Talmud - Avodah Zarah 28b עבודה זרה כ״ח ב׳

from hemorrhoids. Rabbi Ami instructed him, and some say that Rabbi Asi instructed him that he should bring seven seeds of ice plant that are red like a worm and bind them in the collar of a shirt, and then he should wrap a strip of hair around it, and dip the bundle in white naphtha and he should burn it and spread the ashes upon the sores. In the meantime, he should bring the kernel of a bramble [asna] fruit and place its crevice against his own crevice, i.e., the anus.

The Gemara remarks: And this matter applies only to the upper crevice, which is located at the outer edge of the anus and can be treated with bramble fruit. What should one do if he is experiencing pain in the lower crevice, located deeper within the rectum? He should bring the fat of a goat that has not yet opened, i.e., given birth, and he should melt it and then he should apply it to the irritated area.

And if this is not possible, he should bring three pumpkin leaves that were dried in the shade and he should burn them, and then he should spread the ashes upon the irritated area. And if this is not possible, he should bring snail shells instead. And if this is also not possible, he should bring oil mixed with wax [kira] and he should smear it upon worn flax clothing in summer, or worn cotton clothing in winter, and place it upon the irritated area.

Rabbi Abbahu suffered from pain in his ear. Rabbi Yoḥanan instructed him, and some say that other Sages from the study hall instructed him, how to heal it. The Gemara asks: What did they instruct him? They told him to act in a fashion similar to that which Abaye said: My mother told me that the kidney was created only for the ear, i.e., it can be extremely beneficial to the ear. And Rava said: Minyumi the physician said to me: All liquids are harmful to the ear except for the fluid of the kidneys. Therefore, Rabbi Abbahu should bring the kidney of a bald goat [barḥa] and tear it vertically and horizontally and then place it upon dimming coals. And as for those fluids that issue from it, he should apply them to his ear while they are neither cold nor hot, but tepid.

The Gemara adds: And if this is not possible, he should bring the fat of a large beetle and melt it and apply it to the ear. And if not, he should fill his ear with oil and prepare seven wicks made of alfalfa [aspasta] and bring dried garlic ends, and tie the ends to the wicks with a strip of hair at one end, and set the wicks aflame. And he should place the other end of each wick in his ear one at a time, and place his ear opposite the flame. Parenthetically, the Gemara notes: And he should be cautious of drafts and avoid them, as they will harm his ear. The Gemara continues: And he should take one wick and remove one wick, i.e., replace each wick as it is consumed until all seven have been used.

The Gemara presents another version of this remedy: And if not, he should bring seven wicks of wax tapers and smear them with alfalfa oil, and place one end of each wick in the flame and one end in his ear, and take one wick and remove one wick. And again he should be cautious of drafts.

And if this is not possible, he should bring fiber that was dried but not combed and place it in his ear, and then bring his ear opposite the flame. And he should be cautious of drafts. And if not, he should bring the tube of an aged reed that is one hundred years old, i.e., that has been detached from the ground for a century, and salt it with rock salt and then burn it and stick it in his ear. The Gemara adds: And your mnemonic to remember these remedies is this: Moist cures are prescribed for dry afflictions, and dry cures are prescribed for moist afflictions.

§ The Gemara returns to the issue of medical treatment on Shabbat. Rabba bar Zutra says that Rabbi Ḥanina says: One may raise his ears to their appropriate position, i.e., set his dislocated jaw, on Shabbat. Rav Shmuel bar Yehuda teaches: This applies only if one raises it by hand, but not by means of medicine. There are those who say the opposite: One may raise his ears by means of medicine, but not by hand. What is the reason that one may not manually raise the ear? It is because doing so might injure [zareif ] the ear, which would constitute a violation of Torah law, whereas applying medicine is a violation of rabbinic law.

Rav Zutra bar Toviyya says that Rav says: With regard to an eye that rebelled, i.e., which is apt to pop out of its socket, it is permitted to apply blue eye shadow to it on Shabbat. The Sages initially concluded from this that this statement applies only where one had already ground the ingredients yesterday, i.e., on Shabbat eve, but if he planned to grind them on Shabbat, or to bring them through a public domain, it would not be permitted, as this would constitute a desecration of Shabbat by Torah law. To dispel this notion, one of the Sages, named Rabbi Ya’akov, said to them: This matter was explained to me by Rav Yehuda, who said that even if he plans to grind the ingredients on Shabbat and bring it through a public domain, it is permitted.

The Gemara relates that Rav Yehuda permitted someone to apply blue eye shadow to the eye on Shabbat. Rav Shmuel bar Yehuda said to the Sages: One who adheres to the ruling of Yehuda desecrates Shabbat. Ultimately, Rav Shmuel bar Yehuda himself suffered pain in his eye. He sent a message to Rav Yehuda, asking: Is it permitted or prohibited for me to treat my eye on Shabbat? Rav Yehuda sent back to him: For everyone else, it is permitted; for you, it is prohibited, as you treated my lenient ruling with disdain.

Rav Yehuda continues: But was it of my own accord that I issued this ruling? It is the ruling of Mar Shmuel, as demonstrated in the following incident: There was a certain maidservant who was in the house of Mar Shmuel whose eye became infected on Shabbat. She screamed in pain, but there was no one who attended to her. Eventually, her eye popped out of its socket. The next day, Mar Shmuel went out and taught: With regard to an eye that rebelled, it is permitted to apply blue eye shadow to it on Shabbat. What is the reason for this leniency, seeing as one may desecrate Shabbat only to treat life-threatening afflictions? The reason is that the tendons [shuraynei] of the eye are dependent upon the valves of the heart.

The Gemara asks: What ailment of the eye, for example, is considered life-threatening? Rav Yehuda said: For example, any of the following: Abnormal discharge; the sensation of pricking; blood flow from the eye; excessive tearing; and inflammation; and the onset of infection. This list serves to exclude the final stages of a waning infection that is mostly healed, and the opening of the eye, i.e., treatment administered to improve one’s eyesight, which are not life-threatening and therefore one is not permitted to treat them on Shabbat.

Rav Yehuda says: With regard to one who suffers from the sting of a hornet, or the prick of a thorn [silva], or an abscess, or one whose eye pains him, or one overcome by a fever, bathing in a bathhouse is a life-threatening danger for all of these. Additionally, eating radish [ḥamma] is good for a fever [ḥamma], and eating beets [silka] is good for chills [tzina], but the reverse, i.e., eating radish when one has chills or beets when one has a fever, poses a danger. Similarly, eating hot foods is good for the sting of a scorpion, and cold foods are good for a hornet sting, but the reverse poses a danger. Hot water is good for a thorn embedded in one’s skin, and cold water is good

Traduction : The William Davidson digital edition of the Koren Noé Talmud, with commentary by Rabbi Adin Even-Israel Steinsaltz.

AvodaZara 28b details ancient remedies for hemorrhoids and ear pain, including folk treatments using plants, animal fat, and kidney fluids.