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Plagues of the Heart and Mind (Part 7)

By Sara Esther Crispe: January 23, 2014: Category Decoding the Tradition, Inspirations

Boils: A Hardened Heart

When it comes to forgiveness or giving another chance, we want to believe that the person causing the hurt truly wants to change. Yet when time and time again it becomes apparent that they are not committed to bettering themselves and their behavior, they reach a point that even when they are sincere, it is simply too late. The door is no longer open.

This is what happened by the time the Sixth Plague, that of Boils, descends on the people of Egypt. During the first five plagues we see there were times where Pharaoh would temporarily decide to release the slaves, just to then harden his heart once again and keep them in captivity. Only when he was in the midst of the suffering from the plague and motivated by fear would he would make promises that he was going to change, but as soon as that immediate threat left, he returned to his true nature and was unrelenting.

When the Plague of Boils happens, for the first time the language is used that “God hardened the heart of Pharaoh.” The commentary explains that Pharaoh missed his opportunity to change his ways. Time and time again he was given the chance but didn’t sincerely take it so by this plague even if he had wanted to, it wasn’t his entirely his choice. It was not if he hardened his heart but rather the time had come that now his heart was hardened for him. This shows us that if we keep doing the wrong thing it will eventually become our second nature and then it will no longer even be a conscious choice but simply how we function and what we do.

This plague was sparked when Moses and Aaron were commanded to throw hot ash in the face of Pharaoh. And yet it specifies that by the time the soot hit the skin it was already cold, and yet caused boils nonetheless. More so, even the areas of the skin that were not directly hit by the soot still erupted in boils for it affected the entire atmosphere.

A Kabbalistic understanding of this is that Moses and Aaron were giving Pharaoh a first-hand opportunity to witness what was really happening inside of him. The boils began as an irritation on the skin, like a rash, and then filled and developed into the boils. So too, Pharaoh was led by his emotions and would explode, affecting all around him. But when he would see the results of his actions he would temporarily decide that he had done the wrong thing and would calm down, cool off, and agree to free his captives. But his cooling down period never lasted long and his temper and irrationality would return, just like the ash, that even when cool, would still damage and burn the skin.

This plague took place literally in the eyes of Pharaoh for him to be made aware of his behavior, his motivation and the consequences of his decisions. It represented the pain and suffering he caused, the anger he held in his heart and the cooling off that should have led to positive change but never lasted. The shift in this plague from Pharaoh hardening his own heart to having his heart hardened should always remind us that our actions become our nature and how we will behave, even when we are not consciously thinking about it. So it is up to us to ensure that our fall back will be behaviors that will bring about connection and growth in ourselves and others and that the heat that will be created will be one of inspiration and warmth and not of scarring and burning.

http://www.interinclusion.org/inspirations/plagues-of-the-heart-and-mind-part-6/

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