One Who Does Chesed is Considered to be Learning Torah

It is related that Rav Chaim of Volozhin zy”a once approached a Jew who was in the middle of learning and asked for his help with an act of tzedakah and chesed that needed to be done. The man answered that he couldn’t help right now because he was learning Torah, and the Mishnah says (Peah 1:1): “Learning Torah is equal to all other mitzvos.”

Rav Chaim told him that if a Jew is unable to close his Gemara to do chesed, it is considered as if his Gemara is closed and he is not learning. But if someone closes his Gemara to do chesed, it is considered as if his Gemara was open and he was learning the entire time.