Chumash At Night

Short Answer: While there are many leniencies, one should ideally refrain from learning chumash at night. However, if he otherwise will not learn anything at night, it is much better to learn chumash.

Explanation:

Shulchan Aruch and the Rama (Y”D 246:23) extol the virtues of learning torah at night. A person should not waste his nights and should increase his learning as the nights get longer.

Similarly, Shulchan Aruch (O”C 238) lauds night learning and holds that it is more important than learning during the day.

The sefer Pesakim U’Teshuvos (Y”D 246:59, n.666) cites numerous medrashim that state that Moshe knew the difference between day and night when getting the torah for forty days/nights based on his learning schedule. Hashem only taught Moshe the torah during the day, but during the night Hashem taught Moshe torah she’bal peh.

The Be’er Heiteiv (O”C 238) cites the Arizal who held that a person should not learn “mikra” at night. Simply put, this is based on kabbalistic ideas. The Yosef Ometz (54) explains that the reason is because “mikrah” is “din” which is dangerous to do at night. However, the Radal (Pirkei D’Rav Eliezer, 46:10) suggests that the reason is because it is dark at night and not everyone has candles. Accordingly, you cannot learn torah she’bichsav, as you cannot learn it by heart (“dvarim shevichsav eiy efsher…”).

The Shaar Hatzion (O”C 238:1) cites the Pri Megadim who appears to disagree with the Arizal based on the Gemara (Kiddushin 30a), that a person must split his learning of chumash, mishnah, gemara each day. This implies that chumash is learned at night as well. The sefer Dor HaMilaktim (Issur V’Heter 4, p.224) cites the Sdei Chemed who notes that there are other Gemaros that contradict the Arizal, such as the halacha about learning chumash by candlelight on Friday night. Therefore, clearly the Arizal should be rejected, as he contradicts the Gemara.

The Shaar Hatzion concludes that even according to the Arizal, it is not “forbidden” to learn mikrah at night, but rather it is “preferred” to learn mikrah by day.

Despite the above warning by the Mishnah B’rurah that one should preferably follow the stringency of the Arizal, many leniencies are provided by the acharonim.

First, the Maharsham (1:158), in discussing whether you may do shnayim mikra at night, relies on the Chida who permitted it on Friday (and even Thursday) night, as the entire prohibition of learning mikra at night is limited to weekdays. Practically, the Betzel HaChochmah, as well as R’ Chaim Kanievsky, zt”l (both cited in Dor HaMilaktim, ibid), are lenient to do shnayim mikrah even on Thursday night. Kovetz Halachos (Shabbos, 1:19:12) only permits Friday night, but forbids Thursday night.

Second, the Avnei Tzedek (Sigheter Rav, Y”D 102) holds like the Yesod V’Shoresh H’Avodah, that it is permitted to learn mikrah together with peirushim at night. While the Yesod V’Shoresh H’Avodah prohibits reciting even a few words without a peirush, the Avnei Tzedek is more lenient; simply reading a posuk and translating it as normal into the common language while learning the peirushim is sufficient. This is the ruling of the Kovetz Halachos (ibid) as well. Thus, according to these poskim, the only real problem is “laining” at night.

Third, the Avnei Tzedek suggests that it is permissible to learn mikrah at night in a tzibbur. He bases this leniency on the Chida, that “din” does not affect the tzibbur as a whole. The Tzitz Eliezer (22:7:3) adopts this leniency as well. However, the Dor HaMilaktim (ibid) cites some acharonim who disagree with this heter.

Fourth, the Dor HaMilaktim cites the Shevet HaKehasi who cites the Chida who explains that one may think about “mikrah” while falling asleep if he cannot think about “gemara.” This implies that “thinking” mikrah at night is not problematic. This author suggests that this issue might be based on the general machlokes whether thinking about learning is considered limmud hatorah.

Fifth, many acharonim hold that it is permitted to learn chumash/nach at night if it is during t’filah. For example, R’ Chaim Kanievsky (cited in Dor HaMilaktim, ibid) explains that we say “l’dovid” during Elul based on this leniency. Similarly, the Kovetz Halachos (ibid) explains that we rely on this leniency to recite “v’yiten licha” on Motzei Shabbos. The Tzitz Eliezer permits reciting tehillim at night based on this reasoning.

The poskim are clear that if a person will otherwise waste his night and not learn unless he learns chumash, it is certainly better to learn chumash. The Betzel HaChochmah (4:44) holds that if a person is only capable of learning chumash, he should certainly learn it at night as well. The Divrei Binayahu (6:14) rules similarly in the context of women and children — better that they learn chumash at night than to learn nothing.