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THE DAFYOMI DISCUSSION LIST
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Rosh Kollel: Rabbi Mordecai Kornfeld
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Re: Moed Katan 018: Shmuel: Bris Kerusah li'Sefasayim
H. David Levine asked:
>>Having Shmuel's answer to Pinchas, what excuse is there for learning the
laws of mourning, for instance, in a daf-yomi seder, at a time that they
are unnecessary?<<
The Kollel replied:
>>David, your question is dealt with by one of the Rishonim, the Sefer
Chasidim #261, written by Rebbi Yehudah ha'Chasid.
1) He writes that someone who wants to learn Tractate Moed Katan should
pray to Hashem that nothing bad should occur as a result of this. He also
writes that the Rebbi teaching it should do so privately and should not
publicize its study. If one does so, no damage will come about through the
learning.
2) According to this, one should not make special advertisements about a
Dafyomi Shiur on Moed Katan, but rather be satisfied that the regular
attendants continue in the Shiur.
3) Having said that, it should be noted that the Sefer Chasidim writes
enthusuastically about the importance of learning Moed Katan, one of the
reasons being that since it is a tractate that people generally do not wish
very much to study, one receives a greater reward for learning an unpopular
topic.
4) I heard once that in the Ponevezh Yeshiva in Bnei Brak, the first few
pages of Maseches Kesubos used to be a fixed part of the study cycle in the
Yeshiva. These passages contain a lot of Halachos of mourning. At the time
of the study, certain disasters happened to the families of people
connected with the Yeshiva. It was decided that it may be that the fact
that the Yeshiva was studying these pages in depth was a bad sign, so
henceforth these pages were studied more briefly.
I assume that this is consistent with the aforementioned Sefer Chasidim,
because learning in depth a topic in a yeshiva with hundreds or possibly
thousands of students cannot be considered a private sort of learning.
5) See also Rav Shlomo Zalman Auerbach zt'l (in Halichos Shlomo, Mo'adim
(Bein ha'Metzarim), chapter 15, note 35), who expressed that one should not
neglect any area of Talmud Torah, and one who learns for the sake of Hashem
will be protected from anything harmful. As part of the daily Halachah
Shi'ur he gave in his synagogue in Sha'arei Chessed for many years between
Minchah and Ma'ariv, he included Hilchos Avelus in the cycle. See there.
(Y. Shaw)
There is an important Torah concept, based on Koheles 8:5, "Shomer Mitzvah
Lo Yeida Davar Ra" -- if someone fulfills a Mitzvah, nothing bad will
happen to him as a result. The Gemara in Shabbos (63a) learns from this
verse that one who does a Mitzvah in the proper way will not hear bad news.
Similarly the Mitzvah of learning Maseches Moed Katan, and knowing and
understanding the Halachos relevant at a time of bereavment, G-d forbid,
will protect those who study it from any negative experiences.<<
---
The Kollel adds:
I posed your question to a Gadol. He replied that before the Chasam Sofer
started giving a Shi'ur on these matters of mourning, he would give a coin
to charity. This is somewhat different to what we wrote earlier, because
according to this the Chasam Sofer did give a Shi'ur on Maseches Moed Katan
but before doing so he gave a Perutah to Tzedakah, so that this Mitzvah
would protect him and the people in his Shi'ur from any negative effects
that this learning might bring with it.
Gmar Chasimah Tovah,
Dovid Bloom
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