What is Torah?
Morris Engelson
Several readers have pointed out that I seem
to use the word "Torah" to imply different meanings
in my book The Heavenly Time Machine: Essays on Science
and Torah. Indeed, the observation is correct. Sometimes
I refer to a book, sometimes to a mode of inquiry, sometimes
to a body of knowledge, and sometimes to something else. I had
assumed that the meaning was clear from the context. But apparently
that is not the case. The obvious response is to post an essay
on the topic: What is Torah? Or what does the word Torah
mean? But I was reluctant to do this given my lack of expertise
in linguistics in general, and the Hebrew language in particular.
Furthermore, the matter goes beyond linguistics into philosophy,
theology, hermeneutics, and numerous other matters that I am
not competent to deal with. Nevertheless, a persuasive reader
of my book convinced me that I had an obligation to provide some
context as to what I mean by the word "Torah." So here
it is. What follows is by no means complete or authoritative.
Still it is hoped that the reader will find the following material
useful in its own right, and especially in combination with my
book.
Some basics
I checked a Hebrew-English dictionary for
an English translation of the Hebrew word which is pronounced
Torah, and found the following definitions:
law; doctrine; dogma; the Law (of Moses);
the Pentateuch; instruction; teaching; custom; theory system;
Torah.
Note that the italicized word Torah,
written in English, is an English translation of the same sounds
written in Hebrew. In other words, there is no adequate single
word or phrase translation for the meaning of the Hebrew word,
Torah.
The kabbalists tell us that the primordial
Torah consisted of black fire written upon white fire. Ultimately
"The black and white fire of Torah became garbed in ink
and parchment, and G-d's wisdom, which is the essence of Torah,
was embedded in its words and letters." (Overview to ArtScroll
Chumash). This physical embodiment is a Torah Scroll, known in
Hebrew as a Sefer Torah. That is what is usually meant
by "a Torah", a Torah Scroll. The physical Torah Scroll
is a most sacred object, to be treated with great care and respect.
But it is not the same as "Torah." "Torah"
is the wisdom we learn from the content of the Scroll. Here is
how Rabbi Dessler, whom I quote frequently in my book, puts it.
"The child sits on the adult's lap and sees the familiar
aleph-bet in the pages... What he sees is true, but it
is very far from the whole truth. The adult is hardly aware of
the letters, or of their combination into words; he is absorbed
in the ideas behind the words. This is something the child
can have no inkling of." Rabbi Dessler indicates that most
of us are the child in the analogy when it comes to a real understanding
of Torah. Note that I did not say "of a Torah Scroll,"
rather I spoke of "Torah", which is the content of
the Scroll and the numerous commentaries and explanations of
this content.
Torah: A repository of all wisdom
All human knowledge, all wisdom, is contained
within the Torah (Scroll). How is this possible in a mere 304,805
letters? The answer is that there is more than the individual
letters involved here. The Torah entire consists of both the
black letters (as in black fire) and the white parchment (as
in white fire). Indeed, a tradition from the time of Moses speaks
of the Torah as consisting of six hundred thousand letters; that
is each black letter has a double within the white spaces. And
then we have the letter combinations and permutations, we have
the decorative embellishments written on some of the letters,
and we have the possible variant readings given that there is
no punctuation or pronunciation directions within the all consonants
Torah Scroll. Yes a Torah Scroll is written only in consonants.
There are no vowels. Think of how many ways one could read words
in English written in this way. We would have total confusion
were it not for two factors: the integrity of the text, and a
tradition respecting basic meaning pronunciation going back to
Moses.
Each Torah Scroll is identical to all other
scrolls in terms of letters and layout. Spacing between letters,
letters, variant word spellings, letter font appearance, decorative
embellishments on letters, larger and smaller letters –
all are the same in every Torah Scroll. Any deviation, no matter
how minor, such as an imperfectly shaped letter, makes the Torah
Scroll ritually unfit for use. Great hidden wisdom may be found
within the shape, aspect ratio, width of lines and other factors
of a letter. There is a message within the white parchment spaces
between letters. Every aspect of a Torah Scroll has meaning to
someone who knows how to see beneath the surface appearance.
