Message in the Marijuana

One of my passions is natural health and wellness. I found that natural-based supplements, organic food, and spiritual practices are very healing; all are amazing gifts from the Creator. It is interesting to me that even though the Jewish People are considered the soul of the world and the nations of the world the body, the neglect of either one (body or soul) can cause illness in any of us. Some, neglect the body because they overemphasize the soul while others neglect the soul and focus too much on physical or material pursuits. Both are equally detrimental.

Rabbi Nachman says that illness is often caused by a large hole in the soul. So what does all this mean? It means we need to strive for balance. To listen to the needs of the soul while not neglecting the body and vice versa. If we don’t tend to both, we get wake up calls, either physical or emotional. Trying to mask the pain and escape reality with substances like marijuana can lead to abuse, addiction, and ultimately more pain.

I am not a fan of the legalization of marijuana, which has become a sort of go-to substance for symptomatic ailments of both body and soul. Although some claim that marijuana is safe, not habit-forming, and does not cause long-term side effects, these claims are not true. Regular and frequent use of marijuana can be highly addictive. Marijuana does not enhance health; it undermines it. I live in the state of California where the purchase of marijuana has become legal, and its popularity has grown exponentially. Unless medically authorized for cases where the degree of pain requires immediate relief, the possible side effects of marijuana outweigh any perceived benefit.

It is known, but not well publicized, that marijuana can affect a person’s balance, coordination, judgment, mental clarity, memory, liver, heart, sleep, and depth perception. It also can increase one’s predisposition to psychosis and lung and throat cancer.

An interesting case was reported of a woman who, for two decades, had episodes of abdominal pain, vomiting, and mental fog, and her doctor could not find the cause. Recently, more cases of this kind have been reported, and the doctors who are seeing this occur more frequently have isolated an obscure syndrome called cannabinoid hyperemesis. This has been linked by the medical establishment to marijuana users who smoke multiple times a day for an extended period of time. For those of us who subscribe to and live with emuna, we know that Hashem does not favor substances with these kinds of possible side effects.

On a spiritual note, I immediately saw the message within the name of the obscure syndrome cannabinoid hypereremesis. Hashem embedded the Hebrew word emes, which means “truth”. When we search for truth, we don’t need toxic substances like marijuana to mask the confusion that is behind the discomfort.

Several years back, a wise chassid told me that his mother ob”m had told him something he never forgot, and that was that if he should ever experience an illness or uncomfortable event of any kind, he should know that Hashem is giving him a message. “Hershel,” she said, “if you ever experience an episode, you must realize that Hashem is telling you epis owed.”

I immediately understood this because I know that epis is Yiddish for the word “something”. In other words, “epis owed” means “something is owed”. So Hershel went on:  “I remember to this day to search deep when things go sour. Since an uncomfortable “episode” means something is owed to Hashem, I’d better pay up, straighten up, do some character evaluation, do some Torah study, and find out what I don’t know, and talk to Hashem rather than let the debits accrue. You betch’a.”

I love the way he explained it. So I now conclude that with all the hoopla over this “popular” substance, there definitely must be a message in the marijuana!!