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Passover Plagues -- The Inside Story 

Thanks to the Passover Seder, each of us knows the plagues inflicted upon Pharaoh and the Egyptians.

Some of us dip our fingers into the wine. Others use a knife or spoon. In our family, we dab a fork into a wine glass and tap in on a saucer, creating little droplets, or tears.

My grandfather Nissan (z'l') taught that this represented the tears of the Egyptians, thus encouraging us to have empathy for all those who suffer, whether they be friend or foe.

Yet the question remains: why did God choose those particular plagues, seven of which we witness within this week's Torah portion?

What is really going on?

A closer look at each of the plagues reveals a persistent frontal attack by the God of Israel upon those material idols so central to Egyptian culture. 

And perhaps there is a lesson to be learned as we reflect upon our lives today.

The first plague was blood. Why blood?

For Egyptians, the Nile River was the source of life. The Nile served as "the heart" of the Egyptian economy. All trade, commerce, crops, and wildlife depended upon clean water.
So God turned the Nile into blood. Fish died; drinking water became unfit to drink; crops choked.

Through this act, Khnum, God of the Nile, was brought to its knees.  Khnum was represented by a human being with a ram's head. God's Nile attack also assaulted Hapi, the "spirit of the Nile" and overseer of fish, birds and marshes. Osiris, the Egyptian God of the Underworld, drew his lifeblood, too, from the Nile.

No wonder God's first attack upon Egypt's religious system began with the Nile.

Then God sent to the Egyptians the plague of frogs. Frogs represented Heqt, wife of the creator of the world, and the goddess of birth, often represented by a frog's head and body. 

If you want to send a clear message to Pharaoh regarding God's power over creation, and birth, send an infestation of frogs into his bed.

The third plague, lice, was an attack upon Geb, the Egyptian earth god. Egyptian priests shaved their heads, in part because they feared lice, which were considered impure (as well as being unpleasant).  

The fourth plague involved swarms of what many scholars believe were flies and dung beetles.  The Egyptian god Amon-Ra, the creator and king of all gods, was depicted by a beetle head.

The fifth plague, cattle disease, was an affront to Apis, which represented by the bull. Egyptians worshipped cattle and horses.

In addition, Hathor, goddess of the desert, depicted by the head of a cow, was Pharaoh's symbolic mother.  

The next plague, boils, was an affront to Imhotep, the Egyptian god of medicine. It also attacked Serapis, the god of healing, and Thoth, the ibis-headed god of knowledge and medical learning.

None of these gods could cure the Egyptian people of this painful affliction.

The seventh plague, hail, showered upon Egypt from the heavens. This was a slap in the face to Nut, the sky goddess, represented by a woman upon which was believed the heavens rested.

This was also an attack upon Shum, the wind god; Horus, the hawk deity; and Isis and Seth, protector of crops.

And so, as we turn the page on this week's Torah, a pattern emerges.  The ten plagues, seven of which we read about this week, was actually an assault on humankind's worship of false gods; in particular those who incline us towards earthly worship.

Indeed, today, who are our gods?  Often, they are movie stars, or sports celebrities. Society often has trouble distinguishing between characters found within reality television and those who guide is in real life.

Are these the gods we exalt?

It occurs to me each time we recite the Shema Yisrael prayer, that the Jewish understanding of universal harmony is not based upon conflicting gods, but rather a pursuit of balance and oneness.

Oneness means that we are connected with each other, and with God, and with the sacred earth with which we have been entrusted. Oneness even opens the window between this world and the world of souls.

This week's Torah portion, and its assault upon ancient Egypt's religious system, teaches us that the destiny and completion of creation does not rest upon a series of disjointed gods, each with their own needs, quirks and obligations.

Rather, it reminds us that creation is based upon the belief that the world is governed by oneness and a moral system based on care, compassion and kindness.

As Jews and as human beings, we are entrusted with the responsibility to make ourselves and world into something better.

This week's Torah portion involves a lot more than wine dipping at the Passover. It is a message to us that, in our daily pursuits, the worship of material things will only lead to disunity and disaster.

In a world increasingly inclined towards the superficial and physical, let us remember some of the deeper lessons reflected by the Bible's ten plagues.

The Torah reminds us that material worship will only lead to eternal spiritual hunger.

Indeed, the God of Israel, described within the Torah, inclines us towards the unity of all things. The Talmud teaches that the world is based upon three things: Torah, worship, and acts of lovingkindess.

It reminds that holiness is found in you and me, and our connection with God and all of creation.

It is not found in the pursuit of physical pleasure, and the worship of false gods.  It is not contained within an animalistic attraction towards materialism.

Rather it is found in those things which we cannot always see with our eyes, but can be found within our hearts. 

That is the nature of our God, who teaches us that meaning, and purpose is contained within the oneness of all things.

Shema Yisrael. Adonai Elohenu. Adonai Echad.

Hear O Israel. The Lord is God. The Lord is One.

Shabbat Shalom, v'kol tuv (with all goodness)
 
Rabbi Irwin Huberman