In the previous column, we learned that the mitzvah of Torah study incumbent upon men is to study all the fundamentals of the Torah: Scripture, Mishnah, and Talmud. That is, the Bible, the Mishnah, which is practical halakha, and the Talmud, which is an understanding of the sources of halakha, its parameters, and its reasons. Practical laws must be studied in greater detail and depth, while commandments that are not applicable in practice must be studied in a general manner.
This mitzvah rests upon parents, who must ensure that their sons learn these fundamentals while they are still young, as our Sages said: “At five years of age, Scripture; at ten, Mishnah; at thirteen, commandments; at fifteen, Talmud" (Avot 5:21). Those who did not manage to study these subjects in their youth are obligated to study them themselves in adulthood. I presented evidence from the Talmud, the Rishonim, and the Acharonim that the obligation incumbent upon all Israel is indeed to know all the fundamentals of the Torah. (In another column, we will address the obligation of women.)
The Difficulties in Fulfilling the Mitzvah
Over the generations, the content of study expanded, until it became necessary to permit the writing down of the Oral Torah: the Mishnah, and afterward the Talmud and Midrashim, as well as the writings of the Geonim and Rishonim. In this way, the content of study expanded greatly, creating an enormous difficulty in covering all the fundamentals of the Torah. Some of the Rishonim proposed ways to study the entire Torah comprehensively, such as the Rif, who wrote the Talmudic discussions in a form that establishes the halakha; Maimonides in his work Mishneh Torah; the Semag in his work Sefer Mitzvot Gadol; and Rabbi Yaakov ben Asher in his halakhic work Arba’ah Turim. On the other hand, however, many rabbis guided their students to cover the Torah through the study of the Talmud, which is the key to understanding the Torah in depth and the foundation for deciding halakha.
In the period of the Acharonim, the content of study continued to expand without limit, and once again some of the great authorities instructed people to study books that summarize the fundamentals of the Torah, some at length, such as Beit Yosef, and others concisely, such as the Shulchan Arukh together with one of its commentaries, or Shulchan Arukh HaRav, Chayei Adam, Chokhmat Adam, and Arukh HaShulchan.
The Virtue of Studying the Talmud
To understand the tension between studying the Talmud and studying books that cover halakha and the fundamentals of the Torah, we need to elaborate somewhat on the virtue of the Babylonian Talmud, which is called Gemara in Aramaic. In practice, for many generations, most Torah study has taken place within it and around it.
The Babylonian Talmud gathered the finest discussions of the Amoraim from the Land of Israel and Babylonia concerning the halakha in the Mishnah. Sometimes the discussion concerns the search for the verse from which our Sages derived the halakha, and sometimes it concerns the precise definition of the halakha. At times, when the Mishnah contains a dispute, the discussion concerns defining the boundaries of the dispute and clarifying the reasoning underlying it. Sometimes the discussion takes place between a rabbi and a student, and sometimes between two rabbis. At times, the discussion proceeds calmly, and at times it takes the form of an argument. Sometimes the discussion continues over several generations, until the halakha is ultimately decided in accordance with one of the opinions, and in the process, we learn the considerations that led to the ruling.
Through the study of the halakha in the Mishnah, the discussion often branches out into related and more distant halakhic subjects. Sometimes the discussion begins with the presentation of a ruling by one of the Amoraim, and sometimes a case is described that prompted a halakhic discussion in the study hall.
The Talmud also includes words of Aggadah and ethics, based on expositions of verses or traditions received from rabbis. Sometimes these teachings are presented through stories about the Tannaim (the Sages of the Mishnah) and Amoraim (the Sages of the Talmud), and sometimes through an examination of the deeds and character of the great figures of Israel in the Bible, as well as of the sinners mentioned in the Bible.
