How does one begin studying the Talmud?

Question

I am a non-Jew and am I interested in studying the Talmud, but don't know how to begin.

To start with, I have tried looking for an affordable Talmud or even part of it that I can buy just to start but it seems that all I can find are Talmud collections often costing hundreds.

How do I get started? Is there a version I can buy that is broken up into books I can buy seperately or even an App?

My first language is English so any translations would have to be in English.

My purpose in reading the Talmud is simply for personal study. I'd like to learn about Judaism in a general sense (beyond having knowledge of the Tanakh) and there seems no better way to extend my education of Abrahamic traditions.

Answer 1

The talmud is not like the Tanakh -- it's not a linear, coherent text that you can just start reading, relying on a few footnotes here and there. To illustrate, let me describe the first side of the first page of the first tractate, B'rachot. It begins with a mishna, which asks: from what time in the evening can we recite the Sh'ma? The mishna then answers by saying from the time the kohanim enter their houses to eat t'rumah; these are the words of R' Eliezer. The mishna then presents other opinions and an anecdote, and then there's a discussion of the general principle in interpreting "midnight". That's all in the first paragraph, just a few sentences in the Hebrew. The g'mara then begins to deconstruct this, asking where we learn these various points. The g'mara discussion of this mishna continues for eight (double-sided) pages of compact Aramaic.

Beginners working alone should expect to struggle with this, even in translation. The discussions assume a knowledge of halacha, Jewish law, and familiarity with the rules of exegesis (derivation). It is akin to reading a college-level mathematics text before you've learned algebra -- you might learn something from it here and there, purely as a matter of chance, but you'll miss most of what "learning talmud" entails and you won't learn the underlying concepts. And -- this is something that's different in Judaism than in other contexts -- studying talmud is almost universally done with a study partner, because studying it together and discussing it leads to deeper understanding and discipline.

If you want to learn talmud, I recommend that, instead of diving into a talmudic discourse, you learn about the talmud, its structure, its key players, and its methods of exegesis. Books such as R' Adin Steinsaltz's Essential Talmud provide an accessible introduction to the topic.

Answer 2

A good introduction to Talmud study, is study of the Mishna, since the Talmud is a commentary on many Tractates of the Mishna. Notably, the Mishna is the primary work of Jewish law, compiled after Tanakh was written, and obviously before the Talmud. It is perhaps the archetypal work of the Oral Law.

The Mishna is available with English translation here on Sefaria. As noted here, Herbert Danby's translation of the Mishna is available here. It is based primarily on the Tifferet Israel commentary on the Mishna of R. Israel Lipschitz. You can also find links to five of the six orders of the Mishna (Kodashim apparently excluded), with Philip Blackman's translation, including introductions, supplements, and notes, here.

Whether or not the Mishna is a part of the Talmud, is a semantic question. The Term Talmud frequently is used to include the Mishna (and the Tosefta, but you don't have to worry about that.)

Another classical work of Jewish law, is the comprehensive Mishneh Torah written by Maimonides about a millennium after the Mishna.

It is available in English here.

See also the resources listed in response to this related question.