(י) כִּי אִם יִפֹּלוּ הָאֶחָד יָקִים אֶת חֲבֵרוֹ וְאִילוֹ הָאֶחָד שֶׁיִּפּוֹל וְאֵין שֵׁנִי לַהֲקִימוֹ. (יא) גַּם אִם יִשְׁכְּבוּ שְׁנַיִם וְחַם לָהֶם וּלְאֶחָד אֵיךְ יֵחָם.
(10) For if they fall, the one will lift up his fellow; but woe to him that is alone when he falleth, and hath not another to lift him up. (11) Again, if two lie together, then they have warmth; but how can one be warm alone?
Ovadiah Seforno, a 16th-century Italian rabbinic commentator, interprets these pesukim (passages) in Ecclesiastes as referring to study in pairs.
When possible, Torah learning should happen with other people. Together, learners should be active and energetic, listening to one another, drawing from sources, and challenging each other and their own assumptions.
The end goal is not "getting the right answer." Chevruta study highlights the cultural value of engagement with text and with colleagues.
Knowledge is richer, more multi-faceted--and pretty awesome when it is communally constructed.
Chevruta highlights the the importance of a multi-vocal approach to a particular text. Each person should offer their unique perspective--and have ownership over the material this way.
(ו) יְהוֹשֻׁעַ בֶּן פְּרַחְיָה וְנִתַּאי הָאַרְבֵּלִי קִבְּלוּ מֵהֶם. יְהוֹשֻׁעַ בֶּן פְּרַחְיָה אוֹמֵר, עֲשֵׂה לְךָ רַב, וּקְנֵה לְךָ חָבֵר, וֶהֱוֵי דָן אֶת כָל הָאָדָם לְכַף זְכוּת:
(6) Yehoshua ben Perachiah and Nittai of Arbel received the transmission from them. Yehoshua ben Perachia said, Make for yourself a rabbi, acquire for yourself a friend; and judge every person in their favor.
For an amazing study on how chevruta operates, check out Orit Kent's Interactive Text Study: A Case of Hevruta Learning published by the Mandel Center for Studies in Jewish Education at Brandeis University. (http://www.brandeis.edu/mandel/pdfs/Beit_Midrash_Paper_Kent.pdf)
SOME GUIDELINES
Read and re-read the text. Use questions to engage with each other.
Take risks--think out loud and use evidence from the text. Acknowledge your learning partnership by affirming or challenging your partner's statements.
The text is the third person in the room--the facilitator of your conversation. Use it to ground you and guide you, but don't let it swallow you up.
Listen to each other and build off one another's ideas, asking yourself and your partner questions, and trying out different interpretations. "It could mean X, but its possible that it could mean Y as well. How would that change our read of the text?
Allow the learning to be personally and communally transformative...or not. You won't find yourself energized by every learning session, and that's okay.