Nevertheless, ultimately, the Talmud is principally concerned with clarifying the halakha from its source and precisely examining its reasoning, and this is the focus of most of the Talmud’s commentators, the Rishonim and Acharonim. Continuing this tradition, the Rishonim wrote halakhic responsa to questions that arose in their time. The responsa of the Rishonim rely on the clarification of Talmudic discussions, while the responsa of the Acharonim rely on the clarification of Talmudic discussions together with the opinions of the Rishonim. All these responsa are written in the style of the Talmud.
What Is Unique About the Talmud
What is unique about the Talmud is that one who succeeds in acquiring the complex skill required to study it is, as it were, enters the world of our Sages and participates with them in a discussion formulated in concise, precise, and rich language. The discussion is lively, fascinating, and full of surprises. Sometimes a passage deals with reasoning, and sometimes with a meticulous examination of verses, words, and grammatical forms. Since this is a discussion, students who study deeply are invited to ask why a particular argument was made and not another, and in the process, they discover additional meanings. Thus, Talmud study captures the heart, and challenges gifted students.
The Words of the Great Authorities on the Virtue of Studying for Practical Halakha, and Their Criticism of Pilpul
Nevertheless, as a result of studying the Talmud and its commentators, many are drawn to intricate, dialectical analysis, and many of the great authorities of Israel criticized this tendency. The Maharal (Derekh Chaim on Avot 6:5) expressed regret over the years he had spent studying through pilpul, and over the fact that he had not been privileged to become acquainted with the criticism of this approach. In Netivot Olam (Netiv HaTorah, chapter 5), he also protested that instead of studying the Talmud with the commentary of Rashi and the Rosh, which explains the halakha, people study Tosafot, which adds further analysis but is not the main objective.
The Shlah likewise wrote (Masekhet Shavuot, Ner Mitzvah, sections 25 and 29) that one must distance oneself from futile forms of pilpul prevalent among students, which mix in things that are not true. He regretted the years he had spent studying through pilpul and confessed to this in his book, so that others would not stumble in the same way.
In other words, proper in-depth study must be undertaken for the purpose of understanding the Talmudic passage in accordance with practical halakha. This is also what was written by the Maharsha (Bava Metzia 85a); Chavot Yair 124; Lechem Shamayim 6:5; the Vilna Gaon (the introduction written by his sons to his commentary on the Shulchan Arukh); Rabbi Chaim of Volozhin (his introduction to the Vilna Gaon’s commentary); Chayei Adam in its introduction; Divrei Chaim, Yoreh De’ah 2:47; Maran Rabbi Kook (Adar HaYakar, chapter 4; Pinkasei HaRe’iyah 4, p. 501; “Seder HaLimud HaMeyushar," published by Halakha Berurah); the Chazon Ish (Emunah U’Vittachon 3:18); the introduction to Yabia Omer, volume 1; and many, many others.
The Practical Tendency Toward Pilpul and In-Depth Analysis
Despite the statements of the great authorities of Israel throughout the generations praising straightforward study in accordance with practical halakha, and their sharp criticism of rabbis who taught pilpul, in practice many rabbis and heads of yeshivot primarily taught lessons in in-depth analysis and pilpul. Many students flocked to study with them because this form of study is more appealing to those with sharp minds.
Nevertheless, when deep analysis is conducted in a straightforward manner, in the style of the Tosafists, even though its aim is not to cover the Torah comprehensively and acquire knowledge of halakha, as is the principal purpose of study, everyone agrees that it prepares students to study thoroughly and precisely in accordance with practical halakha. (See Sefer Seder HaYom, “Seder HaLimud"; Tiferet Yisrael on Avot 1:17, note 66.)
In-Depth Analysis in Lithuanian Yeshivot
Some maintain that the abstract, dialectical investigations developed in recent generations in Lithuanian yeshivot are of great importance. Through them, one reaches the root of the Talmudic discussion, they stimulate creative faculties, and they give the student intellectual breadth and spiritual elevation. Through this study, the student senses the infinite truth contained in the Torah, and it also increases the desire to engage in Torah study. (See the introduction to She’elot U’Teshuvot Beit HaLevi; HaMidot LeCheker HaHalakha, vol. 1, p. 31; Chiddushei Seridei Esh, vol. 2, p. 402.)
