Eating and Drinking after Bloodletting
[Hebrew] If one has let blood and has nothing to eat, let him sell the shoes of his feet and provide the requirements of a meal. What [are the] requirements of a meal? Rav said, “Meat,” while Samuel said, “Wine.” Rav said, “Meat—breath [life] replaces breath [life], ” while Samuel said, “Wine—red wine replaces red [blood].”
The mnemonic is: shenimsar1 [lit., it shall be transmitted; var., it shall be sold].
[Aramaic] A dish of spleen would be prepared for Samuel on the day he did “the thing” [bloodletting]. R. Yoḥanan drank until vapor would come forth from his ears. R. Naḥman drank until his spleen would float. R. Joseph drank until it [the wine] would come forth from the incision of the scalpel. Rava would look for wine of a [vine] of three leaves [i.e., three-year-old wine].
Notes
[The mnemonic follows in the names of the rabbis: shin for Samuel, nun for Yoḥanan, mem for Naḥman, samekh for Joseph, and resh for Rava.—Ed.]
Published in: The Posen Library of Jewish Culture and Civilization, vol. 2: Emerging Judaism.
