We are familiar with the “snake on a pole” symbol that is used for medical services. The Greek origins of this symbol can be traced back to a narrative in this week’s Torah portion. The people of Israel complained once again. A plague of fiery serpents was inflicted upon them. The people repent and Moses prays for salvation. G-d instructed Moses to fashion a copper serpent and place it high upon a staff. Any snakebitten individual who gazed upon the copper snake on the staff was healed.
The Talmud asks, “Does a copper snake bring life or death? Rather, the purpose of the snake on the staff was to turn the eyes and hearts of the people to their “Father in Heaven,” the true source of life and death.
There are many ways to get the people to turn their eyes and hearts to their Father in Heaven. There must be a deeper layer of meaning to the choice of a snake on a staff, beyond just the symbolism of healing a snakebite.
The Rebbe offers the following insight. The snake in the Garden of Eden was the first incarnation of the Yetzer Hara, the evil inclination. Jewish mysticism explains that evil as a force in the world is simply an agent of Hashem to provide a context and background for free will. As such, it is truly a force for good in the big picture. Furthermore, even when we fail and listen to the Yetzer Hara, thereby giving in to our base and less noble aspects of self, the darkness of that moment can be a powerful force to propel us back to the light. In Chasidic terminology this is called “a descent for the purpose of an ascent.”
The message of the snake on the staff is to recall that our snake, our base inclinations for self-gratification, is rooted in a high place. A place so high, that it can bring us much higher than can a simple, straight-forward journey. If we recognize that the snake is on a staff, that turns our eyes and hearts to our Father in Heaven.
Now snakes can bite and darkness is not a good state in which to be. So, we do not deliberately seek out these experiences. However, when we fall and encounter the darkness, we must remember that the light that comes out of that darkness is a very powerful one and work our way forward towards it. When we come of it and reach the light, we learn to appreciate not only the destination, but also the perilous journey that got us there.
Shabbat Shalom
Rabbi Mendel Rivkin