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Va’Etchanan: With All Your Soul

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By Rabbi Chanan Morrison

Rabbi Akiva’s Martyrdom

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When the Romans decreed that teaching Torah is a crime punishable by death, Rabbi Akiva’s reaction was not surprising. The pre-eminent scholar, former spiritual leader of the Bar Kochba revolt, gathered people together and gave public Torah lectures.

Before long, Rabbi Akiva was charged and convicted. The rabbi was taken out for public execution - and it was the hour for reciting the Shema prayer. As the executioners flayed his skin with iron combs, Rabbi Akiva recited the Shema, concentrating on fulfilling its words: to love God "with all your heart, soul, and might."

The Talmud [Berachot 61b] records Rabbi Akiva’s final conversation before his death. His students questioned him, "Our master! Even to this extent?"

The scholar responded:

"All my life I have been troubled by this verse, "You shall love God… with all your soul." As I have explained its meaning: "all your soul," even if they take your life. I have always wondered: will I ever have the privilege of fulfilling this mitzvah? And now the opportunity has finally arrived - shall I not seize it?"

This exchange between Rabbi Akiva and his students requires clarification. What exactly did his disciples mean when they asked, "Even to this extent?"

The Purpose of Shema

One might think that the daily recitation of Shema is a preparatory act. Each day we accept upon ourselves the reign of Heaven and prepare ourselves to love God, even if we must forfeit our lives. This daily declaration ensures that we will have the necessary reserves of courage and fortitude, should there arise a need for self-sacrifice.

Therefore, the students were surprised. Their teacher had already withstood the test. He had accepted martyrdom with a noble and resolute love of God. Even the cruelest instruments of torture had not deterred him. What need, then, was there for Rabbi Akiva to recite this final Shema? Why prepare for that which he was now already fulfilling?

Rabbi Akiva, however, understood the intrinsic value of Shema. This declaration of love for God and acceptance of His rule is not just a tool to train the spirit. Each recitation of Shema is in itself a wonderful act. Every time we whole-heartedly declare God’s unity, our souls are uplifted in holiness and closeness to God. The Shema is not just a means by which we prepare ourselves; its very recitation promotes spiritual growth.

Until his last recitation of Shema, Rabbi Akiva had only been able to imagine martyrdom as he said the Shema. His entire life, he had wondered whether he would ever be able to fulfill the mitzvah of Shema in its most extreme form. "Will I ever have the privilege of completely fulfilling this mitzvah?" Now he was able to accept the reign of Heaven and love of God while sacrificing his life - not just as a vision in his mind, but in real life.

His Soul Departed with Echad

The Talmud relates that Rabbi Akiva concentrated on the word Echad (God is one), and his soul departed.

Rabbi Akiva breathed his last while saying Echad. A master of Jewish law, he could infer law from even the smallest dots in the Torah [Menachot 29b]. Yet, all the detailed laws and explanations which he had propounded during his lifetime were all part of a single harmonious system. Everything he taught shared the same underlying theme: how to live one’s life according to the supreme principle of God oneness.

[adapted from Ein Eyah vol. lI] Rabbi Morrison runs RavKook.n3.net, a website dedicated to presenting the Torah commentary of Rabbi Avraham Yitzchak HaCohen Kook, first Chief Rabbi of Eretz Yisrael, to the English-speaking community.


Posted by Rabbi Chanan Morrison on 07/27 at 03:39 PM • Hits: 143



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