[Avodah] Brisk

[Micha Berger]

On Tue, Feb 10, 2009 at 08:09:44PM -0500, David Riceman wrote:
: Micha Berger wrote:
: >To rephrase my point in a way that I hope is clearer:
: >The Rambam relied on building a halachic geshtalt, not something that
: >can be articulated. That's where his "nir'eh li" comes from.

That's a mistake. I should have said "Yir'eh li". We discussed this
whole topic in v7n70 onward. See
<http://www.aishdas.org/avodah/getindex.cgi?section=N#NIREH%20LI>.

: >We today lack his ability to do that. So we instead try a more
: >scientific description rather than building a feel.

: That's certainly not the impression I get from reading his tshuvos.  
: Instead my impression is that the Rambam thought that detailed analysis 
: of sugyot was too difficult for those decadent modern times, and 
: therefore that the proper pedagogical technique was to supply the 
: student with normative decisions.  But he was perfectly capable of 
: articulating his reasoning when writing to an accomplished scholar.

R Dr Josh Backon points us to the HaEmeq She'eilah shi'lta 6 #1.
<http://www.aishdas.org/avodah/vol07/v07n071.shtml#09> Actually, he
points to the harder to find Qunterus Kelalei haRambam. The QKhR also
cites Beris Yaaqos 225, Zechus Yitzchaq I 173 and Yad Sover II 31,
who say it's the Rambam's buzzword for deductions he made that aren't
directly from Chazal. The YS goes so far as to say that everying other
than the "yir'eh li" cases are things the Rambam holds were already
stated by Chazal. RYD finds the same idea in one of the Rambam's igerot
(ed. Shailat II pg 443).

In which case, it would seem that (as opposed to what I wrote above)
the Rambam was more of an experimentor than a theorist. His ikkar was to
document the pesaqim of chazal, of course as he saw them. The few yir'eh
li-s (and even fewer nir'eh li-s) are an exception, and he invites us
to be choleiq if we wish.

But as everyone who does science knows, the experimenters' data is then
combed by the theoretician.

And there is still room for my original idea in that "document the
pesaqim of chazal, of course AS HE SAW THEM." Even moreso, it's the
Rambam's interpretation of Chazal when he wasn't trying to interpret.
(Just as every translator ends up giving the text some spin.) Which
would very much be an informal feel rather than a studied theory.

Tir'u baTov!
-Micha

-- 
Micha Berger             It's nice to be smart,
micha at aishdas.org        but it's smarter to be nice.
http://www.aishdas.org                   - R' Lazer Brody
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