AN UNKNOWN HEBREW MEDICAL ALCHEMIST:
A MEDIEVAL TREATISE ON THE QUINTA ESSENTIA

by

RAPHAEL PATAI*

An unknown Hebrew medical alchemist: a medieval treatise on the Quinta Essentia

[Folio 1 55v] And now I shall begin, with the help of God, to copy for you a great secret of the fifth essence, which is called in their language' qinta esensia. It was written by a great sage whose name is Raimon, and he placed introductions in front of it, and they are these:

The first introduction. The diseases come because of a lack of the natural strength, and the medicine which is capable of restoring health must be one which is not subject to putrefaction,2 and is capable of renewing the spirit of life which has been lost, and of adding the radical humidity and strengthening the natural heat which has become weak.

The second introduction. Every thing which is affected by fear is sick and weak, and if the afflicted [person] is given a thing which is affected by fear he will become more afflicted. And since the physicians act against all the things, they will harm, and afflict, and kill. And it also happens to those who cannot comprehend this secret which the physicists3 have comprehended.

Therefore it is proper to search and to seek a thing in which are found the four qualities which are in us, and the four materiae of which our bodies are composed, and this will not be subject to corruption, just as the heavens are not subject to corruptiona in the arrangement of the four elements. And this is why the physicists called the heaven by the name Fifth Essence, because the heaven is not subject to corruption, for it is not hot as fire [and] is not a thing foreign or alien to the four elements. And this thing of which we speak is called Human Heaven or Fifth Essence, for it is in them, in the arrangement of the four materiae. And it is not subject to corruption for it is not hot as fire, nor humid as air, nor cold as water, nor dry as dust. And just as the heaven bestows humidity when it is needed, and heat when it is needed, and likewise coldness and dryness, so the Fifth Essence bestows upon us what is called Spirit of Life, which is composed of the four elements and is separated from them through human artifice.

The third introduction. It is proper that you know that our Fifth Essence is not cold, for it warms the coldness; and not hot, for it cools the heat; and not humid for it dries the humidity; and not dry for it humidifies the dryness. And it nourishes the body and protects it from all corruption and putrefaction, and thus it seems like a true marvel, for if put in a vessel and then if one puts into it a slaughtered fowl or a piece of meat, it will not putrefy as long as it is there, and then it will dry, since it has this effect [also] on a live body.

The fourth introduction. Just as the highest heaven does not on its own influence the existence of the world, but [does this] through the intermediacy of the luminaries and the stars, and through them produces enormous and awesome effects, so for our Human Heaven it is proper that it should be aided by the things which are influenced by it, such as the medicines, or the herbs which have virtues for the limb which we intend to cure. For instance, if we intend to cure the head, it is proper that we should put into our Heaven those things which help the head, and thus for the other limbs.

The fifth introduction. It is proper that you should take the water which rises from the wine in a most clear distilling vessel. And let it rise at least four times in the distilling vessel in which there should be many rising and descending tubes, for the more it rises the more it will become purified and the farther it will be from putrefaction and corruption.

And let me tell you what I heard from a man whose words are trustworthy, who saw it in the court of the king of Spain where they did it in this manner. After they made it rise in the distilling vessel four times, they hid it in horse manure in a glass vessel, tightly sealed. And after four months they took it out gently, and transferred it into another vessel, so that the sediment should not be mixed up, and they buried it for another four months. And so they did for yet another four months, until a full year. And then they took it out, and there was not found in the bottom of the vessel even the thinnest dust, so thoroughly was it purified. And its scent rose as if it had issued [folio 156r] from the Garden of Eden. And this is the proper way for you to proceed in order to achieve your desire.

The sixth introduction. Likewise it is proper to distil all things which you want to purify and to make of them the Fifth Essence: from the edibles such as meat or fruit or herbs, and mix them with the aforementioned heaven to cure with them any malady you wish.

The seventh introduction. Likewise it is proper for you, if you want to prepare a potion for a disease, to place those drugs which are appropriate for that potion into our Fifth Essence, and it will become like the potion, and it will be more effective, one part of it to a hundred. And likewise the things which constipate, or the fragrant drugs, and thus all things of this kind, and thus all the cordial drugs' must be pounded to utter thinness, until one cannot feel it by palpation, and then they must be put into the aforementioned water. And prepare in a like manner the laxative medicines, for this water will add power of effectiveness a hundred-fold, without doubt. Also, if a man is given a deadly poison, put of the water which received the poison into the aforementioned water, and he will instantly vomit up the poison which he swallowed or imbibed. Also, in order to remove an iron arrow or any object or thorn from any place, put into the aforementioned water the things which attract. Also, in order to clean any wound, put into it the cleansing drugs. And likewise, to make flesh grow, put [into this water] the drugs which cause the flesh to grow, and likewise those drugs which constipate, and which contract, and all of them in this manner.

