No community start suggestion yet.
Must Birkat HaTorah be said daily or before each learning session? The shiur argues that Rashi (רש"י) viewed this bracha as shevach v'hodaya rather than birkat hamitzvah, allowing repetition when experiencing genuinely new phases of learning. This reframes the entire dispute from technical halacha (הלכה) to the experiential dimensions of gratitude.
This shiur provides an in-depth analysis of the fundamental dispute regarding when one must recite Birkat HaTorah. The central machloket is between those who hold that Birkat HaTorah must be said each day (Rabbeinu Tam's position) versus those who maintain it must be said before each learning session, with interruptions (hefsek) requiring a new bracha. The discussion begins with the practical question of Shavuos morning when one has learned all night - according to the daily requirement view, a new bracha is needed; according to the learning-session view, no new bracha is required since there was no interruption. The shiur examines the Kaf HaChaim's complex solution involving strategic sleeping patterns to satisfy both opinions. A significant portion analyzes a difficult question on the Pri Chadash regarding Birkat HaShachar. The Pri Chadash rules that while most morning blessings can be recited throughout the day if missed, Elokai Neshama cannot be said after Shemoneh Esrei because one already said Mechayeh HaMeisim. The difficulty is why this restriction doesn't apply to other blessings like Matir Asurim that are also mentioned in Shemoneh Esrei. The shiur presents a novel interpretation of Rashi (רש"י)'s custom of reciting Birkat HaTorah twice - once when arising before dawn to learn, and again when arriving at shul. While Tosafot and others find this practice inexplicable, questioning how one can make the same bracha twice without an interruption, this shiur suggests that Rashi viewed Birkat HaTorah as a birkat shevach v'hodaya (blessing of praise and thanksgiving) rather than a birkat hamitzvah. According to this understanding, Rashi held that a birkat shevach v'hodaya can be repeated when there is a genuinely new experience warranting fresh gratitude. Just as one makes a new bracha when receiving an aliyah (a different learning experience), so too when beginning a new phase of learning. This interpretation resolves the Pri Chadash question by distinguishing between different types of experiences. Machzir Neshama reflects the specific experience of awakening from sleep-like death, already covered by Mechayeh HaMeisim in Shemoneh Esrei. However, Matir Asurim represents the ongoing daily experience of physical mobility, which can warrant a new bracha when genuinely re-experienced. The shiur concludes by suggesting that even the opinion requiring a new bracha after sleeping may not be based on birkat hamitzvah principles, but rather on the concept that awakening creates a genuinely new learning experience deserving of renewed shevach v'hodaya. This reframes the entire discussion from technical halachic requirements to the experiential and emotional dimensions of blessing recitation.
Dedicate a Shiur in Gemara
L'ilui nishmas a loved one. In honor of a simcha or yahrzeit. As a zechus for a refuah sheleimah. Your dedication helps carry Rabbi Zweig's Torah to learners around the world.
Up Next in this Series
Why does saying Ashrei three times daily guarantee a share in the World to Come? The verse 'umasbia l'chol chai ratzon' reveals that God provides not just sustenance but pleasure to all creation out of pure love. This recognition teaches us that even basic needs are expressions of divine chesed, creating the foundation for love-motivated service through both major and minor mitzvos.
Why does halacha forbid entering dangerous places if everything happens by Divine decree? The shiur examines the debate between Rashi and Tosfos on traveling at night, developing a fundamental distinction: Rashi holds one must avoid even deserved punishments that Hashem delays through mercy, while Tosfos holds the prohibition addresses self-inflicted harm through free will. This framework reveals how people rationalize self-destructive behavior as "hashgacha."
Why does the Gemara praise hospitality to scholars as a unique mitzvah rather than ordinary hachnasas orchim? The shiur distinguishes two mitzvahs: hachnasas orchim (providing for those in need) and connecting to talmidei chachamim (cleaving to God through scholars). Yisro's meal for the Jewish leaders wasn't charity—it was his way of bonding with those transformed by Torah, teaching that learning must fundamentally change who we are.
Berachos 11b
Looking for the full transcript?
Full access is available to members of the TUF Alumni Association or the Yam Hagadol Foundation.
Already a member? Let the admin know!
Should one learn Torah full-time trusting in Divine providence, or combine learning with work? The shiur distinguishes between Rabbi Shimon ben Yochai's approach of complete separation from worldly concerns versus Rabbi Shmuel's view that proper work itself becomes part of Torah. The key insight: true emunah means learning without demanding sustenance from either Hashem or community, unlike having a 'contract' expecting payment for learning.
