I think that in Pirkei Avot it is possible that there is an argument about which path is preferable to learn Torah along with working or learning Torah alone. No one suggests that one can use Torah as a means for making money but there is this idea that, "When one accepts the yoke of Torah, then the yoke of work is removed." That is the Mishna of Nechunia ben Hakanah.
But then there are the other mishnas that seem to indicate that it is preferable to work and learn. "All Torah that does not have work with it is in the end worthless." So this seems to be an argument between the sages of the Mishna.
This issue seems to get mixed up with other issues concerning the using of Torah to make money which is commonly called "Kollel". That seems to be forbidden. However there is a different issue in which one is passive. That is he does not actively go around trying to make money off of the Torah, but rather sits and learns and hopes that parnasa [money] will be sent to him from heaven.
What is possible to tell from the Gra is apparently this later approach. That it is preferable to sit and learn Torah and hope that money will come. I myself basically did this while in the Mir yeshiva in NY and then in Israel also. I lapsed from this however and no longer am able to recommend this path as fervently as I ought to because of what is called "קושיות" (questions). But in reality there is something about this path that does break through the veil of perception and gain one entrance into the Beyond. It is just that I do not seem to have the kind of merit that is required to be able to learn Torah and trust in God. I mean to say this: that even though learning Torah and trusting in God are merits in themselves but apparently one needs some kind of elementary kind of merit to gain entrance into that higher kind of merit. Otherwise the Dark Side comes along and causes one to always find something better to do rather than learn Torah. Or it replaces the authentic Torah with Torah of the Dark Side.
This might have something to do with some kind of set of personality flaws inside of me that cause me not to be able to learn or recommend learning for others. I mean it might not just be some kind of sin but also even more likely it has to do with character flaws in me.
In any case, what ever are my flaws, it seems to late to be able to correct them.
[In case it is not clear what I mean here, let me try to explain. There are two aspects of learning Torah. One is setting aside time for learning the Oral and Written Law of Moses, that is the Tenach, the Two Talmuds all the halachic and agadic midrashim. But there is a higher level of learning all the time and with as much energy and determination as humanly possible because Torah is the purpose of Life and the source of all good in the universe. That kind of learning is in a whole other ball park than the first kind. It is this second kind of learning that I can not do, and even the first kind is about as easy as pulling out teeth without anesthesia.] I really could not even venture a guess as to why I can not learn. I imagine it has something to do with my walking away from it once.
[When one does not merit to learn Torah, the whole world become the agents of the Dark Side (Sitra Achra) to remove him from it--even other people that are learning. They will become to very first to try and convince him to stop learning. Then there will be everyone else. There are other techniques also. One most popular is to substitute the real authentic Torah with false Torah and Torah from the Sitra Achra. There are many ways for the Sitra Achra to take one from Torah. [I can imagine there are infinite ways for the Sitra Achra to take one from Torah. The most popular is: "Come and do a mitzvah."]
But then there are the other mishnas that seem to indicate that it is preferable to work and learn. "All Torah that does not have work with it is in the end worthless." So this seems to be an argument between the sages of the Mishna.
This issue seems to get mixed up with other issues concerning the using of Torah to make money which is commonly called "Kollel". That seems to be forbidden. However there is a different issue in which one is passive. That is he does not actively go around trying to make money off of the Torah, but rather sits and learns and hopes that parnasa [money] will be sent to him from heaven.
What is possible to tell from the Gra is apparently this later approach. That it is preferable to sit and learn Torah and hope that money will come. I myself basically did this while in the Mir yeshiva in NY and then in Israel also. I lapsed from this however and no longer am able to recommend this path as fervently as I ought to because of what is called "קושיות" (questions). But in reality there is something about this path that does break through the veil of perception and gain one entrance into the Beyond. It is just that I do not seem to have the kind of merit that is required to be able to learn Torah and trust in God. I mean to say this: that even though learning Torah and trusting in God are merits in themselves but apparently one needs some kind of elementary kind of merit to gain entrance into that higher kind of merit. Otherwise the Dark Side comes along and causes one to always find something better to do rather than learn Torah. Or it replaces the authentic Torah with Torah of the Dark Side.
This might have something to do with some kind of set of personality flaws inside of me that cause me not to be able to learn or recommend learning for others. I mean it might not just be some kind of sin but also even more likely it has to do with character flaws in me.
In any case, what ever are my flaws, it seems to late to be able to correct them.
[In case it is not clear what I mean here, let me try to explain. There are two aspects of learning Torah. One is setting aside time for learning the Oral and Written Law of Moses, that is the Tenach, the Two Talmuds all the halachic and agadic midrashim. But there is a higher level of learning all the time and with as much energy and determination as humanly possible because Torah is the purpose of Life and the source of all good in the universe. That kind of learning is in a whole other ball park than the first kind. It is this second kind of learning that I can not do, and even the first kind is about as easy as pulling out teeth without anesthesia.] I really could not even venture a guess as to why I can not learn. I imagine it has something to do with my walking away from it once.
[When one does not merit to learn Torah, the whole world become the agents of the Dark Side (Sitra Achra) to remove him from it--even other people that are learning. They will become to very first to try and convince him to stop learning. Then there will be everyone else. There are other techniques also. One most popular is to substitute the real authentic Torah with false Torah and Torah from the Sitra Achra. There are many ways for the Sitra Achra to take one from Torah. [I can imagine there are infinite ways for the Sitra Achra to take one from Torah. The most popular is: "Come and do a mitzvah."]
