Hilchos Tefillin 46 (page 151)
מתחילת סימן מז עד סעיף ד
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Are Birchos Hatorah Required Mid'oraisa or Mid'rabonon?
Which Types of Study are Forbidden Prior to Birchos Hatorah?
The Roles of the Different Berachos on the Torah
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Are Birchos HaTorah required md'oraisa or md'rabonon?
According to many
poskim,
Birchos HaTorah are
d'oraisa and a question about them is treated as a
safek d'oraisa. For example, if one is unsure whether he recited the
berachos, he must repeat the
beracha of
asher bachar banu. Other
poskim, however, hold that these
berachos are only
mid'rabonon. Therefore, if there is a question as to whether one recited the
berachos, he should preferably hear them from someone else or, if he hasn't
davened yet, he should have in mind to fulfill his obligation when reciting
Ahava Rabbah (
Ahavas Olam) which can count as
birchos haTorah. If the question arose after
davening, he can consider
Ahava Rabbah (
Ahavas Olam) as
birchos haTorah.
(
ס"ק א)
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Which types of study are forbidden prior to Birchos HaTorah?
All forms of Torah (
Mikra,
Mishna,
Gemara, Halacha and
Medrash) require
birchos haTorah and may not be studied prior to their recitation. Some
poskim question whether the non-halachic sections of Torah (e.g.
Kabbalah,
Aggada and
Mussar) may be studied before
birchos haTorah. Some
poskim require
birchos haTorah for the study of the rules of
dikduk as they relate to understanding the Torah (if the
sefer was authored by a Torah scholar). Using Torah phrases as casual expressions outside the context of learning or davening does not require
Birchos HaTorah.
(
סעיף ב וס"ק ד; ביאורים ומוספים דרשו, 9)
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The roles of the different
berachos on the Torah
The first of the
Birchos HaTorah (together,
la'asok and
v'ha'arev na are considered one
beracha) is a
beracha on the
mitzvah, like any other
beracha recited before the performance of a
mitzvah. The second
beracha-
asher bachar banu-praises Hashem for His gift of the Torah and expresses appreciation for the Torah. Some explain that these
berachos are like the
birchos hanehenin recited before and after partaking of worldly pleasures. Like those pleasures, the pleasure of studying Torah requires
berachos - the first one praises Hashem for yesterday's study and the second one for today's upcoming study.
(
ביאורים ומוספים דרשו, 2 ו־8)
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- According to the Mechaber, it is forbidden to recite pesukim as part of tefilos before Birchos HaTorah. According to the Rama and others, it is technically permissible to recite pesukim as part of tefilos beforehand, but customary not to.
- The pasuk of Shema Yisrael (and in some siddurim, the entire first parsha) was incorporated into L'olam for those times when it is necessary to fulfill the mitzva of Shema at that point in davening.
- According to the Mechaber and Rama, if a minyan will conclude the berachos and Shemoneh Esrei before the time of Shemoneh Esrei but will miss, or possibly miss, reciting Shema before its' correct time, an individual should include the entire Shema (all three parshios) when reciting L'olam.
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- Listening to a shiur before Birchos HaTorah
- When learning is required immediately after davening
- Considering Ahavas Olam of Ma'ariv as Birchos HaTorah
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