Unlock 3,000 Years of Jewish Wisdom: What is Sefaria?

Highlights

Vast Collection: Access thousands of years of Jewish texts, including the Torah, Talmud, commentaries, and more, primarily in Hebrew with growing English translations.
Interactive Tools: Explore interconnected texts, create custom source sheets, and follow structured study schedules, enhancing personal learning and teaching.
Free & Accessible: As a non-profit, Sefaria provides completely free access to its library via web and mobile apps (iOS/Android), including offline capabilities.

What is Sefaria?

Mission and Origins

Sefaria is a non-profit organization dedicated to making the richness of Jewish textual tradition accessible to everyone, anywhere, for free. It functions as a "living library," constantly growing and evolving, offering a vast digital collection of Jewish texts spanning over 3,000 years. Its core mission is to build the future of Jewish learning in an open, participatory, and digital-first manner, fostering engagement with these foundational works.

Founders and Milestones

Sefaria was founded in 2011 by Brett Lockspeiser, a former Google project manager, and Joshua Foer, a journalist and author. They envisioned a platform that could digitize, translate, and interconnect the vast corpus of Jewish literature. The first beta version launched in 2012, followed by official incorporation in 2013. Supported by donations and grants from organizations like the Natan Fund, Jonathan and Tamar Koschitzky, and the Jim Joseph Foundation, Sefaria underwent a significant redesign in 2016, improving its interface and launching mobile applications. Key content milestones include adding complete English translations of Rashi's Torah commentary, Ibn Ezra's Torah commentaries, and a new JPS Tanakh translation.

Exploring the Vast Digital Library

Core Texts and Collections

Sefaria houses an extensive collection, estimated at around 183 million words (as of 2018), making it one of the largest free repositories of Jewish texts online. Its library includes:

Torah: The Five Books of Moses (Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, Deuteronomy).
Tanakh: The Hebrew Bible, encompassing the Torah, Nevi'im (Prophets), and Ketuvim (Writings).
Talmud: Both the Babylonian and Jerusalem Talmuds, capturing generations of rabbinic debate on law and ethics.
Mishnah: The foundational code of Jewish Oral Law.
Midrash: Collections of rabbinic interpretations, stories, and homilies expanding on the Tanakh.
Commentaries: Classic and modern commentaries from scholars like Rashi, Ibn Ezra, Rambam (Maimonides), Ramban, and many others.
Halakhah: Jewish legal texts, including Maimonides' Mishneh Torah and the Shulchan Arukh.
Kabbalah & Philosophy: Mystical texts like the Zohar and key works of Jewish philosophy.
Liturgy: Siddurim (prayer books) and other liturgical texts.
Modern Works: Writings from more recent periods.

Languages and Translations

Texts are primarily available in their original languages (Hebrew, Aramaic, Judeo-Arabic). A significant and growing number feature high-quality English translations displayed side-by-side with the original. This bilingual format is invaluable for students, scholars, and lay readers alike, facilitating deeper understanding and comparative study. Sefaria actively works on expanding its translation library, often collaborating with publishers and translators, ensuring reliability and accessibility.

Screenshot showing Sefaria being used for teaching purposes

Sefaria's platform is widely used in educational settings, facilitating the creation and sharing of learning materials.

Features Enhancing Study and Engagement

Interactive Learning Tools

Sefaria goes beyond simply presenting texts; it offers tools designed to deepen understanding and encourage interaction.

Interconnected Texts

One of Sefaria's most powerful features is its network of interconnections. Hyperlinks woven throughout the library connect texts to related commentaries, discussions in the Talmud, Midrashic interpretations, legal codes, and other relevant sources. Clicking on a verse can reveal centuries of interpretation and discussion, allowing users to trace ideas across the vast landscape of Jewish literature.

Source Sheet Builder

Users can create personalized "source sheets" – custom collections of texts, translations, commentaries, and user-added notes. This tool is incredibly useful for educators preparing lessons, students compiling research, study groups exploring themes, or individuals creating personal study guides. Source sheets can be easily saved and shared with others.

