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1) EXTERNAL MALADIES

(a) For external fever - one boils (separately) date pits and special leaves, and sits between them. He pours the water in 2 troughs; he brings a table, sits on it (on top of 1 basin); he alternates sitting on the 2 basins.

1. After the vapors enter his body, he bathes in the waters, and drinks from the water of the leaves.

i. Water from the dates could cause sterility.

(b) For internal fever - he brings beets that grew in 7 patches, and cooks them with the dirt they grew in. He eats them and drinks beer with leaves;

1. Alternatively, he eats grapes of a vine draped over a date tree, with water.

(c) For a wart - one roasts fat wheat kernels on a new shovel. He applies the exuding oil to the wart.

1. Rav Simi bar Ashi healed Tzara'as in this way.

(d) (Shmuel): One struck by a poisoned spear will not live;

1. Eating fatty meat roasted on coals and drinking diluted wine can prolong his life so he can instruct how to apportion his estate.

(e) (Rav Idi bar Avin): One who swallows a wasp will not live;

1. Drinking a Revi'is of strong vinegar can prolong his life so he can instruct how to apportion his estate.

(f) (R. Yehoshua ben Levi): One who eats ox meat with turnips and sleeps under the moon on the night of the fourteenth or fifteenth of the month in summer will contract (a fever of the bones).

1. (Beraisa): One who fills his stomach with anything will contract Achilu (inflammation of the bones).

i. (Rav Papa): Even eating too many dates causes it.
ii. Question: Why would I think not?
iii. Answer: One might have thought, since dates satiate, warm, stop constipation, energize and do not make one finicky, also they do not cause Achilu - we hear, this is not so.

(g) (Abaye): All other liquid medicines are taken for 3, 7 or 12 days - the cure for Achilu is taken until he recovers;

1. All other liquids are taken on an empty stomach - for Achilu, the patient first eats, drinks, and relieves himself;
2. He then kneads lentil flour with old wine and drinks it. He wraps himself in sheets and sleeps until he wakes up on his own, and immediately takes off the sheets.

(a) (R. Noson citing Eliyahu): One should eat a third of what his stomach can hold, drink the same amount, and leave a third empty;

1. In case he gets angry, his stomach will have room to handle it.

(b) (Beraisa - R. Chiya): To avoid intestinal problems, one should dip his bread in wine or vinegar all year round; if one enjoys his food, he should beware to cease before he fills his stomach; one should not delay excreting when he feels the need.
(c) (Mar Ukva): One who drinks Tilya (bad wine) will become weak.
(d) (Rav Chisda): There are 60 types of wine; the best is scented red wine, the worst is white Tilya.
(e) (Beraisa): If a man has relations after letting blood, the children will be weak; if she also just let blood, the children will contract Ra'asan (a severe affliction in which a rodent resides in the brain).

1. (Rav Papa): If he ate in between, there is no concern.

(f) (Rabah bar Rav Huna): One who has relations upon returning from a journey will have weak children.
(g) (Beraisa): One should not have relations after leaving a Beis ha'Kisei for the time to walk a half Mil, for the Shed of the Beis ha'Kisei accompanies him for that long.

1. If he did, the children will be epileptic.

(h) (Beraisa): One who has relations while standing will get cramps; while sitting, or if he lies below her, is afficted with Delarya (Aruch's text - Alarya (yawning)).

1. (R. Yehoshua ben Levi): The cure for Delarya is saffron that grows in hedge.

i. Rav Papa would chew it and swallow it; Rav Papi would chew it and spit it out.

(i) One who lacks strength for relations should drink saffron boiled in wine.

1. R. Yochanan attributed his return to youth to this cure.

(j) Three things weaken a person: fear, travel and sin.

1. Fear - "My heart is worried, my strength abandoned me";
2. Travel -"My strength was afflicted on the way";
3. Sin - "My strength stumbled in my sin".

