Don’t Forget Daf Alef!
A thought that I had amidst all the talk about the start of Daf Yomi Cycle #13…
But first: Mazal Tov to all the mesaymim!
There has been much talk lately about one of AishDas’s central themes: seeing the forest for the trees. Eg the Spring 2012 issue of Klal Perspectives, and R’ Dr Gidon Rothstein’s recently published seifer, “We’re Missing the Point.” We have universal education at a level that is rare in Jewish history, enabling new levels of halachic observance as well. But to quote [R Peli’s notes of a shiur by] R’ JB Soloveitchik (On Repentance pp 97-98):
Even in those neighborhoods made up predominantly of religious Jews, one can no longer talk of the “sanctity of Shabbat.” True, there are Jews in America who observe Shabbat… But it is not for Shabbat that my heart aches; it is for the forgotten “erev Shabbat” (eve of the Sabbath). There are Shabbat-observing Jews in America, but there are no ‘erev Shabbat‘ Jews who go out to greet Shabbat with beating hearts and pulsating souls. There are many who observe the precepts with their hands, with their feet, and/or with their mouths – but there are few indeed who truly know the meaning of the service of the heart!
The Vilna Shas famously starts each mesekhta on daf beis amud alef — page 2a. And there are many cute thoughts about it, such as learning modesty from the fact that even when you’re finished, you still haven’t even learned page 1. (However, the Vilna Yerushalmi does start on 1a.)
What is happening in the edition of the Bavli is what we find in many books — page numbering includes the front matter. So the Bavli does have a daf alef, it typically looks something like the picture to the right. And so, nearly every copy of the Vilna Shas begins with the picture of an ornate gate.
פִּתְחוּ לִי שַׁעֲרֵי צֶדֶק; אָבֹא בָם, אוֹדֶה קָהּ.
זֶה הַשַּׁעַר לַה’, צַדִּיקִים יָבֹאוּ בוֹ!
Open for me the gates of righteousness; I will go through them, I shall praise G-d!
This is the the gate to G-d — righteous ones go through them!
– Tehillim 118:19-20 (and Hallel)
Yes, we must learn gemara and understand it well, but it is possible to learn gemara and not once mention Hashem’s name. I would suggest that we need to remember daf alef, perhaps pause at it before and after learning. If our learning the trees is not not tied to developing our appreciation of the forest, if we learn without taking personal lessons about righteousness and approaching the Creator, what is its value?
PS: My proposal for the venue for next cycle’s siyum:
Great. I actually emailed two people today about the “gate”/aron. This post is really hashgacha pratis. Any idea about the origin on WHY this image? Aside from the pasuk quoted above?
Formal gate or Royal Arch. An aron wouldn’t have the fence across the bottom. I think you’re over-analyzing a printer’s decision. Maybe just because it’s pretty and frames the text well — it’s rectangular and leaves the middle empty. I was just suggesting a meditation, not a cause.
Both the Tanya and Nefesh HaCHaim (among others I’m sure) make a prerequisite to learning every day the acceptance of Ohl Malchut Shamayim and teshuva…
The Tanya makes it a precondition.
The Nefesh haChaim (4:7) has a different mashal, and I think the difference between them is all the difference between Chassidus and Yeshivish:
כשרז”ל עוד (שבת ל”×) משל ל××“× ×©×מר לשלוחו העלה לי כור של ×—×˜×™× ×œ×¢×œ×™×” כו’ הל עירבת לי בהן קב חומטין הל ל×. הל מוטב ×©×œ× ×”×¢×œ×™×ª. וק××™ על ×מצע העסק בתבו×ות חכמת התורה שר×וי ×’”×› לערב בתוכו יר×תו ית’. כדי ×©×ª×ª×§×™×™× ×ª×œ×ž×•×“×• בידו. ולכן סמך ×צלו ×”×‘×¨×™×™×ª× ×ª× ×™ דבי ר”×™ מערב ××“× ×§×‘ חומטין בכור של תבו××” ו××™× ×• חושש.
