Burning The Parah Adumah

12/9/2022

The Parah Adumah was burned on top of Har Hamishchah, which is Har Hazeisim, the Mount of Olives. (The ashes of the Parah Adumah-red heifer were used to purify people from Tumas Meis.) This place was located directly to the east of the Beis Hamikdash, as learned from the Passuk (Bamidbar 19:4) "Elazar the kohen shall take some of its blood with his finger and sprinkle it directly towards (אל נוכח) the face of the Tent of Meeting seven times". From the words directly towards (אל נוכח) we learn that number one, he sprinkled the blood towards the entrance of the Kodesh Hakodoshim, and number two, that the location he was in must be directly opposite the Kodesh Hakodoshim. (The face of a building is the door, although from the fact that the passuk does not just simply say door, we learn that over here it also means the most important part of the Heichal, the Kodesh Hakodoshim. In order to see the entrance to the Kodesh Hakodoshim, however, you had to look through the door of the Kodesh. [Tosafos Chadashim, Parah 3:9])

illustration showing the Radvaz's question

Now, where on Har Hazeisim was the Parah Adumah burned? From the above-mentioned passuk, we learn that it was directly to the front of the Beis Hamikdash. From the Gemara in Yoma (16a) we see that this location was located along an axis that went from the door of the Heichal, through Sha'ar Nikanor, the gate of the Ezras Nashim, and Sha'ar Shushan, and until this point. From the Yerushalmi (Eiruvin 5:1) we know that the Beis Hamikdash was built directly on an exact east-west axis, making this place directly to the east of the Heichal. In Middos (2:4), the Mishnah states that the Kohen "stood on the top (בראש) of Har Hamishchah", indicating that the burning was done on the top of the mountain; however, it should be noted that in the manuscripts of the Mishnah, it does not say "on top".

The Radvaz, in his Peirush on the Rambam (Hilchos Beis Habechirah 6:5), asks, that in the Mishnah in Middos (2:4), it says that they had to make the eastern wall of Har Habayis shorter, so that the Kohen on Har Hazeisim could see the opening of the Heichal, because if it was the same height as the other walls, it would have blocked his view. However, the Radvaz asks, the top of Har Hazeisim is currently much higher than the Har Habayis, so he could look down over the walls, and easily see the door of the Heichal, even without making the wall shorter (see picture)! He answers with two answers. The first one is that it must not have been burned on the top of Har Hazeisim, but lower down on the hill. (It seems he had the manuscript version of the Mishnah, where it does not say that it was burned on the top.) The second one is that Har Habayis used to be much taller, as he explained in another place (שאלות ותשובות, סימן תרל"ט, see my article on this Teshuva here).

(Picture from Yoav Elan's blog)

Another thing than can be learned from this Mishnah is that the location also had to be at the same elevation as the door of the Heichal. If it could have been lower, than he could have looked at an angle upward through the gates; and see through the door of the Kodesh without them having to lower the wall. Therefore, we must say that we learn that it must also be opposite it in height. (To see more about this idea, see R' Yoav Elan's blog post about this; Beis Hamikdash Topics: Elevation of the Kohen on the Mount of Olives.) Now, if the Har Habayis was taller than Har Hazeisim, as the Radvaz says, how can this be, there is no place that is on the same height level as the gate of the Kodesh? We must say that this was done by making the platform on which the Parah was burned reach this level, even though the natural ground doesn't.

Identification of this place during the times of the Rishonim
One of the people who visited Eretz Yisrael during the times of the Rishonim, and left us a detailed account of what he saw, was a student of the Ramban. He writes the following (see here for the original):

"We walk in the valley until opposite the platform on Har Hazeisim, the place where they burned the Parah Adumah. We go up the mountain to the platform, it is a very tall mountain; this platform is directly opposite the entrance of the Heichal. From there you can see the Har Habayis and all the structures on it, and therefore they daven there, opposite the Beis Hamikdash." (Later on, he asks the question how Har Hazeisim is taller than Har Habayis, if the Gemara [Zevachim 54b] says that the Beis Hamikdash was the highest place? He answers that the Har Habayis used to be much lower, like the second answer of the Radvaz.)

