Talmud - Avodah Zarah 29a עבודה זרה כ״ט א׳

for facial wounds, but the reverse presents a danger.

Vinegar is good for one to consume after bloodletting, and eating small fish is good for one who has completed a fast, but the reverse is a danger. Eating cress and then undergoing bloodletting poses a danger. With regard to one who suffers from a fever and undergoes bloodletting, this poses a danger to his life. Similarly, one who suffers from pain of the eye and undergoes bloodletting endangers to his life. On the second day after eating fish one may let blood, and on the second day after letting blood one may eat fish. With regard to eating fish on the third day after letting blood, or letting blood on the third day after eating fish, both of these actions pose a danger.

§ The Gemara presents a series of health-related statements. The Sages taught: One who lets blood may not eat the following foods, corresponding to the acronym ḥet, gimmel, beit, shin. That is, he may consume neither milk [ḥalav], nor cheese [gevina], nor onions [betzalim], nor cress [sheḥalim]. If he ate one of these, Abaye said: He should bring a quarter-log of vinegar and a quarter-log of wine and mix them together and drink the mixture. And when he defecates, he should defecate only toward the east of the city, because the odor of the excrement after that treatment is offensive. Since the wind does not usually blow from the east, it is less likely to spread the stench.

Rabbi Yehoshua ben Levi says: One may lift the unkali on Shabbat. The Gemara asks: What is the unkali? Rabbi Abba said: It is the edge of the ribs [istumkha] near the heart which sometimes bend inward, in which case they must be lifted and straightened into their proper position. The Gemara asks: What is the cure for one whose unkali has been bent? He should take cumin, caraway, mint [ninya], wormwood, satureja, and hyssop.

This remedy is beneficial for several ailments, and the Gemara presents each of these in turn: For curing the heart, the above combination should be taken with wine, and your mnemonic for this is the verse: “And wine that makes glad the heart of man” (Psalms 104:15). For curing an ailment that arises due to the wind [ruḥa], one drinks the mixture in water, and your mnemonic for this is the verse: “And the spirit [ruaḥ] of God hovered over the face of the waters” (Genesis 1:2). For childbirth [lekhuda], a woman in labor drinks the mixture with beer [shikhra], and your mnemonic for this is the verse: “With her pitcher [vekhadah] upon her shoulder [shikhmah]” (Genesis 24:15).

Rav Aḥa, son of Rava, ground all of these together and took a handful of the mixture and drank it. Rav Ashi ground each and every one of the herbs separately and he took all that he could hold between his large finger and his small finger and drank it. Rav Pappa said: I tried all these remedies and I was not healed until a certain Arab said to me: Bring a new jug and fill it with water and place in it a ladle [tarvada] of honey that is suspended among the stars, i.e., add the ladle at night, and drink it on the next day. Rav Pappa concludes: I did this and I was healed.

The Sages taught: Six items heal a sick person from his illness and their cure is a permanent cure, and these are: Cabbage, beets, water in which dried chamomile was soaked, and the stomach contents of an animal, and the womb of an animal, and the lobe of the liver. And some say: Small fish are also included in this list. And moreover, eating small fish causes a person’s entire body to flourish and to grow.

Ten items return a sick person to his illness, and his illness becomes even more severe than it originally was, and they are: One who eats ox meat, fat, roasted meat, bird meat, and a roasted egg, and cress; and the act of shaving, and bathing, and the consumption of cheese, and liver. And some say: Nuts are also included in this list. And some say: Cucumbers are also included in this list. The school of Rabbi Yishmael taught: Why are they called cucumbers [kishu’in]? Because they are as harmful [kashin] to a person’s entire body as swords.

§ The mishna teaches: And one may not have his hair cut by gentiles anywhere. The Sages taught in a baraita: A Jew who has his hair cut by a gentile should observe the gentile’s actions in a mirror while he cuts his hair. And in the case of a gentile who has his hair cut by a Jew, when the Jew reaches the gentile’s forelock he removes his hand and does not cut it, because it is associated with idol worship.

The Master said: A Jew who has his hair cut by a gentile should observe the gentile’s actions in a mirror. The Gemara asks: What are the circumstances of this case? If it is referring to a haircut performed in a public domain, why do I need a mirror? After all, the gentile will not harm a Jew in public. And if it occurs in a private domain, even if the Jews observes the gentile’s actions, what of it? How does the fact that the Jew is watching prevent the gentile barber from harming him? The Gemara explains: Actually, this is referring to a haircut in a private domain, but since there is a mirror in place, the Jew appears as an important person whom the gentile will hesitate to attack.

The Gemara relates a relevant incident: Rav Ḥana bar Bizna was having his hair cut by a gentile in one of the side streets of Neharde’a. The barber said to him: Ḥana, Ḥana; Your throat is appealing to the razor. Rav Ḥana bar Bizna said: I have this coming to me, as I violated the ruling of Rabbi Meir, who stated that one may not have his hair cut by a gentile in any location.

The Gemara asks: And didn’t Rav Ḥana bar Bizna violate the ruling of the Rabbis as well? Say that when the Rabbis stated that it is permitted to have one’s hair cut by a gentile, they were referring to a haircut performed in a public domain; but with regard to a haircut performed in a private domain, did they say that it is permitted? Since the side streets of Neharde’a cannot be considered a public domain, evidently Rav Ḥana bar Bizna violated the ruling of the Rabbis. The Gemara explains: And Rav Ḥana bar Bizna maintains: With regard to the side streets of Neharde’a, since many people are present there, they are similar to a public domain, and it would therefore be permitted to have one’s hair cut there according to the opinion of the Rabbis.

The baraita stated: And in the case of a gentile who has his hair cut by a Jew, when the Jew reaches the gentile’s forelock, he removes his hand and does not cut it, because it is associated with idol worship. The Gemara asks: And how much space should the Jew leave around the forelock? Rav Malkiyya says that Rav Adda bar Ahava says: Three fingerbreadths in each and every direction.

In addition to Rav Malkiyya, whose ruling was just cited, there was another amora known as Rav Malkiyyu. In order to avoid confusing the two, the Gemara records their respective rulings. Rav Ḥanina, son of Rav Ika, says: The statements concerning a skewer, maidservants, and follicles were issued by Rav Malkiyyu; the rulings concerning a forelock, burnt ashes, and cheese were stated by Rav Malkiyya.

Rav Pappa said a different opinion: Statements from the Mishna and baraita were issued by Rav Malkiyya, whereas rulings of halakha that are not related to a mishna or baraita were taught by Rav Malkiyyu. And the mnemonic to remember this is: The Mishna is a queen [malketa], i.e., the statements that are referring to a mishna were made by Rav Malkiyya, whose name is similar to the Aramaic term for queen. The Gemara asks: What is the difference between the opinions of Rav Ḥanina and Rav Pappa? The Gemara answers: There is a difference between them with regard to the halakha concerning maidservants. According to Rav Ḥanina, this halakha was stated by Rav Malkiyyu, whereas Rav Pappa holds that it was taught by Rav Malkiyya, as it is referring to a dispute in a mishna.

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

AvodaZara 29a details Talmudic dietary and medical guidance on bloodletting risks, food combinations to avoid, and remedies for internal ailments.