When you lie among the sheep folds you shall shine as the wings of a dove covered with silver, and her pinions with yellow gold.
then the priest shall look on the plague; and, behold, if the appearance thereof be deeper than the skin, and there be in it yellow thin hair, then the priest shall pronounce him unclean: it is a scall, it is leprosy of the head or of the beard.
An infant found on the eighth day to be excessively yellow is not circumcised till the circulation has become normal, and its complexion is like that of other healthy infants. So too, if it was excessively ruddy, presenting the appearance of one who had been dyed red, it is not circumcised till the blood has been absorbed, and its complexion is like that of other infants—this redness being a disease. In these cases, great caution must be exercised.
The Gemara asks: But isn’t it taught in a baraita: When Rabbi Yehuda HaNasi fell ill, Rabbi Ḥiyya entered to be with him and found him crying. He said to him: My teacher, for what reason are you crying? Isn’t it taught in a baraita:
If one dies while laughing, it is a good sign for him; while crying, it is a bad sign for him.
If one dies with his face upward, it is a good sign for him; with his face downward, it is a bad sign for him.
If one dies with his face facing the people standing around him, it is a good sign for him; with his face facing the wall, it is a bad sign for him.
If one’s face is sallow, it is a bad sign for him; if his face is yellow or ruddy, it is a good sign for him.
If one dies on the Shabbat eve it is a good sign for him, because he is heading straight into the Shabbat rest; if one dies at the conclusion of Shabbat it is a bad sign for him.
If one dies on the eve of Yom Kippur, it is a bad sign for him, as his sins have not yet been forgiven; if one dies at the conclusion of Yom Kippur it is a good sign for him, because he died after his sins have been forgiven.
If one dies due to an intestinal disease, it is a good sign for him, because most of the righteous die due to intestinal disease.
"Simon, my son, should be the Chacham." What did he mean by this ? He means thus : although Simon, my son, is wise, nevertheless Gamaliel, my son, should be conferred with the dignity of Patriarch. Levi asked: "Why was it necessary to give such an instruction [since he was the oldest one?"] Said R. Simon b. Rabbi: "It was necessary for thee and for thy lame foot." Why did not R. Simon understand the question. Is there not a passage (II Chr. 21, 3) But the kingdom gave he to Jehoram; because he was the first born? There it was different, because he was able to fill out the place of his father in every respect; but Gamaliel was not able to fill out the place of his father. If so, then why did Rabbi give instructions to make him the Patriarch? Rabbi's reason was because, granted that he was not able to fill his father's place in wisdom, nevertheless in fearing God he did fill his father's place. "Chanina b. Chama should be the head of the academy." R. Chanina, however, did not accept the position, because R. Appas was two and a half years older than he. Therefore R. Appas became the head. R. Chanina, nevertheless, remained outside. Levi then joined R. Chanina as an associate to him, and when R. Appas died, which caused the elevation of R. Chanina to the chief of the academy, Levi, not having anyone to join him, left the land of Israel and emigrated to Babylonia, and this is what the people informed Rab. "A great man happened to come to Nehardea, lame on one leg, and expounded that a woman is permitted [on the Sabbath] to take a stroll, while bearing a wreath on her head." Rab then said: "This proves that R. Appas died and R. Chanina became the chief of the academy, hence Levi did not have anyone to associate with him and therefore came here." Why not say that R. Chanina died, so R. Appas remained as before, but Levi merely lost his associate and was compelled to come to Babylon? If you wish I will explain that Levi would have subordinated himself to the control of R. Appas [and his refusal was chiefly because he desired to be an associate to R. Chanina] ; and if you wish I will say since Rabbi ordered that R. Chanina should become the chief of the academy, it became impossible that he should die and not become a chief, for it is said (Job. 22, 28) And if thou decree a thing, it will be fulfilled unto thee. But why did not Rabbi appoint as the chief of the academy R. Chiya, who was the oldest? Because R. Chiya had been dead already. But do we not find that R. Chiya said: "I saw the grave of Rabbi upon which I shed tears"? This was the reversed condition [that Rabbi saw R. Chiya's grave and shed tears on it.] But has not R. Chiya said that the day on which Rabbi died, holiness was abolished? This was taught in the reversed way. But again, is there not a Baraitha that when Rabbi became ill, R. Chiya entered to visit him and found him weeping, whereupon R. Chiya said to him : "Why art thou crying? Are we not taught in a Baraitha that when one dies while laughing it is a good omen, but when one dies while crying it is a bad omen, dying with his face upward, it is a good omen ; but with his face downward, it is a bad omen; with his face towards the wall, it is a bad omen; but with his face towards the people, it is a good omen. If one's face turns green after death, it is a bad omen ; but if one's face looks reddish or yellow, it is a good omen. If one dies on the Sabbath eve, it is a good omen ; but if one dies on the termination of the Sabbath, it is a bad omen. If one dies on the eve of the Day of Atonement, it is a bad omen; but if one dies on the termination of the Day of Atonement, it is a good omen. If one dies of an intestinal sickness, it is a good omen, because the majority of the righteous die of an entrail sickness." Whereupon Rabbi answered him: "I am weeping because of the Torah and the meritorious deeds which I will not be able to perform." [Hence we see that R. Chiya was alive when Rabbi died.] If you wish, you may reverse the above Baraitha, and if you wish you may say that it is not necessary to reverse the Baraitha; but since R. Chiya devoted his time to important meritorious deeds, Rabbi thought it is better not to disturb him.
