The issues:

A) Birchas hatorah, the blessing before Torah study

B) Connecting the brocha to the study

C) Sleeping, waking, going back to sleep – all at night

A) Birchas hatorah [Exceerpted from Halochoscope XXII:44]

The Scriptural mitzvah to study Torah applies every day and every night, at all times and in every circumstance, except when in mourning. It applies to all adult males. Some poskim maintain that since women must study the laws pertaining to their Jewish lifestyles, they are also obliged to observe this mitzvah. Others maintain that this is not the essential mitzvah. Rather, it is a detail in the preparations for the mitzvos being studied. Though children are not Scripturally obligated in mitzvos, there is a Scriptural mitzvah incumbent on their parents to teach them Torah.

This mitzvah is equal to all the others put together. Two things are special about talmud Torah: its scope and the time to be devoted to it. Its scope includes the obvious need, based on a passuk: “Study them in order to observe them.” Thus, study is devoted to practical observance. One must also study for its own sake, including areas that seem to have no relevance at present. The time devoted to study is based on the passuk: “Delve into it day and night.” This leaves no time to be occupied in anything else! The same verse is interpreted to mean that one must perform this mitzvah once each day and once each night. Thus, there are levels to this mitzvah.

One should devote all his time, apart from the time spent on daily needs, to study. Besides this, he should have a specific time set aside, each day and each night, devoted fully to study. He should have a specific course of study, so that he can be assured that he will be doing his best to cover the entire Torah. One must study the halachos that arise in his daily living. As mentioned, Torah study can be for its own sake and as a manual for halachic living. If this is not possible, a fixed time period should be alloted for it every day and every night. At the very minimum, we study one passage each day and each night. As a last resort, one may relay on his krias shema, which is a Biblical passage. The true obligation is for adults to study one passage of the Written Torah, the Oral Torah and Talmudic discussions. Common practice is to study our Talmud Bavli, that incorporates the three parts of study. Ideal studying is with a group, or at least a study partner.

The Talmud discusses the seriousness of reciting a brocha before Torah study. Indeed, neglect of this brocha is cited as a cause for the destruction of the first Bais Hamikdash. It is also the reason great scholars often do not merit scholarly children. The only brocha that is universally considered Scriptural is bircas hamazon. The Rabbis instituted many other brochos, before performing mitzvos, before and after benefiting from food, and to praise Hashem for certain incidents and events. The poskim debate whether birchas hatorah is Scriptural or Rabbinical. There is a passuk in the Torah cited as a source, but that might be asmachta, a Scriptural link to a Rabbinical mitzvah. The biggest difference would be when one is in doubt about his obligation. If it is Scriptural, one tends to stringency. If it is Rabbinical, one tends to leniency. For all other brochos, one tends to leniency. Uttering Hashem’s name in vain or an unnecessary brocha can involve a Scriptural violation. This trumps the Rabbinical obligation.

The Talmud debates whether the brocha is required for mikra, studying Scriptures, midrash, the oral exegesis, mishna and gemara, the oral law and its analysis. The conclusion is to recite the brocha on all of these, but to study a little of each as soon as possible after the brocha. The Talmud also debates the text of the brocha, with three views. We recite all three. [If one recited only one of them, he fulfilled his Scriptural obligation, if it is Scriptural. Indeed, the Scriptural obligation has no set formula.]

One must recite birchas hatorah every morning when he wakes up, before reciting pesukim. Since much of the siddur includes pesukim, the poskim debate whether one must recite birchas hatorah before davening. Some maintain that the pesukim are not being studied like Torah, but recited like tefila. The prevailing minhag is to recite birchas hatorah first. For most mitzvos, one recites the brocha before each performance. Talmud Torah is a constant obligation. Therefore, unless one actually stops, with no intent to start again, it is considered as though he is in the middle. He cannot help some interruption. Therefore, one recites this brocha once a day, for all the study to be done throughout the day and night. If one would engage in an activity that indicates that he has given up on studying anything else right now, when he resumes, he would recite the brocha. The poskim discuss a person who goes to sleep during the day, or even at night, but with his clothing on. Has he given up on continuing, or is he just taking a rest? However, being occupied in activities that even preclude study, such as in a bathroom, does not mean that the person is giving up on resuming his study. Therefore, he need not recite the brocha again when resuming his learning. [See Brochos 11b Nedarim 37a-38a 62a 81a Kidushin 29b-30b 39b Sanhedrin 71a, Poskim. Tur Sh Ar OC 47 YD 246, commentaries.]

B) Connecting the brocha to the mitzvah

A brocha on a mitzvah must be recited immediately before performing it. This is similar to brochos before eating. There may be no hefsek, break, or hesech daas, distraction or distracting activity, before eating, or performing the mitzvah. Assuming that birchas hatorah is on the mitzvah of studying, one must study some Torah right away after saying the brocha. The poskim, however, cite a debate about this.

The Talmud introduces birchas hatorah in the passage discussing the brochos of shema. If one rises and wishes to study before shacharis, he must recite birchos hatorah. If he says shema with its brochos first, he need not recite birchos hatorah afterwards. He has already discharged his obligation with the second brocha of shema, ahava raba. This brocha relates to the mitzvah we have to love Hashem, based on the first pesukim in shema. Hashem loves us, as is mentioned in the Torah and many passages in the Neviyim. In fact, the brochos of shema are independent obligations, but are linked to shema based on such connections. Another connection is talmud Torah. Torah study is mentioned in both parshiyos of shema, and this is the main source for the mitzvah. In ahava raba, we beseech Hashem to give us the desire to study and fulfill the Torah. Therefore, the brocha contains the main elements of birchas hatorah.

