Zevachim Daf 63 זבחים דַף 63

The next Mishnah states: מנחות היו נקמצות בכל מקום בעזרה – menachos had their kemitzah performed anywhere in the עזרה, and are eaten within the עזרה’s curtains by male Kohanim, prepared any way, for a day and night until midnight. In the Gemara, Rebbe Elazar says that קמיצה performed in the היכל itself is valid, שכן מצינו בסילוק בזיכין – for we find a similar precedent in the removal of the spoons of לבונה of the לחם הפנים. The לבונה of the לחם בפנים, which was burned on the מזבח, functioned as their “קומץ,” and its removal parallels an ordinary minchah’s קמיצה. Since it took place in the היכל (from the שולחן), any קמיצה of a minchah is likewise valid in the היכל. This is challenged from a Baraisa which darshens that קמיצה is taken ממקום שרגלי הזר עומדות – from the place a non-Kohen may stand, i.e., the עזרה!? The Gemara answers that this derashah does not come to limit קמיצה, but to allow קמיצה in the entire עזרה. Without this passuk, one might have thought קמיצה must be in the southwest corner of the מזבח, like הגשה – bringing of a minchah.

Rebbe Yochanan says: שלמים ששחטן בהיכל כשרים – a shelamim which one shechted in the Heichal is valid, because the passuk says: ושחטו פתח אהל מועד – and he shall slaughter it at the entrance of the Tent of Meeting. This implies that the ability to shecht in the עזרה stems from its closeness to the Heichal, ולא יהא טפל חמור מן העיקר – and the secondary place (the עזרה) should not be more important than the primary place (the היכל itself). This principle is challenged from a Baraisa which derives from a passuk that if attacking idolators surrounded the עזרה, Kohanim may enter the היכל and eat קדשי קדשים there, implying that without a passuk, this would be prohibited. Since the permit to eat them in the עזרה is described as "בחצר אהל מועד" – in the courtyard of the אהל מועד (indicating the primacy of the היכל), we should say לא יהא טפל חמור מן העיקר!? The Gemara differentiates: regarding avodah (such as shechitah), דאדם עובד במקום רבו – where a person would serve in his master’s presence, the primary place (the היכל) should be at least as valid as the secondary place (the עזרה), but regarding eating, דאין אדם אוכל במקום רבו – where a person would not eat in his master’s presence, we would not assume one can eat in the primary place.

The next Mishnah states that the avodah of a חטאת העוף is performed at the southwest corner of the מזבח, "ובכל מקום היתה כשירה אלא זה היתה מקומה" – It was valid in any place, but this was its place. The Gemara later clarifies that its מליקה can be performed anywhere, but this corner was its place for הזאה – the sprinkling of its blood. A hekesh between מנחה and חטאת teaches that just as a מנחה is brought to the southwest corner of the מזבח, the הזאה of a חטאת העוף is also performed at this corner. A minchah’s law is derived in a Baraisa: the words "לפני ה'" – before Hashem would imply the west side of the מזבח (facing the היכל), but the words "אל פני המזבח" – to the front of the mizbeiach implies the south side (where the ramp is). Therefore, מגישה בקרן מערבית דרומית כנגד חודה של קרן ודיו – he brings [the minchah] to the southwest corner, to the edge of the corner, and that is sufficient. Rebbe Eliezer says a מנחה is brought to the south side of the מזבח, which also fulfills "לפני ה'" because he holds the entire מזבח was in צפון.