Rabbi Akiva / Bar Kochba

The Mystery of Lag  Ba'Omer

Rabbi Pinchas Stolper

October 5, 1995

www.OU.org

Thirty-three days following the first day of Passover, Jews celebrate a "minor" holiday called Lag Ba'Omer, the thirty third day of the Omer. It is an  oasis of joy in the midst of the sad Sefirah period which is almost unnoticed by  most contemporary Jews. Yet it contains historic lessons of such great severity -- that  this generation must not only unravel the mystery of Lag Ba'Omer but will discover that  its own fate is wrapped in the crevices of its secrets.

The seven weeks between Passover and Shavuot are the days of the "Counting of the  Omer," the harvest festivities which were observed in Eretz-Israel when the Temple  stood on Mt. Moriah in Jerusalem.

This fifty day period should have been a time of joyful anticipation. Having experienced the Exodus from Egypt on Pesach, every Jew literally "counts the  days" from the first night of Passover until Mattan Torah - the revelation of  Torah at Mt. Sinai which took place on Shavuot, exactly fifty days after the Exodus. While  the Exodus marks the physical birth of the Jewish nation -- the Giving of Torah completes  the process through the spiritual birth of the Jewish nation.

Each year, as we celebrate the Seder on Passover, we are commanded to "see  ourselves as though each of us actually experienced the Exodus." It therefore follows  that we must prepare ourselves during the Sefirah period (counting of the Omer), to  once again accept the Torah on Shavuot -- to make our freedom spiritually complete.

Clearly then, the Sefirah days should have been days of joy, but instead, they  are observed as a period of semi-mourning. Weddings, music and haircuts are not permitted,  some do not shave during this entire period. It is on the sad side of Sefirah that we come  across the holiday of Lag Ba'Omer, the one day during this sad period when our mourning is  halted, when sadness is forbidden.

What is the reason for sadness during what should have been a period of joyful  anticipation? The reason, the Babylonian Talmud tells us, [Yevamot:62:2] is that  during this period, Rabbi Akiva's 24,000 students, who lived 1,850 years ago in the Roman  dominated Land of Israel, died from a mysterious G-d sent plague. Why did they die?  Because the Talmud teaches, "they did not show proper respect to one another."  Lag Ba'Omer is celebrated on the thirty-third day because on that day the plague ended and  Rabbi Akiva's students stopped dying.

This explanation leaves us with a number of difficulties and still more unanswered  questions.

Why does this event, the death of Rabbi Akiva's students, tragic as it was, merit  thirty-two days of mourning when greater tragedies in Jewish history, such as the  destruction of both Temples or the breaking of the Stone Tablets of the Covenant by Moses,  are marked by a single day of mourning. In terms of numbers, the massacres of the Spanish  Inquisition, the Crusades, the Chemelnitsky pogroms, and the Holocaust which destroyed  European Jewry and cost six-million Jewish lives far overshadow the death of Rabbi Akiva's  students. Yet, these tragic events are not commemorated by even one special day of  mourning. Why is the death of Rabbi Akiva's students given so much more weight?

 Every event in the Jewish calendar was placed there by the Divine hand because it  conforms to a pre-set notion of the significance of the seasons and of history. Nature and  events correspond and intermesh, certain days and periods are most suited to joy or  sadness. Why does the Sefirah mourning coincide with the joyous holidays of Passover and  Shavuot, which in turn coincide with the period of harvest festivities?

There also appear to be glaring inconsistencies in the story itself. What were Rabbi  Akiva's students guilty of that they deserved to die? If Rabbi Akiva's students died as a  result of G-d's punishment for their sins, why should we mourn them? Didn't they deserve  their punishment?

Why is Lag Ba'Omer a day of "celebration"? If all that happened on Lag Ba'Omer was but a temporary halt in the dying, wouldn't it be more fitting to set it aside  as a memorial day for the twenty-four thousand scholars who died?

What is the connection between Lag Ba'Omer and the revolt against the Romans by Bar  Kochba and his army? And how does all of this relate to Rabbi Shimon Bar-Yochai, author of  the mystical books of the 'Zohar' who lived in the same era, about whom we sing on Lag  Ba'Omer.

And finally, why are all these questions never discussed in the open, as are for  example the Four Questions of the Passover Seder?

The answers to these and other questions lie shrouded in the history of a turbulent age  and in the mysteries of the Jewish concept of the Messianic era.