Structured Study Schedules

Sefaria incorporates calendars for popular daily and weekly Jewish study cycles. Users can easily follow schedules like:

Parashat HaShavua (Weekly Torah Portion)
Daf Yomi (Daily page of Talmud)
929 (Daily chapter of Tanakh)
Rambam Yomi (Daily study of Maimonides' Mishneh Torah)
Mishnah Yomit (Daily Mishnah study)

This integration makes it convenient to participate in communal learning practices.

Accessibility and Technology

Web and Mobile Platforms

Sefaria is accessible through its main website (Sefaria.org) and dedicated mobile applications available for both iOS and Android devices. The platform is designed for a seamless experience across devices.

Offline Access

A key feature, especially for the mobile apps, is the ability to download the entire library (or selected sections) for offline use. The core library requires approximately 500MB of storage, making comprehensive Jewish learning possible even without an internet connection.

Open Source and Community Driven

Sefaria operates on an open-source model, making its code and much of its content freely available under open licenses. It relies on a combination of technological processes (like Optical Character Recognition for scanning public domain books) and human effort. A dedicated team and numerous volunteers contribute to adding texts, correcting errors, creating translations, and tagging connections, fostering a collaborative environment that continuously improves the library.

Visualizing Sefaria's Scope

Key Text Categories and Features

This chart provides a visual representation of Sefaria's strengths across different dimensions, based on its features and content offerings. It highlights the platform's extensive text coverage, robust interactive features, high accessibility, and strong community engagement, alongside the ongoing development of its translation library.

Understanding Sefaria's Interconnected Network

Mindmap of Sefaria's Ecosystem

This mindmap illustrates the core components of Sefaria and how they relate to each other. It shows how the vast library, powered by technology and community, delivers interactive features to fulfill its educational mission.

mindmap root["Sefaria: A Living Digital Library"] id1["Core Library"] id1a["Jewish Texts (3000+ years)"] id1a1["Tanakh (Torah, Neviim, Ketuvim)"] id1a2["Talmud (Babylonian, Jerusalem)"] id1a3["Mishnah & Midrash"] id1a4["Halakhah (Law)"] id1a5["Kabbalah & Philosophy"] id1a6["Liturgy & Modern Works"] id1b["Translations"] id1b1["Primarily English"] id1b2["Side-by-Side View"] id1b3["Growing Collection"] id1c["Commentaries"] id1c1["Rashi, Ibn Ezra, Rambam, etc."] id2["Interactive Features"] id2a["Intertextual Linking"] id2b["Source Sheet Builder"] id2c["Search & Browse"] id2d["Study Schedules (Daf Yomi, etc.)"] id2e["Annotations & Notes"] id3["Technology & Platform"] id3a["Website (Sefaria.org)"] id3b["Mobile Apps (iOS, Android)"] id3c["Offline Access"] id3d["Open Source"] id3e["API for Developers"] id4["Community & Organization"] id4a["Non-Profit Status"] id4b["Users (Learners, Educators, Scholars)"] id4c["Volunteers (Translation, Correction)"] id4d["Funders & Donors"] id5["Mission & Impact"] id5a["Free Access to Texts"] id5b["Democratizing Jewish Learning"] id5c["Building Future of Torah Study"] id5d["Global Reach"]

Sefaria in Action: Learning and Teaching

Video Introduction

To get a practical sense of how Sefaria works and how you can begin exploring its resources, the "Sefaria 101" video provides a helpful starting point. It offers a basic orientation to navigating the site and finding texts, suitable for new users.

Comparing Key Aspects of Sefaria

Feature Comparison Table

This table summarizes some of the essential characteristics of the Sefaria platform, offering a quick overview of its core offerings and accessibility features.

Aspect	Description
Text Scope	Comprehensive library covering Tanakh, Talmud, Midrash, Halakha, Kabbalah, Philosophy, Commentaries, Liturgy, Modern Works.
Primary Languages	Hebrew, Aramaic.
Translation Access	Growing collection of English translations, often displayed side-by-side with the original text.
Key Tools	Intertextual linking, Source Sheet Builder, search functionality, integrated study schedules.
Platform Availability	Web browser (Sefaria.org), Mobile Apps (iOS and Android).
Offline Access	Yes, via mobile apps (full library downloadable).
Cost	Free (non-profit organization).
Model	Open Source, Community-supported (volunteers & donations).