"Every Time I Start Studying Talmud, I Fall Asleep"

What solution can we offer a yeshiva student who "dreams" every time he faces the Talmud?

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Rabbi Avigdor Miller's Response:

Nobody dreams when they are eating an ice cream cone, but when a person begins to study they start yawning and dozing off. If a person is interested in what they are doing, they won’t dream, and if they do, it's a sign of boredom. The question is not how to solve his "dreaming," but what causes him to be bored in the first place.

Boredom is generally the result of not understanding what is being studied; perhaps the lesson is too advanced, or the lecturer is not explaining the topic clearly. He may intend to deliver a high-level lecture, full of complex arguments, but this student concludes that he doesn’t have a good mind, when in reality it’s not his fault- the lecturer is simply not attending to the needs of the student.

When the Talmud is explained in a clear and comprehensible manner, the student will immediately become interested and will stop dreaming. Anyone is capable of being a yeshiva student and studying Talmud, but they must receive proper guidance.

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