THE FATHER OF THE TALMUD
The Mishna, the Tosefta, the Sifra, and the Sifre, the seminal texts of rabbinical literature, have their origin directly or indirectly in the work of a single man: Ribbi Aqiba (or Akiva), considered the father of Talmudic literature. He was born around the year 50 of the common era. In his youth, he worked as a shepherd for the richest man in Jerusalem: Kalba Sabua, a very generous Jew who stood out for his solidarity with the poor and for supplying the entire city of Jerusalem with food at the time of the Roman’s siege, in the year 68. Not much is known about Aqiba’s childhood. We do know that at the age of forty, Aqiba was a simple worker and did not even know how to read. Additionally, he was not very sympathetic to religion. In fact, he had a hostile attitude for the Sages. How did it happen then that an illiterate man who had no sympathy for Tora’s studies became the most influential rabbi of all times?
THE DISCOVERY OF THE CENTURY
Kalba Sabua had a daughter: her name was Rachel. She was the most sought-after bachelorette in Jerusalem. She could have chosen to marry the candidate of her choice: the man with the most wisdom, or from the best family. No one would have said “no” to Kalba Sabua’s daughter. But something extraordinary happened. The Gemara tells us that Rachel —who possessed an outstanding feminine perception— observed something special in Aqiba. The Sages described what she saw with two little words that do not always come together: צנוע וּמעלי. The first word tsanua means “discreet”, but it also means: “shy” or in this context: “hidden”. The second word ma’ale means “talented”, “above the ordinary”, or in this context: “gifted”. Somehow, this young woman discovered that this shepherd possessed very special and unusual intellectual gifts and she also realized that those talents were “hidden”: Aqiba used his gifts to take care of the cattle or to administrate her father’s state. That didn’t seem to bother anyone else. But Rachel realized that Aqiba’s geniality was wasted. And she visualized that if this man would dedicate himself to study, he could become one of the greatest Sages of his generation!
Those were chaotic times. The study of Tora, and especially the transmission of the Oral Tradition was in danger. The Romans who had destroyed the Bet haMiqdash, were after the Sages and aimed to destroy Judaism. The Jewish people needed geniuses who could recover our Traditions, organize them and rescue them from oblivion. Rachel thought, that Aqiba could be one of those talented scholars if he would develop his potential and dedicate his life to study. And she was not wrong!
AN OFFER YOU CAN NOT REFUSE
Rachel then made a decision that would not only redefine her personal life but would impact the destiny of the Jewish people to this day. In an absolutely transcendental act, extremely unusual and risky: she proposed to marry Ribbi Aqiba. She said: “If I marry you, will you promise me that you will dedicate yourself fully to studying Tora?”. I’m not sure if rabbi Aqiba had the same confidence Rachel had in him, and if he ever believed that he will become a great scholar. Perhaps he thought that the condition that Rachel demanded “dedicate yourself to study Tora” was doable. And perhaps he thought that his future father-in-law would surely help them financially while he studied… in any case: Rabbi Aqiba said: “I do”. But Kalba Sabua was furious with his daughter. Why did she insist on marrying an illiterate, who doesn’t even come from a known family (in fact the Sages say that Rabbi Aquiba’s ancestors were converts!). Kalba Sabua was so angry that he expelled his daughter and her husband out of his state.
STRAWS AND GOLD
Now, Aqiba was married to the best woman, but he had no house, no money, and no job. During the first few months, Aqiba and Rachel slept in the fields. In the winter, they collected straws from the forest to protect themselves from the cold. Aqiba was very sad to see his wife living in such poverty, even though she never complained. The Gemara says that every morning, upon waking up, Aqiba would fix her wife’s hair, and remove the straws that remained on her head. And he would tell her: “If I ever have the opportunity, instead of these straws, I will give you as a gift a “Jerusalem of Gold” to adorn your hair”. This deserves a clarification. Jewish women used a wide variety of jewelry to beautify themselves: earrings, bracelets, necklaces, etc. But there was a piece of jewelry that was the most elaborated, the most exotic, and the most expensive. It was called “‘ir shel zahab” or “Yerushalayim Shel Zahab” (Jerusalem of gold). This luxurious jewelry was a crown, made in the shape of the original Jerusalem (which instead of a Mosque, had the Bet HaMiqdash in the center, as can be seen in this reconstruction). This very expensive tiara, made of pure gold, was worn by women who belonged to the wealthiest families. Little did Rachel or Rabbi Aqiba himself imagine that one day, that wish would come true…..
IS ANYONE POORER THAN US?
The Sages also tell us that in order to comfort Ribbi Aqiba who was suffering so much for the extreme poverty that he was experiencing, God sent them a visitor (Eliyahu haNabi), a very poor individual that made a strange request from Rabbi Aqiba: “Please, sir, I need help. My wife is about to give birth, and she needs straws to lie down and have an easier delivery. Can you please give me some straw”. Aqiba immediately gave the straw to this man, and with a little more confidence he then told his wife. “You see my dear Rachel, our situation is not that bad. There are people who are poorer than us, but at least we have a lot of straw to cover ourselves.”
To be continued
