Unit 2 · Rabbis Who Told Stories

A rabbi is a Jewish teacher. Hillel was a rabbi. He lived about 2,000 years ago. He lived in the land of Israel. Jewish tradition says he came from Babylonia. That is far to the east.

The Talmud tells many stories about Hillel. In the stories, Hillel stays calm. He is kind to people who ask questions. He is kind even when they are rude.

Hillel had many students. Jewish tradition calls them the House of Hillel. They studied his ideas for a long time after he died.

Shammai was a rabbi too. He lived at the same time as Hillel. The Talmud says he was a builder. He was strict. He liked rules to be clear and firm.

Hillel and Shammai often did not agree. Their students did not agree either. The Talmud writes down both sides. It does not throw one side away.

Jewish tradition still tells about both teachers. Both cared about the Torah. They just saw things in different ways. The Talmud says that is all right.

The Torah is the first five books of the Bible. It is very long. Jewish people read it a little each week. It takes a whole year to read it all.

The Talmud tells about a man. He wanted to learn the whole Torah fast. He said he would stand on one foot. Teach me before I fall over, he said.

The man asked Shammai first. Shammai thought the question was silly. He sent the man away. The Talmud says he used his builder’s stick.

The man hopped to Hillel. He asked the same thing. Hillel did not send him away. Hillel gave him one short rule.

The rule was this. What is hateful to you, do not do to your friend. Hateful means something you would hate. If you hate being teased, do not tease.

Then Hillel said more. That is the whole Torah, he said. The rest explains it. Go and learn. The Talmud says the man went and learned.

The Talmud tells another story about Hillel. Two men made a bet. One said he could make Hillel angry. He went to Hillel’s house on a busy day.

The man knocked and asked silly questions. Why do some people have round heads? Why do some people have weak eyes? Hillel came out each time. He answered kindly.

The man could not make Hillel angry. He lost his bet. Being patient means staying calm when it is hard. The Talmud holds up Hillel as patient.

Hillel’s rule is short. You can say it on one foot. But Hillel did not stop there. He said, go and learn. One rule is a start, not the end.

Many people know a rule like Hillel’s. Some call it the Golden Rule. Jewish tradition points to a verse in the Torah too: love your neighbor as yourself. That verse is in Leviticus.

Kindness comes first in Hillel’s rule. Learning comes next. This course will read many rules the rabbis made. Many of them are about being kind.

Honi was a Jewish teacher. He lived about 2,000 years ago in the land of Israel. Jewish tradition remembers him for praying for rain. The Talmud tells stories about him.

In one story, Honi saw an old man plant a carob tree. A carob tree grows sweet brown pods. But it takes a long time to grow. The old man said: seventy years.

Honi asked why plant it. The old man said his grandparents planted trees for him. So he would plant for his grandchildren. He was planting for people not born yet.

The story goes on. Honi sat down to eat. He fell asleep. Rocks hid him from sight. The Talmud says he slept for seventy years!

When Honi woke up, he saw a man picking carobs. It was the same tree. Honi asked, "Did you plant this?" The man said, "No. My grandfather did."

The old man’s plan had worked. His grandchild was eating the fruit. Jewish tradition tells this story to teach about giving to the future.

Rabbi Akiva became one of the most famous rabbis in the Talmud. But he did not start as a rabbi. He started as a shepherd. A shepherd takes care of sheep.

Akiva was poor. He could not read. He worked for a rich man. The Talmud says the rich man’s daughter saw that Akiva was good and humble. She married him.

She told Akiva to go and study. Jewish tradition says he was about forty years old. He had to learn the alphabet, like a small child. He did it anyway.

Jewish tradition tells how Akiva got the courage to learn. One day he stood by a well. He saw a stone with a hole in it. Water dripped on the stone.

Akiva asked, "Who made this hole?" People said the water did. It fell drip by drip, day after day. Slowly, it wore a hole in the hard stone.

Akiva thought about that. Water is soft. Stone is hard. But water won. He said: if water can shape stone, then learning can shape me. He began to study.

Think about the old man again. He worked hard. He dug a hole and planted a tree. He knew he would never taste the fruit. He did it anyway.

Jewish tradition calls this kind of giving a gift to the future. The future is the time that has not come yet. You can help people you will never meet.

Kids can plant for the future too. You can plant a real tree. You can leave a room clean for the next class. You can teach a younger kid a game.

Akiva began learning at about forty. The Talmud says he studied for many years. He became a great rabbi. Many students came to learn from him.

The Talmud tells stories of the rabbis to teach. Akiva’s story teaches two things. It is never too late to learn. And little steps add up, like drips of water.

The Talmud is full of rabbis like Hillel, Honi, and Akiva. Their stories are still told today. In this course, you will meet many more of them.