Q&A: Studying Talmud with the Schottenstein Commentary
Originally published:
This is an English translation (via GPT-5.4). Read the original Hebrew version.
Studying Talmud with the Schottenstein Commentary
Question
Hello Rabbi Michael,
I wanted to ask you about studying Talmud with the Schottenstein commentary. Some people claim that it’s preferable to learn without it, but with its help I can learn more quickly and understand better. I’d be happy to hear your opinion on the matter.
Best regards,
Answer
It is indeed preferable to learn without it, but it seems to me that this isn’t worthwhile if it requires a tremendous amount of effort from you. Maybe you can learn from the Schottenstein Talmud, but first try with the Talmud text itself and check the commentary only when necessary. The goal, in the end, is also to develop the ability to learn independently.