The Talmud is the main text of rabbinic Judaism and one of the most important sources of Jewish law. Divided into 63 tractates, it deals with thousands of scenarios, and records the discussions of ancient rabbis talking about the minutiae of Jewish daily living. The laws that come out of these discussions form the backbone of Jewish practice.
The study of the Talmud is notoriously difficult, as it has more than 2000 double-sided folios. The breadth of subject matter discussed is vast. To get through these texts can take a lifetime.
However, in an effort to change the narrow focus on certain tractates of Talmud, in 1923 a Polish rabbi, Meir Shapiro, proposed that Jewish people should study one double-sided page of Talmud each day. This method, known as “Daf Yomi” (daily page), helped people become familiar with the entire Talmud, especially some of the more obscure tractates. Using this method, it takes a person 7½ years to complete the entire Talmud.
This method of studying Talmud has taken off like wildfire. In 2023, we are working through the 14th Daf Yomi cycle, which has three more years to run. At the start of 2020, when the 14th cycle began, I threw my hat in the ring. Each day I sit with my Talmud and work my way through a difficult page. It is a grounding experience, one that brings me much joy as I delve into ancient concepts that are still practised.
I love being part of the biggest global Jewish book club, where each day, no matter where they are in the world, Jewish people study the same page. In recent years, podcasts and study aids have been established to help this growing phenomenon.
Read the article by Nomi Kaltmann in The Age.