Now I shall begin to explain the virtues of the aforementioned water in their general benefit, although we have already mentioned some of them above when we spoke of their importance.

However, I shall tell here a little of the secrets which no man has comprehended, except for him to whom their virtues have been revealed by word of mouth of those present. And they are powerful things for curing, with the help of the True Beneficer, all serious diseases which the physicians have despaired from curing, except those which are come by the Divine Will, decreed upon him from the allotted lifetime.

The first benefit is to restore the strength of old men which has become debilitated very much, and it will restore it, with the help of God in whose hand is the strength and the power. Take the aforementioned precious water after it has been purified most thoroughly, and add to it [of the Fifth] Essence of the gold and the crystal. Thus for the debilitated, each time half an egg full.

And if the True Physician so decrees, he will be almost cured, and his strength will return to him like one of the young men, thirty years of age. And after he returns to the days of his youth he should no longer take of it.

The second benefit is to cure with it those who have been debilitated by disease to the point of a depression of the soul, except for those whom God wants to take, whose days have reached their end, or as a punishment, or, as in the case of the anointed of God, King David, peace be upon him, [who said] of Saul, "If his day comes, or if God smites him," etc.6 And this on condition that the sick person is able to drink it. And also give them of the aforementioned water for the old and debilitated, and as soon as the medicine goes down into the stomach it will endow the heart with a new spirit of life, and augment the natural heat which had diminished, and his strength will return to him as it was in the beginning. And if you want him to arise in his time and become healthy, give him the aforementioned water of the Fifth Essence which arises from the herb salidonia,7 about [as much as] a grain of wheat, and you will see a mighty miracle, as if he had never been sick, and he will walk on his staff, if the True Powerful so decrees. And this secret is of the most important secrets of nature which can be found; no physician has comprehended it in these our times.

The third benefit is that it heals leprosy, except if it is an ensnaring one, for [to heal] that is of the impossible things. And it is proper that you should know that this water, with the help of the True Helper, will cure him of the leprosy, because this medicine devours all corrupt and putrefied material, of whatever humidity it be. And I can attest to you that this [folio 156v] water, with the water of the gold and the crystal, and with even more power if one puts into it the fruit which is called in their language frasas, and in La'az fraulas, and in Turkish jilek, which is a small round fruit like the grapes of the thorn bush which is called mora sarsa, and its leaves are like its leaves, except that they grow near the ground and they have no thorns, and their taste is sweet, leaning a little to sourness, and they have a good smell. And the aforementioned water with the aforementioned fruit strengthens nature very much, and drives away all poison and corruption and putrefaction from the human body, and brings their menses to women, and helps to pregnancy, and they are beneficial to cure the cataract in the eye. And I saw a woman in whose face the traces of leprosy were visible, and she washed in this water, and the leprosy was instantly cured.

The fourth benefit is to cure all growths or scurfs or discharge of whatever kind. Let there be put into the aforementioned Fifth Essence some tartaro which is called rasuras'° after having burned it to lime, and let him anoint with it the spot, and it will be cured.

The fifth benefit is to cure perlesia."1 If you put into this water some of those things which destroy the white [humour],'2 such asfarfiyun turbid," the husk of shawqu'4-root, for these have the virtue of strengthening the vessels of feeling and motion, and also put on the paralyzed places a plaster of cooked and ground bazr qatuna,'5 and take of it five parts, and olive oil three parts, and wax two parts, and let the patient drink of their decoction thirty consecutive days. The sixth benefit is for the sufferers of blight which is called tisica" and for all kinds of shrivelling. An infant or a child, or a youth, or a mature man, or an old man, whether man or woman, let there be given to them of the aforementioned water with that which comes up from the aforementioned salidonia, and they will, within a short time, return to their strength and fatness; as if they had never been sick at all.

