This Legend is written for my good friend Bari Nirenberg.
When Moses went up to heaven to receive the Torah, he found God in the process of adding to it various symbols and ornaments. Conscious of this role as spokesman, Moses asked shyly:
Why not give the Torah, such as it is? Isn't it rich enough in meaning, sufficiently obscured?
Why complicate it further?" There will live a man named Akiba, son of Joseph, who will seek and discover all kinds of interpretations in every word, in every syllable, in every letter of the Torah. So, you see, I must put them there, so that he may find the meaning of what has been written so that others of future generations may understand."
Would you show me that man, asked Moses, impressed. I should like to know him."
Since there was nothing - or almost nothing - that He could refuse His loyal servant, God said to him:
"Turn around, go backward."
Moses did as he was told. He turned backward and found himself projected into the future. There he was, in a Talmudic academy, sitting in the very last row, among the beginners, listening to a master delivering a course on Moses' teachings and work. What Moses heard was beautiful, probably even profound, but...to much for him. He understood nothing, not one concept, not one word. And a new sadness overcame him; he felt useless, diminished. Suddenly, he heard a question a pupil was asking he rabbi:
"What proof do you have that your views on the subject are correct? That your opinion, and only yours, is correct?"
And the master, Rabbi Akiba, replied:
"I have it from my Masters, who had it from theirs, who for their part claimed Moses as their teacher. What I am telling you is what Moses heard at Sinai."
Amused, and flattered too, Moses - the first Jewish author - was mollified. But something continued to trouble him. He again turned to God:
"I do not understand. Since You have at Your disposal a sage such as he, a teacher such as he, why do You need me? Let him be Your messenger to transmit the Law of Israel to the people of Israel!"
But God interrupted him:
"Moses, son of Amran, be quiet! This is how I envision things!"
Satisfied or not, Moses submitted. He insisted no more. Yet, after a while he could not repress his curiosity:
"Tell me...What will happen to him, later?"
And once again God made him turn around to show him the future. And Moses saw Rabbi Akiba at the hours of death. He saw his agony, his martyrdom at the hands of the Roman executioners. And in his astonishment and distress he cried out for the third time:
"I do not understand, Almighty! Is this justice? Is this the reward for studying Your Law? Do those who live by it deserve such a death?"
And once again God cut him short:
"Be quiet, son of Amran! Such is My will. This is how I envision things!
And Moses kept a respectful silence, just as, centuries later, Rabbi Akiba remained silent on the day when he faced both death and eternity.
Copyright:1986-2008