Healing the Serpent Within

 

Parashat Chukat 

Why does A Serpent Represent the Medical Profession?          

I grew up with parents who were both medical doctors. I vividly recall the special sign, on the back of their car, near the license plate, depicting a serpent wrapped around a pole, with initials that meant Danish medical doctor. All physicians in Denmark needed to display such a sign on their car, as I was told, in case of an emergency or road accident. Then people would know who to turn to for immediate help. I often wondered why this symbol of a serpent represented the medical profession and how the serpent was connected to healing. I later found out, that whereas, the Danish sign consists of one serpent wrapped around a pole, in the USA, the sign consists of two intertwined serpents on a winged pole. The latter also called the caduceus, is actually the traditional symbol of Hermes, from Greek mythology. He is believed to be the ‘merchant god’ in charge of travel and commerce and is also associated with negotiation, liars, thieves, eloquence, and wisdom. So, he was not the ‘god of healing’ at all. His winged shoes, supposedly, helped him travel fast. The Danish sign reflects the symbol of medicine in Greek mythology, called the Rod of Asclepius – believed to be the ancient ‘Greek god of healing.’ Likewise, the ancient Sumerians had a ‘snake god of healing’ entwining around an axial rod, symbolizing a tree of life. Snakes, with their stillness, mysterious venom, and supposed powers of self-renewal, through shedding their skin and appearing young again are always going to inspire wonder. Perhaps, it was believed that the snake could heal itself of aging, and all other ailments, as well. Possibly, these ancient idol-worshippers thought the snake knew the secret to eternal life. Yet, what is the Jewish view on the healing power of the serpent? What is thisנְחַשׁ נְחשֶׁת /Nechash Nechoshet – “copper snake,” that Moshe made to heal the Israelites from the snakebites of the serpent, all about? Ever since I entered Yeshiva in 1980, and learned about the copper serpent, I’ve been puzzled about why this serpent would heal the Israelites, and why a snake who brought death and mortality to the world became a symbol of healing?
 
Why Did the Israelites Complain About the Manna?
In order to shed light on the connection between the serpent and healing, let us explore the story of the copper serpent as depicted in Parashat Chukat:

במדבר פרק כא פסוק ה וַיְדַבֵּר הָעָם בֵּאלֹקִים וּבְמשֶׁה לָמָה הֶעֱלִיתֻנוּ מִמִּצְרַיִם לָמוּת בַּמִּדְבָּר כִּי אֵין לֶחֶם וְאֵין מַיִם וְנַפְשֵׁנוּ קָצָה בַּלֶּחֶם הַקְּלֹקֵל: (ו) וַיְשַׁלַּח הָשֵׁם בָּעָם אֵת הַנְּחָשִׁים הַשְּׂרָפִים וַיְנַשְּׁכוּ אֶת הָעָם וַיָּמָת עַם רָב מִיִּשְׂרָאֵל: (ז) וַיָּבֹא הָעָם אֶל משֶׁה וַיֹּאמְרוּ חָטָאנוּ כִּי דִבַּרְנוּ בַהָשֵׁם וָבָךְ הִתְפַּלֵּל אֶל הָשֵׁם  וְיָסֵר מֵעָלֵינוּ אֶת הַנָּחָשׁ וַיִּתְפַּלֵּל משֶׁה בְּעַד הָעָם: (ח) וַיֹּאמֶר הָשֵׁם אֶל משֶׁה עֲשֵׂה לְךָ שָׂרָף וְשִׂים אֹתוֹ עַל נֵס וְהָיָה כָּל הַנָּשׁוּךְ וְרָאָה אֹתוֹ וָחָי: (ט) וַיַּעַשׂ משֶׁה נְחַשׁ נְחשֶׁת וַיְשִׂמֵהוּ עַל הַנֵּס וְהָיָה אִם נָשַׁךְ הַנָּחָשׁ אֶת  אִישׁ וְהִבִּיט אֶל נְחַשׁ הַנְּחשֶׁת וָחָי:  י

“The people spoke against G-d and against Moshe, ‘Why have you brought us up out of Egypt to die in this desert, for there is no bread and no water, and we are disgusted with this rotten bread.’ Hashem sent against the people the venomous snakes, and they bit the people, and many people of Israel died. The people came to Moshe and said, ‘We have sinned, for we have spoken against Hashem and against you. Pray to Hashem that He remove the snakes from us.’ So, Moshe prayed on behalf of the people. Hashem said to Moshe, ‘Make yourself a serpent and put it on a pole and let whoever is bitten look at it and live.’ Moshe made a copper snake and put it on a pole, and whenever a snake bit a man, he would gaze upon the copper snake and live” (Bamidbar 21:5-9). 

