One day it was announced in the village in which she lived that the great scholar, Rabbi Akiba, was about to visit it. He came, surrounded by many disciples, and as the crowd of admirers gathered about him, they pushed aside a poorly clad woman who tried to reach his side. But espying her, he parted the crowd and caught her in his arms. To the astonished spectators he declared, "All that I know I owe to her, for she was my inspiration."
So far the romantic side of his life. On its literary side he was a great Tanna, and famous scholars came from his School. His method of interpreting new Law from old was based on the theory that no word or particle in the Pentateuch was redundant; if any appeared in the text that it seemed could be dispensed with, then it must have some hidden significance. This changed the law of Moses from a limited group of unvarying precepts to a living fount of continuous tradition, and made the laws of the days of the Jewish monarchy capable of modification and enlargement to fit Israel's life under the Roman Empire. Interpretation that would produce new precepts to meet the changing conditions of later times was undertaken by Hillel (p. 113) but never before reduced to so complete a system as was done by Rabbi Akiba. On such a principle there was no end of the possible deductions from Scripture. Yet the Rabbis were too earnest and too conscientious knowingly to abuse it. The theory worked in the interest of progress. The institution of this method has earned for Akiba the title of "father of rabbinic Judaism."
He further gave an impetus to the classification of the Halachoth already begun before his day. This classification of the Oral Law was called Mishna, or Second Law, of which we shall hear more later on.
He, too, had a voice in fixing the canon of Scripture.
Akiba's Ethics.
Here follow some of his sayings:
"How favored is man for he was created in the Image" (of God).
"—Who slays a man sins against the devine image."
"Take thy seat below thy rank until bidden to take a higher place."
"God is merciful but He does not permit this mercy to impair His justice."
"Everything is foreseen, yet freedom of will is given to man."
There is also ascribed to him on doubtful authority the maxim, "Whatever God doeth He doeth for the best."
There is a mystic note throughout his teachings; mark the following:
"Everything is given in pledge ... the office is open, the broker gives credit; there is the ledger and the hand writes; whoever wishes to borrow may borrow, but the bailiffs daily exact; the judgment is fair; and everything is prepared for the Banquet."