Reb Shmuel ben Reb Shimshon, in his account of his journey in Eretz Yisrael, also mentions the place of the burning of the Parah, as a place still know, and he even davened there.

The Kaftor Vaferach also mentions the location of the burning of the Parah as a known place, and even says where on Har Hazeisim it was located, however his words are not so simple. He writes: "עוד היום מקובל המקום ההוא, והוא צפוני לקבר חולדה כמטחוי קשת שפל ממנו מעט-Until today this location is identified, it is north of Chuldah's grave, and slightly lower than it." This location is strange, as any location that is north of Chuldah's Kever is opposite the northern side of Har Habayis, while the Kaftor Vaferach clearly writes that Sha'ar Shushan, which was directly opposite the Beis Hamikdash, was to the south of Sha'ar Harachamim, making the Beis Hamikdash either in the southern side of Har Habayis, or in the center, and therefore the place of the Burning of the Parah has to be opposite this part of the Har Habayis. (See my article The Eastern Wall of the Har Habayis, part 3 (the gates in the middle of the eastern wall) for more on the Kaftor Vaferach's identification of Sha'ar Shushan, as well as his location of the Beis Hamikdash.)

R' Zalman Koren has also pointed out another interesting thing. (See his article in Kovetz Ma'alin Bakodesh, גיליון לא, pp. 102-105, it is also reprinted in the Sefer איה מקום כבודו, pp. 263-266.) The place identified as the grave of Chuldah is located pretty much directly to the east of Sha'ar Harachamim. Now, the Kaftor Vaferach writes that both Sha'ar Shushan and the location of the burning of the Parah are located the same exact distance (כמטחוי קשת-a arrowshot or two arrowshots) away from this axis of Sha'ar Harachamim and Kever Chuldah. Both of these two locations, Sha'ar Shushan and The Burning Place, are known from other sources to have been along the same axis. The only problem is that the Kaftor Vaferach says that one is on the northern side, and one is on the south. Because of all this, he says (taking after Avraham Luntz, in his edition of the Kaftor Vaferach,) that it seems there is a mistake in the Kaftor Vaferach, and it should really say that also The Burning Place was located south of Kever Chuldah. [This king of mistake is fairly common, and he shows in how it appears other times in the Kaftor Vaferach.] We could propose to change the description of Sha'ar Shushan to say it is in the north, but that would mean having to emend the Kaftor Vaferach twice, once when he says Sha'ar Shushan is located in the southern part of the wall, and also when he says that Sha'ar Harachamim is to the north of Sha'ar Shushan.

Now, where exactly is this location? Based on this Kaftor Vaferach, we should be looking around at the top of Har Hazeisim, at a distance of around 100 meters (which, based on other times the Kaftor Vaferach uses the expression of an arrowshot, especially the distance from Sha'ar Shushan to Sha'ar Harachamim, this seems to be the approximate size he wants to convey) from Chuldah's Kever. This area is directly opposite the dome of the rock, and the ground level here is slightly lower than by Chuldah's grave. Looking in this area, it appears that this location was in the area now occupied by the Pater Noster church. In the times of the Rishonim, this church did not exist, and there could have been a platform there. This fits even with the versions of the Mishnah (Middos 2:4) that say that this location was on the top of Har Hazeisim, as this obviously does not mean that it was located on the tippy top, but in the general area of the top of the mountain, where this place is indeed located. (The top of the mountain is 808 meters [2650 feet] above sea level, this place is 795 meters [2608 feet] above sea level.)

