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Some Mitzvot are written in the Torah very briefly or even hinted to, like "כבד את אביך", "לא תבשל גדי", "וקשרתם לאות על ידך" and many more. For example, the Torah gives no details on how the כיבוד אב should be performed - we learn it all from the Oral tradition.

Some Mitzvot include miles and miles of details in the TOrah itself, like Chometz on Pesach or returning a lost property (Dvorim 22):

"לא תראה את שור אחיך או את שיו נדחים והתעלמת מהם השב תשיבם לאחיך: ואם לא קרוב אחיך אליך ולא ידעתו ואספתו אל תוך ביתך והיה עמך עד דרש אחיך אתו והשבתו לו: וכן תעשה לחמרו וכן תעשה לשמלתו וכן תעשה לכל אבדת אחיך אשר תאבד ממנו ומצאתה לא תוכל להתעלם"

That's how the Mishna puts it in its own words (Chagigah 1 tnx Joel!):

"הֶתֵּר נְדָרִים פּוֹרְחִין בָּאֲוִיר, וְאֵין לָהֶם עַל מַה שֶּׁיִּסְמֹכוּ. הִלְכוֹת שַׁבָּת, חֲגִיגוֹת וְהַמְּעִילוֹת, הֲרֵי הֵם כַּהֲרָרִים הַתְּלוּיִין בְּשַׂעֲרָה, שֶׁהֵן מִקְרָא מֻעָט וַהֲלָכוֹת מְרֻבּוֹת. הַדִּינִין וְהָעֲבוֹדוֹת, הַטָּהֳרוֹת וְהַטֻּמְאוֹת וַעֲרָיוֹת, יֵשׁ לָהֶן עַל מַה שֶּׁיִּסְמֹכוּ. הֵן הֵן גּוּפֵי תּוֹרָה:"

Dissolving vows fly in the air, there is no basis for it. Laws concerning Shabbat and festival-offering and stealing from holy-designated things, these are like mountains hung from a hair: they have few verses and many laws. Judgment and service and purity and impurity and improper sexual relations, they have plenty to be based on. They themselves are the body of Torah.

Why is it so? Why are some details called the Written Torah and the others the Oral Law?

(please answer in general, not for those specific Mitzvos, like "if the Torah wasn't saying X we wouldn't know".)

Please note that my question deals specifically with the fine balance between the written and the oral law - where the written Torah stops and the oral law begins, unlike this question that deals only with the details of the stories in the Torah.

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  • @DonielF Please note that my question deals specifically with the fine balance between the written and the oral law - where the written Torah stops and the oral law begins, why for some Mitzvos the "oral tradition details" are in written and for some they are not even mentioned – Al Berko Mar 24 '19 at 19:13
  • So does that one. In its words, “Is there a reason that certain material was put in one medium and some in the other?” – DonielF Mar 24 '19 at 19:19
  • How far are you willing to stretch the bounds of “traditional” hashkafah to answer this question? – Alex Mar 24 '19 at 19:30
  • @Alex Thanks for joining us. I couldn't find any reference to this subject in the traditional Hashkafa, besides total arbitrarity. I'm open to any suggestion inc. unsourced and personal speculations. – Al Berko Mar 24 '19 at 19:41
  • @AlBerko I was more referring to suggestions that contradict significant traditional ideas. – Alex Mar 24 '19 at 20:00
  • Re your edit: That question doesn’t only focus on stories, either. “The written Torah details the list of forbidden relationships, but provides no explicit detail of ‘work’ forbidden on Shabbat. The Torah tells us how to behave with our slaves and animals, but not how to slaughter properly.” – DonielF Mar 24 '19 at 20:22
  • @DonielF Still my question is very clear - where do we draw the line? – Al Berko Mar 24 '19 at 20:27
  • @AlBerko Who said anything about being clear? All I’m asking is what about your question is fundamentally different from that one? – DonielF Mar 24 '19 at 20:28
  • @DonielF It doesn't speak of the Torah it speaks of the distinction between the oral and written law. Why some oral things are in written and some have no written roots. The other question is generally about the style of Torah writing. – Al Berko Mar 24 '19 at 20:30
  • That’s semantics. Fundamentally you’re asking the same question: why are some things heavily detailed in the Written Torah, and other things barely alluded to? Let me put it this way: would a complete answer to that question answer yours as well? – DonielF Mar 24 '19 at 20:32
  • @DonielF Lets put the questions aside for a moment. Where do you draw the line between the laws? Because it's very stringent - those you can't write and those you cant say by heart. – Al Berko Mar 24 '19 at 20:36
  • @AlBerko I’m not asking a problem with your question. I’m asking about site policy. I think you have a very good question, but as far as I can tell, it’s been asked already. – DonielF Mar 24 '19 at 20:37
  • @DonielF Besides beating each other to death, how can we resolve this intelligently? You think it is a duplicate and I strongly disagree. – Al Berko Mar 24 '19 at 20:51
  • So explain to me why this isn’t a duplicate! – DonielF Mar 24 '19 at 20:52
  • @DonielF Besides that question has a very weak answer, I hope that my question nails it better and more "halachicly". – Al Berko Mar 24 '19 at 20:52
  • In other words, it’s the same question, but you’re hoping for better answers? As per https://judaism.meta.stackexchange.com/q/4394/ you should be placing a bounty, not asking a dupe. – DonielF Mar 24 '19 at 20:57
  • Let us continue this discussion in chat. – DonielF Mar 24 '19 at 21:21

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