The seventh benefit is for insanity or madness or melakhonia' or rage or spleen. Give them of the aforementioned water, with the Fifth Essence, of the gold and the crystal, with a little of the drugs which purge the sharpened black humour,"' and the seed offuagia" and its root. The eighth benefit is for the weakness of the heart or fainting, or beating or fluttering, and the like. Give him the aforementioned essence of gold and crystal and the herb peonia2" and the toronjiPl which is called badrang buyaO and saffron, and he will be cured entirely with the help of God.

The ninth benefit is to cure the bewitched and those who were injured by demons or an evil spirit. [Give] the patient of the aforementioned water with the water of the gold and the crystal, and put into them the seed of perforata,23 that is, qorasonsilio,24 and he will be saved with the help of God.

The tenth benefit is against lice and the kind which is called adadores'" which colne into being in the flesh between the skin and the flesh and which cause plague spots and great friction in the body. These things are born from the heat, in addition to being [born] from the putrefaction of wetness. And if the patient washes his body with the ... 26 of the Fifth Essence, he will be saved from the aforementioned affliction, and especially if you mix into it quicksilver and mozaj.

The eleventh benefit is to save from all poisons or deadly drugs. Take of the aforementioned essence, and put into it of the remedies which are antidotes2' of poisons, and give them to the patient, and with the help of God he will instantly vomit out the poison which he has eaten or drunk or which has come from the outside, from [folio 157r] the bite of a poisonous animal. And if a person takes of the aforementioned things, and [thereafter] some kind of poison is given to him, it will not harm him, with the help of God.

The twelfth benefit is to cure the quartan fever29 and all the diseases which come from the black [humour].30 There are some physicians who say that there is no use in removing it quickly, but [only] in prolonging the time of its cure. And if you want to cure it quickly and easily, give the patient of the aforementioned water. And if you want to add to it some of the things which are antidotes of the black [humour], it will be more effective, on condition that he give it to the patient slowly, so that he does not weaken the nature.

The thirteenth benefit is for all those who were damaged by a laxative or emetic drug, which did not work or which worked in excess. For the laxative drugs must be viewed from three points-of-view. First, the laxative must not weaken the vital force. Second, it must not be of the sharp and deadly drugs. Third, one must try to remove from, or diminish in, that drug any sharpness or poisonousness as far as possible, And [since] the physicians cannot do this as far as possible, at times they cause damage and at times [the medicine] does not help and does not save, for the constitutions,30a and the years, and the time are not the same for all people and diseases. Let him put of the medicines into the aforementioned water, [and] they will act gently and without weakening the strength. Therefore it is proper that the physician should give the patient only one grain with our essence, and he will see wonders. And if he needs to give more, let him give the second time two grains, and thus gradually, according to the nature of the patient and the nature of the disease, and open your eyes and see!

The fourteenth benefit. All physicians agree that the permanent fever31 is caused by a mixture of all putrefied materials, and its cure is to empty the blood and clean it of all rust and from the mixture of bad humours which are mixed into it. This is done completely by our Fifth Essence which removes and separates from the blood all putrefied material because it differs from the four qualities, for it is neither hot nor cold, neither humid nor dry. Therefore you can give it constantly without any fear, and especially if you mix into it the essence of the gold and the crystal and the blood which were mentioned above, and if you anoint with it the temples and the neck and the veins and pulses, and the palms of the hands and the soles of the feet, and if you add to it the herb called marqurial,32 you will add a wonderful thing to its effectiveness.

The fifteenth benefit is for curing the tertiary fever. The tertiary fever is born of the red and putrefied things.33 If you want to cure it, put immediately into the [ingredients] mentioned some of the things which draw out the red [humour] and part of the cured liquid,34 and give it to the patient to drink in the evening and in the morning, and he will be cured with the help of God.

The sixteenth benefit is to cure the day and night fever which is generated by the putrefied white [humourl.35 And since the white [humour] is cold and humid, take of our water with a littlefarfiyun3' and a little shawqu37 with other drugs which are antidotes of the white [humour], and let him drink it in the evening and in the morning, and it will help with the help of God.

The seventeenth benefit is to cure the epileptics of all kinds, and the acute fevers, and the sirsam.3' Know that the acute fever is seated in the head. And since this fever is produced by the red, acute, and burned [humour], and also by burned blood, and at times by the burning of the three substances except the black one, therefore the physicians became confused in their cure.

However, all these are cured by our medicine. Therefore one must take of our [folio 157v] essence with the essence of the gold and of the crystal and the blood, and put into them rose water and violas boraja liunas,3' and therewith the patient will be cured with the help of God.