map of the location of the burning of the Parah Adumah

From the Mishnayos in Parah (chapter 3), as well as the commentaries on it, we get the following information about the platform on which the Parah was burned:
This whole platform, like the Kevesh leading to it from the Har Habayis, was built on arches, so that no tumah can rise up from underneath it. On this platform there was a mikveh, in which the Kohen burning the Parah immersed himself before doing the avodah. [Right before doing the Avodah, the elders of the Beis Din would make the Kohen tamei, and he would then have to immerse himself before doing the avodah. This was done as when someone immerses himself in a mikveh, he does not become fully tahor (in regard to Teruma and Korbanos) right away, but rather has to wait until nightfall. During this time period, he is called a tevul yom-someone who immersed that day. Now, the Chachamim have a tradition that in regard to the Parah Adumah, when the Passuk says it must be done by a pure man, it means even if he is a tevul yom, since in regard to Ma'aser Sheini, he is Tahor. The Tzedokim, however, who did not hold of the Torah Sheba'al Peh, said he must be completely tahor, and not even a Tevul Yom. In order to completely negate the Tzedoki opinion, the Chachamim would intentionally make the Kohen a tevul yom before he burned the Parah.]

On the platform there was a ditch, like a wine vat, in which the pyre was built. The pyre was made from cedar wood, laurel wood, boxwood, and smooth fig wood. (All the wood had to be smooth, but the other types are always smooth, so there is no need to mention it; fig wood, however, is sometimes smooth and sometimes not smooth, so the Mishnah [Parah 3:8] has to specify that we need smooth ones.) The pyre was set up in a pyramid shape, wider at the bottom and narrower at the top, as this made the fire concentrate on the Parah, located at its top. There were spaces ("windows") among the logs, this was done so the wind could travel between the logs and fan the flames, making the fire bigger. On the western side of the pyre, facing the Beis Hamikdash, was a large opening, in which the fire was placed to light the wood.

After the Parah was burned, its ashes were divided into three parts. One was put in the Cheil, next to the gate of the Ezras Nashim, one was kept on Har Hazeisim, and one was divided among all the Mishmaros (divisions) of Kohanim. These three parts were each used for a different purpose. The one in the Cheil was placed there as a safekeeping, like the Passuk (Bamidbar 19:9) says: וְהָיְתָה לַעֲדַת בְּנֵי־יִשְׂרָאֵל לְמִשְׁמֶרֶת-it shall be for a keepsake for the community of Bnei Yisroel. (These ashes were also used to purify the Kohen before he burned the Parah, see Parah 3:1) The one on Har Hamishchah was used by the Kohanim, and the one given out to all the Mishmaros was used by the Yisra'elim if they became tamei. (This is how our version of the Tosefta [Parah 3:8] explains the uses of the three parts. Rambam, however, seems to have had a different version of the Tosefta, as he writes [Hilchos Parah Adumah 3:4] that the one on Har Hamishchah was used by the Yisra'elim, and the one given out to the Mishmaros of Kohanim was used by the Kohanim.) I have made another room on the platform of the Parah, for storing the ashes that are to be kept on Har Hamishchah.

Rashi's opinion: two locations

The general opinion is that all the things done with the Parah: its slaughter, sprinkling its blood, and burning it, were all done at this same place, near the top of Har Hamishchah. Rashi, however, argues with this. From his words in Menachos (7b, ד"ה בשלמא, במאי מקנח), we see that he holds that the slaughtering and burning of it were done towards the bottom, of Har Hazeisim, and the Kohen would take the blood to the top of the mountain and sprinkle it there. Rabbeinu Shimshon (commentary to Parah 3:9) asks on Rashi from a Gemarah in Zevachim, which states that we learn out the slaughtering and burning of the Parah from the sprinkling, that they all have to be done opposite the Heichal. Tosafos, however, (Menachos 7b ד"ה אלא אצבעו במאי מקנח) answer this question; explaining that both of these locations were opposite the Beis Hamikdash, just one was higher up on the mountain, and one was lower. (It would seem from this that you only need the strict definition of opposite the opening, that it is also opposite in height, only by the actual sprinkling, where the passuk is written, and not by the slaughtering and burning, which are only learned out, but this seems kind of forced, and maybe this is Rabbeinu Shimshon's main question.)

