Question:
Am i obligated to learn Torah every day? If so, is there a set amount or set text one is required to study?
Answer:
Chazal tell us that “regardless, if one brings a large Korban or a small one as long as one’s intentions are for heaven one’s korban is accepted.” The same idea applies to Torah study. One should learn as much as one can and that is precious in God’s eyes as long as one’s intentions are pure.If one likes to learn and really understands his learning, one can refrain from extending Tefillah and only say the portions that are obligatory.
Someone who learns Torah purely for the sake of heaven is deserving of great rewards.Even if a person finds himself encouraged to learn for ulterior reasons he should continue to learn and eventually reach the level of learning purely. Many emphasize that nowadays it is critical to start learning with an external motivation in order to overcome the Yetzer Hara and become involved in learning Torah and once one is involved it’ll help purify oneself.
If one learns and doesn’t understand what is learning it isn’t considered Talmud Torah.Magen Avraham 50:2, Mishna Brurah 50:2. explains that the Gemara which encourages learning without understanding to mean that if one can’t understand it one should still learn without understanding. Or that one should learn even if one only understands the words without understanding the greater context.However The Ayin Yakov explains that it is referring to someone understanding but has questions on it.
Many poskim say that it is considered Talmud Torah when reading Tanach even if one doesn’t understand it,See Shulchan Aruch Harav 2:12:13.
One should apportion one’s time to study torah everyday into three portions (as brought by tosfos in kiddushin), one portion for Tanach and some say it’s commentaries, one portion for Mishna and Gemara, and one portion to analyze the primary ways the Torah is learnt so that one will know that which is forbidden and that which is permitted i.e halacha. After one grows in Torah one should review Tanach, Mishna, and Gemara, but focus on analyzing Torah. Some say that by learning Talmud Bavli one fulfills learning each area of Torah because the Bavli includes everything, nonetheless, certainly one must still know Tanach and Mishna. Some say that one should devote more time to Mishna than to Tanach and more time to Gemara than to Mishna each one according to its difficulty. Rav Yisrael Salanter holds that nowadays, after the sealing of the Talmud, being that we can not learn Tanach the way Chazal did, we must define the terms “Mikra”, “Mishna” and “Gemara” differently. “Mikra” today means to learn Talmud Bavli and Yerushalmi. “Mishna” today means to learn Tosfos and the Seforim of the Great Poskim- Rishonim and Achronim. “Gemara” today means proper Iyun in all that you learn and to be able to pasken Halachah from your learning.
Many authorities emphasize that it’s absolutely crucial to learn Halacha so that one knows what one must do as well as mussar which subjugates the Yetzer Hara. Some say that these are included in the above three categories.
Based on this concept, there is a practice to recite a portion from Torah, Mishna, and Gemara after Birchaas HaTorah before Pesukei DeZimrah. It was instituted to be said then in the morning as a person doesn’t not know when he will die and if he will make it through the full day , therefore iorder to make sure one fulfills this requirement to learn all three every day , we say it first thing in the morning.
Rav Shlomo Wolbe zt”l felt that there are four basic areas aside from the regular Gemara curriculum of the yeshiva that the yeshiva student should master. a. Shulchan Aruch Orach Chaim with the Mishnah Berurah b. Chumash with the commentaries of Rashi and Ramban c. Pirkei Avos with the commentary of Rabbenu Yonah d. Mesillat Yesharim. |