In the ninth section (parashah) of Exodus, the second book of the Torah, the text discusses a census of the people of Israel. They had recently left the slavery of Egypt.
The usual translation of the beginning of this Parashah reads: “God said to Moses: When you take a census of the Children of Israel . . .”
The literal translation of the Hebrew words here is: “When you lift the heads of the Children of Israel . . .”
The text then goes on to cite the numbers of individuals, before declaring that each person shall atone to for their soul by promising a symbol of faith, loyalty, and commitment.
Kings typically demand that subjects bow the head. This is the opposite of what is being asked here. Asking people to lift the head shows concern for them and fosters loyalty and trust.
Lifting the head is an amazing directive. We are instructed to extend the neck as the chin points upward. This is a stretching exercise. Stretching in general and this stretch in particular are indispensable activities that create and maintain proper physical health. This form of exercise is often not pursued as it should be. The correct stretching prescription is that it should be done at least twice a throughout a lifetime. This admonishment becomes increasingly justified as we age.
One of the primary prerequisites for being able to follow the path of spiritual development is achieving good physical health. It is much more difficult to find the spiritual door to the non-material world of God if health is impaired.
The text of the Torah is laced with health advice, recognizing the imperative of maintaining good physical conditioning. Any symptoms of impaired health are a barrier to seeking the Torah objective of pursuing the spiritual essence of mortal human beings.
The deepest revelations of the Torah are about living our lives to have optimal physical health as we pursue actualization of our latent spiritual nature. God wants us to bridge the Earthly (material) realm in which we live with the Heavenly (spiritual) realm of God sustaining perfect harmony. As mortal and finite human beings, we have the potential to embrace and nourish our Holy spiritual identity: the soul.
Both our material and ethereal selves require unique sustenance to thrive. Each depends upon the well-being of the other to achieve optimal development.
Stretching the neck is a very important activity to maintain good spinal health. The well-being of the vertebral column and its sheltered column of nerves is essential for health everywhere else in the body. The spinal cord is one of the first anatomical elements to be formed in embryogenesis. That is because all the other organs depend upon its presence and proper function.
In our daily lives, we move (flex) our heads down, turn them to the right, and turn them to the left frequently. We extend the neck much less often.
Achieving spiritual advancement is most effectively accomplished when the physical body is healthy. Spinal health is necessary for bodily health. The welfare of the entire spinal cord begins with the neck. In all systems of the body, sluggish flow, stiff tissue, and viscid cells are the beginnings of disease processes. Stretching the neck helps prevent these deteriorative processes. The Torah is recognizing the importance of adding this neck stretch to make the neck flexible and strong.
Extending the neck may cause a sense of imbalance in some people. When you first try this, hold onto a stable object to make sure you are steady. The more you practice this activity, the easier it gets.
Another health benefit of stretching the neck is to prevent and treat common causes of vertigo (dizziness). Dizziness originating from the inner ear malfunction is common. The semicircular canals therein must have free fluid movement to maintain steadiness. Precipitates in these fluid-filled tubular structures inhibits flow and causes vertigo. Moving the head – as when you regularly stretch the neck in four directions – keeps the stream clear and active. Propelling precipitates helps dissolve and dissipate them.
Using any muscles improves the local circulation. Hence, stretching the neck improves the health of the cervical blood vessels. When any blood vessels function better, the entire vascular circulation is enhanced.
There is also an emotional component to neck extension. Unlike the downward and sideward stretches, the upward one exposes a vulnerable part of our anatomy. This requires a great deal of trust. One must develop one’s sense of faith to embody trust.
Lifting the head teaches us to trust our instincts, trust the community in which we live, and trust the power of the universe. Trust and faith are not blind. The lesson includes discerning judgement and a focused mind.
When we consciously make ourselves vulnerable for the purpose of building a sense of faith, we are exploring our innate capacity to enter the spiritual world inhabited by God. In this decision lies our ability for free choice. lifting up the chin, exposing the neck, is entering into vulnerability. It is not so much that we are open to being attacked. This is not an act to perform on the battlefield. It is more a movement that is done when peace abounds around you and you wish to take advantage of that moment.
We want to believe that we have free choice in our lives. However, the choices we make in our mortal and finite universe are guided by every influence of our genetics, culture, and experience (this concept is explored at length in “FREEDON AND PASSOVER,” my April 25, 202, blog). Our “free choice” is determined by al the history that makes us who we are. This beloved phrase means we possess the ability to decide to expand our minds and souls beyond the earthly limitations of time and space.
We can expand our awareness into the infinite and the eternal. It is the one path that we can choose that we have no antecedent experience to influence that decision. Awakening one’s spiritual nature is venturing into that which preceded Creation. Seeking a spiritual connection is Free Choice unencumbered by hard-wired history.
Lifting the head by raising the chin is a step toward awakening, nourishing, and expanding the soul. Such an act initiates the path towards linking the Earthly Realm with the Heavenly Realm within us. As previously discussed, bridging the material and non-material worlds is the fundamental purpose of Creation.
Taking the census? Yes. The Torah commentators expound at length about the relevance of this commandment. Hidden within the numbering of the People of Israel are crucial steps that can assist interdependent optimization of physical and spiritual health. Each is a necessary component of the other.
The best of both worlds is achieved through parallel maturation and progress. In so doing, we aspire to the primary directive of Torah. This explicit directive sets us upon the path for following the commandment to “Make yourself Holy, as I, the Lord your God, am Holy.” (This concept is discussed more fully in my May 21, 202 blog: “YOU WILL BE HOLY FOR I AM HOLY.”)
The priestly blessing, which Jacob gave to his grandsons before he died in Egypt, is another example of lifting up the head. He said, “May God lift up your face and grant you peace.” The act of lifting up the head is associated with attaining peace and bing at peace within oneself.
Finally, feel the joy when you look up and see the green leaves on the brown branches above you. Then shift your gaze to the deep blue sky.
Health and Spirit by Dr. Jack Zoldan 