[According to Rashi, you would need the Kevesh to continue, or there would be another Kevesh, going past the burning place, to the top of the mountain, as the Kohen who is doing the Parah also has to be protected from tumah on his way up to sprinkle the blood.]

The order of the Avodah of the Parah Adumah (from the Rambam, Hilchos Parah Adumah 3:2) [English translation Copyrighted by Moznaim Publications, used under a CC-BY-NC license]

How was the red heifer burnt? The elders of Israel would walk to the Mount of Olives first. There was a mikveh there. The priest, those assisting in burning it, and the heifer would go out on the ramp and come to the Mount of Olives.
There they would make the priest impure. The elders would rest their hands on the priest and tell him: "Immerse yourself." If he was a High Priest, they would tell him: "My sir, the High Priest, immerse yourself." He would descend, immerse himself, ascend, and dry himself.
There was wood arranged there: cedar wood, oak wood, pine wood, and smooth fig wood. An arrangement like a tower was made and windows were made in the midst of it, so that the fire would flame in them. The front of the arrangement was in the west.
The heifer would be tied with a rope of love grass, and it would be brought onto the arrangement with its head to the south and its face to the west. The priest would stand to the east with his head facing west. He would slaughter the heifer with his right hand and receive its blood in his left hand. With his right finger, he would sprinkle from the blood in his left palm seven times toward the Holy of Holies. He would dip his finger in the blood for every sprinkling. The remainder of the blood on his finger was disqualified for sprinkling, Therefore, after every sprinkling, he would clean his finger on the body of the heifer.
When he completed sprinkling, he would clean his hands on the body of the heifer and descend from the arrangement. He would light the fire with small kindling twigs and place them below the wood of the arrangement. The fire would begin to catch in it. The priest would stand at a distance and watch it until the fire catches in its larger portion and its belly becomes ripped open.
Afterwards, he takes a branch of a cedar tree and hyssop that is at least a handbreadth long, and wool dyed crimson weighing five selaim. He asks the people standing there: "Is this a piece of cedar?" "Is this a piece of cedar?" "Is this a piece of cedar?" "Is this hyssop?" "Is this hyssop?" "Is this hyssop?" "Is this a crimson thread?" "Is this a crimson thread?" "Is this a crimson thread?", asking each question three times. They answer: "Yes!" "Yes!" "Yes!", three times for each set of questions.
Why is all this necessary? Because there are seven species of cedar, four species of hyssop, and several options to produce red dye. Some dye with madder and some dye with lacca sap, and some dye with tola'at. Tola'at refers to very red berries that resemble carob seeds. They are like sumac berries. There is a bug, like a gnat, in every berry. Since there are different types of species for each of the entities involved, the priest notifies everyone and informs them that these are the species mentioned in the Torah.
The hyssop mentioned in the Torah is the type of hyssop eaten by homeowners and used as a condiment in certain dishes. The hyssop, cedar, and wool dyed crimson are all absolute requirements, without one of which, the others are not acceptable. The priest should bind the hyssop together with the cedar branch with the crimson thread and then throw them into the belly of the heifer, as Numbers 19:6 states: "He shall cast them into the midst of the conflagration of the heifer."
He should not cast them into the heifer until the fire has caught hold of the larger portion of it and not after it has been reduced to ashes. If he casts them at those times, it is unacceptable, as indicated by the phrase: "into the midst of the conflagration," i.e., not before the fire has caught onto its larger portion and not after it was reduced to ashes. Whether one cast all three of them together or one after the other, whether one cast them into the heifer's body or into the fire, whether its belly burst open on its own accord or the priest ripped it open by hand or with a utensil, it is acceptable.

