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If midrashim are so important and add crucial historical/sociological details and ethical teachings and enrich our understanding of Hashem's wisdom, why are they not included in the Torah?

msh210
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Eilu V'Eilu
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    You could ask the same about most of Halacha. – Isaac Moses Jan 02 '14 at 21:53
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    If they were, we'd just have to learn a new layer of midrashim from them, right? The point of midrash is to draw out extra meaning from the written torah, right? So, more written torah just shifts the problem. – Monica Cellio Jan 02 '14 at 21:55
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    Right now, this question post looks like more than an argument in the middle of an unseen dialogue than a question. I think you could make this into a more valuable, answerable question by [edit]ing in your sources for "midrashim are so important and add crucial historical/sociological details and ethical teachings and enrich our understanding of Hashem's wisdom" as well as why you think that these qualities would indicate that these works should be included in the [written] Torah. Could you do that? – Isaac Moses Jan 02 '14 at 22:16
  • I seem to recall seeing a duplicate of this question on-site, but can't find it. – msh210 Jan 03 '14 at 01:40
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    I think the premise may need to be questioned. I'm not sure midrashim add anything crucial. They're important in their own way, but have a different purpose than the actual text of the Torah. – Ypnypn Jan 03 '14 at 03:14
  • To rephrase: Why is Midrash within Torah shebeal peh rather than Torah shebichsav? I'm not sure this question is answerable, except perhaps to question it premise. – J. C. Salomon Jan 03 '14 at 04:24
  • They are included in the Tora shebichsav. That's what the story of the Akeda is, for example.

    Oh, but there are more, which are not included in the Tora shebichsav? Well, of course. It can't include all midrashim. It'd be humongous!

     – msh210 Jan 03 '14 at 04:56

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