Me'ila/ Middot 35: The Women's Courtyard and Its Four Chambers

Our Massechet began yesterday and it describes the Temple Mount itself.  There are several Mishnayot that tell us the details about ezrat yisrael, court of the Israelites and south of it.  The northernmost point that a Jewish person (other than a kohen) can enter is this court.  Kohanim can access the ezrat kohanim, the priest's courtyard.

Rabbi Eliezer ben Ya’akov tells us about how the Temple is arranged:

The ezrat nashim, the women's courtyard, is made up of an open area 135x135 cubits.  Each corner houses an area that is 40x40 cubits.  They are permanent chambers which are uncovered.  Each has a different purpose.

• Lishchat ha'nezirim, chamber of the Nazirites, where the nazir would cut and burn his hair under the pot that burned his sacrifice
• Lishchat dir ha'etzim, chamber of the woodshed, whether the priests who had a blemish would check wood for worms until they were ritually able to participate in the service again.  The Meiri teach that this was because nothing non-Kosher could be brought on the altar and/or because disgusting things cannot be brought to the altar
• Lishchat ha metzora'im, the chamber of the lepers, was where people who recovered from "leprosy" would go to the mikvah before reentering society
• Kishchat beit shemanya, the chamber of the house of oils would hold the oil and wine used for the offerings and libations, as taught by Abba Shaul when Rabbi Eliezer ben Ya'akov could not recall what the office was used for.

Even with all of the detail provided in the Gemara, we still do not understand many areas on the Temple Mount.  Some examples include the azara, which included the altar and the slaughterhouse.  We know that the altar was in the middle of the azara beside the entrance to the Holy and the Holy of Holies.  We also know that there must have been room there for the slaughterhouse, including taba'ot, rings that held the animals, shulchanot, tables upon which animals were butchered, and nanasim, hooks where the animals were hung.  The Rambam teaches us that the altar was across from the entrance to the Ulam, the vestibule, and the heichal, the Temple itself.  The kevesh, ramp was to the south, which left room to the north for the tables, rings and hooks.  And so the azara might not have held all of these items.