Others placed less importance on the form of analysis practiced in Lithuanian yeshivot, but nevertheless defended it, considering it a kind of appetizer before the principal course of study, as stated by Maran Rabbi Kook in Eder HaYakar, chapter 4, and by Rabbi Unterman in Shevet MiYehuda, p. 392.
In practice, however, it is difficult to maintain the proper balance, since analysis that is not directed toward arriving at a straightforward halakhic conclusion is appealing, and the teacher who teaches it generally attracts more students. Consequently, in many yeshivot, numerous forms of analysis that are not directed toward practical halakha were and continue to be taught. (See She’agat Aryeh, who wrote in his introduction that he included in his book only innovations directed toward practical halakha.) The great authorities of Israel mentioned above spoke out against this tendency, and the later authorities among them explicitly intended their criticism to address the analytical approach taught in Lithuanian yeshivot.
A Practical Curriculum for Halakha
Ultimately, although the content of study has expanded and become much richer over the generations, the obligation of the mitzvah to study all the fundamentals of the Torah remains in force. To this end, a curriculum must be planned in which, by around the age of twenty, students will have covered all the fundamentals of the commandments and halakha, together with the principal explanations elucidated in the Talmud and its commentators.
The commandments and laws relevant to practical life should be studied more extensively and in greater detail, with deeper examination of their reasons, since study relevant to practical life takes precedence over study that is not relevant to practical life, as it is said: “And you shall learn them and observe them to perform them" (Deuteronomy 5:1).
This includes the laws of prayer, meals and blessings, Shabbat and festivals; interpersonal laws, such as “You shall love your fellow as yourself," the prohibition against causing damage, theft, falsehood, lashon hara (harmful speech), lending, charity, and returning lost property; the laws of kashrut in all their branches; the synagogue, mezuzah, tzitzit, and tefillin; the prohibition against idolatry and the commandments of faith.
It also includes family laws, such as honoring parents, marriage, the wedding ceremony, family purity, the mutual obligations of spouses, and the education of children; and communal commandments, such as settling the Land of Israel, the commandments relating to military service, the legal status of the laws of the state, and communal regulations.
Likewise, the laws that do not concern every person’s life must be studied briefly, such as monetary laws and disputes between one person and another and between a husband and wife, as well as laws that do not apply in the present era, such as the laws of the Sanhedrin, the Temple and sacrifices, and ritual impurity and purity.
The Vision and Its Realization in the Study of Halakha
Although the vision is clear, unfortunately, books are lacking that concisely summarize the fundamentals of the commandments and halakha from the Bible and the Talmud, together with the principal arguments of the Rishonim and Acharonim, all the way to practical halakha. (This is the main reason for writing the “Peninei Halakha" series, and I hope, with God’s help, to complete in the series the list of subjects mentioned in the previous paragraph.)
In addition to the obligation to study the fundamentals of the commandments and halakha, there is an obligation to study the Bible and the fundamentals of faith and ethics. It is worth noting that women, like men, are obligated to study the fundamentals of halakha and faith. Likewise, there is an obligation to teach sons Talmud so that they acquire the methods of study, and can continue to grow in Torah study and understanding throughout their lives.
Summary
In summary, the obligation incumbent upon parents is to ensure that their children study all the fundamentals of the commandments and halakhot by around the age of twenty, and reach a level at which they can continue studying independently, as it is said: “And you shall teach them to your children, speaking of them" (Deuteronomy 11:19).
“And you shall teach them" means that they should know the fundamentals of the Torah; “speaking of them" means that they should know how to study the Talmud independently.
Anyone whose parents did not ensure this, is obligated to make up for it independently (Shulchan Arukh HaRav, Talmud Torah 1:5-7).
In this way, young people will be able to enter adult life equipped with knowledge of halakha and a general understanding of the Torah’s perspective on life. They will be able to participate in sustaining the world, defend the people and the Land, and establish a family.