By Jesse Sherer
The cycle ended March 1 and more than 100,000 Jews participated in celebrations taking place simultaneously at Madison Square Garden and Continental Airlines Arena in New Jersey, as well as in more than 70 cities around the world. Many of these celebrations were connected via satellite hook-up to the New York City event.
The North American Daf Yomi Siyum HaShas is sponsored by Agudath Israel of America, a broad-based Orthodox Jewish movement with chapters in major communities throughout the United States and Canada. Today, Jews all over the world study the 2,711 pages of the Talmud, written in a mix of Hebrew and Aramaic, within the context of a Daf Yomi study group.
The reasons why Jews from across the globe dedicate themselves to this early morning commitment is as varied as the men involved.
"It is an intellectual and religious experience rolled into one," said Weber. "It involves sophisticated legal issues and profound philosophical concepts. It is a meaningful and emotional experience, you look forward to pushing ahead and getting to another page."
It has even inspired a group of local commuters for the last 14 years to study on the 7:51 a.m. train from Far Rockaway to Penn Station.
The Talmud is divided into six general sections that deal with varied aspects of religious and general life. In many editions they are broken into smaller more specific books.
Often referred to as the Babylonian Talmud because Babylonia was the center of learning following the destruction of the First Temple, it was compiled by sages and rabbis between 1,400 and 1,800 years ago. It is the oral tradition of Judaism based on the Torah.
Rabbi Dr. Aaron Glatt of Woodmere has taught Daf Yomi at the Young Israel of Woodmere for the past 10 years, and before that at the Young Israel of Kew Garden Hills.
"The critical point is that people go through a vast volume of information over the course of the year," said Glatt. "It does take commitment to do it, but what a result it is."
As important as the information gained, the Daf Yomi study all begins with dedication to the early hours and a desire to mentally challenge one's self.
"It takes self-discipline," said Weber. "It is not easy to get up early and spend time studying. We all have busy schedules and it is easy to find an excuse not to attend. You need to have discipline or you will drop out."
Dr. Murray Kohn, who learns the Daf Yomi at the Young Israel of Lawrence-Cedarhurst, says his dedication comes from a simple desire to learn.
"It is something I wanted to do," said Dr. Kohn. "I get a lot out of it. It brings me a lot of knowledge and allows me to grasp things better. You get a broader knowledge on a range of subjects."
With all of the information that is discussed during the cycle it is difficult to imagine how a person could retain all of it. But according to Jacob Weichholz it does not necessarily matter how much information you retain.
"There is so much knowledge that even if I retain a small amount I am still ahead of where I was," said Weichholz, who studies at one of three Young Israel of Woodmere classes. "The retention of the details is not always great but I still retain more than I thought. The important thing is the learning itself and seeing the Torah as a guide in what we do. The fine details are not necessarily the most important thing."
The study of the Daf Yomi takes seven and a half years to complete and when finished the participants start from the beginning, in order to learn new aspects of the same text.
The idea for the Daf Yomi was developed in 1923 by Rav Meir Shapiro known as the Lubliner Rav, to help teach the Talmud with a sense of greater understanding and kinship.
Glatt has seen the Daf Yomi bring people together regardless of background.
"It is amazing how you can see two Jewish people and on the surface they might not look alike or have the same background," he said. "Yet they both pull out a Talmud and they have a connection to each other.
"Most people who do this and study are working professionals," said Glatt. "They are active and busy yet they feel it is critically important to take a huge chunk of their lives and devote it to learning. It's a wonderful thing."
The study of the Daf Yomi is about to be made easier with the soon to be released first full English version in half a century. The 73-volume Schottenstein edition, published by Artscroll, is a word by word transcription that also uses adjoining notes from 80 contributing scholars to fill in the often difficult style language.
"It is a wonderful aid for those who don't have the background and need the sources," said Glatt. "It is also great for those who are in a class and need additional information. It is not instead of a class but a supplement to it."
"There is a religious commitment to study that is very important in Jewish life," said Weber. "There is nothing as bad as being ignorant. It fulfills the mitzvah of studying Torah and what better way than to make a commitment on a daily basis for an extended period of time?"
"It is a wonderful opportunity to see how many people are interested in it and how much they value what it means," said Glatt, who is going to his third event at the Garden. "There is nothing like praying with 20,000 other people and hearing everyone say, 'Amen.'"