Today it is not such a difficult job to ensure uniformity given
scanned computer checking. In prior years it required great effort
to do the checking by hand. The evidence that the checking system
worked is indicated by the fact that a Torah Scroll from any
time period or any location is identical to any other Scroll.
And how do we, or did we, know what the layout should be? We
hold that the original layout was part of the instructions received
by Moses with the original giving of the Torah. Not only was
the written Torah dictated to Moses, but much other information
was also provided to him at that time.
There is much more that could be said respecting
the wisdom hidden with the Torah ("the Torah" means
a Scroll). But I am getting dangerously close to my limit of
competence. Permit me, therefore, to close this section with
a few words from someone who is eminently qualified to say more
on this topic. What follows are quotations from philosopher Rabbi
Dr. Nathan Lopes Cardozo's book Between Silence and Speech
(Jason Aronson). "[T]he text of the Torah is not the
product of some human mind but rather a creation of G-d. According
to this belief, G-d explicitly dictated to Moshe not only every
one of the letters and words of the Torah but even [other things]...
The Kabbalah insists that the Torah indeed does contain all that
can be known about this universe." Rabbi Cardozo notes that
"[T]the rational mind finds it simply impossible to believe
that this one small book, the Torah, can contain everything.
Nevertheless, the Kabbalah insists [that it does]." He then
goes on at length to explain the basis for this assertion. It
should now be clear to the reader why no deviation, no matter
how apparently minor, may be permitted in the writing of a Torah
Scroll. Deviations cannot be permitted because this would affect
the hidden wisdom embedded within the structure of the Scroll.
But how do we find this hidden knowledge? Indeed, given that
the Torah Scroll is written without vowels and without punctuation,
how do we know the correct simple reading? The answer is that
G-d gave Moses instructions, known as the oral tradition or Oral
Torah, along with the dictation of the written Torah (Scroll).
The oral tradition
The written Torah (Scroll) is like a computer
program which we cannot access or use without instructional information.
We hold that these instructions were provided to Moses when he
received the Torah. This oral tradition, also known as the Oral
Torah, consists of many elements.
We have the pronunciation, or vowels, for
reading the Torah. We also have instructions for variant readings
of certain words which are to be read differently than actually
written. And why should some words be written differently than
actually read? Because we read the ordinary meaning, while the
written structure contains a hidden deeper meaning. Indeed, the
content of the Torah is not clear or obvious when read as an
ordinary book, and we need instructions or explanations as to
the actual meaning. Here is how Rabbi Luzzatto puts it in The
Way of G-d (Feldheim Publishers), "G-d did not desire
to write the Torah so clearly that it would not need any explanation.
Quite the contrary, He wrote in it many undefined concepts, so
that no man could possibly know its true meaning without being
given explanations. This explanation must come trough a tradition
emanating from G-d Himself, who is the Author of the Torah...
Everything that was concealed in the Written Torah, however,
was taught to Moses, and from him the tradition was transmitted
orally..."
One of the essential oral transmissions is
a list of hermeneutic principles to be used in interpreting the
Torah. Hence, any understanding derived by a sufficiently learned
person using these principles is deemed to be embedded within
the Torah (Scroll) and is Torah (knowledge). This "discovered"
knowledge may appear to be contrary to the plain meaning, but
it is accorded, nevertheless, the same status of "Torah"
as the ordinary meaning. Some might conclude that a deeper meaning,
once discovered, should supplant a simpler meaning. But that
is not the case. It is a firm hermeneutic principle that "
A verse does not depart from its literal meaning." (Steinsaltz,
The Talmud: A Reference Guide, Random
House). Hence multiple meanings, and even contrary meanings,
are considered to be simultaneously true. The reader will need
to look at my book and other essays to see how contradictory
positions can be simultaneously true. The primary guide to the
oral tradition is the Talmud. But there are numerous other materials
that fit into this category. And, of course, the many commentaries,
derived by Torah Sages using established procedure, are all considered
in the realm of Torah (knowledge). Indeed, it is unheard of for
an Orthodox Jew to study Torah without reference to the primary
commentator, Rashi.
