Q&A: Poetry or Prose
Poetry or Prose
Question
Hello Rabbi,
I heard your lecture on Torah study, number 3, and I wanted to ask: if it is commonly accepted to say that the Torah is called poetry, then perhaps there is also value in searching for hinted-at layers, such as little homiletic insights and additional depths, the way people do with poetry, and not looking at it only as prose. What do you think?
Answer
I don’t see value in that, just as there is no value in little homiletic quips about a poem; but there is certainly no study here.
Discussion on Answer
That’s why I added it only as a side point, since the concept of value is a bit vague, and one can also argue about whether something has value or not. First of all, this is not study, and certainly not Torah study.
When I say it has no value, I mean that this kind of engagement has no importance, and even if it does, it is at most instrumental. It can help increase fear of Heaven or connection to the Torah (for someone to whom that speaks—not like me, for whom all this is just embarrassing in its childishness), etc. Value is something that is not a means but an end.
I’ve already tried several times to understand what you mean when you say something has no value.
For example, I do see value in listening to music, watching films and plays, and likewise in analyzing poems. What do you mean when you say there is no value in it? What do you define as value? Enjoyment? A deepening of one’s outlook on life? Educational value? Cultural value? I’d be glad for some clarification.