Friday 10 July 2009

Why I don't learn much Nach

It is hard enough to learn peshat in the Midrashim of Hazal which are between 1500 and 2500 years old. Nach is older. The idioms, images, similes, metaphors, etc. Are very difficult to fathom. Most mefarshim are aiui guessing.

And from what I can see in most schools, the bottom line patch quilt of what the peshat is, is highly speculative. Too much hit and miss. Occasionally a gem of an insight is found amongst the sifted sands of time.

Of course elements of Nach are essential. Some texts are less esoteric. Ruth, Esther, Mishlei are quite assessable. Most haftaros are also quite meaningful. Only a handful are obscure.

If we can discover a "Rosetta stone" to decipher the imagery of nach as originally intended, this would shift everything.

Meanwhile, I put my energies elsewhere

KT
RRW

2 comments:

JJ said...

I cannot believe nobody has commented here yet...this is incredibly disappointing...to say that Yehoshua, Shoftim, Shmuel and Melachim are unaccessible...that their similes and metaphors are difficult to fathom???

Really...these seforim are about man and how he deals with the decree of the Almighty versus his own issues - be they sons and potential kingdoms (Shmuel), conquering the land and deviations like Achan (Yehoshua), wives that lead astray (shimshon and Shlomo).

I am disappointed as these books talk to me in some ways more clearly than the Maasei Avot.

As far as the later Neviim and Ketuvim I do agree that there are some chapters that are hit or miss but a Daat Mikra will give good context to the chapter and spell out the lessons to be learned.

Sorry to lash out but I seem to have a soft spot for Neviim Rishonim

Rabbi R Wolpoe said...

Good Points

Much in Yehoshua Shoftim etc. are quite accessible

Unfortunately, much of the imagery is still lost under the sands of time