The Babylonian Talmud on Qordiaqos Syndrome
b. Gittin 67b
Aramaic
What [is] qordiaqos? Samuel said: [It refers to] one who is afflicted by wine from the winepress. [Then the earlier sages] should have taught: Someone who was affected [lit., bitten] by new wine. Rather, this teaches us that qordiaqos is the name of the demon [that causes this condition]. What [practical difference] emerges from that? [The name could be used] for an amulet [for protection]. What is the cure? Red meat [prepared] over live coals, and diluted wine.
Translated by Markham J. Geller and Lennart Lehmhaus.
Credits
b. Gittin 67b, trans. Markham J. Geller and Lennart Lehmhaus, publication forthcoming. Copyright Markham J. Geller and Lennart Lehmhaus. Used with permission of the translators.
Published in: The Posen Library of Jewish Culture and Civilization, vol. 2: Emerging Judaism.
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The concept of mental disease or disability was important to the rabbis for its legal and halakhic ramifications. In particular, the condition named qordiaqos, which probably had both physical and psychological manifestations, had many halakhic implications regarding a person’s ability to fulfill legal obligations or to act as a reliable witness. This passage from the Babylonian Talmud comments on m. Gittin 7:1. See also The Palestinian Talmud on Qordiaqos Syndrome.
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The Palestinian Talmud on Qordiaqos Syndrome
y. Gittin 7:1, 48c
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