What Pirkei deRabbi Eliezer is
Pirkei deRabbi Eliezer is one of the classic works of aggadah, an early midrashic sefer associated with the beis medrash of the Tanna Rabbi Eliezer ben Hyrcanus. Rather than a verse-by-verse commentary, it retells the great arcs of the Torah — the account of Creation, the lives of the Avos, the Exodus from Egypt — and weaves in the teachings, traditions, and moral lessons of Chazal. It is a book of story and idea, reaching for the meaning behind the events rather than the fine points of the law.
Because of that character, Pirkei deRabbi Eliezer has long been a wellspring of hashkafa and inspiration. Many familiar teachings and customs trace to its pages, and its retellings often illuminate a verse or a mitzvah from an angle the plain text does not reveal. Studying it is a way into the aggadic side of Torah — the part that shapes how a Jew sees the world, understands history, and finds spiritual depth in the tradition's foundational stories.
Walking through the text
This series takes learners through the sefer itself, with roughly thirty shiurim in the collection. A guided study is especially welcome here, because an aggadic work like this rewards a teacher who can supply context — situating a passage, connecting it to the relevant verses, and drawing out the lesson embedded in the narrative. What might read as a simple story on the page opens into something richer once its background and intent are explained.
Working through the text in order also lets the sefer's themes accumulate. As the series moves from Creation to the Avos and onward, a listener begins to see the larger picture the work is painting — a vision of Jewish history and destiny told through Chazal's eyes. That cumulative reading is part of the value: not isolated insights, but a sustained encounter with one of the tradition's foundational aggadic voices.
Why it resonates
Aggadah speaks to the heart in a way that pure halachic analysis often does not, and Pirkei deRabbi Eliezer is aggadah at its most engaging. Its stories carry hashkafa — a Torah worldview — in a form that is memorable and moving. For a learner looking to nourish the spiritual and philosophical side of their Judaism, a series on this sefer offers exactly that: the ideas and narratives that give Jewish life its meaning and shape.
Its narrative form also makes it unusually family-friendly. Stories of Creation and the Avos are the very material that draws children into Torah, and the teachings drawn from them give parents rich content to share. A family exploring Pirkei deRabbi Eliezer together taps into some of the tradition's most beloved storytelling — the kind that plants a love of Torah early and deep.
Finding kosher Torah video for your family
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At a glance
Key takeaways
- Pirkei deRabbi Eliezer is a classic early aggadic sefer, not an individual speaker.
- It retells Creation, the Avos, and the Exodus through the teachings and traditions of Chazal.
- A guided series of roughly thirty shiurim supplies the context that aggadah rewards.
- Its story-driven, hashkafa-rich content resonates with adults and draws children into Torah.
- Search FilteredTube for kosher, approved Torah video — the catalog grows every day.