Tonight does not mark the passing of R Shim’on ben Yohai – it marks his celebration.
After all the thousands of students of the founding father of the rabbinic movement, R ‘Aqiba, died en masse – he went south and ordained five judges in the sacred law of Israel.
R Shim’on was one of those five.
The Zohar paints a picture of his joy on that day – not only of his coming into his own, of being authorized to give guidance by none other than R ‘Aqiba himself, but of the foundation of Hebrew society being preserved under the threat of empire and colonization, after having suffered wave after wave of destruction.
The Jewish polity survived thanks to R ‘Aqiba – and some would say the Jewish soul survived thanks to R Shim’on.
That’s something to celebrate.