A Sugya of Talmudic Medicine, with Historical, Linguistic, and Botanical Notes (Shabbat 108b-109a)

Shmuel’s Famous Collyrium (Eye salve); Eleven severe warnings related to hygiene; seven statements regarding the medicinal properties of a variety of plants; Where one can bathe on Shabbat

This passage examines different halachic judgments and stories associated with medical treatments on Shabbat. The use of medicine and any kind of medical treatment is forbidden on Shabbat, unless it pertains to life-threatening situations.

Outline

1. Shmuel’s Famous Collyrium (Eye salve)

2. Eleven severe warnings related to hygiene and the handling of one's body parts

3. Series of seven statements regarding the medicinal properties of a variety of plants

4. Where one can bathe on Shabbat

The Passage

Shabbat.108b.12-109a.9

Shmuel’s Famous Collyrium (Eye salve)

This Talmudic passage describes an exchange between R’ Yannai (a 1st generation amora in Eretz Yisrael) and Mar Ukva (an Exliarch in Babylonia) regarding an eye salve¹ attributed to Shmuel. Rabbi Yannai requests some of this salve from Mar Ukva, who agrees to send it, but emphasizes a teaching from Shmuel that suggests a simpler, more natural remedy for eye health: a drop of cold water (טיפת צונן) in the morning and washing the hands and feet with hot water in the evening are more beneficial than any eye salve. 

שלח ליה רבי ינאי למר עוקבא: לישדר לן מר מהנך קילורין דמר שמואל. 

שלח ליה: שדורי משדרנא לך, דלא תימא צר עין אנא, אלא הכי אמר שמואל: טובה טיפת צונן שחרית, ורחיצת ידים ורגלים בחמין ערבית, מכל קילורין שבעולם. 

[...]

Rabbi Yannai sent a message to Mar Ukva: Can the master send us some of Master Shmuel’s collyrium? 

Mar Ukva sent him in response: I will send it to you so that you do not say I am miserly, but be aware that this is what Shmuel said: For healing the eyes, better a drop of cold water in the morning and washing the hands and feet with hot water in the evening than all the eye salves in the world. Follow these instructions and you will need no other cures. 

[...]

Eleven severe warnings related to hygiene and the handling of one's body parts

This Talmudic passage discusses various severe warnings related to hygiene and the handling of one's body parts, emphasizing the spiritual and physical risks of touching sensitive areas without cleanliness. It states that touching parts such as the eye, ear, nose, mouth, wounds (חסודה), penis,² and anus (פי טבעת - literally, “mouth of the ring”) without proper hygiene can lead to harmful consequences, ranging from physical ailments like blindness, deafness, and polyps,³ to spiritual harm due to evil spirits. 

Additionally, touching a beer barrel (גיגית) is believed to spoil the fermentation process. The passage also discusses the spiritual purity of hands, mentioning that an evil spirit rests on unwashed hands and can only be dispelled by washing the hands three times upon waking. 

Moreover, it mentions beneficial effects (presumably, for women) of applying eye shadow (פוך - a biblical word meaning kohl, usually referred to in the Talmud as כחל), believed to ward off an evil spirit known as the "Daughter of the King" (בת מלך), to promote eyelash growth, and to stop tears. 

הוא היה אומר: 

1. יד לעין — תיקצץ. 

2. יד לחוטם — תיקצץ. 

3. יד לפה — תיקצץ. 

4. יד לאוזן — תיקצץ. 

5. יד לחסודה — תיקצץ. 

6. יד לאמה — תיקצץ. 

7. יד לפי טבעת — תיקצץ. 

8. יד לגיגית — תיקצץ, 

9. יד מסמא, 

10. יד מחרשת, 

11. יד מעלה פוליפוס. 

תניא, רבי נתן אומר: בת חורין היא זו, ומקפדת עד שירחוץ ידיו שלש פעמים. 

אמר רבי יוחנן: פוך: 

1. מעביר בת מלך, 

2. ופוסק את הדמעה, 

3. ומרבה שיער בעפעפיים. 

[...]

Apropos the statements with regard to healing, the text cites what he would say about other matters that require special attention [E.B. Steinzaltz says this is R’ Mona, but more likely “he” refers to Shmuel]: 

1. A hand that touches the eye should be severed because it harms the eye. 

2. A hand that touches the nose should be severed. 

3. A hand that touches the mouth should be severed. 

4. A hand that touches the ear should be severed. 

5. A hand that touches one’s wound should be severed. 

6. A hand that touches one’s member should be severed, lest one arouse himself. 

7. A hand that touches one’s anus should be severed, lest one make himself ill. 

8. A hand that is placed into a barrel of beer should be severed because the beer will not ferment. 

9. A hand that frequently touches the eye causes blindness. 

10. A hand that frequently touches the ear causes deafness. 

11. A hand that touches the nose or mouth causes polyps [polypus]. 

It was taught in a baraita that Rabbi Natan says: She is a liberated entity, this evil spirit that rests on one’s hands before they are washed in the morning, and she refuses to leave until one washes his hands three times. 

