Avodah Zarah, Daf Kaf Het, Part 1
Introduction
This week s daf continues discussing what type of wound one may break Shabbat in order to heal.
אמר רב זוטרא בר טוביה אמר רב כל מכה שצריכה אומד מחללין עליה את השבת
R. Zutra b. Tuvyah said in the name of Rav: Any wound which requires a [medical] opinion one may profane Shabbat for it.
If you have to ask the doctor about it, then you can transgress Shabbat to heal it.
אמר רב שמן בר אבא אמר ר’ יוחנן והאי אישתא צמירתא כמכה של חלל דמי ומחללין עליה את השבת מהיכן מכה של חלל פירש רבי אמי מן השפה ולפנים
R. Shemen b. Abba said in the name of R. Yohanan: This burning fever is to be regarded as an internal wound for which Shabbat may be profaned.
Where does an internal wound begin? R. Ammi explained: On the lip and inward.
Earlier we learned that one may break Shabbat in order to heal an inner wound. A burning fever is an inner wound. Inner begins anywhere from the lips and inward, although the next section seems to be unclear about whether this includes the gums and teeth.
בעי רבי אליעזר ככי ושיני מאי? כיון דאקושי נינהו כמכה דבראי דמו או דלמא כיון דגואי קיימי כמכה של חלל דמו?
אמר אביי ת"ש החושש בשיניו לא יגמע בהן את החומץ. חושש הוא דלא הא כאיב ליה טובא שפיר דמי דלמא תנא היכא דכאיב ליה טובא חושש נמי קרי ליה
R. Elazar asked: How about the gums and the teeth: Since they are hard, should they be regarded as external; or do we say that, since they are placed within [the mouth], they are to be regarded as internal?
Abaye said: Come and hear: One who is troubled with his teeth must not rinse them with vinegar [on Shabbat]. If he is only troubled he must not [rinse them] but if they hurt him very much he may do it.
Perhaps this Tanna would call being troubled even if they hurt very much.
Do pain in the gums and teeth count as internal wounds?
Abaye quotes a baraita saying that one should not rinse one s teeth with vinegar on Shabbat, for this was a form of healing and healing is prohibited on Shabbat. [This is a topic we will not get into here, but will learn when we learn Tractate Shabbat. Healing is a big issue on Shabbat, and generally the rabbis did not allow it]. But this is only if one is troubled. If the pain is bad, it would seem that he would be allowed to rinse with vinegar. Thus, gums and teeth are internal wounds.
The Talmud rejects this it could be that by the word troubled the Talmud means even a lot of pain. No matter what, one may not heal wounds in the mouth.
ת"ש רבי יוחנן חש בצפדינא. אזל לגבה דההיא מטרוניתא. עבדה חמשא ומעלי שבתא. א"ל למחר מאי? אמרה ליה לא צריכת. אי צריכנא מאי? אמרה אשתבע לי דלא מגלית. אישתבע לה לאלהא ישראל לא מגלינא. גלייה ליה. למחר נפק דרשה בפירקא. והא אישתבע לה! לאלהא דישראל לא מגלינא אבל לעמיה ישראל מגלינא. והאיכא חילול השם דגלי לה מעיקרא אלמא כמכה של חלל דמיא
Then come and hear this: R. Yohanan was troubled with scurvy [on his gums] and he went to a certain [non-Jewish] lady. She attended to him on Thursday and the Friday. He said: What about tomorrow? She replied: You will not need [the treatment]. But what if I do need it? he asked. She replied: Swear to me that you will not reveal [the remedy]. He said: I swear, to the God of Israel I will not reveal it. She revealed it to him. The next day he went out and expounded on it in his public lecture.
But did he not swear to her? He swore: To the God of Israel I will not reveal it, but I may reveal it to His people Israel.
But is this not a desecration of God s Name? He said this to her originally. Now is it not evident then that [a sore on the gum] is regarded as an internal sore?
In this strange vignette, R. Yohanan goes to a female non-Jewish doctor. She heals him but he wonders what he will do on Shabbat. Rashi explains that he can t come to her on Shabbat because he will be busy teaching. In any case, the story seems to prove that one can heal gum sores on Shabbat.
אמר רב נחמן בר יצחק שאני צפדינא הואיל ומתחיל בפה וגומר בבני מעיים.
R. Nahman b. Yitzchak said: Scurvy is different, because though starting in the mouth it extends to the intestines.
Scurvy is worse than regular sores on the gums because it can spread into one s body. So one can cure scurvy, but we re still not sure about regular sores.
מאי סימניה? רמי מידי בי ככי ומייתי דמא מבי דרי.
ממאי הוי מקרירי קרירי דחיטי ומחמימי חמימי דשערי ומשיורי כסא דהרסנא. מאי עבדא ליה? א"ר אחא בריה דרבא מי שאור ושמן זית ומלח. ומר בר רב אשי אמר משחא דאווזא בגדפא דאווזא. אמר אביי אנא עבדי כולהו ולא איתסאי עד דאמר לי ההוא טייעא אייתי קשייתא דזיתא דלא מלו תילתא וקלנהו אמרא חדתא ודביק ביה דדרי עבדי הכי ואיתסאי
What is its symptom? If he places anything between his teeth, blood comes from the gums. What causes it? The chill of cold wheat and the heat of hot barley, also the remnant of fish-hash and flour.
What did she apply to it? R. Aha the son of Rava said: Leaven-water with olive oil and salt. Mar son of R. Ashi said: Geese-fat smeared with a goose-quill.
Abaye said: I did all this but was not cured, until a certain Arab told me to get seeds of an olive not one third ripe and burn them on a new spade and spread [the ashes] on the gums. I did this and was cured.
This section is a little sugya about the symptom, causes and cures for scurvy. Thankfully, we do not follow Talmudic medicine.