Ma Koreh
Adam Carpenter – Head of Jewish Life Primary
Rabbi Akiva and how water can shape stone
During our morning tefillah, we have been performing the mitzvah of ‘Sefirat HaOmer’, the Counting of the Omer, in our ‘count up’ from Pesach to Shavuot. From the second day of Pesach we count 49 days to Shavuot. Shavuot means ‘weeks’ and reflects this counting of seven lots of seven days or seven weeks between Pesach and Shavuot.
This week we marked Lag B’Omer – the 33rd day of the Omer, focusing on stories connected to the second century sage, Rabbi Akiva. Rabbi Akiva provides a positive role model for learning values we have for our students – the importance of perseverance, resilience, having a positive mindset and being a lifelong learner.
According to the legend and stories told of Akiva, for the first 40 years of his life he was a poor and illiterate shepherd. With the loving support of his wife Rachel, who believed in his potential and qualities, Akiva began learning the Aleph Bet and progressed to studying Torah. He developed into a knowledgeable and respected Rabbi with a large school of students. One day Rabbi Akiva was at a well and noted how the persistent, soft dripping of water had sculpted and shaped the hard stone. He then compared this to the study of Torah, which can smooth and shape one’s mind and heart. The image of the dripping water also reflects the resilience and perseverance Akiva applied to his own learning journey.
You can learn more about Rabbi Akiva’s life and significance here.
The images below show students in Year 1 creating their own mini ‘bonfires’ and enjoying marshmallows, reflecting some of the customs of Lag B’Omer:
