Avot of Rabbi Natan (commentary on Pirkei Avot, compiled 700-900 C.E.) Translated by Rabbi Kelilah Miller for Swarthmore College Kehilah spring 2015/Iyar 5775

let your house be a gathering place for the wise. How so? It is taught that a person’s house should be available/prepared for the wise, as well as for students and the students of their students, like a person who says to his fellow: “I will wait for you at the place of so-and-so”

Another interpretation: let your house be a gathering place for the wise. How so? When a wise scholar comes to you and says: “teach me”, if you have something in hand to teach, teach him. If not, let him go immediately. And he should not sit before you on the bed, on the chair, or on the bench, but rather on the earth; and every single word that leaves your mouth he shall receive upon himself in awe and in fear and in trembling and in agitation, just as our ancestors received from Mount Sinai in awe and in fear and in trembling and in agitation...

be one who makes himself dirty at the dust of their feet. How so? When a wise scholar comes to the city, do not say “I have no need of him”; rather, go to him. And do not sit with him on the bed or on the chair or on the bench - rather, sit before him on the earth and every word that leaves his mouth you should receive upon yourself in awe and in fear and in trembling and in agitation just as our ancestors received from Sinai in awe and in fear and in trembling and in agitation

Another interpretation: be one who makes himself dirty at the dust of their feet - this is Rabbi Eliezer. and drink their words thirstily - this is Rabbi Akiva. What was the beginning of Rabbi Akiva? They say that he was forty years old and had not learned a thing. One time, he was standing at the mouth of the well and said: “who carved this rock?”. They said to him: “the water that consistently falls on it every day”. They said to him: “Akiva, did you not read water wears away stones (Job 14:15)?” immediately Rabbi Akiva ruled a kal veChomer: just as the soft (water) sculpts the hard (stone) - words of Torah, which are as hard as iron, will all the more so carve my heart/mind, which is but flesh and blood!

Immediately he returned to learn Torah.

He and his son went and sat among the teachers of young children (nurselings). He said: “Rabbi, teach me Torah!” Rabbi Akiva held on to one side of the slate and his son to the other. He wrote Aleph-Bet and learned it. He wrote Aleph-Tav and learned it. [he wrote] the instructions of the Priests and learned it. He kept on learning until he learned the entire Torah. He went and sat before Rabbi Eliezer and before Rabbi Yehoshua. He said: “Rabbis, open up for me a taste (the reasoning) of Mishna!” As soon as they told him a single law, he sat down with himself and said: “this aleph, why is it written? This bet, why is it written? Why is this thing said?” He returned and asked them, and halted them with words.

Rabbi Shimon ben Elazar said: I will make an analogy - to what is this similar? To a mason who would hew mountains. Once, he took his chisel in his hand and went and sat on the mountain and was chipping off small pebbles. People came and said to him: "what are you doing?" He said: "Behold, I am uprooting it and sending it into the Jordan!" They said to him: "You can't uproot the entire mountain!" He kept on hewing [the rock] until he came to a large boulder. He went underneath it, separated it, uprooted it, and sent it into the Jordan. He said to it: "That is not your place, but rather this is!" Thus Rabbi Akiva did to Rabbi Eliezer and Rabbi Yehoshua.

Rabbi Tarfon said to him: Akiva, of you the scripture says: He dams up the rivers, and brings what was hidden to light (Job 28:11). The things that were hidden from all people - Rabbi Akiva has brought them to light.