Writing recently for the Jewish Journal ("The Examined Life", here), Rabbi Tal Sessler observed:
This quote from Avot, which opens the third perek, startled me yesterday when it was read out at the first funeral I had attended in Jerusalem. Although it was spoken over the body of the deceased, it is actually addressed to the mourners who are present. The point of this message is that we should all remember that we are mortal and accountable. While financial accounts are submitted by businesses on a predictable basis, we have no idea when God might call us to account for our deeds and misdeeds. This was particularly the case yesterday, when the subject of the funeral was a relatively young man in apparently excellent health, the victim of a sudden and unexpected heart attack.In Israel, when a funeral procession commences, the officiating clergy recites the following teaching from Ethics of the Fathers: “Know from whence you originate (from a drop of seed), where you are physically heading (to a place of dust, where worms consume the flesh), and before whom are you going to give spiritual accountability (before the Holy One Blessed Be He).”
At this funeral -- and I don't know whether this is standard practice -- the mishnah at Avot 3:1 was not recited in the name of Akavya ben Mahalalel, even though we learn at Avot 6:6 that citing a piece of learning in the name of the person who teaches will bring redemption into the world. Any explanation?