Other books of sacred writing
Most people cannot afford to purchase a Torah
Scroll, given the time and effort it takes to write one. But
even those who own a private Torah Scroll will not use it for
casual reading or study. A Torah Scroll is not just Holy. It
is the physical embodiment in content and structure of the word
of G-d. A human being may not touch the parchment of the scrolls
directly, except through some other sacred object, such as a
prayer shawl. Any object that is touched directly by a Torah
Scroll also acquires a certain degree of holiness, and may no
longer be used for ordinary purposes. Furthermore, the writing
lacks vowels and punctuation, and it lacks commentary and oral
tradition explanations. Yet, the Torah is not meant to be a hidden
book. It is meant for everybody. And everybody can easily afford
one in the form of a printed Chumash book. Chumash is
an acronym of the Hebrew phrase for "The Five Books of the
Torah." These are the five basic divisions, consisting of
Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy. The letters
and word sequence is the same as in a Torah Scroll, but we also
have vowel pronunciation marks, reading accent marks, punctuation,
various commentaries, and other embellishments depending on the
choice of the editor.
The total Hebrew Bible consists of twenty-four
books. This includes the Torah itself and also other materials,
such as Prophets, Psalms, various small "books" like
Ruth or Esther, and so forth. All of it is known as Tanach,
which is the Hebrew acronym of the phrase: Torah, Prophets, and
Writings. And while the Torah is the Torah, and the Prophets
are the Prophets and each individual item is separately identified,
all of these are Torah. This is Torah in the broad sense
and not Torah as in the Five Books of Moses.
The writing of the Divine Name
This material is a bit outside the scope of
this essay. But I would like to explain something about the writing,
and also the speaking, of the Divine Name.
The early part of Genesis shows two Divine
names. One is the four letter name, the Tetragrammaton, which
is not pronounced as written, not even in religious services
where this word is rendered as Lord. In ordinary discourse,
we identify this word as The Name, or HaShem (also Hashem)
in Hebrew. This Name carries within it numerous concepts. I discuss
in my book, for instance, how the four letters are connected
to modern physics of space-time. But the best known understanding
is that Hashem represents the Lord in His attribute of mercy.
The other Divine appellation, Elokim, which is usually rendered
into English as G-d, is connected to the idea of strict justice.
These understandings, which are of ancient origin, explain why
one or the other reference is used in differing parts of Genesis.
There are no two separately authored documents using differently
named gods, as the Documentary Hypothesis of secular Higher Biblical
Criticism claims. Furthermore, there are numerous instances in
Genesis where both names are used together where both justice
and mercy belong together. The reader will find more material
about this in the essay A Lesson in Torah [I] on this
website.
We have a number of other Divine names in
the Torah. I discuss one such connected to hidden miracles in
my book. I also discuss in my book how the word yatzar,
to form, is spelled with one Hebrew letter yud when the animals
are formed and with two successive yuds when human beings are
formed. Two yuds in succession is a Divine name, and indicates
that humanity contains some Divine essence. We were created in
the Divine image and with a soul.
Regardless of which name we use, and especially
for the two primary ones, Hashem and Elokim, it is important
to observe the prohibition to not erase the Divine Name and to
not use it in vain. Hence, not only sacred writings which contain
words of Torah, but any writing that contains the Divine Name
must be treated with care and respect. But what if one writes
a book that is likely to include a secular readership that does
not know about, or care about such matters? The simple solution
is to not write the Name in its proper spelling so that there
be no transgression should the material end in the trash. This
is clearly understood when it comes to Hebrew writing. But what
about translations? Is the word G-d, when fully spelled out,
a Divine Name in this context? Some say yes, because it applies
to the concept and not the spelling. Others say no; the prohibition
applies only to the spellings as given in the Torah and one is
free to do as one wishes. Others yet, say that it is wrong to
take precautions with translations as this implies that the translation
is equal to the original. But we know that nothing can equal
the original which includes hidden wisdom. Well, the reader knows
the choice that I made. I chose to leave out the middle letter
in G-d. That does not make me any more careful or pious than
someone who writes the word in its entirety. I had to make a
choice and I made one, but there is no definitive right or wrong
about this.
What is Torah?
Have I answered the question "what is
Torah?" I don't think so. The Torah is vast and complex,
well beyond my ability to explain. And Torah, per se,
is at an even higher level of complexity. No, I did not answer
the question. But I hope that I did succeed in showing the reader
why I am not able to do so.
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