Rabbi Akiva, the Fox, and the Fish in the Stream

Midrash Aggadah Hebraic Literature (1901), Talmud section — Berakhot 61b

Curated by The Jewish Mythology Team · Published January 18, 2025

When Rome forbade Israel to study Torah on pain of death, Rabbi Akiva went right on teaching it in the open, gathering crowds around him. His friend Pappus ben Yehudah stumbled across one of these gatherings and pulled him aside. "Akiva," he whispered, "aren't you afraid of what the Romans will do to you?"

Akiva answered with a parable. "Picture a fox walking along the riverbank. He sees fish darting frantically from one pool to the next and calls down to them, 'What are you running from?' 'From the nets the children of men have set to catch us,' the fish reply. The fox smiles. 'Then why not come up on dry land? You and I can live together, the way our ancestors did.' The fish look at him and laugh. 'They told us you were the cleverest of beasts, but you are a fool. If we are afraid in the water, which is our life, how much more would we die on the dry land!'"

Akiva let the parable land. "So it is with us. Torah is our water. It is written, for it is your life and the length of your days (Deuteronomy 30:20). If we are in danger while we are swimming in it, how much greater the danger if we abandon it?" The story is preserved in the Talmud (Berakhot 61b) and repeated in the 1901 anthology Hebraic Literature.

A tradition worth remembering: the thing that threatens you is often the only thing keeping you alive.

Themes

Torah Rabbis Parables Study

Biblical References

Deuteronomy 30:20

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