

In the meantime,

while he has not yet prepared this remedy, when he is searching for these ingredients,

let him bring the seed of the sana

he should take seeds found inside the fruit of the sana,

let him place a pika'a opposite a pika'a,

he should place the cleft of one seed opposite the cleft of the incision in his body—that is, at the opening of the anus.

And these words,

this remedy of the ash applies only to

an upper pika'a,

at the upper side of the opening, on its outer side, one may spread the ash.

But

a lower pika'a,

the lower opening, in its inner part—

what

should he do with it?

Let him bring the fat of a young she-goat that has not opened,

he should bring the milk [fat] of a young she-goat that has not opened, meaning, that has not given birth,

and let him melt it,

he should melt the fat with heat,

and let him cast it into it,

he should put it inside the opening and smear that place with it.

And if

if

not

he is able to perform the stated remedy,

let him bring

he should bring

three leaves,

three leaves of

squash,

pumpkin,

that dried in the shade

that dried in the shade,

and let him burn them

he should burn them,

and let him spread

it over it

and spread it over that place.

And if

if this matter, too,

not

is within his ability,

let him bring

he should bring

from the scales of a snail,

a type of snail,

and if

if

not, let him bring

he should bring

from mishḥa kira,

olive oil and wax mixed together.

And let him take worn linen garments—

in the summer.

And during the summer he should wear light garments of worn linen, so that his body will not become excessively hot,

and cotton garments—

in the winter.

And in the winter he should cover himself with warm cotton garments so that his body will not become chilled.

And the Gemara continues with these matters, those of healing:

Rabbi Abbahu felt

pain

in his ear

in his ear.

He instructed him

he instructed him

Rabbi Yoḥanan, and some say

and there are those who say that he was instructed

in the beit-midrash,

in the house of study.

What did he instruct him,

what did he instruct him to do?

Like that which Abaye said: My mother said to me

[my nurse]—

the kidney was created not

the kidney was not created

except for the ear,

to heal the ear with it!

And Rava said: Minyomi the physician said to me,

the physician:

all liquids are harmful to the ear.

All liquids harm the ear,

except

except for

the water of a kidney,

water from kidneys.

And how is this remedy of kidney water performed?

Let him bring a kidney,

he should bring a kidney

of a bald goat,

of a bald goat, which does not have much hair as a sheep does,

and let him tear it,

he should tear the kidney lengthwise and widthwise in the form of

warp and woof, and let him place it

he should place it

on glowing coals,

on glowing coals.

And those waters

those waters

that emerge from it,

which emerge from the kidney,

let him put them in his ear,

he should put them in his ear when they are

neither cold nor hot, but lukewarm.

neither cold nor hot, but lukewarm.

And if not,

if he cannot do this,

let him bring

he should bring

the fat of a large beetle,

the fat of a large beetle,

and let him melt it,

he should melt it,

and let him cast it into it,

and put it inside the ear.

And if not—

let him fill his ear with oil,

he should fill his ear with oil,

and let him make seven wicks of alfalfa,

he should make seven wicks from the long leaves of alfalfa [green hay of wheat].

And let him bring the sheath of garlic,

he should take the leaves that hold and surround the garlic,

and let him place a hair cord at one end,

he should place a strip of hair from the garlic leaves at one end of the wick,

and let him suspend fire with them,

he should light, by means of the hair strip of the garlic, the fire in these wicks,

and the other end,

the other end of the heated wick,

is placed in the ear,

he should place it in his ear.

And let him place his ear opposite this fire,

and place his ear facing the fire,

and let him beware of wind,

and beware that wind does not reach his ear while he is warming it with the fire.

And let him take one and place one,

and when he removes one wick from the ear, he should place the second in its place, until all seven have been used.

Another version,

another manner:

and if not—

let him bring seven wicks in a container,

he should take seven wicks,

and smear them with alfalfa oil,

he should smear them with oil extracted from alfalfa,

and let him bring one end to the fire,

he should place one end in the fire,

and

and

one end

he should place the other end

in his ear

in his ear.

And let him take one

he should remove one,

and place one

and place one,

and let him beware of wind

and beware that wind does not reach his ear.

And if not,

if he does not do this—

let him bring old felt,

dyed felt

that has not been beaten,

that has not been beaten and fluffed,

and let him place it in it

he should place it in his ear,

and let him bring his ear near the fire

and bring his ear opposite the fire.

And let him beware of wind

and beware of wind!

And if not,

if he does not do this either,

let him bring an old reed tube, the son of a hundred years,

he should take a tube of reed that was uprooted after one hundred years,

and let him salt it with thick rock salt,

he should salt it with coarse rock salt resembling marble,

and let him burn it

he should burn it,

and let it adhere

and let it adhere to his ear.

And your sign is,

the sign for all remedies that benefit the ear:

moisture—

for dryness,

a remedy containing moisture, such as kidney water and the like, is good for a dry ear, which is diseased and does not discharge phlegm.

And dryness—

for moisture.

A dry remedy, such as the old reed that we mentioned, is good for a diseased and moist ear that discharges phlegm.

And now the Gemara returns to discussing healing on Shabbat:

Rabba bar Zutra said in the name of Rabbi Ḥanina: One may raise the ears on Shabbat.