39aFor the healing of ringworm: pitch, one rotl; olive oil, one ounce; sesame oil, half an ounce; clarified butter, half an ounce; colophony, half and ounce; and the darur, 39b peel it, roll it, burned [?]; and dog dirt, and every four [days?) cover its incision. And for him whose head trembles, let him take sesame oil, half an ounce; olive half, clarified butter half, mastic half, pitch half. Make an ointment and anoint the head, and every three days a hot bath, and between each plaster and plaster bathe.39 And if you want to cure the sirsam, take of the popilionointment,40 and choice vinegar, and ground garden rue," mix all of it together with the essence of blood,'2 and dip into this medicine pieces of linen cloth, and put them on the brain of the patient and on his nostrils, and thereby he will be cured, with the help of God. And know that this thing helps to cure the epileptics and all kinds of insanity.

The eighteenth benefit is to heal the pestilential fevers, that is to say, epidemic. If one is in the habit of using it at such times, with the help of God he will be saved from the pestilence, and the patients will be cured with the help of God by the essence of the blood, half of this and half of that with the roots of oxtongue43 and the vinegar herb which is called" agritas y si se paliare el ribas o eljarope de el es munju mejor," and a little of suqutri aloe' and a little firfion" And gira pigra'7 and essential lilio474'root, mixed all this also with the essence of the gold and the crystal with a little qapili Veneris" and hyssop, and he should do this regularly three times a day so that they should purge him of the empty substances, an,d he should use all the medicines which are antidotes to the poisonousness of the pestilence, and especially calfs stomach,4' and these mixed with aforementioned essence so that its effectiveness should be stronger and more apparent, with the help of God.

The nineteenth benefit is to cure the disease of spasms.A0 The physicians are in agreement that the fever is a good sign in this disease, and the experimenters -asaid that if all the joints of the limbs are anointed with the juice of the herb called flamula,5' which is a herb that grows in the ashes and its leaves are similar to the leaves of the celery, and its flower is green, if they smear him many times with its juice, the spasm will be cured, and therefore there is nothing as good for this as our essence, for this will make him completely healthy, with the will of the Creator, and God is the True Physician.

And I shall now reveal to you other hidden secrets which remained hidden from the eyes of the physicians who preceded us.

Take of the herb called agrimonia,'2 rue, fox-testicles" with their roots, selidonia, sugar,54 and let them be pounded and put into the vessel of the alembic, on a gentle fire. And the water which ascends from it has wonderful properties, for there is no pain in the eye, even the strongest, which does not become cured by it. And it helps, if imbibed, to save from all kinds of deadly poisons, and it cleans the stomach and strengthens it, and it helps against all kinds of dropsy" which come from the cold, and it cures the Persian fire56 in three days if they dip into it chaff of hemp and put it on the afflicted place. It also is utterly effective against the illness of cancer if it is imbibed with the tzabarP and it should be put on the afflicted place as mentioned above, and changed three times a day.

Take pinpinella55-seed, and mustard seed, and perisil59-seed, and celery-seed, and clove, and matztaki," and equal part of each, and they should be pounded well, and kneaded with the blood of a he-goat and mixed with strong vinegar, and put into the recentor'1 for three days. and then it should be distilled. This water is effective in breaking up kidney and bladder stones, if it is drunk on an empty stomach, and it cures the scabies62 if the head is washed with it, and it helps all kinds of boils if they are washed with it, and if they drink it twice it helps the parilisia,63 and it helps epilepsy if it is drunk evening and morning.

Take chicks of golondrinos" and burn them, and pulverize them and mix them with qastorio,'5 that is to say qashni," and put them into strong vinegar, and put it into a distilling vessel, and this water has many virtues. One is that if they drink it on an empty stomach they cure epilepsy completely if the patient drinks it for forty consecutive days, and it strengthens the brains, and clears the mind, and cleans the stomach and the chest, and softens the nerves and removes the .. . .6 from them, and strengthens the nature, [folio I 58r] and helps those who have a cold. And if hyssop is cooked in this water it will help the rheum which comes from the cold, and it will cure all kinds of fevers. But beware lest you give it to a pregnant woman, for she would instantly miscarry. And it helps cold head ache, and [those who take it] will sleep comfortably.

And it strengthen digestion and softens the belly and it makes the urine flow, and it causes the hair to fall out and it will not grow again.

