SHOFTIM

Removing Judgment from Our Lives

The portion of Shoftim is always read at the beginning of the new month of Elul (Virgo) and comprises the seed level energy for the month. The word Shoftim means "judges" and the portion begins "You should appoint judges and police officers for yourself in all of your gates which the Lord, your G-d gives you...". The month of Elul provides us with a cosmic window during which time we have the opportunity to correct previous negative actions or traits in our lives in preparation for the new yearly cycle which begins again on Rosh Hashanah. During the next 30-days we can achieve "Teshuvah" - a return to the original state or going back in time to cleanse negative actions to re-frame our future. In order to go back in time through internal reflection however, we need to judge ourselves and be open to the judgement of others to provide us with the proper insight and perspective. By reading Shoftim, we awaken within us the concept of "judgement" and are reminded to work on ourselves during the next 30-days to open the gates of mercy for ourselves and others around us. The Torah specifically says that "you" shall appoint judges - written in the singular, making this a personal directive. By each of us judging and proactively taking stock of our actions during this week and month, we will remove judgement from our lives and return to a clean and unblemished state.

Idol Worshipping

The portion describes the prohibition against idol worshiping. We can apply this to our lives by recognizing there are various types of idolatry that disconnect us from the Light and our higher selves. The Kabbalists share that idolatry does not only pertain to man-made objects, but can be any object that controls our attention and motivations. Specifically, we must beware of idolizing ego, money, fame, drugs, sex or anything else which may be disconnect us from true fulfillment and our ability to share and reveal Light in the world.

Humility of a King

We read about G-d's directive to the Israelites to appoint a King once they become settled in the land. There are several requirements for the King, but the most important is that "he should write two copies of this Torah scroll for himself, one for his treasury and the other to remain with him and to be read from all the days of his life." We learn from this how important it is to recognize that position and respect from the community is not about your personal success, but rather from maintaining a proper connection to Torah and the Light. Kings, like us, are channels that must remain humble and recognize there is a higher force at work and ultimately responsible for our success. Having a Torah, and studying it daily, allows the King to make this connection and to always remain humble. The same lesson can be applied to our lives through studying Torah or making other connections to higher states of consciousness.

Power of Certainty

Shoftim further describes how the Israelites are to prepare for war and who is exempt from fighting. The officers spoke to the Israelites and one of the things they said was "Is there any man who is fearful or fainthearted? Let him go back home, so he will not cause his brothers' hearts to melt, like his heart has melted". We learn from this the importance of certainty. If you are not certain in your ways, whether in preparation for battle, in a relationship, in connection with your health or in business matters, you are not adequately prepared. We are constantly waging war against our personal demons and doubts and in order to succeed we must strive to maintain certainty.

Global Consciousness

The final section of Shoftim discusses how to deal with an unsolved murder, specifically a victim found lying dead in a field. The Torah establishes the process of measuring the distance from the corpse to the nearest city and having the elders of the city break the neck of a calf and atone for the murder - even if they did not commit the crime or see the act. We learn here the concept of global consciousness. We are all responsible for the acts and effects that take place around us, even if we are not directly involved in a physical sense. As part of the global community we must take responsibility to help absolve the world from any type of negativity that happens around us. We are all in it together.