Is there a Mitzvah to take care of your health? You can research it, do a deep dive in Halachic material, contact a rabbinic expert, or you can do what I did! Just Google it. And this is the answer provided: “Yes, taking care of one's health is considered a mitzvah (commandment) in Judaism. This is based on the verse in Deuteronomy 4:9, "And you shall guard yourselves (your souls) very carefully," which Jewish tradition interprets as a directive to protect both body and soul.” (See Tamud Brachot 32b)
It seems pretty straight forward until you look at the context of the verse. The verses are recounting the Divine revelation of G-d to the Jewish People at Sinai. “The day you stood before Hashem, your God, at Choreiv, when Hashem said to me, ‘‘Assemble for Me the people, and I will let them hear My statements, … Hashem addressed you from within the fire; you heard the sound of speech, seeing no image, solely sound. He told you His covenant, which He commanded you to fulfill—the ten statements—and He wrote them on two tablets of stone…And you shall guard yourselves (your souls) very carefully for you did not see any image on the day Adonoy addressed you at Choreiv from within the fire. Lest you destructively make for yourselves a statue in the image of any form. (Deut. 4:12-17)
The phrase is clearly telling us that we must avoid the human tendency to take something abstract (G-d) and turn it into something concrete (an idol). How does this have anything to do with taking care of our health? Could Jewish law be in error? Even worse, is Google wrong?
Let’s take a deep look into the story and uncover something remarkable about yourself. The Torah is telling us that we heard G-d, we did not see Him. Furthermore, something must be “guarded within our soul”. Perhaps what the Torah is emphatically stating here is that the Divine Revelation does become manifest into something physical. G-d becomes expressed within our very soul. Thus, our body becomes the vehicle for the Divine. “Your souls shall be guarded very carefully,” to maintain the Shechinah that resides within. 3,300 years later we have the Holy opportunity to live our life in a way so that Hashem’s presence is revealed within us. Creating an icon or image would diminish our unique distinction and purpose.
And since our body is the container for this sacred reality, we must take care of our health, for our sake, and for G-d's sake.