King vs. Judge In the portion of Shoftim, the Torah addresses the institutions of leadership within the Jewish people: the Judiciary (the courts which we are commanded to establish "in all your gates In addition to the literal meaning, every part of Torah exists on multiple levels, including within the soul of man. Each of us has the "institutions of government" that can lead us toward a healthy, productive, and meaningful life. Exploring the characteristics of two forms of leadership in our Parsha, the judge and the king, will help us understand their equivalent within our personality, which will help us utilize them to their fullest potential. Based on the verse in our Parsha regarding the king "so that his heart will not be haughty over his brothers," Maimonides defines the king as the "heart" of the Jewish people". As Maimonides explains: "Deuteronomy 17: 17 warns: 'lest his heart go astray.' His heart is the heart of the entire congregation of Israel. Therefore, the verse commanded him to have it cleave to the Torah to a greater degree than the rest of the nation, as it is stated: 'all the days of his life.' The king seems to be the most powerful leader, yet, the metaphor of "heart" also points to the weakness of the king (indeed the Zohar explains that the heart is "sensitive and weak). While the king is the most powerful person in the kingdom, in many ways the king is weaker than his subjects. The phrase "there is no king without subjects" highlights that the monarchy is dependent on the subjects for its very existence. In addition, based on the verses in the book of Samuel, Maimonides describes how the king is permitted to tax his subjects and draft them to his armies. While that emphasizes the king's power, paradoxically, it also highlights his weakness; he is dependent on his people for all his needs. The king is therefore likened to the heart, whose relationship with the other limbs of the body also portrays its strength and weakness simultaneously. On one hand, the heart pumps life-giving blood to the rest of the body. On the other hand, the heart can only share the blood it receives from the other limbs. Thus, the heart is in a dance with the limbs, it is their "leader, yet the heart is constantly working on their behalf, pumping life non-stop. The same is true for the king. He is the leader of his subjects, yet his primary role is to serve them. His role is to "go forth before them and come before them, who will lead them out and bring them in." The judge, by contrast, is likened to the "head." The judge is a scholar whose knowledge of the Torah and his expertise in applying its legal wisdom is independent of other people. He is aloof and apart from the rest of the population. In contrast to the heart, which is in the midst of the torso, integrated with the rest of the body, the judge, like the head, is above and distinct from the rest of the body, There are two primary leaders within each of us: the intelligent mind, which is the figurative judge, and the emotions, which are the figurative heart. Emotions seem all-powerful; they have the strength to motivate us with far more force than the mind. However, like the king, the emotions serve the person. Emotions are rooted in the person's subjective experience. By contrast, the intelligence of the mind, our inner "judge", does not seem as strong as our emotions; just because we understand intellectually that something is good for us does not mean that we will be motivated enough to pursue it. Yet, like the judge who is aloof from the people, the mind is objective, able to break free of a person's narrow experience and biases, allowing the person to grow beyond his own ego and perspective. Judaism believes in the separation of powers. We need both the judge and the king; both the cold, aloof, intellectual analysis, which directs us to the correct path, as well as the passionate, subjective emotions, whose force fuels our journey of growth and achievement. Adapted from the teachings of the Rebbe, Lekutei Sichos 19, Shoftim 1