The poskim cite the Talmud Yerushalmi, which says that one is only exempt after ahava raba if he studied some Torah on the spot, meaning right away, before doing something else. The poskim explain, this does not mean that he should study right after he finishes ahava raba, before saying shema. One may not interrupt at this point, except to respond to certain specific responses. Rather, one may finish davening. Right after davening, one must spend some time studying something. The poskim cite a view that shema can work as the little bit of Torah study in emergency, as mentioned earlier.

However, the poskim debate whether the Talmud Bavli agrees. There is no indication that one must study Torah immediately after the brochos in the morning. Furthermore, if one had to connect his brocha to study, he should be required to repeat the brochos later on, if he interrupted with his work. In one view, there is a debate. In another view, we do study something immediately. We say the pesukim of birchas kohanim, the priestly blessing, and a passage of Talmud. In a third view, if one recites the original birchos hatorah, he need not study immediately. The brochos are for any study to be done at any point later in the day or night. If, however, he wishes to be exempt by reciting ahava raba, he must study immediately afterwards. This is because the original brochos are instituted specifically for Torah study. It is understood that some people will not be able to study immediately, yet they recite the brochos as part of the morning service. Ahava raba was instituted to be read together with shema, and only incidentally is it a way to fulfill birchos hatorah. Therefore, one must study immediately afterwards. [See Brochos 11b, Poskim. Tur Sh Ar OC 47:7, commentaries.]

C) Sleeping, waking, going back to sleep

We mentioned that the brocha is recited once a day, and why it is not recited every time one starts learning again. The basic idea is that one really wishes to learn continuously. However, he knows that he will need to interrupt it. He never loses sight of the learning, and plans to resume as soon as he has a chance. Therefore, his original brocha counts for all the learning of that day. This is similar to a brocha at the beginning of eating a fruit, with interruptions before finishing it. The poskim compare this to the brocha laishaiv basukah, which is recited on Sukos every time one eats a meal in the sukah. [In practice we only recite it on eating there, though the mitzvah applies to sleeping and spending time there as well.] Each time he leaves, he has ended that activity. Nonetheless, he can leave to do or to get something, having in mind that he will return right away. Sukah is another mitzvah that should apply all the time during Sukos. Even sleeping overnight is not considered hesech daas.

Eating has a fixed time, with a known beginning and end. Therefore, for each meal, one recites laishaiv basukah again. Torah is non-stop, despite some necessary interruptions. Therefore, one brocha covers all day. If so, why should one not recite laishaiv basukah when going to sleep in the sukah? One answer is that one cannot control whether he will actually sleep. This implies that each action requires its own brocha. Another explanation is that indeed, the brocha on eating covers sleeping. It is one extended yeshiva basukah. The only question would arise if one leaves the sukah and comes back at night to go to sleep. If so, talmud Torah is non-stop. Sleeping should also never count as an interruption. Why do we say the brocha every day? This leads some to say that the brocha is recited daily as part of birchos hashachar. It is simply a mitzvah that is required every day. Accordingly, if one wakes up before dawn to study, he need not recite the brocha. He may rely on the brocha he recited the previous morning. Conversely, if one never slept since his brocha in the morning, he must still recite a fresh brocha next morning.

Others maintain that the brocha is really on the mitzvah. It should be recited before performing it every time, but for the duration of the day one is not masiach daas. However, going to sleep is a clear break and when waking, even during the night, one must recite the brocha again. If he never slept, he need not recite a new brocha in the morning.

In practice, we try to satisfy the first view, but we follow the second view. Accordingly, one who sleeps by day should recite a fresh brocha. This is hotly debated. There is a consensus that one is permitted but not obligated to recite a brocha in this situation.

If one wakes up before dawn to study, we follow the view that he recites birchas hatorah for the entire next day’s study. What if he goes back to sleep? The poskim suggest that if he intended to rely on this brocha for the whole next day, his sleeping is considered the same as daytime sleeping. [Some poskim permit reciting a fresh brocha in the morning.] If he specifically only meant it to cover the study at night before going back to sleep, he should recite it again in the morning. In our case, the person is unsure whether he will be able to go back to sleep. Therefore, he should have in mind that the brocha should cover the next day. If he does get some more sleep, it should be considered the same as a daytime sleep. [See Refrences to Section A and B. Magen Avraham 47:12, RAE, Shaarei Teshuva 13. MB 25 29.]

In conclusion, he should say the brocha in the middle of the night, having in mind that it should count for the whole next day, even if he gets more sleep.

On the parsha … The assembly rose up and made their voice heard, and the entire people cried that night [14:1]. The assembly – Sanhedrin [Rashi]. Perhaps the Sanhedrin issued a Torah ruling contradicting Yehoshua and Kalev. This led everyone to stay awake and cry, and complain in the morning [see Ramban]. The erroneous ruling was not considered Torah. Accordingly, the unnecessary crying interrupted their study. They thought that they needn’t recite the brocha in the morning. Had they done so, they might have been able to discern the truth.

• Rabbi Shimon Silver, June 2025