“So you think Rabi Akiva was wrong?”
” Amusing you should choose this example. R’ Akiva took no money from either his shver or father. You did omit other examples, such as all the shoemakers, butchers, and wine merchants in the g’mora.”
Very few boys are likely to be a R’ Akiva and we all know it. His shver not only did not support his learning, but he disinherited his daughter for marrying him (regretted it later on, when he saw what his aidem had become). I believe R’ Akiva’s father was not a Jew, though I could be mistaken about that, but if I am correct, there was no parnassah coming from him, either. And the point I would like to make is R’ Yochanan was a shoemaker, Rabbi Yehuda Hanasi was a business man, and many other Gedolim made their own parnassah WHILE learning also. ALL boys should be encouraged by their rebbeim to work and learn. This way Hashem AND their wives will be happy. It worked for my dad O”H, who was an outstanding Talmid Chochom, always was asked to give shiurim. His knowledge of both Torah AND secular studies was phenomenal. A boy who is smart enough to sit and learn, is smart enough to sit and learn PART of the day and learn a trade the rest of the day. In fact the Gemarah says that a man who does not teach his son a trade, teaches him to be a goniff (or something bad like that).