Take hyssop and avhal" and akheronto" in equal parts in the distilling vessel, and the water which will come out will cure all kinds of head aches which come from cold, and all old fevers, and will cause the menses to flow. But the woman should not be pregnant for at times it [the menstruation] is kept back because of pregnancy and the woman will be weak. It also helps all kinds of diarrhoea, and it kills the worms which are born in the body if it is drunk on an empty stomach, and it cleans the stomach of all decayed substances, and if it is mixed with qastorio it will cure all kinds offalij.

Take a bat and burn it and pound it with sulphur and mix it with the juice of selidonia7l and put it in a vessel up to six days, and then distil it, and this water has many uses. One: If any black hair is washed in it, it will turn white. Two: If you mix it with tzabar72 and wax, and smear with it the pain of gout,73 it will cure it, and it will cure the kind of cancer which grows on the face, which is called noli me tangere,74 that is to say, touch me not, if it is smeared over it, and it will cure the scabies71 by smearing.

Take pirosil7' and pound it and distil it and it will help to expel all kinds of winds and bloatings from the body, and will strengthen the digestion, and if they drink it with canela77 it will cure coughing and clean the chest. And if you distil also the artemisa7" and the polio,79 and mix them together with the water of the perisil,8" it will help more for all the aforementioned things.

Take white papaverl-seed and pound it fine and mix it with the aforementioned water, and it will help the chest and the cough very much, and if qastorio'2 is mixed into it, it will help the falij.

Take salvia" and polio"5 and pound them and distil them, and the water which comes up will warm the bodies which have caught cold, and will strengthen the head and the limbs, and improve the tonic," and will cure all kinds of boils, and produce good blood. And if one drinks of this water three times a day, up to forty days, it will cure all kinds of old diseases. And I call your attention to a great secret: if one takes the aforementioned water and puts it into the distilling vessel a second time and mixes with it the water of al butm,'7 that is to say the fruit which is called hub al khadhra," distilled in the distilling vessel and with qastorio, it will cure all kinds of diseases which are born in the body, whether in its interior or on its exterior. This medicine was invented by a great sage, and many old diseases came upon him, and he saw this in his dream, and made it, and was cured, and he put it in writing so as to help many people.

And it helps internal [diseases] by drinking, and external [diseases] by way of a plaster with chaff of qanavos (hemp)." And we have tried this medicine many times, and all those who take of the aforementioned mixture will be saved from leprosy and from perselia" and from bad diseases which have no cure.

And now I shall tell you the manner of preparing the aforementioned water of al butm. Take one pound of tarmantina,"1 half a pound of honey of which the froth has been removed, one pound of aqua vita.92 very fine Indian 'and,'3 trandal," in equal parts. Arab tzamg,95 juz 7bawwa," kholanjan97-root, kababa," reed, matztaki," quaranfal,'" sanbal,."' of each three drachms. They must be pounded well and put into the distilling vessel which is made of glass, and it must be well covered, and put on a gentle fire. And the first water which will come up will be pure, and receive it in a vessel while it comes out pure, and then it will come out like the appearance of fire, red and bright, receive it in another vessel. And increase the fire by a little, and when you see that the head of the distilling vessel is black and the water is coming out thick like honey, remove the second vessel and put another vessel, and increase the fire more, and do this until nothing more comes out. And know that these three are hot, to wit, the second is hotter than the first, and the third is hotter than the second. And know that the first is called "the mother of medicine", and the second "the substance of medicine", and the third "the complete medicine".

The first, if it is taken lukewarm with wine will strengthen the stomach and expel from it the white [humour] which is closed in, and it arouses the desire to eat, and preserves the heart so that no evil vapour should go into it. And I tried this often. And if a thin piece of linen is dipped into it and put into the nostrils with the little finger when going to sleep, it will be very helpful against all kinds of drips. And it will improve the odour of the mouth and of the nostrils if drunk in the evening and in the morning. And it whitens the teeth if one gargles with it, and removes all aches from them. And if a piece of linen is soaked in it and then put on the face, it cures the redness of the face which is called barosnat.1'02 And it cures the heaviness of the tongue by drinking [it] and gargling. And if a piece of linen is soaked in it and then is put on haemorrhoids, it will cure them, and it will also cure deafness if cotton-wool is soaked in it and put into the ear.