This is line with his earlier mashal of yir’as Shamayim as the storehouse / silo, and Torah as the grain stored (4:5):
ולפי ערך גודל ×וצר היר××” ×שר הכין לו ×”×ד×. כן ×¢”×– הערך יוכל ×œ×™×›× ×¡ ולהשתמר ×•×œ×”×ª×§×™×™× ×‘×ª×•×›×• תבו×ות התורה כפי ×שר יחזיק ×וצרו. ×›×™ ×”×ב המחלק תבו××” ×œ×‘× ×™×•. ×”×•× ×ž×—×œ×§ ×•× ×•×ª×Ÿ לכל ×’ מדת התבוג כפי ×שר יחזיק ×וצרו של הבן ×שר הכין ×¢”×– מקוד×. ש××£ ×× ×™×¨×¦×” ×”×ב וידו פתוחה ליתן לו הרבה. ××ž× × ×›×™×•×Ÿ שהבן ××™× ×• יכול לקבל יותר מחמת ש×ין ×וצרו גדול ×›”×› שיוכל להחזיק יותר. ×’× ×”×ב ×”× ×œ×• ליתן לו עתה יותר. ו×× ×œ× ×”×›×™×Ÿ לו הבן ××£ ×וצר קטן. ×’× ×”×ב ×œ× ×™×ª×Ÿ לו כלל. כיון ש×ין לו ×ž×§×•× ×ž×©×•×ž×¨ ×©×ª×ª×§×™×™× ×צלו. כן ×”×•× ×™×ª”ש ידו פתוחה כביכול להשפיע תמיד לכל ×יש ×ž×¢× ×¡×’×•×œ×ª×• רב חכמה ×•×‘×™× ×” יתירה. ×•×©×ª×ª×§×™×™× ××¦×œ× ×•×™×§×©×¨× ×¢×œ לוח לב×.
So, to R’ Chaim Volozhiner, yir’as Shamayim is described for its utility in internalizing Torah. The Tanya makes learning a means to gain yir’as Shamayim. (I have a theory, though, that Nefesh haChaim vol 4 is not comprehensible without the prior three chalaqim, which have an emphasis on tiqun ha’olam in the Ari’s sense through tiqun of the self. In which case, we have to explain why the shiurim that R’ Yitzchaq put in shaar 4 has such a limud-centric orientation. I don’t have an answer I am entirely happy with, and in any case, this comment is long enough.)
R; Chaim stands in contrast to the Gra, at least in Even Sheleimah 1:11, who says that middos are the garden and Torah is the water that nourishes them — and especially yir’ah:
×¢× ×™×• התורה ×œ× ×¤×© דוגמת המטר ל×רץ שמצמיח מה ×©× ×–×¨×¢ בה ×¡× ×—×™×™× ×ו ×¡× ×ž×•×ª. כן בתורה מצמיח מה שבלבו ×× ×œ×‘×• טוב תגדיל יר×תו. ו×× ×‘×œ×‘×• שורש פורה ר×ש ×•×œ×¢× ×” יגדיל ×”×©× ××” בלבו. כמ״ש “×¦×“×™×§×™× ×™×œ×›×• ×‘× ×•×¤×•×©×¢×™× ×™×‘×©×œ×• בה וכמ״ש “×œ×ž×™×™×ž×™× ×™× ×‘×” ×¡×ž× ×“×—×™×™ . ולמשמ××™×œ×™× ×‘×” ×¡×ž× ×“×ž×•×ª×” . ×¢×´×› צריך ×œ×¤× ×•×ª לבו בכל ×™×•× ×§×•×“× ×”×œ×™×ž×•×“ ו×חריו מעיפוש הדיעות והמדות ביר×ת ×—×˜× ×•×ž×¢×´×˜