AKIVA (or 'Aqibā') ben JOSEPH, Rabbi. - One of the principal Tannaitic doctors, b. in Judea around 40, d. in 137. Legend has adorned his life with the marvelous (a rough shepherd, he married the daughter of his wealthy master, and to please his wife at the age of 40 he learned to read). Through his knowledge of the tōrāh and of legal tradition, he became the undisputed master of the halakhāh (v.). He belonged to the school of Jamnia; but he lived and taught at Lydda and at Bēnē Bērāq.
'A. is the father of Talmudism. A casuist, he treated legal prescriptions in themselves, detaching them from biblical exegesis; he thus separated halakhāh from midhrās, defining the respective method. The result was the systematic arrangement of legal traditions by subject matter; 'A. was the first collector of the halakhic material that later constituted the Mišnāh (v.), whose spirit and plan he taught. 'A.'s disciple, R. Meir, continued the collection and the arrangement. The Talmud often speaks of the "Mišnāh of Rabbi 'A.": it does not appear to be a distinct work, but rather 'A.'s authorship of the known Mišnāh. The halakhic midhrāsīm Sifrā and Sifrē, attributed to his disciples R. Jehudāh ben Ilaj and R. Simeon ben Jobaj, contain much material coming from 'A. For biblical exegesis, 'A. established hermeneutical principles ("rules of 'A.") capable of drawing out the value of every element of the sacred text. He upheld the divine inspiration of the Song of Songs.
He took an active part in the political vicissitudes of his people after the destruction of the Temple (year 70). He visited, it is said, the Jews scattered in Arabia and in Africa, and several times he is said to have come to Rome, entering into personal relations with the emperor Hadrian. He was the soul of the revolt of Bar Kokhebā, whom 'A. anointed and proclaimed liberator and Messiah. After the movement failed, the aged 'A. was three years in prison, then executed amid torments at Caesarea. The conception of martyrdom in force in Judaism is traced back to him (Talmud bab., Bērākhōth 61 b).
Attributed to him were the two cabalistic works, which arose 8-10 centuries later, Séfer jēširāh (Book of Creation) and Séfer 'ōthijōth (Book of Letters) called the "Alphabet of 'A." (ed. Venice 1556; in G. Bartolocci, Biblioteca rabbinica, IV, Rome 1693).
Bibliography7 works
Antonino Romeo