Now I shall reveal to you the secret of the other two drops. They are good for cancer of the face which is called nujmi of Tangier,'03 which was mentioned above,04 and for pain of the hips and the kidneys and the neck and the throat, if a cloth soaked in them is placed on the sore spots. And they are good for him who has fallen down from a high place, or was smitten by . . .,"10 or broke a bone, if he is bandaged with them, and they drive off all kinds of poisonous creeping [folio 158v] things. This is the rule: they are good for all diseases and all wounds,and all afflictions. And the third drop even more so.

Take the herb marqurial,l06 and qandero-sugar107 in equal parts and pound them together and put them in the distilling vessel, and let them stand there ten days, then distil them as [you did with] the drops of water which were mentioned before, and if the third is put into a clean vessel it will shine at night like a candle. The third water is like oil. If a man or a woman anoints his face with it, it will cleanse it and beautify it, and if he drinks of this water every morning, even if he be a hundred years old, his youth will return to him as if he were twenty, and likewise all his limbs will shine brightly like [those ofl a youth, and neither in his face nor in his body will any wrinkles be left at all. And if the epileptic drinks of it for forty days, he will be saved from his disease, and if qastoriol' is mixed into it, it will cure the crushed nerves and all the pains of the limbs of the body. And if it is put into the eyes which are afflicted by any disease whatsoever, it will cure them. And if pulverized gold and fine crystal and raubaibarol0' are mixed into it and pounded well and mixed, and the leprous drinks of it, he will be cured completely, on condition that he drink of it until the freshness of his face becomes beautiful.

Take rubia"°-roots and pound them and cook them with olive oil and with perisil,111 in the amount of the roots, and it will cure the disease which is born in the bladder. And if you cook the rubia with parro,"12 and give it to drink to him who has a diarrhoea of blood, it will cure him.

And if you cook it with bran and the gouty"' part is bandaged with it, it will cure it.

Take pinpinella seed and put it into good red wine for ten days, and then dry it and make oil of it, and it will be good for stones in the bladder. And also the juice of the pinpinella, if he drinks it, it will dissolve the stone and the patient will get it out in his urine in the form of sand.

Wondrous water which makes youth persist, and health remain, and this is its description: take good white wine, three pounds, uncooked honey of the beehive, one pound, and pulverized gold, and distil them, and let him drink of this morning and evening. This good medicine was sent by the king of Egypt to the king of Garnata [Granada] who was smitten with blindness which is called cataras,"'4 and he was cured by it. And this is its description: Take flowers of romero,"5 with their leaves removed, and spread them on a rug so that the wind should blow on them, for two days, and then put them into a flagon, but do not fill it completely, and cover it with a lead tablet, and paste the bottom of the flagon with the clay of the philosophers,"'6 and put it in the garden into a hole full of very fine sand, and let it stand there ninety days of the days of the summer. And when the days are up, open the flagon and you will find the flower softened like honey, and distil it in a glass vessel, and keep the distillation for both drinking and putting it into the eyes, and it will help wonderfully, with the help of God.

Pills came from India, written in their language, and called in the language of Hind "pills of father and mother", for their benefit for a person is like the benefit of his father and mother, and this is their description: tirpola tirqota tangargayad ras u-bis gindek arhertal. And this is their explanation: tirpolal7 three kinds of pepper, that is black and red and zanjabil,"3 and because of its sharpness he calls it pepper. Tirqota"19 - three kinds of mirabulanos,'20 Babylonian, yellow, and amlaj.'2' Tangargayad'22 - atinkar.'23 Ras'24 is quick-silver.'25 Bis is bish.'26 Gindek'"2 is sulphur. Arhertal'2' is zarnik.'29 Equal parts should be pounded well and kneaded in the urine of goats and a decoction of apsantin,'3 and let it dry in the shade, and then pounded a second time, up to seven times. And make [of them] pills like a pepper corn. Seven to be taken.

To release the menses strongly, take darl3" of pepper, one drachm; darsini,1' one drachm,juz bawwal" one drachm, zangabil134 one drachm, zafran'll one drachm, pure incense one drachm, sulphur one drachm, misk13' a grain. They should be pulverized and kneaded in a little glue which is called jaris,137 and hukarol3' water, and let them make farazjat,139 and let the woman suffer'40 one of them, and it will help with the help of God.

For pregnancy. The tooth of an elephant should be ground and mixed with theriak faruq,'4' and let the woman eat one-third at the time of her menses, and one-third when she becomes purified, and one-third after her immersion, and she will conceive with the help of God.