In general, for many it is obvious what the Torah is. It is generally accepted that this is the Pentateuch of Moses, including the first books of the Bible known to us: Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, Deuteronomy (in Hebrew names come from the first word of the book, for example, Genesis- "In the Beginning", "Exodus" - "Names " and so on). But for the Jews this is a much broader and more capacious concept, which determines the chosenness of the nation.
Synagogues are scattered all over the world, where orthodox Jews worship God, communicate, teach their children. In the Jewish synagogue there is a special sacred place aron-kodesh - the ark, in which the sacred book is kept. What is the Torah? This is Scripture, decorated in a special scroll from the hand written text. The scroll is made of specially processed parchment, the end of which is fixed on two carved wooden bases. Every Saturday in the synagogue is read the chapter from the Pentateuch. Thus, the whole text is reread for the year.
The origin of the Torah is also a contentious issue. Some researchers believe that these books were written gradually over several hundred years based on oral tradition. But any real Jew will tell you with certainty that the Torah was given on Mount Sinai by God Himself to Moses after the people left Egypt, then a covenant was made between the Most High and his people.
These sacred books describe the origin of the earth, as well as its initial history before and after the flood. The covenant of Abraham with God gave grounds for the appearance of a people, in which all the peoples of the earth should be blessed. Particular attention is given to the moral law - the decalogue or, more simply, the 10 commandments, as well as the ceremonial law describing standards of ministry in the sanctuary. The Pentateuch, the Mosaic Law, clearly shows the causal relationship between the life of the people and their well-being. Thus, the dispersion of the Jews on earth is the result of disobedience, and the restoration of the state is a sign of grace due to repentance.
The Torah texts are learned by Jewish children, especially boys, by heart. Each teenager, passing through the initiation (bar mitzvah), first goes out in the synagogue to read the chapter from this book. Also, the tradition requires every Jewish man to write his own list, which is quite difficult to accomplish. The fact is that you need to follow clearly the existing canons of writing, the number of characters is counted so that the error does not crept in, you need to write a list with a special font, calligraphic handwriting in Hebrew. Some order the creation of their own list of specialists - calligraphers, but this is very expensive. As was often the case, the Jews fulfill this command, but not quite as required. For example, one list can be ordered by a group, and thus, as it were, everyone is the owner of the Book.
What is the Torah for a Jew? This is primarily his connection with the people of God, especially blessed. These are the rules according to which you must build your life and the promised privileges for it. And most importantly, this means to keep oneself clean and to know the will of the Almighty.
You can find a lot of negative information about the Torah, rather, it is connected with the negative in relation to its interpretation by the Jews themselves. But we can not but agree that the Pentateuch played a huge role for many cultures, formed the basis of world religions (Christianity and Judaism), the ten commandments - the basis of the morality of any society, the basis of criminal and civil law. Thus, despite the different answers to the question of what the Torah is, one must recognize its enormous influence on the development of all human history.