My understanding was that Mishneh Torah is a book of Torah Shebaal Peh, which is this study of how to actually do mitzvos-- what the mitzvos are and how to do them. Torah Shebechtav on the other hand is the educational manual to learn the framework in which the mitzvos are to be performed.
It seems like I'm not understanding one of these. So what is Torah Shebaal Peh and Torah Shebechtav? And where does the Mishneh Torah fit in?
Or is Ralbag a work of Torah Shebaal Peh in the way that I mean and Mishneh Torah is also but in some other way?
אֶשָּׂא עֵינַי, אֶל-הֶהָרִים-- מֵאַיִן, יָבֹא עֶזְרִי ?
עֶזְרִי, מֵעִם יְהוָה-- עֹשֵׂה, שָׁמַיִם וָאָרֶץ
The Mitzvot are principles of acting as mind. To act as a mind requires one to understand oneself in proper relationship to one's environment.
This involves,first of all understanding mans relation to Hashem as part of the absolute environment of Shamayim vaaretz. It then involves understanding mans relation to Hashem as part of the immediate environment of daled amot. Within daled amos there are many sub relationships man to field and tree.Man to territory and home. Man to animal. Man to man. Man to parent. These are are all areas in which we must learn to see the principles of human action.
These principles are seen first in a general simplified form embedded in the stories of Bichtav. Think of Lo Tachrosh. While we had an understanding of the mitzva, we did not learn its halachic details. We learned what could be seen via its context of bichtav. In similar fashion a simplified understanding of Peru U'rvu is embedded in Creation.A simplified understanding of Berit Milah is embedded with Avraham Avinu etc.
This first simplified baal peh involved in identifying the Mitzvot and their simple applications is done by Ralbag. There is a more advanced form of seeing the applications of Mitzvot to all cases- this is Rambam. Read my "why Rambam" on the bottom of my blog. I go into this issue there as well.
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