Heads or Tails (Ki Tavo 5775)

Have you every flipped a coin to help make a decision? For some it is way of handing decision authority over to 'fate' or letting a coin toss seem like an expression of divine will. "Heads or tails" also are invoked at some Rosh Hashanah (Jewish new year) tables. Around some Rosh Hashanah (lit. 'head of the year') tables one might hear a wish for the new year to be made "a head and not a tail." 

That odd formulation has ancient roots in in this week’s Torah portion. When Moses is describing the benefits of positive engagement with the ways of the Jewish people, those benefits include becoming "a head and not a tail . . . and never the bottom."  (Deut. 28:13) Although this is voiced in the singular, some commentators hear it as a group aspiration: the Jewish people wish to be autonomous and set their own destiny. Or wish to inspire or lead other communities toward acts of justice and mercy.

One commentator, Rabbi Levi Yitzhak of Berditchev (18th century Russia/Ukraine) reads it differently. He questioned why "tail" and "bottom" was included at all - if coming out a head was all that mattered, why did the text even need to say "not tail, not bottom."


Instead, he understood "head, not tail, not bottom" as a triplet. Levi Yitzhak got to thinking about his experience of the universe in which he saw people operating in three domains. First, the domain of abstract thought -- the head. Second, the domain of speech about intended actions -- the tail. And third, the domain of action -- the bottom.

For Levi Yitzhak Torah is idealizing thought above speech above action. In other words, before acting, even before talking about our planned actions, we need to think through our intentions.  Before acting we need to consider the impact of our deeds.  

A favorite story about Levi Yitzhak illustrates this. He used to walk slowly through the main street of Berditchev greeting everyone he passed. To some he gave compliments, to others he asked a question. He made strong eye contact. He listened intently to answers.

One afternoon as Levi Yitzhak made his way through the crowd of people he saw one of his congregants racing through the crowd. The man's elbows were pumping, he was moving fast with purpose. The man nearly knocked over Levi Yitzhak without saying a word. Levi Yitzhak looked intently at the man greeting him. The man blurted out a reply.

As the man hustled past him, Levi Yitzhak shouted at the man, “Stop!" He asked, "Where are you racing to so quickly?”

The man half-turned back to Levi Yitzhak and answered, “I am chasing after my living! Rabbi, please let me get back to work.”

Levi Yitzhak looked intently at the man. Then Levi Yitzhak gently asked him, "Chasing after your living? How do you know that your living is not behind you trying to catch up?” (Adapted from Kedushat Levi: Torah Commentary of Rabbi Levi Yitzchak of Berditchev, p.824)

It was Levi Yitzhak's way of encouraging the man to pause to consider his destination before racing out after it, to set his intentions before acting, even before talking about it.

It is a powerful reminder as we are about to start a new year, that we sometimes let our actions get ahead of our thoughts. We sometimes get so caught up on the doing of things -- racing after our lives -- that we forget to which is the head and which is the tail. Our actions get so far ahead of our goals that they seem to replace the goals.

At the start of the new year we can decide if we are heads or tails.   We can use this moment to pause. Let our lives catch up with us. Then carefully consider our path for the year ahead.