Category: Interesting Facts
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Interesting Fact 07: Rabbi Akiva against Christianity
In Shul this morning, someone mentioned this statement of Rav Kook. I don’t have time now to translate it (perhaps in the future), but it is from the fourth of the Shemoneh Kevatzim of Rav Avraham Yitzchak HaCohen Kook number 238. In it Rav Kook writes that the “Son of the Israelite woman” mentioned in… Read more
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Interesting Fact No 5: Rabbi Akiva may have been bald
For more interesting facts click the link Ben Azzai makes a cryptic statement, recorded in Bechorot 58a: תניא בן עזאי אומר כל חכמי ישראל דומין עלי כקליפת השום חוץ מן הקרח הזה It was taught: Ben Azzai says, “All the Sages of Israel are like garlic skins to me, except for this bald one… Read more
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Interesting Fact No. 4: Rabbi Akiva was Widely Travelled
It seems from the Gemara in Rosh HaShana that Rabbi Akiva had travelled the world (or at least Africa, Europe and Asia). Rosh Hashana 26a אמר רבי עקיבא כשהלכתי לערביא היו קורין לדכרא יובלא ואמר ר”ע כשהלכתי לגליא היו קורין לנדה גלמודה מאי גלמודה גמולה דא מבעלה ואמר ר”ע כשהלכתי לאפריקי היו קורין למעה קשיטה… Read more
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Interesting Fact 3: Rabbi Akiva Appears in Almost Every Tractate of Mishna
[For interesting facts 1 and 2 about Rabbi Akiva just follow the links] According to Zecharia Frankl, in Darkei HaMishna (p.111, footnote 9) , statements of Rabbi Akiva appear in approximately 260 mishnayot. In fact, there are very few masechtot of mishna which do not contain statements from Rabbi Akiva: לר”ע באו הלכות במשנה כמעט… Read more
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Interesting Fact 2: Rabbi Akiva’s Father-in-Law
As I said yesterday, everyone knows that Rabbi Akiva’s father-in-law was knows as Kalba Savua. However, did you know that according to the Gemara (Shabbat 147a) Rabbi Akiva had a father-in-law with a differnet name as well? יהושע בן כפוסאי היה חתנו של ר’ עקיבא …it was Yehoshua ben Kapusai, father-in-law of Rabbi Akiva… If… Read more
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Interesting Fact 1: Rabbi Akiva’s Brother-in-Law
We have certain mourning practices during Sefirat HaOmer because of the 24,000 students of Rabbi Akiva who all died at this time. However, immediately afterwards Rabbi Akiva went and taught another five Rabbis in the South, and (almost) the entire Oral Torah as we have it today developed from what he taught those students. Here… Read more