An infant found on the eighth day to be excessively yellow is not circumcised till the circulation has become normal, and its complexion is like that of other healthy infants. So too, if it was excessively ruddy, presenting the appearance of one who had been dyed red, it is not circumcised till the blood has been absorbed, and its complexion is like that of other infants—this redness being a disease. In these cases, great caution must be exercised.
Netakim [diseased patches on the head or beard] make impure after two weeks [maximum] and through two signs: Thin yellow hair or spreading. Thin yellow hair [means] diseased and short. [These are] the words of Rabbi Akiva. Rabbi Yochanan ben Nuri says: Even if long. Rabbi Yochanan ben Nuri said: What does the phrase that they say [mean], "This stick is thin" [or] "This reed is thin?" [Does it mean] thin, diseased and short or thin, diseased and long? Rabbi Akiva said to him: Before we learn from the stick, let us learn from the hair. [If one says,] "The hair of so-and-so is thin," [he means] "Thin, diseased and short," not "Thin, diseased and long."
31. The Rabbi: Because their contents were retained in the minds of a few people, only one of whom was an astronomer, another a physician or an anatomist. If a nation perishes it is first the higher classes which disappear, and literature with them. There only remain the law books which the people require, know by heart, copy and preserve. Whatever element of those sciences was embodied in the Talmudical law codes was thus protected and preserved by the zeal of many students. To these belong everything appertaining to the rules for slaughtering cattle, or making them unlawful to be eaten. A large amount of this remained unknown to Galen If this were not so, why does he not mention easily recognisable diseases to which the Law calls attention. Among these are diseases of the lungs and heart, growths on the latter and on its sides, the growing together of the lobes of the lung, deficiency or redundance of the same, or if they are dried up or lacerated. Their acquaintance with the vital and vegetative organs is shown in the following sentence: The brain has two skins to which correspond two on the testicles. Two bean-shaped growths are situated at the lower end of the skull; inside them is the brain, outside is the spine. Further: There are three arteries; one leads to the heart, the second to the lung, and the third to the liver. They distinguished between fatal diseases and less dangerous ones in the following words: If the skin of the spine is preserved, the marrow remains intact. He whose marrow becomes soft cannot beget children. Further: a skin formed in consequence of a wound on the lung is no real skin. The regulation concerning the 'sinew that shrinks' does not apply to birds, because they have no hollow of the hip. Worth mentioning are the following regulations: The contents of the stomach of a lawful animal suckled by an unlawful one is unlawful, but the contents of the stomach of an unlawful animal suckled by a lawful one are lawful, because the milk becomes compact in the entrails. Very profound, though beyond our grasp, is the following prohibition: Five cuticles are unlawful, viz. that of the brain, testicles, spleen, kidneys and lower end of the spine, all these it is unlawful to eat. They have also very skilfully determined the height from which a fall would make an animal unlawful on account of 'shattering of limbs,' which means the tearing of limbs which endangers its life. They say as follows: 'If one has left an animal above [a structure], and finds it below, shattering of limbs is not to be feared, because the animal 'measures itself,' which means that the animal measures and prepares for the leap, without damage. This would not be the case if it were pushed. Leaping is assisted by presence of mind, whilst a push produces fear. The following regulation is also interesting: The naturally reduced lung is lawful, the artificially reduced one is unlawful on account of 'shrinking.' This can be examined by keeping it in tepid water for four and twenty hours. If it re-assumes a healthy appearance, it is lawful, but not otherwise. If the lung has the colour of antimony it is lawful, if it is like ink it is unlawful, because this blackness is a morbid transformation of red. The yellow lung is lawful. If a lung is partially red, it is lawful, but unlawful