With the completion of another Daf Yomi cycle dozens of new
shiurim have been started around the country with
thousands of participants joining for the first time.
Meanwhile a few new developments that emerged during the 11th
cycle should be noted on the margins of the daf. With
the technological innovations the world has seen over the
past seven-and-a-half years, a number of new elements have
come into play.
Developments include the many phone lines added to Kol Hadaf
for all those who want to hear a shiur on the Daf Yomi
by top maggidei shiurim any time of the day or night,
and the captivating addition of the Meshivei Hadaf project,
which provides callers access to a team of talmidei
chachomim ready to answer any questions encountered while
studying the daf or anywhere else in the
Shas.
According to reports, during this cycle the lomdim
included a group of young boys under the age of bar mitzvah
who joined the adults' shiurim with stubborn
persistence, not altering the study schedules at the
talmudei Torah, yeshivos ketanos and yeshivos
gedolos they attended over the years, and had the merit
of through it all adhering to the Daf Yomi during their
youth. Now they too took part in the joy of completing the
Torah.
During this cycle daily shiurim were started at places
like the Stock Exchange in Ramat Gan as well as large
factories. Shiurim are held at the Kosel Maarovi,
Kever Rochel, on commuter trains, at faraway vacation sites,
during bein hazmanim and in various other public
places.
The ranks of new Daf Yomi participants include traditional
businessmen who decided to taste from the springs of Torah to
satisfy a sense of intellectual curiosity. Some of them even
changed their lifestyles and returned to their roots as a
result.
Shiurim are also now available on computer discs for
those in remote places or en route, such as passengers on
long flights or people in countries without chareidi
populations. Using their PC or laptop they can stay in close
contact with the Daf Yomi studied around the world on that
day. The daf can also be accessed via Internet for
businessmen and for all those who, for whatever reason,
cannot attend a regular shiur.
*
Divrei Torah tzrichim chizuk. Despite the blessed
strengthening of Torah study in recent years, one of the
generation's elderly mashgichim suggested we point out
another viewpoint that sometimes gets lost in the midst of
the great joy of completing the Oral Torah and the start of a
new cycle.
In principle the Daf Yomi is not aimed at yeshiva and
kollel students, who have their own programs of
iyun and bekius study, but certainly whoever
finds extra hours at his disposal — time outside the
regular learning schedule — is perfectly welcome to
join an additional learning framework that provides broad
knowledge of the entire Torah.
The original Daf Yomi program was designed to set a fixed
time for Torah: one hour every day free from all of life's
other pursuits, an escape from the world of gashmiyus
and far from the vanities of This World to delve into a
daf of gemora, which brings brochoh to
all who toil over it.
Baalei batim used to study the Daf Yomi between
Minchah and Ma'ariv in the beis knesses
or the shtiebelach, but over the course of time
shiurim spread to all hours of the day. Today many set
aside all of their worldly affairs in the middle of the day
to study the daf.
The set timetable for the study of the daf led to the
establishment of shiurim before dawn, on Fridays and
on holidays and festivals. Hours that once vanished unnoticed
are now filled with Torah on a daily basis, from the
beginning of the Shas to the end.
Yet along with the enormous development that has taken place
with the establishment of innumerable Daf Yomi shiurim
the time has come to reflect and consider what direction we
must take now.
People who suddenly rediscovered their old affection and
burning love for Torah should not suffice with a single hour.
These inclinations should not be left to lie dormant as these
reborn Torah scholars rest on their laurels. Many people
actually have more than a single hour of free time they could
devote to Torah study or suddenly find additional time
becomes available that could be set aside for Torah.
Many people place limits on the amount of time designated for
Torah as if the study of the daily blat is quite
sufficient and fulfills the obligation to study the eternal
Torah—as if for them the study of the Daf Yomi has
become a daily mitzvah like bentching or laying
tefillin. The mitzvah is performed and then it is over
and done with until the next day.
Whoever has the ability to add more time for other Torah
study or even to dig into the daf in greater depth
with Rishonim and Acharonim should not suffice with one hour
a day as if this fulfills his obligation— chovas
ho'odom be'olomo—to engage in Torah study.
The daf of gemora for which many set aside an
hour every day shows there may be another hour or more they
could set aside for Torah study. Now that we have arrived at
this point we must press forward and seek it like treasure
rather than feeling as if we have fulfilled the obligation of
talmud Torah with this single hour, leaving the rest
of our free time for the pursuit of mundane affairs.
*
And all of us must adopt and strengthen the takonoh
made by maranan verabonon gedolei Yisroel shlita to
add the study of halochoh—at least one or two
halochos—which is an integral part of the Daf Yomi
program founded by HaRav Meir Shapira zt"l, lema'an yeid'u
es haderech asher yeilchu boh.
