24,000 Disciples of Rabbi Akiva – Gilgulei Neshamot

24,000 Disciples of Rabbi Akiva – Gilgulei Neshamot

Chazal teach that during the period from Pesach to Shavuot, 24,000 disciples of Rabbi Akiva died in an epidemic (some specify that this occurred from Pesach until Lag BaOmer). In the Book of Bereishit, we learn of the horrific story of the abduction and assault of Dinah, the daughter of Yaakov Avinu, by Shechem ben Chamor, the prince of Shechem. When Shimon and Levi learned of her abduction, they came to Shechem. In exchange for Shechem's desire to keep their sister as his wife, they set the condition that all the men of Shechem undergo circumcision. On the third day after the men of Shechem had circumcised themselves, Shimon and Levi entered the city and killed 24,000 of its men. Shimon rescued Dinah and married her, and from their union Shaul ben HaKena'anit was born. The Midrash Tanchuma on Pinchas says: “Zimri had three names: Zimri ben Salu, Shaul ben HaKena'anit, and Shlomiel ben Tzurishadai.” Shaul ben HaKena'anit, the son of Shimon and Dinah, was Zimri—the gilgul of Shechem ben Chamor. Shechem returned in the gilgul of Dinah and Shimon's son. Later, he was reincarnated and returned as Zimri, the leader of the tribe of Shimon. Dinah was reincarnated as the princess Kozbi bat Tzur, the daughter of Balak, king of Moav. Balak understood that Bilaam could not curse Israel, and Bilaam advised Balak to entice Israel to sin with the daughters of Moav, knowing that Hashem hates immorality and punishes it without delay—more swiftly than other sins. Balak offered his own daughter to seduce Moshe Rabbeinu or Elazar HaKohen. They sent young and attractive Moabite and Midianite women to sell linen garments and wine to the Israelites. After 40 years of living on manna and water, the people desired to taste wine, and the Jews were lured in. An elderly saleswoman greeted them at the entrance to the tent, while a young woman waited inside. The older woman offered the merchandise and named the price. The younger woman was gracious and attentive, as she had been instructed, lowering the price and wooing the customer with affectionate words. It is then written: “And Israel settled in Shittim, and the people began to consort with the daughters of Moav. They invited the people to the sacrificial feasts of their gods, and the people ate and bowed down to their gods. Israel became attached to Baal-Peor.” The end was tragic: “…and the anger of the L-rd was kindled against Israel.” G-d sent a magefah (epidemic) against the Jews, in which 24,000 people died—all of them from the tribe of Shimon. The survivors from the tribe of Shimon came to their leader, Zimri (the reincarnation of Shechem), and asked him to do something. What did he do? He took Kozbi, the daughter of King Balak. She said to him: “I am a princess, and I deserve only one king—Moshe Rabbeinu.” He replied: “I outrank him—he descended from Levi, the third tribe, whereas I descend from Shimon, the second tribe.” Zimri asked Moshe Rabbeinu a provocative question: Were the daughters of Midian permitted to Jews? Moshe Rabbeinu answered: “No—they worship idols.” Zimri then asked: “Who permitted you to take Yitro's daughter from Midian?” At that moment, HaKadosh Baruch Hu caused Moshe Rabbeinu to fall silent, and he was unable to answer Zimri. Why did Hashem do this? If Moshe Rabbeinu had killed Zimri, Rabbi Akiva would not have been born. Zimri was later reincarnated as Rabbi Akiva. Everything Moshe Rabbeinu did passed into eternity and was indestructible. This is one of the reasons Moshe Rabbeinu did not enter Eretz Yisrael: If he had built the Beit HaMikdash, it would have stood forever. Hashem would then have been compelled to destroy the Jewish people, G-d forbid, rather than the Beit HaMikdash. Pinchas saw Zimri and Kozbi sinning. He took a spear, entered the chamber, and pierced them both. The 24,000 people who died in the epidemic were reincarnations of the 24,000 men of Shechem who had circumcised themselves. Although they had not done so l'shem Shamayim, they had nevertheless done it, and this merit allowed them to be reincarnated once again. There were seven Clouds of Glory that protected Israel. Israel was protected within the seven clouds, while outside the seven clouds of protection were the Erev Rav. Since there were no longer any men in the tribe of Shimon, the women of the tribe of Shimon married men from the Erev Rav. The sons of these unions sinned in Canaan and died. Zimri, the reincarnation of Shechem, had to rectify his past mistakes with Kozbi, who was the reincarnation of Dinah. Zimri was 250 years old and was one of the 70 people who descended to Egypt with Yaakov Avinu. At the age of 250, a person no longer has lust, but he did this in order to rebuke Moshe Rabbeinu. He felt an immense connection to Kozbi, and herein lies a great secret. There are 10 levels of sin. The first level is a minor one, when a person stands before a mirror and adorns himself. In this situation, the yetzer hara says: “This person is mine!” The final level is when a person is extremely holy and has no temptations; he is holy and has no relationships. Yet such a person can “fall” in an instant, as