Our Gemara on Amud Beis relates an incident where the great Amora Shmuel—who was also an expert physician (Niddah 25b, Bava Metzia 107b) and astronomer (Berachos 58b)—made a tragic medical error. Based on this, he adjusted his halachic stance, which shows a dynamic and empirical relationship between experience, medicine, and Halacha.
There was a certain maidservant in the house of Mar Shmuel whose eye became infected on Shabbos. She screamed in pain, but no one attended to her. Eventually, her eye popped out of its socket. The next day, Mar Shmuel went out and taught: With regard to an eye that rebelled, it is permitted to apply blue eye shadow on Shabbos… What is the reason? The tendons of the eye are dependent upon the vessels of the heart.
Shmuel determined that there is a direct connection between the eye and the heart and modern medical science supports this. Because there are so many blood vessels in the eye, and with an optometrist’s scope, it is relatively easy to examine them, strokes, diabetes, and heart disease can all be seen through the eyes.
“Because changes in retinal microcirculation are independent predictors of cardiovascular events, the eye serves as a ‘display’ to the cardiovascular system and brain.” (https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s11042-024-19212-wThe consequences of eye tracking on brain and heart coherence | Multimedia Tools and Applications)
It gets even more interesting. Not only do the eye and heart interface on a cardiovascular level, but also on an emotional glandular level:
“Cardiac cycle effects have been found to be modulated by the emotional valence of the visual stimuli: While fearful faces were detected more easily and rated as more intense if presented at systole compared with diastole…” (Garfinkel et al., J. Neurosci. 34(19), 2014)
In plain English: When the heart is contracting (systole), it heightens perception of fear stimuli. When it is relaxing (diastole), perception is more balanced. The body’s rhythm influences emotional experience.
And of course, since the physical and spiritual worlds share a designer, the eyes and heart are spiritually linked. As Rashi (Bamidbar 15:39) quotes:
“The eye sees, the heart covets, and the body commits the sin.” (Midrash Tanchuma, Sh’lach 15)
Translations Courtesy of Sefaria, except when, sometimes, I disagree with the translation
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Rabbi Simcha Feuerman, Rabbi Simcha Feuerman, LCSW-R, LMFT, DHL is a psychotherapist who works with high conflict couples and families. He can be reached via email at simchafeuerman@gmail.com