Beth din in the context of Horayot

The exilarch was the leader of the Jewish community in Mesopotamia (modern-day Iraq) during the eras of the Parthians, Sasanians and Abbasid Caliphate up until the Mongol invasion of Baghdad in 1258, with intermittent gaps due to ongoing political developments. The exilarch was regarded by the Jewish community as the royal heir of the House of David and held a place of prominence as both a rabbinical authority and as a noble within the Persian and Arab court.

Within the Sasanian Empire, the exilarch was the political equivalent of the Catholicos of the Christian Church of the East and was thus responsible for community-specific organizational tasks such as running the rabbinical courts, collecting taxes from Jewish communities, supervising and providing financing for the Talmudic academies in Babylonia, and the charitable re-distribution and financial assistance to needy members of the exile community. The position of exilarch was hereditary, held in continuity by a family that traced its patrilineal descent from antiquity stemming from king David.

Shlomo Yitzchaki (c. 22 February 1040 – 13 July 1105), commonly known by the Rabbinic acronym Rashi, was a French rabbi and commentator who authored comprehensive commentaries on the Talmud and Hebrew Bible.

Born in Troyes, Rashi studied Torah studies in Worms under German rabbi Yaakov ben Yakar and French rabbi Isaac ben Eliezer Halevi, both of whom were pupils of the famed scholar Gershom ben Judah. After returning to Troyes, Rashi joined the beth din, began answering halakhic questions and later served as the beth din's head after the death of Zerach ben Abraham.