Moshe In Heaven Receiving The Torah

Before the Giving of the Torah on Mount Sinai, G-d brought Moses up to Heaven in order to teach him the entire Torah. Moses, who walked about in Heaven as one walks on earth, was greeted by an angel who asked him, "What are you doing here, son of Amram? What business do you, a mortal who lives in the physical world, have coming to the holy Heavens?"
"I did not come of my own will," replied Moses confidently. "Our Master has ordered me here in order to receive the Torah and bring it back to the Jewish nation."
When the angels realized that Moses had come to take the Torah from the Heavens and bring it to the Jews, they raised a mighty cry. Would they now be parted forever more from their beloved Torah?
G-d therefore told Moses, "Go and speak with the angels. Convince them that they have no need for the Torah and that they have no reason to regret that it is being taken from them."
But Moses was frightened by the fiery angels. "I am surprised at you, Moses," chastised G-d. "When I first appeared to you from the burning bush, you had much to say. You were not afraid to ask and to argue without end. Why are suddenly frightened by angels who are merely My servants?"
Emboldened by G-d's words, and holding on to the Heavenly throne, Moses gathered his courage and began. "Whatever was written in the Torah was not intended for you," Moses told the angels gathered nearby. "What does the Torah say? 'I am G-d your G-d Who took you out of the land of Egypt.' Were you ever slaves in Egypt? Did G-d rescue you from there?" Moses asked the Heavenly servants.
"The Torah also says, 'You shall have no strange gods before Me.' Do you worship man made idols? Do you have an inclination to steal, to covet what belongs to others? Do you have parents that you must honor them? If not, what use do you have for the Torah? You cannot observe its positive commandments nor its prohibitions."
Hearing these arguments, the angels had to concede that Moses was right.
Moses remained in Heaven for 40 days and 40 nights, learning the entire Written Torah and Oral Tradition. Moses knew when day or night had passed on earth by the activities of the angels. When he saw the angels preparing the manna which the Jews were to eat the following day, he knew that it was day. When the manna fell, he knew it was night time on Earth.
One day, Moses saw G-d sitting on His mighty, exalted throne, adding crowns to the letters of the Torah. He asked G-d to explain the reason for these decorations and was told, "In many years to come there will be born a great tzadik (righteous person) by the name of Akiva the son of Josef, who will reveal many hidden secrets of the Torah. He will know how to derive laws and Torah thoughts from every letterhead and crown which I am now adding to the letters."
Moses begged to be shown this tzadik. G-d showed him a building which housed many disciples sitting in rows upon rows. At their head sat a man who resembled a heavenly angel. Moses approached the men but could not understand what they were saying, and he was very grieved.
Then, suddenly, Moses heard one of the students ask the angelic-looking man how he knew all he had been teaching them. Rabbi Akiva replied, "Everything I am teaching and innovating before you in Torah is a direct transmission of what Moses received upon Mount Sinai." Moses was comforted by these words but asked G-d, "If You intend to create such a great person, why do You not grant him the privilege of bringing the Torah down to the Jews?"
"I have especially chosen you to bring the Torah to My children," G-d told Moses. "But because you were so modest in thinking that Rabbi Akiva is more fitting than you to transmit the Torah to the Jews, I will increase your wisdom and knowledge." And at that moment, G-d opened the 50 gates of wisdom, allowing Moses to pass through 49 of them. Moses's wisdom was so great that no other person in the world could compare with him. And it is from Moses, of all our other great teachers, that we will learn Torah when Moshiach comes.

The Miracle @ R' Akiva's Daughter's Wedding

Rabbi Akiva and his wife, Rachel, had a kind and beloved daughter, a rare jewel. As she grew up, her family concerned themselves with finding a suitable match for her, a young man who would appreciate her special qualities. When such a person was found, the family began making wedding preparations. The family was understandably excited. But Rabbi Akiva was a bit worried. Years before, an astrologer had told him that a terrible disaster would occur on his daughter's wedding day. She would be bitten by a poisonous snake and die.

Rabbi Akiva placed his trust in G-d, knowing well that the stars and astrology do not control the lives of Jews. With great devotion, Rabbi Akiva prayed that no harm would befall his cherished child.

The wedding day arrived. Guests came from far and near to celebrate the wedding of the daughter of the esteemed and revered Rabbi Akiva. Everything proceeded seemingly uneventfully.

During the wedding meal, while everyone was enjoying the delicious repast, a poor man walked into the hall. "Can anyone give me something to eat?" he called out in a soft voice, too weakened by hunger to speak loudly. No one heard the poor man. No one except for the bride, herself. She got up from her place of honor. Though she had fasted the entire day, she quietly, humbly, gave the beggar her own portion of the wedding feast. No one noticed this simple act of kindness which the bride showed to the poor man.

Later that evening, as some of the guests had begun to leave, the bride went to her room to rest. She had been wearing a gold pin in her hair to keep her veil in place. She removed the pin from her hair and looked around in the dim light for a place to put it. Finding no suitable, secure place, she stuck it in the wall near her bed.

When the bride awakened in the morning and went to take her pin, an incredible sight met her eyes. A dead snake had been impaled by the pin!

Not much time passed before Rabbi Akiva heard about the snake. He immediately remembered the words of the astrologer. Certainly this was the snake about which he had foretold.

Rabbi Akiva asked his daughter, "Tell me, did you perform any good deeds yesterday at your wedding?"

The bride considered the events of the previous day. "I saw a poor, hungry man at the wedding who was asking for food. No one heard him but I. So, I took my own portion of food from the wedding feast and gave it to him."

Rabbi Akiva then told her of the astrologer's forecast and concluded by saying, "In the merit of your charitable act - the food which you gave to the poor man, your own life was saved."

Our Sages teach, "Tzedaka saves from death." In addition, it is customary for bride and groom, and their relatives (and anyone who cares about them) to give charity on the wedding day, as the Lubavitcher Rebbe explains: In light of the saying of our Sages, "Great is tzedaka, for it hastens the Redemption," there is a special quality to the tzedaka given by groom and bride - "king and queen" - to hasten and bring about the imminent true and complete Redemption...

The Rebbe also explained: Parents, grandparents, siblings, and all relatives and friends who desire the welfare of the groom and bride and who want to participate in the joy of the groom and bride, should increase the amount they give to charity on the day of the wedding. This applies as well to the teachers and the "matchmaker" of the groom and bride. Their gift should be in honor of and accompanied by prayerful wishes for the eternal well-being of the groom and bride, that the mitzva (commandment) and merit of tzedaka stand them in good stead and that their joy be unbounded and everlasting.