illustrated by Yehudah and Tamar. Yehudah was very holy, as was Tamar, and David HaMelech emerged from their union. Another example is Lot's daughters—the union of the daughters with their father, from which Ammon and Moav were born. They acted l'shem Shamayim, because they thought that the world had been destroyed when they fled Sodom. Another example is David HaMelech himself—the fourth in the Merkavah. Is it possible that he sinned with Bat-Sheva? She had been destined for David HaMelech since the sixth day of Creation, and the proof is that King Shlomo was born from this union, and it was he who built the first Beit HaMikdash. Why did all this happen? The Zohar HaKadosh explains that all these events foreshadowed the birth of Melech HaMashiach. The yetzer hara, which is also the Angel of Death, is very afraid of Mashiach, because when Mashiach comes, its power will be annulled. This is why Hashem brings Mashiach into the world secretly, through sin and through situations that this angel could never even imagine. Mashiach ben David The union of Yehudah and Tamar produced Peretz, and Mashiach will come from Peretz. From Moav, from the union of Ruth and Boaz, Oved was born. From Oved came Yishai, and from Yishai came David HaMelech. From David HaMelech will come Mashiach ben David. Mashiach ben Yosef Asenat descended from the union of Shechem ben Chamor and Dinah bat Yaakov. She married Yosef HaTzadik, and Ephraim was born from their union. Mashiach ben Yosef was born from this union. Pinchas, who is Eliyahu HaNavi, killed Zimri and Kozbi, but they had not yet completed their tikkun. Zimri was reincarnated as Rabbi Akiva, while Kozbi bat Tzur was reincarnated as the wife of Turnus Rufus. The wicked Turnus Rufus hated Rabbi Akiva, and when his beautiful wife asked him what was troubling him, he replied: “Rabbi Akiva!” She told him that she would take care of it, because Hashem hates lust. Her plan was to seduce him, exactly as Kozbi bat Tzur had done with Zimri. She dressed in seductive clothing and went to Rabbi Akiva. When Rabbi Akiva saw her, he spat, laughed, and cried. She asked him to explain why he had done this. He told her that he spat because she had originated from a putrid drop of semen; he cried because such beauty would one day lie beneath the earth; and he did not tell her why he laughed. Through his prophetic vision, he knew that he would marry her. She insisted that he explain why he had laughed, and when he revealed the reason to her, she married him and gave him all her wealth. Rabbi Akiva and Turnus Rufus's wife, Shechem and Dinah, Zimri and Kozbi… The 24,000 men of Shechem who circumcised themselves and the 24,000 men of the tribe of Shimon who sinned with the women of Midian returned as Rabbi Akiva's disciples in order to complete their tikkun. Those same 24,000 disciples died in an epidemic during the 50 days from Pesach to Shavuot because they did not treat one another with respect. Their deaths completed their tikkun. How did Rabbi Akiva die? His skin was flayed with iron combs. How did Shechem die? By the sword. How did Zimri die? By the spear. What were Rabbi Akiva's final words? “Shema Yisrael.” Zimri caused a great chillul Hashem, and when he was reincarnated as Rabbi Akiva, he rectified it by bringing about a kiddush Hashem and saying “Shema Yisrael.” Who killed Zimri? Pinchas. Who was Pinchas? Eliyahu HaNavi. When Rabbi Akiva was very poor and married Rachel, the daughter of Kalba Savua, they used straw for a mattress. To help him succeed in his tikkun, Eliyahu HaNavi came to him disguised as a poor man and asked him for some straw for his wife, who had just given birth… Who would bury Rabbi Akiva? Eliyahu HaNavi. Remarkably, Eliyahu HaNavi cared for Rabbi Akiva from beginning to end. Until the age of 40, Rabbi Akiva was Akiva, an unlearned man. When the Almighty showed Moshe Rabbeinu all the generations, he saw himself sitting in the eighth row in Rabbi Akiva's classroom, but he understood nothing. One of the students asked Rabbi Akiva a question, and he replied: “A halachah from Moshe Rabbeinu.” Moshe Rabbeinu returned to HaKadosh Baruch Hu and asked: “How did You choose me to give the holy Torah when there is a greater talmid chacham capable of teaching Torah?” HaKadosh Baruch Hu caused Moshe Rabbeinu to fall silent. Moshe Rabbeinu asked: “What is this tzadik's reward?” Hashem showed him the execution of Rabbi Akiva and his final words: “Shema Yisrael.” Moshe Rabbeinu asked HaKadosh Baruch Hu: “This is Torah, and this is its reward?” The L-rd answered him: שתוק! כך עלה במחשבה לפני - “Be silent! This is what I decided to do.” כך (“this”) has a gematria of 40. For 40 years, Rabbi Akiva was illiterate. Who rectified and completed Rabbi Akiva? The Ramchal—Rabbi Moshe Chaim Luzzatto. The Ramchal lived for 40 years. Where was he buried? In Tiberias, next to Rabbi Akiva. What Torah did he renew? The last book he wrote is the secret of “Kriat Shema.” In this book, the Ramchal writes that meditating on one's readiness to die for Kiddush Hashem (the sanctification of the Name), if done with proper kavanah (intention), is counted as though the person had actually done so. (Yeranen Yaakov, Dreaming of Moshiach)