Rabbi Yoḥanan said: When eye shadow is placed on the eyes,

1. it causes the evil spirit called the Daughter of the King to pass, 

2. and it stops tears 

3. and causes eyelashes to grow. 

[...]

Series of seven statements regarding the medicinal properties of a variety of plants

This Talmudic passage discusses the views of various sages regarding the medicinal properties of a variety of plants. Mar Ukva cites Shmuel, stating that leaves placed on the eyes have no healing properties, thus they can be used on Shabbat. 

Similarly, Rav Yosef and Rav Sheshet discuss coriander⁴ and keshut,⁵ respectively, with Yosef noting coriander's lack of healing properties and potential harm, while Sheshet finds no medicinal benefit in keshut.

However, Rav Sheshet notes the benefit of arugula (גרגירא), even for someone blind like himself. 

Shmuel also mentions that all keshut can be consumed on Shabbat except for teruza (טרוזא). 

Rav Ḥisda adds that while melon juice (שירקא), beneficial for the intestines, can be consumed on Shabbat, the juice from pipuim (פיעפועי ביעי) should not be due to its medicinal usage. 

1. ואמר מר עוקבא אמר שמואל: עלין אין בהם משום רפואה. 

2. אמר רב יוסף: כוסברתא אין בה משום רפואה. 

3. אמר רב ששת: כשות אין בהן משום רפואה. 

4. אמר רב יוסף: כוסברתא, אפילו לדידי קשיא לי. 

5. אמר רב ששת: גרגירא, אפילו לדידי מעלי [לי]. 

6. ואמר מר עוקבא אמר שמואל: כל מיני כשות שרו לבר מטרוזא.

7. אמר רב חסדא: שירקא טויא — שרי, פיעפועי ביעי — אסור. 

[...]

1. And Mar Ukva said that Shmuel said: Leaves that are placed on the eye (Rabbeinu Ḥananel) contain no element of healing, and therefore one may place them on his eyes on Shabbat.

2. Rav Yosef said: Coriander contains no element of healing.

3. Rav Sheshet said: Hops contain no element of healing.

4. Rav Yosef said: Even for me, who is blind, coriander is harmful. He overstated coriander’s inefficacy, asserting that it is in fact harmful.

5. Rav Sheshet said: Arugula even for me, despite my blindness, is beneficial.

6. And Mar Ukva also said that Shmuel said: All types of hops may be eaten on Shabbat except for teruza, which is used exclusively for medicinal purposes.

7. Rav Ḥisda said: Melon juice, which is beneficial for the intestines, may be strained and drunk on Shabbat (ge’onim). The juice of pipuim, which are a type of vegetable (Rashba), may not be drunk on Shabbat. 

[...]

Where one can bathe on Shabbat

This Talmudic passage from a baraita discusses the rules regarding bathing in different bodies of water on Shabbat. It permits bathing in the therapeutic hot springs of Gerar,⁶ Ḥamatan (חמתן), Asia,⁷ and Tiberias, recognizing these as suitable for general use on Shabbat. However, it prohibits bathing in the Great Sea (ים הגדול - Mediterranean Sea), in water where flax was soaked (מי משרה), and in the Sea of Sodom (ימה של סדום - the Dead Sea) on Shabbat, as these are typically used for medicinal purposes, and performing medicinal activities is restricted on Shabbat. 

תנו רבנן: רוחצים 

1. במי גרר, 

2. במי חמתן, 

3. במי עסיא 

4. ובמי טבריא, 

אבל 

1. לא בים הגדול 

2. ולא במי משרה 

3. ולא בימה של סדום.

The Sages taught in a baraita: On Shabbat, one may bathe in 

1. the therapeutic hot springs of the waters of Gerar, 

2. in the waters of Ḥamatan, 

3. in the waters of Asia, 

4. and in the waters of Tiberias; 

however, 

1. one may not bathe in the Great Sea, namely, the Mediterranean sea, 

2. nor in water in which flax was soaked, 

3. nor in the Sea of Sodom, 

4. because people bathe in those bodies of water only for medicinal purposes.

1. קילורין - kilorin - κολλύριον, kollū́rion.

Collyrium - Wikipedia:

“In eye care, collyrium is an antique term for a lotion or liquid wash used as a cleanser for the eyes, particularly in diseases of the eye. The word collyrium comes from the Greek κολλύριον, eye-salve.”

2. אמה - in Biblical Hebrew, this word means “forearm”, in rabbinic Hebew, it was extended to mean middle finger or penis.

3. פוליפוס - from Greek πολύπους - polúpous - a nasal polyp.

4. כוסברתא - in mishnaic Hebrew - כסבר, in Modern Hebrew: כסברה, ultimately from Sanskrit kustumbarī.

5. כשות - either dodder or hops. These two plants are botanically unrelated and have very different characteristics and uses. See כשות – ויקיפדיה.

6. גרר - a town mentioned in the Bible, in what is today south central Israel

7. Probably points to a location in Asia Minor known for its therapeutic waters.