The essence of Torah study
I deal a lot with the question of studying Gemara in a study (why study Gemara, why specifically as is done in Hesder yeshivahs, etc.), which led me to wonder about Torah study in general – most explanations regarding Torah study explain that the very study of Torah and the encounter with Torah, which is the wisdom of God and His supreme creation, is the goal. And in this method, this is the meaning of the concept of ‘studying Torah for its own sake’ – to study in order to study and meet with God, and the encounter and knowledge of Torah is what influences the world and concepts such as ‘Knesset of Israel’. I came across a Gemara that speaks of there being a Torah of ‘life’ and a Torah of ‘death’. This means that not every study in which I encounter the word of God influences the world, but rather the opposite. What do you think is the purpose of Torah study and how is this supposed to be expressed in study?
I completely identify with the direction you brought. In my opinion, any other explanation is incorrect. And the NAFAH expanded on this in Section 4, as is known.
The fact that it can sometimes become a death potion does not contradict anything. The encounter gains value if you come with the intention of an encounter and not if you come with ulterior motives. Why do you think there is a problem here?
In my opinion, this should not be reflected in the form of study. You study to the best of your understanding and ability and try to understand. Perhaps this reflects on the goals of study: the goal is not to know the bottom line, but rather the opposite: the bottom lines (the laws) are only a prelude to learning, which is the main goal. To understand the Torah's main idea and not the instructions in the bottom line.
And the Sephardim disagree and believe that the main goal of scholarship is to understand the bottom line.
So how do we study the Ashkenazi-Sefardim controversy – in a scholarly manner or to get to the bottom line?
Depends on whether you are Ashkenazi or Sephardi? 🙂
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