Sometimes the tendons of the ears descend downward, and the jaws become dislocated [and the lower jaw leaves its place], and such a condition is considered dangerous, and it is permitted to correct it on Shabbat.

Rav Shmuel bar Yehuda taught:

the permission to raise them on Shabbat applies only when one raises them

by hand. But not with a drug.

Since it is possible to raise them by hand, it is forbidden to raise them with a drug, just as it is forbidden to use any remedy, because of the decree concerning ingredients.

There are those who say,

however, there are those who say that it is permitted to raise them only

with a drug—

but not by hand.

What is the reason

for using a drug and not the hand?—Because by hand

he tears and tears.

He can wound himself and make a wound. In this way he desecrates Shabbat more than through applying the drug, which is forbidden only by a rabbinic decree. However, when the matter is done by applying a drug in that place, there is no concern of making a wound.

Rav Zutra bar Toviyya said in the name of Rav: An eye that rebelled,

which leaves its place [and is called “rebellious,” just as one calls a person who rebels, who leaves his place,]

it is permitted to paint it with blue eye-paint

to put blue medicine in it and return it to its place

on Shabbat

through this remedy.

They understood from it,

they understood his words to mean that

these words,

this permission to put the drug and the eye-paint on Shabbat,

applies when the ingredients were ground,

only when the ingredients had already been prepared and were here

from the day before. But if he grinds

to grind them and prepare them

on Shabbat, and brings them

to bring them here

through the public domain—

in this manner

not

was the matter permitted, since this is not danger to life, but only danger of blindness.

A certain one of the Sages said to him,

one of the Sages,

and his name was Rabbi Yaakov: For me it was explained

this matter was explained to me

from Rav Yehuda: Even grinding,

grinding the ingredients on Shabbat,

and bringing them

transferring them

through the public domain—

is permitted.

Rav Yehuda permitted painting an eye,

he permitted putting blue paint in an eye that had rebelled,

on Shabbat.

He said to them,

he instructed

Rav Shmuel bar Yehuda

the Sages:

Whoever obeys Yehuda—

has desecrated Shabbat!

Whoever listens to and obeys Yehuda has desecrated Shabbat!

In the end, he felt

Rav Shmuel bar Yehuda himself

in his eye

in his eye.

He sent to him

to ask Rav Yehuda: Is it

permitted

for me to paint the eye on Shabbat,

or forbidden?

He sent to him

Rabbi Yehuda sent him his answer:

For everyone it is permitted,

it is permitted, but

for you,

for you

it is forbidden,

because you forbade it and challenged my words, and you should not have done so, since

is it from me,

did I permit this on my own? Surely this halakha that I stated is the method

of Mar Shmuel,

from whom I received the permission to permit it,

for there was that maidservant

there was an incident involving that maidservant

who was in the house of Mar Shmuel,

who was in Mar Shmuel’s house,

whose eye was inflamed,

her eye was afflicted by fever [inflammation]

on Shabbat.

She cried out

that maidservant throughout the entire Shabbat,

and there was no one who paid attention to her

and they did not pay attention to her cries, and because of her illness

the eye burst,

her eye came out.

The next day, he went out

he went out

Mar Shmuel and lectured

before the students:

An eye that rebelled—

it is permitted to paint it on Shabbat.

What is the reason,

why is this matter permitted, for it is not danger to life?—Because

the sight of the eye

the light of the eyes

depends upon the chambers of the heart,

upon the arteries and chambers of the heart,

they depend

[it depends], and because of this there is concern lest the illness of the eye affect the heart and reach the level of danger.

And the Gemara asks:

For example, what,

for which eye illness does one desecrate Shabbat?

Rav Yehuda said:

A.

For example,

when there descends from the eye

mucus

mucus.

B.

That he has come out—

a sensation of sharp pain, like a stabbing, in his eyes.

C.

Blood—

his eyes stream blood.

D.

Tears—

his eyes tear more than usual.

E.

And fever—

his eyes burn with fever.

F.

And the beginning of illness—

he feels the beginning of an illness in his eyes.

To exclude the end of the illness,

except where the illness is already at its end and is healing, though there is still a little fever,

and rubbing of the eye,

for one who wishes to paint his eyes in order to improve his sight—the matter was not permitted on Shabbat.

And the Gemara continues with matters of healing, unrelated to the laws of Shabbat.

Rav Yehuda said: A wasp,

a wasp’s sting,

and a thorn that pierced him,

a thorn became embedded in his flesh,

and a pustule,

he has a swelling of pus,

and it pains

his eye,

he feels pain in his eye,

and fever comes upon it,

his eye is inflamed and hot—

all of them,

all these ailments,

in the bathhouse—

danger,

it is dangerous to enter the bathhouse while suffering from them!

And this is the general rule concerning taking a remedy:

Hot,

eating radish is beneficial

for

the illness of

heat. And beet greens,

eating spinach is beneficial

for coldness

for a chill.

And the reverse,

switching these remedies for one another, such as radish for coldness—

danger!

because the radish adds cold, whereas the spinach adds heat.

Hot things

hot things are beneficial

for a scorpion

for a scorpion’s sting,

and cold things

cold things—

for a wasp,

for a wasp’s sting.

And the reverse,

switching these remedies for one another—

danger!

Hot things

hot water is beneficial

for a thorn,

to heal a thorn’s penetration by soaking the affected place in it.