(k) A person's body is weakened by eating, drinking or having relations while standing.
(l) If one does any of 5 things and immediately stands up, he is closer to death than life: eating; drinking; letting blood; sleeping; relations.
(m) These 6 things will cause death: One returns weary from travel, lets blood, enters the bathhouse, gets drunk, sleeps on the ground and has relations.

1. (R. Yochanan): This is only if he does them in order.
2. (Abaye): Even out of order, they will weaken him.

i. A case occurred of a weak slave that died after doing only 3 of them.

(n) Eight things are harmful if overdone, but are good if done sparingly: travel, relations, wealth, work, wine, sleep, hot water (for bathing and drinking) and bloodletting.
(o) Eight things diminish semen: salt, hunger, Tzara'as, crying, sleeping on the ground, eating coriander, eating gourds out of season, and letting blood below the belt is doubly bad.

1. Letting blood higher than the belt is doubly good.

2. (Beraisa): Summer is the season for gourds - then they are beneficial; in winter, they are harmful; in spring and fall, they are neutral.

(a) A man appointed agents to write a Get for his wife, then was seized by Kordaikus, then said that the Get should not be written - his latter words are void.
(b) Opinion #1 (Reish Lakish): The Get may be given immediately.
(c) Opinion #2 (R. Yochanan): The Get may only be written after he recovers.

1. Reish Lakish learns from the Mishnah - 'his latter words have no effect'.
2. R. Yochanan says, this only means that he need not give another command to give the Get when he recovers, but it cannot be written while he is affected.

(d) Reish Lakish compares a seized man to a sleeping man; R. Yochanan compares him to an insane man.

1. R. Yochanan does not compare him to a sleeping man, for he will not recover automatically, but a sleeping man awakes automatically.
2. Reish Lakish does not compare him to an insane man, for we have a cure for Kordaikus, but not for insanity.

(e) Question: Does R. Yochanan really oppose the following?!

1. (Shmuel): A man's windpipe and foodpipe were cut, and he gestured to witnesses to write a Get for his wife - they write and give it;
2. (Beraisa): A man was found cut up or hanging, and he gestured to witnesses to write a Get for his wife - they write and give it.

(f) Answer: In those cases, the man is totally sane, just weakness has begun; by Kordaikus, his mind is deranged.
(g) Question: Shmuel contradicts himself!

1. (Shmuel): A man's windpipe and foodpipe were cut, and he fled - we may testify that he died, permitting his wife to remarry.

(h) Here, Shmuel rules that he is alive - how can we allow his wife to remarry?!
(i) Answer: He is alive, but he will (soon) die.
(j) Question: If so, the one who slaughtered him should be exiled (if it was unintentional)!

1. Reuven unintentionally slaughtered Shimon's windpipe and foodpipe - he is not exiled.

(k) Answer (R. Hoshaya): We are concerned that Shimon did not die from the slaughter alone, rather a wind contributed, or Shimon precipitated his own death (by moving around).
(l) Question: What difference is there between these reasons?
(m) Answer: If Shimon was in a marble house and moved about, there is only the latter concern; if he was outside and did not move, there is only the former concern.
(n) (Mishnah): A man became unable to speak. Others asked him - should we write a Get for your wife? He nodded his head. We test him 3 times - if he answers properly no and yes, we write and give the Get.
(o) Question: We should be concerned, perhaps a sickness is causing him to nod his head as people nod to indicate 'no', or to indicate 'yes'!
(p) (Rav Yosef bar Minyomi): We test him so he must alternate answers of 'yes'; and 'no'.
(q) Question: Perhaps a sickness causes him to nod alternatively in these 2 ways!
(r) Answer #1: We do not ask in the order of a simple alternation.
(s) Answer #2 (Tana d'Vei R. Yishmael): We ask him questions relevant to the season.

1. Question: What are examples of this?

i. Suggestion: We ask if he would like to be covered with a coat or sheets.
ii. Rejection: (Failing this test is no sign that his mind is disturbed -) perhaps he was struck by a chill, or felt hot!

(t) Answer: Rather, we ask if one can now find fruits that are out of season.