כֵּיצַד שׂוֹרְפִין אוֹתָהּ. זִקְנֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל הָיוּ מַקְדִּימִין בְּרַגְלֵיהֶן לְהַר הַמִּשְׁחָה וּבֵית טְבִילָה הָיָה שָׁם. וְכֹהֵן וְהַמְסַעֲדִין בִּשְׂרֵפָתָהּ וְהַפָּרָה יוֹצְאִין עַל הַכֶּבֶשׁ וּבָאִין לְהַר הַמִּשְׁחָה. וּמְטַמְּאִין אֶת הַכֹּהֵן וְסוֹמְכִין הַזְּקֵנִים אֶת יְדֵיהֶם עַל הַכֹּהֵן וְאוֹמְרִים לוֹ טְבל אַחַת. וְאִם הָיָה כֹּהֵן גָּדוֹל אוֹמְרִים לוֹ אִישִׁי כֹּהֵן גָּדוֹל טְבל אַחַת. יָרַד וְטָבַל וְעָלָה וְנִסְתַּפֵּג. וְעֵצִים מְסֻדָּרִים הָיוּ שָׁם אֲרָזִים אַלּוֹנִים וּבְרוֹשִׁים וַעֲצֵי תְּאֵנָה חֲלָקָה. וְעוֹשִׂין מַעֲרָכָה כְּמִין מִגְדָּל וּמְפַתְּחִין בָּהּ חַלּוֹנוֹת כְּדֵי שֶׁתִּהְיֶה הָאוּר מְלַבֶּבֶת בָּהֶן. וּמַרְאֵה הַמַּעֲרָכָה בְּמַעֲרָב. וְכוֹפְתִין אֶת הַפָּרָה בְּחֶבֶל שֶׁל מֶגֶג וְנוֹתְנִין אוֹתָהּ עַל גַּבֵּי הַמַּעֲרָכָה רֹאשָׁהּ לְדָרוֹם וּפָנֶיהָ לְמַעֲרָב. הַכֹּהֵן עוֹמֵד בַּמִּזְרָח וּפָנָיו לַמַּעֲרָב. שׁוֹחֵט בִּימִינוֹ וּמְקַבֵּל הַדָּם בִּשְׂמֹאלוֹ. וּמַזֶּה בְּאֶצְבָּעוֹ הַיְמָנִית מִן הַדָּם שֶׁבְּכַפּוֹ הַשְּׂמָאלִית שֶׁבַע פְּעָמִים כְּנֶגֶד בֵּית קָדְשֵׁי הַקָּדָשִׁים. עַל כָּל הַזָּאָה טְבִילַת אֶצְבַּע בְּדָם. וּשְׁיָרֵי הַדָּם שֶׁבָּאֶצְבַּע פְּסוּלִים לְהַזָּיָה לְפִיכָךְ עַל כָּל הַזָּאָה מְקַנֵּחַ אֶצְבָּעוֹ בְּגוּפָהּ שֶׁל פָּרָה. גָּמַר מִלְּהַזּוֹת מְקַנֵּחַ אֶת יָדָיו בְּגוּפָהּ שֶׁל פָּרָה וְיוֹרֵד מִן הַמַּעֲרָכָה וְהִצִּית אֶת הָאֵשׁ בְּעֵצִים קְטַנִּים וְהִכְנִיסָן תַּחַת עֲצֵי הַמַּעֲרָכָה וְהִתְחִיל הָאֵשׁ בָּהּ וְהַכֹּהֵן עוֹמֵד בְּרָחוֹק וּמְשַׁמֵּר לָהּ עַד שֶׁיִּצַּת אֶת הָאוּר בְּרֻבָּהּ וְתִקָּרַע בִּטְנָהּ. וְאַחַר כָּךְ נוֹטֵל עֵץ אֶרֶז וְאֵזוֹב אֵין פָּחוֹת מִטֶּפַח וְצֶמֶר