If you were told about someone who learned the entire Torah, what image would come to mind? You would probably think of a genius with a tremendous mind, who spent decades poring over hundreds and thousands of books. Indeed, the Torah is so vast and comprehensive, that only exceptional individuals are able to learn it all.
And if it turns out that the person who learned the entire Torah is your neighbor, your coworker, your pewmate at the synagogue, the guy from the grocery store – that would sound surprising, wouldn't it? But it is true, there is a formula that allows an ordinary person, you and me, to learn the entire Torah, in a relatively short time and during the course of everyday life.
A unique creation of Maimonides
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This week, tens of thousands of Jews will celebrate the end of another cycle of studying the entire Torah, as part of the 'Daily Maimonides'. Maimonides' wonderful book summarizes all the laws of the Torah, and whoever studies it practically acquires the entire Torah for himself. This is a unique virtue of this book, which has no equal in any other Torah work.
In his fourteen-part book (for which it is called 'Yad HaKezga'), Maimonides summarized all the laws of the Torah, including those that are not practiced at this time, up to those related to the coming of the Messiah and the time of redemption. When a Jew studies Maimonides' entire book, he is in effect studying the entire Torah.
The format of daily study in Maimonides' book is an initiative of the Lubavitcher Rebbe, in an effort to unite the entire Jewish people in studying all the laws of the Torah, through regular daily study. Since the regulation was issued (in 1964), the entire book has been studied in thirty-nine cycles, imparting to thousands and tens of thousands this wonderful virtue of studying the entire Torah.
There are two tracks in the daily study of the Rambam, allowing each person to choose the framework that is most convenient for them. The main track is three chapters per day, in which the entire book is completed in less than a year. For those who find it difficult to meet this deadline, a track of one chapter per day is offered, in which the entire book is completed in about three years. The thirteenth cycle of this track is now also ending.
And there is another, more concise path – studying the Rambam's 'Book of Commandments', in which all the commandments of the Torah are concentrated. The daily study of the 'Book of Commandments' is parallel to the general study of three chapters per day, and deals with the same matters. In this way, the multitudes of the House of Israel join in a unified, shared study of the entire Torah.
Opportunity to join
Daily study of the Rambam exposes the average person to areas of the Torah that are not generally known to large segments of the public. Starting with the commandments related to the Temple, offering sacrifices, the laws of impurity and purity, and ending with the laws of going to war, the laws of kings, and the days of the Messiah.
This Friday, a new cycle begins in the three tracks, and it's an opportunity to jump on the bandwagon. Anyone who takes on the daily study of Maimonides will soon discover what spiritual wealth they acquire every day, and the privilege of studying all the laws of the Torah, in a format that unites them with the masses of Israel.