First, we must understand that much of the material in the Talmud that deals with  political matters was written with a keen sensitivity to the Roman censor. The Talmud  could not speak openly concerning the political ramifications of events. In order to  obtain a true picture of what happened, we must piece together the story from various  historical sources and Talmudic hints. What we discover goes something like this:

The Second Temple was destroyed by the Romans in the year 70 C.E. Jerusalem and the  surrounding countryside lay in ruins from border to border. Scores of thousands died in  the fierce fighting and subsequently from persecution and starvation; thousands more were  sold as slaves and forced into exile. The Romans considered the Jewish nation defeated, obliterated and done for. The Roman General Titus erected a grand victory monument in Rome  which stands to this day that says just that -- the famous Arch of Titus on which is  inscribed Judea Capita -- Judea is kaput, finished -- done for.

But even in defeat the spiritual leaders of the Jewish people struggled to rebuild  Jewish life and recreate Jewish institutions. They were so successful that around 135 C.E.  a Jewish military leader named Bar Kosiba succeeded in organizing a fighting force to rid  the Land of Israel of the hated Romans. Thousands rallied to his cause, including the  greatest Talmudic scholar of all times, the Tanna Rabbi Akiva ben Yosef, whose insights  and brilliant decisions fill the Mishnah.

Many of Rabbi Akiva's contemporaries felt that a new revolt against the Romans was  doomed to failure and urged the avoidance of bloodshed. But Bar Kosiba persisted and  succeeded in organizing and training a superb military force of 200,000 men. The Talmud  relates that Bar Kosiba demanded that each recruit demonstrate his bravery by cutting off  a finger -- when the Rabbis protested he substituted a new test, each recruit was expected  to uproot a young tree while riding a horse. Such was the level of their bravery and  readiness.

Rabbi Akiva disagreed with his Rabbinic colleagues and won over a majority to his point  of view. From the military point of view, he felt that a successful revolt was feasible.  It is said by some historians that twenty percent of the population of the Roman Empire  between Rome and Jerusalem was Jewish.

The pagan foundations of Rome were crumbling. Many Romans were in search of a religious  alternative -- which many of them subsequently found in a mitzvah-less Christianity in the  following two centuries. Many Romans were attracted to Judaism, and significant numbers  converted. There were thousands -- tens of thousands of sympathizers. Some members of the  Roman Senate converted to Judaism. If the large numbers of Jews who lived throughout the  Roman Empire could be inspired into coordinated anti-Roman revolts, many historians  believe that the prospects for toppling Rome were very real.

And if the revolts succeeded and Jews from all over the world united to return and  rebuild their homeland, Rabbi Akiva believed that they could bring about the Messianic Era  -- the great era of spirituality and universal peace foretold by Israel's Prophets -- the  great millennia during which all Jews would return to the land of Israel, the Jerusalem  Temple would be rebuilt and Israel would lead the world into an era of justice, spiritual revival, and fulfillment.

In his Laws of Kings, (Chapter 11:3) Maimonides, in discussing the Messianic era says,  "Do not think that the King Messiah must work miracles and signs, create new natural  phenomena, restore the dead to life or perform similar miracles. This is not so. For Rabbi  Akiva was the wisest of the scholars of the Mishna and was the armor bearer of Bar Kosiba  (the actual family name of Bar Kochba) the King. He said concerning Ben Kosiba that he is  the King Messiah. Both he and the sages of his generation believed that Bar Kosiba was the  King Messiah, until (Bar Kosiba) was killed because of his sins. Once he was killed, it became evident to them that he was not the messiah."

To Bar Kochba and his officers, all seemed to be in readiness; Rome was rotten and  corrupt - many captive nations strained at the yoke - rebellion was in the air. Rabbi  Akiva (Jerusalem Talmud: Ta'anit 4:15) gave Bar Kosiba a new name, "Bar  Kochba" - Son of the Star - in fulfillment of the prophecy -- "a star will go  forth from Jacob." Bar Kochba trained an army capable of igniting the powder keg of  rebellion and Rabbi Akiva lit it with one of the most dramatic proclamations in Jewish  history - he proclaimed that Bar Kochba was the long awaited Messiah.

One of the greatest Torah teachers and leaders of all time, Rabbi Akiva could not have  made this crucial and radical declaration unless he was certain. He would never have  proclaimed a man Messiah unless he knew. Rabbi Akiva added a new, spiritual dimension to  the war of liberation. He attempted to merge the soldiers of the sword with the soldiers  of the book - his twenty- four thousand students - each a great Torah scholar and leader.

