Study Tamid folio 30A with parallel Hebrew-English text, traditional commentary, and modern study tools. Free access to Babylonian Talmud online.
Text Excerpt
ושייפי להו בחבלא דצבתא דסריך עליה בזרא, וקברי היכא דמסיק ימא שירטון, קורה – עבדא, פירי – לא עבדא, ותלת בריכי מינייהו לא מחזקה להו גמלא.
and the growers rub them with a rope made of palm fronds, to which the seeds adhere, and they plant the tree in a spot where the sea emits deposits of sediment [sirton]. A tree planted in this manner produces wood that is suitable for a beam, but it does not produce fruit. And as the tree does not divert its resources to yielding fruit, its wood is so robust and heavy that with regard to 3 of its branches, a bridge cannot support them.
סידר את המערכה גדולה וכו׳. מאי טעמא? רב הונא ורב חסדא. חד אמר: כדי שתהא הרוח מנשבת בה, וחד אמר: כדי שיהו מציתין האליתא משם.
§ The Mishnah teaches: The priest assembled the large arrangement on the eastern side of the altar, and its opening was on the eastern side of the altar. The Talmud asks: What is the reason that an opening was formed in the arrangement? This matter is subject to a dispute between Rav Huna and Rav Ḥisda: One said that the opening was formed so that the wind would blow into it and fan the flames of the arrangement. And one said that it was formed so that the priests would be able to light from there the kindling that was placed between the logs.
מיתיבי: ריוח היה בהן בין הגזירין, שהיו מציתין האליתא משם. אמר לך, מקומות מקומות עבדי.
The Talmud raises an objection from the Mishnah: There was space between the logs, as the priests would ignite the kindling from there. Evidently, the kindling was not ignited from the opening. The Talmud explains: The Sage who maintains that the kindling was lit from the opening in the east of the arrangement could say to you that in addition to lighting kindling from the opening, the priests would fashion many spaces within the arrangement, through which they would ignite kindling in order to increase the fire.