Shabbat 67a (סז.) — the Talmud in English

Rav Huna said:

For tertian fever—

a fever that breaks out every three days—

let him bring seven silvei,

small branches,

from seven date palms, and seven tzivei,

broken pieces of wood—splinters,

from seven beams,

beams,

and seven sikhei,

pegs,

from seven bridges

bridges,

and seven katimei,

ashes,

from seven ovens, and seven clods of earth from seven sanerei,

the hole in the threshold containing the door hinge,

and seven kuferi,

tar used to coat ships,

from seven boats,

boats,

and seven bunei,

seeds,

of cumin,

cumin,

and seven binei,

strands of hair,

from the beard

of

an old dog,

of an old dog.

And let him bundle them

and place them

in the hollow beneath the throat

hanging beneath the throat

on a nira beraka,

a tuft of his hair.

Rabbi Yohanan said: For tzemereta fever,

a fever that scorches the entire body—

let him take an entirely iron knife,

iron,

and go to where there is a thornbush,

thorn branches,

and tie to it

and bind it to the thornbush

a nira beraka,

a tuft of hair.

And he should do this for three days:

On the first day, let him scratch it

cut into the thornbush

a little, and recite

Exodus 3

“And an angel of the Lord appeared to him,” and so on .

On the following day, let him scratch it

again

a little, and recite

Exodus 3

“And Moses said: Let me turn now and see,”

and later in the verse it says, “Why does the thornbush not burn,” alluding to the transfer of the heat to the thornbush:

On the following day, let him scratch it

again

a little, and recite: “And the Lord saw that he turned aside to see,” and so on.

And likewise the illness will depart.

Rav Aḥa, son of Rava, said to Rav Ashi: But let him recite, “And He said: Do not come any closer,” and so on!

This symbolizes distancing the illness, so that it should not come near him.

Rather, on the first day let him recite, “And an angel of the Lord appeared to him

and so on, and Moses said, and so on.”

And on the following day let him recite: “And the Lord saw that he turned aside to see.”

And on the following day: “And He said,

‘Do not come any closer.’”

And when the fever stops

the fever—

let him lower it and cut it,

so that he lowers the thornbush downward,

and let him say this: Thornbush, thornbush, it was not because you are taller than all the asherei trees

that He caused

the Holy One, blessed be He, to rest His Shekhina upon you, but because you are lower

because you are lowly

than all the asherei trees

that He caused

the Holy One, blessed be He, to rest His Shekhina upon you.

And just as you, fever, saw

just as you, the fire, saw

Ḥanania, Mishael, and Azariah, and fled from before them,

and withdrew from them—

so shall you, fever, see

the fire [the fever]

so-and-so, son of so-and-so, and flee from before him,

and withdraw from him.

For a boil

a boil

let him recite

the names of the angels as an incantation

as follows: “Baz Bazya, Mas Masya, Kas Kasya, Sharlai and Amarlai”—

these are the angels who were sent from the land of Sodom

these are the angels who were sent from Sodom [that is the incantation, although it was not actually so]—

“and to heal a painful boil,

and to heal the painful boil.

Bazikh Bazikh, Bazavzikh, Masamsikh, Kamon Kamikh”

words of an incantation without independent meaning.

“Your eyes are in you, your eye is in you,”

remain in your red appearance and do not become redder.

Your place

your place

is in you,

so that you do not spread and expand elsewhere.

Your seed is like a sterile mule,

so that you do not give birth,

and like a barren mule, which neither bears nor breeds. So may you not bear;

and may you not increase in the body of so-and-so, son of so-and-so.

For one seized by a demon,

for one whom a demon has seized,

let him recite as follows: “A drawn sword and a cast sling. Let not the name of Yokhev Chulin dwell here and between.”

For a demon, let him recite as follows: “You were blocked, blocked; you were”.

May it be

cursed,

cursed,

broken

broken

and ostracized,

and ostracized—the demon whose name is:

Bar Tit, Bar Tamei, Bar Tina, when he becomes enraged and is silenced.

For a lavatory demon

that harmed a person,

let him recite as follows: “On the skull of the lion

on the lion’s head

and on the nose of the lioness,

and on the lioness’s nose, there

you will find

you will find

the demon Bar Shiriqa Panda” [that is the demon’s name].

this is the demon’s name.

“In a bed of lentils

in a garden bed of lentils

I struck him down,

I knocked him down,

in the mouth of a donkey

in a donkey’s mouth

I beat him.”

I struck him.

We learned in the Mishna:

“And the sons of kings may go out with bells.”

Who is the tanna

who says that even the poorest Jew is permitted to do so, like the sons of kings?

Rabbi Oshaya said: It is Rabbi Shimon, who said: All Jews are sons of kings.

Therefore there is no concern even with regard to a poor person, who might remove it and carry it.

Rava said: It is referring to a bell woven into his garment,

which he does not remove,

and everyone agrees .

Mishna:

One may go out with a locust egg, with a fox’s tooth, and with a nail from a crucified person, because of their medicinal properties; this is the statement of Rabbi Meir.

But the Sages prohibit them even on a weekday —

because of the ways of the Amorite.

This is their form of divination, and the Torah said: “You shall not walk in their statutes.”

Gemara:

One may go out with a locust egg—

which is used for shikhla,

for earache.

And with a fox’s tooth—

which is used for sleep,

for sleep: There are those who do not wish to sleep, and there are those who use it to induce sleep.

A live fox’s tooth

—living,

alive—

is for one who sleeps,

so that he will awaken.

A dead fox’s tooth

—dead

[dead]—

is for one who does not sleep.

And with a nail from a crucified person—

which is used to heal zirpa.

For healing a wound caused by an iron implement.

We learned in the Mishna:

“Because of its medicinal properties; this is the statement of Rabbi Meir.”

Abaye and Rava both say: Any object that has medicinal benefit,

whose healing effect is apparent,

does not involve the ways of the Amorite.

And we raised a difficulty:

Is it that when there is no

benefit

because of

the ways of

healing,

such as an incantation —

it does involve the ways of the Amorite?

And it was taught in a beraita: In the case of a tree that sheds its fruit, one paints it

colors it

with red paint and loads it with stones.

And we challenge this:

Granted, loading it with stones—

so that its strength will be weakened

[so that the tree will be weakened]. For when the tree is vigorous and its strength is great, its fruit falls.

But painting it with red paint—

what healing does this accomplish?

And why is it not forbidden because of the ways of the Amorite?

And we answer:

So that people will see it and pray for mercy on its behalf.

It is not done for the healing of the tree, but as a sign that its fruit is falling.

As it was taught in a beraita:

Leviticus 13

“And the impure person shall call out: Impure,”

the leper—this teaches that he

must make known

his

distress to the public, and the public will request mercy on his behalf.

Ravina said: In accordance with whose view do we hang a cluster of dates

a cluster of dates

on a palm tree—

in accordance with this tanna.

For by doing so we announce that it is shedding its fruit, so that people will request mercy on its behalf.

A tanna taught the chapter of the Amorites

[the laws of the ways of the Amorite]

before Rabbi Ḥiyya bar Avin.

He said to him: All of them involve the ways of the Amorite, except for these

the following two remedies:

A.

One who has a bone in his throat brings one of the same kind and places it on his crown, and recites as follows: “One, one, descend; swallow, swallow, descend; one, one”—

it does not involve the ways of the Amorite.

B.

For adra,

a fish bone stuck in the esophagus,

let him recite as follows: “You are stuck like a needle; you are locked like a shield; descend, descend.”

Go down, go down.