(For p’sak halachah, please ask your own rav.)
Chumash at Night
Question: Should you refrain from learning Chumash at night?
Short Answer: While there are many leniencies, one should ideally refrain from learning Chumash at night. However, if he otherwise will not learn anything at night, it is much better to learn Chumash.
Explanation:
I. The Importance of Night Learning
The Shulchan Aruch and the Rema (Yoreh Dei’ah 246:23) extol the virtues of learning Torah at night. A person should not waste his nights and should increase his learning as the nights get longer.
Similarly, the Shulchan Aruch (Orach Chayim 238) lauds night learning and holds that it is more important than learning during the day.
II. Night Chumash?
The sefer P’sakim U’T’shuvos (Yoreh Dei’ah 246:59, n. 666) cites numerous midrashim that state that Moshe knew the difference between day and night while receiving the Torah for 40 days and nights based on his learning schedule. Hashem only taught Moshe the Torah during the day, but during the night Hashem taught Moshe Torah She’b’al peh.
The Ba’eir Heiteiv (Orach Chayim 238) cites the Arizal, who held that a person should not learn Mikra at night. Simply put, this is based on kabbalistic ideas. The Yosef Ometz (54) explains that the reason is because Mikra is din, which is dangerous to engage in at night. However, the Radal (Pirkei D’Rabbi Eliezer 46:10) suggests that the reason is because it is dark at night and not everyone has candles. Accordingly, one cannot learn Torah SheBichsav, as it cannot be learned by heart (“d’varim she’bichsav i efshar…”)
The Shaar HaTziyun (Orach Chayim 238:1) cites the Pri M’gadim, who appears to disagree with the Arizal based on the Gemara (Kiddushin 30a), which states that a person must divide his learning of Chumash, Mishnah, and Gemara each day. This implies that Chumash may be learned at night as well. The sefer Dor HaMelaktim (Issur V’Heter 4, p. 224) cites the Sdei Chemed, who notes that there are other sources in the Gemara that contradict the Arizal, such as the halachah permitting learning Chumash by candlelight on Friday night. Therefore, the Arizal should not be followed in cases where he contradicts the Gemara.
The Shaar HaTziyun concludes that even according to the Arizal, it is not “forbidden” to learn Mikra at night, but rather it is “preferred” to learn Mikra during the day.
III. Practical Application
Despite the above warning by the Mishnah B’rurah that one should preferably follow the stringency of the Arizal, many leniencies are provided by the Acharonim.
First, the Maharsham (1:158), in discussing whether one may do Sh’nayim Mikra at night, relies on the Chida, who permitted it on Friday night (and even Thursday night), as the entire prohibition of learning Mikra at night is limited to weekdays. Practically, the B’Tzeil HaChochmah, as well as Rav Chaim Kanievsky zt”l (both cited in Dor HaMelaktim, ibid.), are lenient and permit Sh’nayim Mikra even on Thursday night. Kovetz Halachos (Shabbos 1:19:12) permits Friday night but forbids Thursday night.
Second, the Avnei Tzedek (Sigheter Rav, Yoreh Dei’ah 102) rules in accordance with the Y’sod V’Shoresh HaAvodah that it is permitted to learn Mikra together with peirushim at night. While the Y’sod V’Shoresh HaAvodah prohibits reciting even a few words without a peirush, the Avnei Tzedek is more lenient; simply reading a pasuk and translating it into the common language while learning the peirushim is sufficient. This is also the ruling of Kovetz Halachos (ibid.). According to these poskim, the primary concern is leining at night.
Third, the Avnei Tzedek suggests that it is permissible to learn Mikra at night in a tzibur. He bases this leniency on the Chida, who states that din does not affect a tzibur as a whole. The Tzitz Eliezer (22:7:3) adopts this leniency as well. However, Dor HaMelaktim (ibid.) cites Acharonim who disagree with this heter.
Fourth, Dor HaMelaktim cites the Sheivet HaKehasi, who quotes the Chida as explaining that one may think about Mikra while falling asleep if he cannot think about Gemara. This implies that “thinking” Mikra at night is not problematic. The author suggests that this issue may be based on the general machlokes as to whether thinking about learning constitutes limud haTorah.
Fifth, many Acharonim hold that it is permitted to learn Chumash or Nach at night if it is during t’filah. For example, Rav Chaim Kanievsky (cited in Dor HaMelaktim, ibid.) explains that we recite L’David during Elul based on this leniency. Similarly, Kovetz Halachos (ibid.) explains that we rely on this leniency to recite V’yiten L’cha on Motza’ei Shabbos. The Tzitz Eliezer permits reciting T'hilim at night for this reason as well.
IV. What Is the Alternative?
The poskim are clear that if a person will otherwise waste his night and not learn unless he learns Chumash, it is certainly better to learn Chumash. The B’Tzeil HaChochmah (4:44) rules that if a person is only capable of learning Chumash, he should certainly learn it at night. The Divrei Benayahu (6:14) rules similarly regarding women and children: Better that they learn Chumash at night than learn nothing at all.
Halachic Highlights…Talmud Torah #13
(For p’sak halachah, please ask your own rav.)