if it is completely red. A child of a yellowish tint was brought before R. Nathan of Babylon who decided: 'Wait until the blood has gone down.' He meant to say that the circumcision should not take place till the blood had spread through the whole body. This was done and the life of the child was saved, although other children of the same mother had died soon after the circumcision. Subsequently a child was brought before of a reddish hue, and he said: 'Wait till the blood has been absorbed.' The child was saved in consequence and was called after him: Nathan Habbabli. They further said: Lawful fat can close up an internal wound, but not unlawful fat. A very acute decision is the following: If a needle is found in the thick wall of the stomach together with a drop of blood, [it must have entered before the animal was killed] if no blood is visible, it must have entered afterwards. The issue of this effects the validity of the sale, because after the killing no blood could approach the needle, as the blood does not flow in a dead animal. The buyer cannot, therefore, return the animal to the seller. If, however, blood is found, he can return it with the plea: 'Thou hast sold me an animal liable to die.' A scab on a wound shows that the latter was three days old before the animal was killed, if no scab is to be seen the plaintiff must bring other evidence. The characteristics of a clean bird are the following: Place the bird on a stretched rope; if it divides its claws two by two, it is an unclean bird, if it divides them three by one, it is a clean one. Further: Every bird that catches its food in the air is unclean, a bird that lives with notoriously unclean ones, as the starling among ravens, is of the same character. A symptom of birth among small cattle is a flow of blood; among big cattle after-birth; in a woman: placenta and after-birth. Very strange are the sayings concerning the poison contained in the claws of certain animals: a cat, a sparrow-hawk, and martin strike poison into kids and lambs; the weasel wounds birds. The fox and the dog convey no poison. This poisoning is conveyed by the claw, but not by the teeth; only by the forefoot, but not by the hindfoot; only when the animal does it purposely, and is alive. All this means that an animal can only poison any other by striking it purposely, but not accidentally, or if the claw remains sticking in the flesh without any tearing intention. The addition 'living animal' is therefore most remarkable. For it the striking foot were cut off and the claw remained in the flesh of the wound of the other animal, no poisoning takes place, because the poison is not conveyed till the claw is withdrawn For this reason the words 'while living' are placed intentionally after 'on purpose.' They say further: If the liver is missing excepting the size of an olive near the gall, its natural place, the animal is lawful. Matter is harmless on the lung, but not on the kidneys. Clear water and a hole are harmless on the kidney but fatal for the lungs. If an animal has been skinned, a piece as large as a coin remaining on the spine suffices to make the animal lawful. The Mishnāh also contains regulations concerning unlawful food, defects of first-born animals, defects of priests, too many to enumerate, not to speak of commenting on them. Apart from this the anatomy of the skeleton is given in very concise, yet clear description. An admirable saying is: If the intestines protrude, but show no hole, the animal is lawful. This, however, the Mishnāh adds, is only the case if they have not been inverted. If this has taken place, the animal is unlawful; for it is written: 'He has made thee and established thee' (Deuteronomy 32:6), which means that God has created man as a well established being. If one of his organs were inverted, he could not live. The Sages further distinguish the various appearances of blood of issue or wounds and haemorrhoids, the rules of menstruation and male issue, symptoms of leprosy, and other matters too deep for our capacity.
Someone who had a Netek with yellow hair in it, it is impure. If he develops black hair [in the Netek], he is pure. Even if the black hair goes away, he is [still] pure. Rabbi Shimon ben Yehuda says in the name of Rabbi Shimon: Any Netek that was pure at one time, never again has impurity. Rabbi Shimon says: Any yellow hair that was pure at one time, never again has impurity.