These outstanding scholars would become the real "army" of the Jewish people,  a spiritual and moral force that would bring Torah to the entire world, overcoming  anguish, suffering, and the cruel boot of the corrupt Roman Empire. They would soon  inaugurate a new era of peace, righteousness, and justice, an era in which "the  Knowledge of G-d would cover the earth as water covers the seas." The fact that the  Jews were able to unite around a single leader separates this event from the great revolt  of the previous century when bitterly divided factions warred with each other inside the  walls of Jerusalem even as the Roman army stormed the gates.

The rebellion raged for six years. Bar Kochba's army achieved many initial victories.  Many non Jews joined Bar Kochba's army -- it is reported that it grew to 350,000 men --  more men than the Roman Army. Bar Kochba was so successful that Hadrian called in all of  his best troops from England and Gaul. Rome felt threatened as never before. On Lag Ba'Omer, it is believed by some, Bar Kochba's army reconquered Jerusalem, and we celebrate  that great event today. For four years Jewish independence was restored. Many believe that  Bar Kochba actually began to rebuild the Bait Hamikdash, the Temple. Some even believe that he completed the building of the Third Temple.

There were two Roman legions in the country when the uprising began, one in Jerusalem  and one near Megido. Both were decimated by Bar Kochba's men. Reinforcements were  dispatched from Trans-Jordan, Syria and Egypt but these, too, were mauled. The legion sent  from Egypt, the 22nd, disappeared from the listings of military units published in Rome,  and scholars speculate that it was cut up so badly, probably around Lachish, that it  ceased to exist as an organized force. The Jews apparently employed guerilla tactics -  foraying from their underground lairs, ambushing convoys and striking at night.

In desperation, Hadrian sent for his best commander, Julius Severus, who was then  engaged in battle at the hills of far off Wales. Severus imported legions from the lands  of Britain, Switzerland, Austria, Hungary and Bulgaria. So badly had the Romans been hurt  in the bruising campaign that Severus, upon returning to Rome to report to the Senate on  his success, omitted the customary formula "I and my army are well."

This was total war. In the middle of the effort to rebuild the Bait Hamikdash the tide  turned and Bar Kochba lost the support of Rabbi Akiva and the Sages who backed him. What  happened? Bar Kochba had murdered the Tannah Rabbi Elazar. He accused the great Rabbi of revealing the secret entrances of the fortress city of Betar to the Romans. It is now  believed that this betrayal was the work of the Jewish Christians who wanted to undermine  Bar Kochba. Rabbi Akiva then realized that Bar Kochba no longer possessed the qualities  which initially led him to believe that he was the Messiah.

There was an additional spiritual dimension to the failure of the Messiah-ship of Bar  Kochba as well; whether the spiritual failure of Rabbi Akiva's students was the cause --  or whether it was the failure of Bar Kochba to rise to the spiritual heights expected of  the Messiah is beyond our knowledge. For then - out of the blue, the great plague Askera  descended and struck. The dream collapsed. For reasons that will probably forever remain  obscure, the students of Rabbi Akiva were not considered by Heaven to have reached the  supreme spiritual heights necessary to bring about the Messianic Age. As great as they  were, an important factor was missing.

The Talmud tells us that "Rabbi Akiva's students didn't show proper respect one  for the other." Precisely what this phrase refers to we do not know. With greatness  comes heightened responsibility and with greatness comes a magnification of reward and  punishment. For their failure and deficiencies - which would certainly be counted as minor  in a generation such as ours, but which were crucial for great men on their high spiritual  level - their mission was cancelled and they died a mysterious death.

With them died the Messianic hope of that era and for thousands of years to come. Bar  Kochba was not a false messiah but a failed messiah. In the terrible war which followed,  Bar Kochba and his army were destroyed in the great battles defending the fortress city of  Betar. The war had been a catastrophe. Dodio Cassius reports the death of 580,000 Jews by  Roman swords in addition to those who died of hunger and disease. Some scholars think that  the bulk of the Jewish population of Judea was destroyed in battle and in subsequent  massacres. One historian believes that the Jews lost a third of their number in the war,  perhaps more fatalities than in the Great Revolt of the year 70.

