Q&A: On Studying Torah for Its Own Sake
On Studying Torah for Its Own Sake
Question
Hello Rabbi,
In one of your recent lectures on Torah study in Ra'anana, you mentioned that one must study Torah for its own sake, and not for the sake of the Holy One, blessed be He (as opposed to commandments, which are done for the sake of the One who commanded them). I wanted to ask about that: why does one need to study Torah for its own sake, meaning for the sake of Torah? The way I understood it until now was that we study Torah because that is God's will, just as we fulfill commandments because that is God's will.
Answer
Oren, hello.
"For the sake of the Holy One, blessed be He" is an expression that hides behind it at least two different meanings: for His sake, and for the sake of a commandment that He commanded. Rabbi Chaim of Volozhin's intention is to reject the second meaning, not the first. The meaning of the study is that the Torah is God's will, and therefore the study is meant to connect to His will. But one does not need intention for the sake of the commandment of Torah study, as with all the other commandments.