צָבוּעַ בְּתוֹלַעַת מִשְׁקַל חֲמִשָּׁה סְלָעִים וְאוֹמֵר לָעוֹמְדִים שָׁם. עֵץ אֶרֶז זֶה עֵץ אֶרֶז זֶה עֵץ אֶרֶז זֶה. אֵזוֹב זֶה אֵזוֹב זֶה אֵזוֹב זֶה. שְׁנִי תּוֹלַעַת זֶה שְׁנִי תּוֹלַעַת זֶה שְׁנִי תּוֹלַעַת זֶה. שָׁלֹשׁ פְּעָמִים עַל כָּל אֶחָד וְאֶחָד. וְהֵן אוֹמְרִין לוֹ הֵין הֵין הֵין שָׁלֹשׁ פְּעָמִים עַל כָּל אֶחָד וְאֶחָד. וְכָל כָּךְ לָמָּה לְפִי שֶׁמִּינֵי אֲרָזִים שִׁבְעָה הֵן וּמִינֵי אֵזוֹב אַרְבָּעָה וְהַצָּבוּעַ אָדֹם יֵשׁ שֶׁצּוֹבְעִין אוֹתוֹ בְּפוּאָה וְיֵשׁ שֶׁצּוֹבְעִין אוֹתוֹ בְּלַכָּא וְיֵשׁ שֶׁצּוֹבְעִין אוֹתוֹ בְּתוֹלַעַת וְהַתּוֹלַעַת הִיא הַגַּרְגְּרִים הָאֲדֻמִּים בְּיוֹתֵר הַדּוֹמִים לְגַרְעִינֵי הֶחָרוּבִים וְהֵן כְּמוֹ הָאוֹג וְתוֹלַעַת כְּמוֹ יַתּוּשׁ יֵשׁ בְּכָל גַּרְגִּיר מֵהֶן וּלְפִיכָךְ מוֹדִיעַ לַכּל וּמְגַלֶּה לָהֶן שֶׁאֵלּוּ הֵן הַמִּינִים הָאֲמוּרִים בַּתּוֹרָה. וְהָאֵזוֹב הָאָמוּר בַּתּוֹרָה הוּא הָאֵזוֹב שֶׁאוֹכְלִין אוֹתוֹ בַּעֲלֵי בָּתִּים וּמְתַבְּלִין בּוֹ הַקְּדֵרוֹת. הָאֵזוֹב וְהָאֶרֶז וְהַתּוֹלַעַת שְׁלָשְׁתָּן מְעַכְּבִין זֶה אֶת זֶה. וְכוֹרֵךְ הָאֵזוֹב עִם הָאֶרֶז בְּלָשׁוֹן שֶׁל שָׁנִי וּמַשְׁלִיךְ אֶל תּוֹךְ בִּטְנָהּ שֶׁנֶּאֱמַר (במדבר יט ו) "וְהִשְׁלִיךְ אֶל תּוֹךְ שְׂרֵפַת הַפָּרָה". וְאֵינוֹ מַשְׁלִיךְ קֹדֶם שֶׁיַּצִּית הָאוּר בְּרֻבָּהּ וְלֹא אַחַר שֶׁתֵּעָשֶׂה אֵפֶר וְאִם הִשְׁלִיךְ פְּסוּלָה שֶׁנֶּאֱמַר אֶל תּוֹךְ שְׂרֵפַת לֹא קֹדֶם שֶׁיִּצַּת הָאוּר בְּרֻבָּהּ וְלֹא אַחַר שֶׁתֵּעָשֶׂה אֵפֶר. בֵּין שֶׁהִשְׁלִיךְ שְׁלָשְׁתָּן כְּאַחַת בֵּין שֶׁהִשְׁלִיךְ זֶה אַחַר זֶה בֵּין שֶׁהִשְׁלִיךְ לְתוֹךְ גּוּפָהּ אוֹ לְתוֹךְ שְׂרֵפָתָהּ בֵּין שֶׁנִּקְרְעָה מֵאֵלֶיהָ וְאַחַר כָּךְ הִשְׁלִיךְ בֵּין שֶׁקְּרָעָהּ בְּיָדוֹ אוֹ בִּכְלִי כְּשֵׁרָה: