By Rabbi Yair Hoffman for the Five Towns Jewish Times
For the Refuah Shleima of Boruch Zev Ben Bracha
THE LOTTERY
There was once a lottery where the organizers of the lottery had raffled off a Shas. The Chazon Ish was present when the results of the lottery were said over. He told the winner the following:
“Every Jew is obligated to know all of Shas. He that does not do so will be punished. The only thing is that people have an excuse. They can say that they did not have the requisite seforim. But he that has a Shas and does not know it will be punished two-fold.” The story is cited in the second volume of Maaseh haIsh (page 63.)
The Rambam (Chapter one of Hilchos Talmud Torah) writes that it is an obligation for everone to learn all of Torah sh’b’ksav as well as Torah sh’b’al peh. Rav Meir Chodosh zt”l used to exhort his students about their halachic obligation to come up with a plan to finish Shas. Indeed, while he and Rav Michel Yehudah Lefkowitz zt”l were bochurim learning in yeshiva they devised just such a plan (See Darchei HaChaim page 272).
The Maaseh Rav (letter 6) cites the view of the Vilna Gaon that everyone should learn at least 2 blatt a day. The Hanhagos of Rav Moshe Cordevero (#34) states that a person must complete Shas three times in his lifetime. It is said that the Noam Elimelech would not allow anyone to join his Chevra Kadisha unless he had previously completed all of Shas.
In the Sefer Chofetz Chaim al HaTorah, it is related that the Chofetz Chaim once asked Rav Yisroel Salanter if it is preferable to learn one topic in great depth or two learn several topics but not to the full depth of one’s understanding. Rav Yisroel responded that learning only one topic in great depth is tantamount to someone in need of an entire set of clothing only purchasing a hat.
Rav Nosson Tzvi Finkel zt”l taught his students to become “Shas Yidden” and to strive to complete it. Rav Chaim Katzenellenbogen Shlita of Meah Shearim attests that Rav Zelig Reuvain Bengis zt”l completed Shas at least 101 times.
With all this in mind, the reader might find what is about to be written as a shocking revelation:
It is a relatively simple procedure to finish half of Shas in less than one year.
The assertion made above is not an exaggeration. It is eminently doable, and in relatively little time. Once a person has” half of Shas” under his belt, the determination to finish the rest will come easily. The second half can be finished in less than three years.
The idea is also not to do it superficially. The greatest of Gedolim have said that learning should be in depth and not a mere davening of the Gemorah. This is the view of Rav Ovadiah Yoseph zt”l and countless other litvish Gedolim.
The Daf HaYomi cycle encompasses 2711 pages of the Talmud. Many people who begin a daf yomi cycle with a new mesechta will invariably drop out. They are initially enthused about it, but the day to day attendance is something that not everyone can handle or keep up with. Magiddei shiur have observed that once a person gets through the hurdle of two mesechtos, it is relatively smooth sailing – in other words, there is a good chance that he will continue studying regularly.
So how does one finish half of Shas in less than one year?
To do this, three concepts or components are necessary.
THREE COMPONENTS
The first is that one should give oneself a sense of accomplishment quickly, by starting from the shortest mesechta. Horios, for example, is a mere 13 blatt and Makkos is only 23. Doing this would give oneself a sense of accomplishment quickly. There is nothing like a success to breed success.
With this in mind, the new order of learning would look like this:
1. Horayos 14
2. Makkos 24
3. Chagigah 27
4. Kerisus 28
5. Moed Katan 29
6. Taanis 31
7. Megilah 32
8. Erchin 34
9. Temurah 34
10. Rosh Hashanah 35
11. Meilah 37
12. Beitzah 40
13. Sotah 49
14. Shevuos 49
15. Succah 56
16. Bechoros 61
17. Brachos 64
18. Nazir 66
19. Nidah 73
20. Avoda Zarah 76
21. Kiddushin 82
22. Yoma 88
23. Gitin 90
24. Nedarim 91
25. Eruvin 105
26. Menachos 110
27. Kesuvos 112
28. Sanhedrin 113
29. Bava Kama 119
30. Bava Metzia 119
31. Zevachim 120
32. Pesachim 121
33. Yevamos 122
34. Chulin 142
35. Shabbos 157
36. Bava Basra 176
The second idea is that with the advent of the Artscroll Schottenstein Gemorah and the Mesivta Gemorahs in Hebrew, and all of these new internet sites with questions, answers, review guides, etc. – learning Gemorah is a whole lot easier than it ever was before. And now, it can be done with a greater depth and with more understanding.