Moshe was able to gain forgiveness for all the various sins and complaints of the Israelites in the desert, through his prayer, except for the complaint about the manna. What was so terrible about that sin, for which the Israelites were punished with poisonous snakes? This time the complaint of the Israelites were not because of a lack. Unlike other times, when their complaints had a point – there was no bread or water – here they had the manna and they had Miriam’s well that returned in the merit of Moshe. Then, why did they complain that they didn’t have “bread and water?” They were not happy with the kind of nourishment they received. They loathed the manna, which they called “this לֶּחֶם הַקְּלֹקֵל/lechem hakelokal – light or rotten bread.” They disdained this light bread, which felt like it was nothing, because it was miraculously absorbed in their limbs (and not excreted) (Rashi, Bamidbar 21:5). 

What is the Grave Sin of the Israelites that Evoked Venomous Snakes?

The immense flaw of the Children of Israel was that they didn’t accept Hashem’s will and His conduct with them. Hashem’s way of nourishing them was not exactly according to their preference. They forgot that “Who is rich? A person who is happy with his portion!” (Pirkei Avot 4:1). We are placed on earth in order to cleave to Hashem and accept the way He runs our lives and the lot in life that He determines for us. This outlook will bring us happiness and wealth. On the other hand, the worst sin is when our heart is divided against Hashem when we desire something else than what Hashem has meted out for us. Then, we will never become satisfied. Avraham, our father, is a role model for accepting Hashem’s will and way with love. When there was a famine in the land, he could have complained, “You told me to leave everything behind, to go to the Land, and now, You force me to leave it, by causing a famine upon it!” Also, when his dear wife, Sarah, was taken captive, Avraham didn’t complain but trusted in Hashem. He understood that everything that Hashem does is for the best, even when he was unable to understand how. These tests were on a par with the test of the Akeida (binding of Yitzchak). The yetzer hara is so powerful when it comes to making us unhappy with our lot in life, and questioning Hashem’s conduct. Being happy with our portion can be an even harder test than overcoming jealousy, honor seeking and base physical cravings. This explains why the Israelites’ complaining about the manna (literally portion) is a most serious offense. To be unhappy with our portion, when all our needs are met, is a grave sin that we must do our utmost to avoid.
 
Why did Hashem Punish the Israelites’ Complaint through Serpents?
The ingratitude of the Israelites is further highlighted by the fact that the miraculous manna was specially designed to be pleasing for the Israelites. Not only did raw manna taste like wafers with honey (Shemot 16:31), but manna could furthermore give whatever taste the Israelites desired. Rashi notes the contrast between the food of the snake and the manna. The snake’s punishment, for tempting Chava to eat from the Tree of Knowledge, was that it would eat only dust (Bereishit 3:14). G-d said, “Let the serpent, to which all kinds of food have one taste (that of the earth), come and exact punishment from these ingrates, to whom one thing (the manna) has the taste of many different dainties (Midrash Tanchuma, Chukat 19); (Rashi, Bamidbar 21:6).

Ingrained Ingratitude

The snake’s food was a curse in disguise. Although it is found everywhere in plenty, it was a punishment not to need to turn to Heaven in prayer for sustenance. Hashem gave the snake its food in abundance because He didn’t want to hear the snake’s voice in prayer. He didn’t want any relationship with it at all. Although the snake always has what to eat, it still injects its venom and kills people wantonly, without any need. This expresses the evil of the snake, which doesn’t recognize the good, and is not satisfied with what it receives. Instead of being grateful for always having access to food, the snake destroys in the most evil way. Likewise, the Israelites had all their needs met, but they were still unhappy with Hashem’s blessings, claiming that there is no bread or water. They had everything but still were unsatisfied. This is similar to the snake, who has all the dust in the world as its nourishment but still kills people.

Overcoming the Fear of Facing our Inner Snake
It is still hard to fathom why the snake, of all creatures, was chosen as a symbol of healing. It is furthermore difficult to understand, how the copper serpent engendered healing from the Israelites’ snakebites? “Could a snake [on a pole] cause death [by not looking at it] or give life [by looking at it]? Rather, when Israel would look upward and subject their hearts to their Father in Heaven, they would be cured; but if not, they would waste away” (Rashi, Bamidbar 21:8). It is not the snake but repentance that causes healing. When looking upward, towards the spiritual worlds, the Children of Israel were cured, by reaffirming their trust in G-d and His healing power. The copper snake acted like a mirror (actually, biblical mirrors were made of copper) See Shemot 38:8. When the Israelites looked up at this snake on the pole, they faced their own ‘snakedness.’ This awareness brought them to repentance. The copper serpent is often quoted as a Torah source for the homeopathic principle that “likes cure likes.” Looking at the copper serpent, reminded the Israelites of their own snake hiding within. That same snake still plays hide and seek, as it does not want us to know that it hides within us. The venom can attack us and everyone around us, without our knowing that we have been poisoned. We tend to fall into the pitfall of the Israelites, by complaining and blaming, as a way of running away from facing ourselves. The beginning of the anti-venom to the bite of the snake within is to become aware of the snake and overcome our fear to face it. Only then can our healing begin!