Studying the Laws of Pesach
Introduction
In his Shulchan Aruch, the Alter Rebbe begins the laws of Pesach with the following: In the times of the Beis HaMikdash, the Sages instituted the practice of publicly teaching and explaining the laws of each festival thirty days in advance; hence, from Purim onward we study the laws of Pesach. This is to remind the people about the upcoming festival, giving them thirty days advance notice so as not to forget to select animals that are kosher for the festival sacrifice. Even after the destruction of the Beis HaMikdash, this practice [of learning the laws thirty days prior to the holiday] was not annulled. Rather, each Rabbi teaches his students the laws of the festival thirty days in advance. In these generations… since all [the laws] have been printed in books, it is incumbent upon each individual to personally study the laws before each festival until he is fluent in them and knows exactly what he must do.
