B”H
2,000 yrs. ago, in the holy land of Israel, there lived a Jewish man named Akiva.
Akiva worked for one of Israel’s richest men, Kalba Savua.
Akiva labored honestly and with great alacrity, amassing much wealth for his master,
And gradually became very esteemed in his eyes.
Now Kalba Savua had a daughter named Rachel.
As the days passed, Rachel began to notice Akiva’s great qualities,
and went over to speak with him.
As they discussed matters, topics moved to belief.
“I’m a simple Jew,” said Akiva. “I work honestly and belive I’m doing the right thing.”
“But Akiva, as a Jew it’s vital that you learn Torah as well!
You could do it if you tried!” Rochel pleaded.
Akiva shrugged his shoulders and went back to his work.
He really liked Rachel, but didn’t believe he could ever conquer the vast ocean of Torah Wisdom.
He had never even studied the Alef-Bet!
Rochel saw through Akiva’s demeanor, and knew he had amazing potential.
One day, Rachel made a proposal to Akiva:
“Akiva, I will marry you on one condition. That you go and learn in yeshiva.”
Akiva was stuck. He loved Rachel, but on the other hand felt he couldn’t begin to learn now.
He was already 40 yrs. Old!
That afternoon, Akiva took a stroll in the forest, to ponder his decision.
As he walked and walked, deeper into the forest, he happened upon a small stream.
Next to it rested a large boulder. What caught Akiva’s attention however,
Akiva stood mesmerized as he noticed the effects these tiny drops were having on this
humongous boulder. The drops, over an extremely long period of time, had made a hole,
penetrating the boulder’s “rock-hard” surface! Akiva thought to himself:
‘If tiny drops of water, through continuous effort,
can penetrate this boulder, surely I, Akiva, can penetrate through the vast sea of Torah.
Akiva returned and married Rachel.
Years later, Rabbi Akiva returned home with 24,000 of the world's greatest students.
Nearly every single Jew has heard of the great “Rabbi Akiva.”
Rabbi Akiva is one of the greatest expounders of Torah to have ever graced this earth.
How did he do it!?
How did he go from Akiva, the middle aged laborer, with no knowledge of Judaism whatsoever,
to perhaps the greatest teacher our people have ever had?
He believed in himself. And he worked hard.
He didn't see the boulder that faced him,
but rather the small drops.
One letter, one word, one verse, one page.
One step at a time.
This true story of a remarkable Jewish figure in our history, should inspire us all; to always believe in ourselves and know our abilities. To never give up and never to be ashamed to say “I don’t know.” To start from the beginning and work our way up. This is certainly true for all areas of our lives. But specifically in our lives as Jews. Regardless of our observance of the Mitzvot or knowledge of the Torah, we must know, with a certainty, that we can always start learning! (Rabbi Akiva didn’t even have the access of internet to learn!) {hint hint: Chabad.org}
We must know that we can always grow in our spiritual lives-all it takes is a bit of will and courage to explore the beautiful wisdom of our Torah and our heritage.
[During this financial slide, it's interesting to note a teaching of The Lubavitcher Rebbe, that through learning Torah, one gains in all areas of his life, and is blessed not only spiritually, but materially & physically as well. As we see with Rabbi Akiva, who became extremely wealthy after learning in yeshiva...food for thought ]
Anyways, if Rabbi Akiva could start learning the alphabet at 40,
I guess it’s never too late for us!
Good luck!
Daniel
P.S. Monday night & Tuesday commemorate “Lag B’Omer”, the day of the passing of Rabbi Akiva’s Greatest student, “Rabbi Shimon Bar Yochai.” Jews across the world will celebrate it, with bonfires and many other customs. See your local shul for details.
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