Jewish Psychosomatics – The Liver

Jewish Psychosomatics – The Liver

In the Zohar HaKadosh (Part II, folio 153, p. 1), it says: “There are three rulers—the brain, the heart, and the liver.” The consciousness of the mind is entirely clothed in the brain; the entire consciousness of the emotions is clothed in the heart; and the consciousness of the body is clothed in the liver. When everything functions properly, and the mind — מח — “moach” rules over the heart — לב — “lev”, while the heart rules over the liver — כבד — “kaved”—then a person is a Melech (king), properly controlling all the forces of his soul and body. But when this order is altered because of a person's sinful behavior, and “kaved” (the liver) begins to rule over the heart, which in turn rules over the brain, the person's condition—both physical and spiritual—deteriorates, bringing him to the brink of destruction. The Talmud (Avodah Zarah, folio 4, p. 2, Tosafot) gives an example of how Bilam wanted to curse the people of Israel with the word “kalem” (destroy them), but the Almighty, rearranging the letters—the spiritual forces within the word “kalem”—transformed it into “melech” and thus turned his curse into a blessing. The Zohar HaKadosh (Part III, p. 224a) explains that the group “brain—heart—liver” corresponds to the three participants in the sin of the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil: Adam—the brain, Chavah—the heart, and the serpent—the liver. This demonstrates that good health depends on the proper order within the soul—the sequence of influence of the “brain-heart-liver” group upon the person as a whole. The liver (associated with the serpent) is the primary source of illness, since its hardness (the word “kaved” (liver) shares a root with “kvedut” (hardness, heaviness)) can harm the entire body. This is seen in the Torah in the example of Pharaoh: “Pharaoh's heart was hardened (kaved)” (Shemot 7:14; Shemot Rabbah 9:8)—the hardness of the liver affected the heart so profoundly that the heart itself, as it were, “became a liver.” Interestingly, the final letters of the words— מח — לב — כבד — moach — lev — kaved (brain—heart—liver) allude to the three intellectual sefirot: Chochmah—Binah—Daat. This explains that under normal circumstances, Chochmah governs all the processes of the mind, which are located in the brain, “moach,” Binah governs all the emotions, which are located in the heart, “lev,” while Daat governs a person's behavioral functions—the aspect of the liver, “kaved.” Segulot for healing the liver: To heal the liver—and with it all illnesses, since it is their source—one must use it to express respect, “kavod,” as prescribed by the Torah (the word “kavod,” which shares a root with “kaved” (liver)). One must observe the commandments associated with showing honor, for example: - Observe the commandment: “Honor “kabed” your father and your mother” (Shemot 20:12; Devarim 5:16); - Observe the commandment: “Honor “kabed” the L-rd with your wealth” (Mishlei 3:9); Then the meaning of the fact that the gematria of the word “kaved” = 26 is revealed: this equals the numerical value of the four-letter Name of Havayah. (Based on the book Body, Mind, and Soul by Rabbi Yitzchak Ginsburgh)