The question that can be raised is this obligation of seeing one's Rebbe a Talmud Torah halacha or is it a Yom Tov halacha. The Magan Avrohom (301:7) assumes that woman are included in this obligation and the proof is that the source of the obligation is learnt out from the אשה שונמית that went to Elisha. However, the Pnei Yehoshua Rosh Hashana (16b) assumes that women must be exempt for as a separate obligation it is a mitzvat aseh s'hazman grama and talmud torah she is exempt from. And he explains that the אשה שונמית would go to Elisha despite the fact that she was exempt because she went to appreciate the greatness of Elisha. How can the Magen Avrohom hold that woman are obligated? I think the simple peshat would be that we see in the possuk that woman are obligated so we see over here woman are obligated in this mitzvah despite it being time bound. However why that would be, is unclear. In the Moaday HaGrach (Kanievsky,) ( #252,) he was asked what is the explanation of the Magen Avrohom and he said it is part of simchas Yom Tov. I guess Rav Chayim assumes one is happy to see there Rebbe on Yom Tov and it hence would be a fulfillment of simchas Yom Tov.
If we assume like this, then we can address the previous Rashi. The reason why going לקבל פני רבו בחג exempts one from other mitzvot is because it is a kiyum mitzvah of simchas yom tov. [I assume the geder of this would be that the Rabbis enacted that one must fulfill simcha in this manner of greeting one's Rebbe and not through other means.]
The next two questions in the sefer reflected this opinion of R' Chayim that it is an obligation of the Yom Tov, not an obligation of learning Torah. In the next question they asked R' Chayim if מקבל פני רבו בחג is part of the mitzvah of talmud torah or part of מורא וכבוד רבו. He responded that its part of the כבוד הרגל. [I'm not sure what that means its כבוד הרגל and he didn't respond its from the mitzvah of simcha.] The question after that is why the Rambam cites the law in Talmud Torah (5:7) and not in the laws of Yom Tov? His response: לפני שכחו מענין רבו. I don't know what that means either. He goes לשיטתו in דרך שיחה עמ' תקסח where he assumes saying Gut Yom Tov to one's Rebbe is a fulfillment of the din. If the yesod hadin is a law in talmud torah, then one would only be able to fulfill it by hearing דברי תורה from his Rebbe.
The Bikkuray Yaakov (603:22) suggests that even though the obligation may be derived from the navi, it is a fulfillment of את ה' אלקיך תירא לרבות ת"ח. With this idea, he explains the Rashi in Sukkah. One is exempt from other mitzvot for they are fulfilling the mitzvoh of honoring a talmud chacham. This is a third dimension. The yesod of the laws isn't for the Yom Tov or talmud torah, rather to show honor to one's Rebbe. The terminology of Rashi Chagigah (3a) ד"ה להקבל פניו וכו' לכבד את רבו also slightly indicates like this. And this is the simple read of the Rambam that cites this law in the context of honoring one's Rebbe. On the other hand ,the Ramban Yisro (20:8) says the mitzvah is 'לשמוע דבר ה indicating the yesod hadin is a way of fulfilling talmud torah. The Ritvah Sukkah (27a) understands the obligatiobn to come on the holiday is only for someone that is far away but one who lives close to their Rebbe must come every day. That obligation may be understood as כבוד רבו or because of talmud torah, to able to learn better. [See Magan Avrohom 554:12 and Pri Migadim there.]
The Nodeh B'yehuda volume 2 (#94) asks why is this law of לקבל פני רבו not cited in the Rosh and Shulchan Aruch? He says that the mitzvah doesn't apply after the destruction of the Temple based upon the Gemorah Kiddushin (33b) that one should only stand up for their Rebbe once in the morning and once in the evening so that one isn't honoring their Rebbe more than Hashem that we accept his kingship in Shema twice a day. So too now since we can't go be עולה לרגל, we shouldn't go visit our Rebbe and show more honor to them. Rav Avrohom Gorvitz asks its not showing more honor to the Rebbe for that we don't do עלייה לרגל is because we are אנוס, not because we are diminishing כבוד שמים? Furthermore, would one that is exempt from עלייה לרגל be exempt from קבלת פני רבו, it doesn't say that anywhere? Therefore, he says based upon the understanding that the yesod hadin is to show honor to one's Rebbe, it shouldn't be compared to עלייה לרגל which is to come to Yerushaliam to bring the korbanot of the holiday, rather to krias shema for both of them are expressions of honoring; shema is honoring Hashem by accepting His sovereignty and לקבל פני רבו is to honor one's Rebbe by going to them. Hence, a lack of being עולה לרגל has nothing to do with going לקבל פני רבו, rather just as one recites krias shema, so too one should also be מקבל פני רבו ברגל.
To conclude with two additional points. The Rema M'pano (Teshuvot #6 at the end,) says the reason to לקבל פני רבו ברגל is because it is the chachamim that cause the kedusha of the yomim tovim by sanctifying the month.
A very important lesson that is cited in the Divrei Siach from the Steipler.
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