A reasonably intelligent Yeshiva graduate can even double his learning output. If he were to do 2 blatt a day the 2711 pages would take three years and eight and a half months. But best of all, if a person adopted these two tweaks, after less than one year (356 days to be exact) he could honestly say that he has finished half of Shas – in terms of mesechtos.
The third concept is to no longer include Meseches Shekalim. It is a Yerushalmi, and it is not quite clear why it was included in the Daf HaYomi cycle anyway. Also, with the coming completion of the Artscroll Yerushalmi, this tractate should be included in whatever Yerushalmi cycle we will soon adopt. It no longer makes sense to include it in a Bavli study cycle. Furthermore, the 21 blatt there would help us reduce the cycle by ten days. Thus, a person could say just after four months of study that he already went through 25 percent of the Talmud, in terms of tractates.
The idea can be called “Double Daf” or something similar, and a website can be opened to explain and promote what is involved.
There is no question that if these ideas are adopted, more people who wish to adopt a faster program would end up finishing – because they experience a mini-success after mini-success. The ideas presented here are not for everyone, of course, – but for a number of people they do and can make a lot of sense. As mentioned earlier, the Vilna Gaon, and the Chazon Ish mention it as an obligation.
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7 Responses
With all due respect to the author – why does he think his idea is better than the one Rav Meir Shapiro ZT”L came up with, and the Chafetz Chaim endorsed, 90+ years ago?
an Israeli Yid
Israeli Yid:
It seems to me that Rabbi Hoffman is speaking to people who have completed the cycle and are well entrenched in the habit of learning a blatt a day. It’s an incredible achievement to finish shas in 7 years, After that stage, why not push yourself further and try doing it in one year?
This doesn’t replace Rav Meir’s idea. On the contrary, it builds on the overwhelming success of daf yomi.
Of course, many of us (myself included) struggle to do their daf every day. People like me don’t even learn half a blatt per day (I haven’t got to the stage of committing to daf yomi yet) But for long time daf yomi lomdim who may want to shteig vaiter, There’s no issur to Learn 2 blatt instead of one!!!
With all due respect to an Israeli Yid, chill out!
There’s a reason that Shekalim was included in the cycle it wasn’t a mistake.
Just because you don’t know the reason for it is not a reason to take it out! Maybe take out Sunday from the cycle and make it a day for Chazara?
Rav Meir Shapiro knew what he was doing. If your trying to create your own cycle without Shekalim included that’s fine, but don’t compare it to the Daf Yomi cycle.
One of the main things that was instituted by the Daf Yomi cycle is that if you miss a day your are behind. It gives a tremendous Hischayvus and is also Mechayev people to learn on days when they otherwise wouldn’t. Days like Yom Kippur, Tisha B’av or a day a person makes a Chasuna or the like.
Your program doesn’t create that Hischayvus at all and needs tremendous self motivation which few are blessed with.
There is also a reason that Shas was set up in the order that it is. A few mesechtos in Shas even start off clearly with what the other one left off with and Tosfos explains some of the others. Having people learn Shas in an out of order Seder is not something you should be promoting.
The cycle they have in Yeshivos doesn’t go according to any Seder as it is a few select mesechtos that Gedolim of yesteryear picked out to teach to Bochurim as they have all the concepts which are needed to mold a Ben Torah into a true Lomeid Torah.
Often for a person to be able to say that he finished the shas, he would not learn or not to learn enough shulchan oruch.
It is imperative that people should concentrate on knowing well needed halochos,(הלכות הצריכות) and then device any way how to learn legirsa (fast learning) and le’yioonah (in depth learning)
Please look into hilchot talmud Torah for how things should be done and what are the priorities according to ones situation.
There is no obligation to finish Shas! It is not mentioned in the Rambam nor in Shulchan Aruch!
I think Rabbi Hoffman has excellent points. I myself have completed all the smaller mesechtas already. Indeed with all the English gemarras and daf yomi groups it is much easier to learn and fewer excuses. I myself do not do regular daf yomi because I am a bal bas and in the limited time I have can not commit to complete a Blatt of gemarah every day every week every month for 7 years (if you miss one day do 2 blatt the next) I wonder how many people can do one blatt of Eruvin every day. I have joined for a small number of daf yomi mesechtas to speed up my completions though.