what would the rav recommend to someone new in limud hatorah ?
chumash / rashi, mishnayot, gemara (or plainty of mishnayos before) ?
i’d be interested in knowing the rav recommandations on the best way to learn and progress
thanks
That’s a great question and depends on a number of factors. For starters, how much time do you have to dedicate to learning?
Regardless, there should be a focus on practical halacha of some form. Depending on the level of learning, there can be many effective methods to achieve this.
5 hours / day
already in touch with pratical halacha through commons translated sfarim (kitzur, artscroll halacha series, etc.)
hebrew real “novice” and no real aramic knowledges
so the question is really on learning to learn Torah !
many thanks
It would be best to speak to you Rav and get clarity on where to focus first as he would know best the level you are on and what type of person you are. Based on what you have shared, I can tell you that the Rav felt that knowing the basic daily halacha and how to properly live a life based on Torah and mitzvot is of utmost importance. You should spend a nice amount of time accumulating halachos and how to live day to day as well as the halachos of shabbos. Next, devote time to learning chumash by doing Shnayim mikra ve’echad Targum, which is learning the weekly parsha by reading the Hebrew verse twice followed by the Aramaic translation of that verse once. As well as the basic English translation of the verses. This will give you a good understanding of what is occurring as well as begin to accumulate some aramaic knowledge. If you have some more time, you can add in Rashi which is a fundamental commentary on Chumash. Next, learn some mishnayot, but it would probably be a good idea to read the introduction to Mamonidies Mishna Torah (an English translation can be found on chabad.org) first to get an idea of the history of the transmission of our Torah. Finally, take some time to learn Mussar. The Rabbis Favorite mussar book has always been Chovos halevavos (Duties of the heart). Mesilas Yesharim is also an excellent choice.
Hatzlacha
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