Avot168

2:
The first teaching in our mishnah is attributed to Rabbi Shim'on. It is a commonplace of talmudics that "Rabbi Shim'on" with no further qualification or patronymic refers to Rabbi Shim'on ben-Yoĥai. We have often mentioned some facts about this sage together with snippets of his biography. In Avot 158 we noted that he studied under Rabbi Akiva together with ĥanina ben-Ĥakhinai; the Gemara [Pesachim 112a] tells us that even after Rabbi Akiva was imprisoned by the Romans Shim'on ben-Yoĥai continued to study with him clandestinely. In Avot 079 we noted that eventually he was ordained by Rabbi Yehudah ben-Bava, also in dangerous and clandestine circumstances. In Avot 087 we noted that he was responsible for the redaction of the collection of halakhic midrashim on the books of Numbers and Deuteronomy called Sifré – and the source [Sanhedrin 86a] assures us that the redaction was faithful to "the system of Rabbi Akiva".

3:
Rabbi Shim'on bar-Yoĥai was a devoted student of Rabbi Akiva. When he had students of his own he would instruct them to "learn my rules of interpretation, since my rules are directly received from those defined by Rabbi Akiva" [Gittin 67a]. In fact, the relationship between Akiva and his student was "a mutual admiration society". On one occasion, it seems, Akiva presented his star student for ordination when the President of the Sanhedrin thought that Shim'on was too young. The Talmud of Eretz-Israel [Sanhedrin 19a] tells us that Shim'on was distraught at this rebuff by Rabban Gamli'el and Rabbi Akiva consoled him by saying, "It is enough that I and your Creator know your true potential."

4:
When we bear in mind what the Romans did to his beloved teacher and all the other rabbinic leaders of his generation we can understand why Rabbi Shim'on bar-Yoĥai developed an uncompromising hatred for Romans and everything Roman. Because he refused to compromise in any way neither in his opinions nor in his teachings it is also not surprising that that the Romans condemned him to death.

To be continued.

Avraham Hasson writes:

Amnon Ron'el says that the midrashim are too convoluted and you gave a good response. I would like to add that this is the greatness of the sages who created such midrashim. They dared to say many things which today it would even be forbidden to think about; and this is to be attributed to the "hook" of one word in the bible when they read it with a different vocalization. Truth to tell, what would we do without all those midrashim? Judaism would be completely fossilized.

I respond:

I agree completely. Sometimes I think that the more implausible the content of a given aggadic midrash the deeper the intention of the author's thought. If it were so simple he would not have needed so convoluted a solution.