For the survivors, the Bar Kochba uprising marked the great divide between the hope for  national independence and dispersal in the Diaspora. The trauma of Betar coming after the  fall of Jerusalem effected deep changes in the Jewish people. The stiff necked, stubborn, fanatically independent people that did not hesitate to make repeated suicidal lunges at  the mightiest superpower of antiquity lost its warlike instincts. It would be 2,000 years  before there would be a Jewish fighting force. As a result, the hope of the Jew for  redemption was to be delayed for at least two thousand years. In the great and tragic  defeat not only were between half a million to six hundred thousand Jews killed but the Romans were determined, once and for all to uproot the Jewish religion and the Jewish  people - to bring an end to their hopes and their dreams.

It is for this reason that we mourn today. The mourning of Sefirah is not for the students alone, but for the failure of the Jewish people to bring about the Messianic  Age, for the fall of the curtain on Jewish independence, Jewish hopes and Jewish Messianic  ambitions. Every anti-Semitic outbreak for which Jews suffered since that day, every  pogrom, massacre, crusade, Holocaust, and banishment that took the toll of so many  millions during the two thousand year long and bitter night of exile, wandering and persecution, must be traced directly to the failure of Bar Kochba -- but ultimately to the  failure of the students of Rabbi Akiva. This was a tragedy of inestimable proportions to a  war-ravaged world suffering under the bitter yoke of Rome as well as to the Jewish people.  Rome did not fall at that time, but its fury and rage led to the exile and dismemberment  of the Jewish people.

Yet, on that very Lag Ba'Omer day two thousand years ago, a new hidden light of hope  emerged. In the midst of defeat, the Tannah, Rabbi Shimon Bar-Yochai revealed to a small  number of students the secrets of the mystical Zohar. In the Zohar, in its formulas,  disciplines and spirituality, lie the secrets whose seed will bring about the coming of  the Messiah. The Zohar's living tradition has kept that hope alive down to this very day.  On Lag Ba'Omer the plague stopped, the dream was delayed, but it was not destroyed. It was  to be nurtured through the generations -- the stirrings of its realization enliven us  today.

Because Lag Ba'Omer deals with the secrets of the future Messianic Age, it cannot be  discussed openly or understood as clearly as can the Exodus or other events of the past.  Whenever we stand between Passover and Shavuot - between our physical liberation from  Egypt and our spiritual elevation during the Revelation at Sinai we recall those chilling  events. For today we are also able to celebrate the liberation of Jerusalem and the site  of our destroyed Temple. History is bringing together so many crucial events, -- the  history of our ancient past is once again coming alive in the land of our fathers.

There are frightening parallels between our own age and the age of Rabbi Akiva and Bar  Kochba. Following a frightful Holocaust which many believed would spell the end of the  Jewish people, we experienced a restoration of Jewish independence -- once more did a  Jewish army score miraculous victories against overwhelming odds. Following the destruction of the great European centers of Torah scholarship, we witnessed the  rebuilding of yeshivot in America and in Israel. We experienced a great revival of Torah  study. The teshuva movement has brought about a return to Torah for so many who strayed.  Jerusalem and the Temple Mount are in our hands.

All around us world empires are tottering while despair and corruption rages. Once  again, the Jewish people has been entrusted with a great and frightful opportunity. Once  again we have been given the potential to recreate a Jewish civilization of Torah  greatness in our own land. Will we succeed or will our efforts be aborted because of our  own failures, our own inability to respect the differences within the Torah community and unite the Jewish people to our cause?

The personality of Rabbi Akiba itself offers frightful lessons and opportunities. It  was Rabbi Akiva who understood that "love your fellow as you love yourself" is  the over-riding principle which the Torah people must internalize if it is to achieve its  goals. Rabbi Akiva, too, is the quintessential ba'al teshuva -- it was he who was forty  years old and was unable to distinguish between an aleph and a bet -- it was he who rose  to be Jewry's greatest Torah scholar.

Hundreds of thousands of Jews; Americans, Israelis, and Russians are today's potential  Rabbi Akivas. The fate of Jewry and the achievement of Heaven's greatest goals are in the  hands of this generation. Will we attempt to achieve them or will we withdraw into our own  selfish cocoons by refusing to shoulder the responsibilities which history and history's God has set before us?

It is not enough to wait for the Messiah's coming; we must toil to perfect our Torah  lives if we are to bring about his speedy arrival. Only if we learn from the lesson of  Rabbi Akiva's students will we understand that the coming of the Messiah depends on us.