They would tie [the heifer] with a rope of rubber and place it upon the pyre, its head in the South and its face Westward. The priest would stand in the East and his face Westward. He would slaughter with his right hand, and receive [the blood] with his left. Rabbi Yehuda says: He would receive with his right and [then] place it in his left. And he would sprinkle [the blood] with his right. He would immerse [his finger into the blood] and sprinkle seven times in the direction of the holy of holies. For each sprinkling a [separate] immersion. Upon finishing the sprinkling, he would wipe his hands on the body of the cow, descend [from the pyre] and ignite the fire with twigs. Rabbi Akiva says: with branches.
Bartenura on Mishnah Parah
בחבל של מגג (rope made of a species of reed) – rope made from a species of reed-grass. In order that all of it actions in the matter will be that it is not susceptible to receive defilement.
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English Explanation of Mishnah Parah
They bound it with a rope of reed and placed it on the pile with its head towards the south and its face towards the west. The cow is now bound up and placed on the pile of wood. Its head is facing south and its face is to be turned to the west, towards the Temple.
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Bartenura on Mishnah Parah
ופניה למערב – to the side of the Temple.
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English Explanation of Mishnah Parah
The priest stood in the east with his face towards the west. He slaughtered with his right hand and received the blood with his left. Rabbi Judah said: he received the blood with his right hand and put it in his left hand. The priest stands on the eastern side of the cow, facing the Temple as well. He slaughters the animal with his right hand and then receives the blood into a vessel held in his left. Rabbi Judah says he receives the blood with his right hand and then puts the vessel into his left. This seems to be a preference for doing the important actions, which include the receiving of the blood, with his right hand.
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Bartenura on Mishnah Parah
ר' יהודה אומר בימינו היה מקבל – like the rest of the reception of the blood of Holy Things that if he received it in his left [hand], it is invalid. But the Halakha is not according to Rabbi Yehuda, for since its blood is not sprinkled on the Altar it is not like the other Holy Things in this matter.
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English Explanation of Mishnah Parah
He sprinkled with his right. Seven times he dipped his finger in the blood and sprinkled it towards the Holy of Holies, dipping once again for each sprinkling. He sprinkles the blood 7 times towards the Holy of Holies. This is stated explicitly in Numbers 19:4.
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Bartenura on Mishnah Parah
ונזה בימינו – as it is written (Numbers 19:4): “Eleazar the priest shall take some of its blood with his finger [and sprinkle it seven times toward the front of the Tent of Meeting],” the usual that is of fingers, meaning to say, the finger of the right hand that a person handles with it always.
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English Explanation of Mishnah Parah
When he finished the sprinkling he wiped his hand on the body of the cow, came down and kindled the fire with wood chips. Rabbi Akiva said: with dry branches of palm-trees. He needs to clean off his bloody hand on the cow itself so that the blood can be burned with the fire. Numbers 19:5 specifically states that the blood must be burned.
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Bartenura on Mishnah Parah
כנגד בית קודש הקדשים – as it is written (Numbers 19:4): “and sprinkle It [seven times] towards the front of the Tent of Meeting.”
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Bartenura on Mishnah Parah
על כל הזייה טבילה – on each sprinkling that he would make, he would immerse his finger in the blood, that the remainder of the blood that is on his finger is invalid for sprinkling.
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Bartenura on Mishnah Parah
גמר מלהזות קינח ידו בגופה של פרה – in order that he would burn the blood with It, as it is written (Numbers 19:5): “The cow shall be burned in his sight – its hide, flesh, and blood shall be burned,” and between sprinkling to sprinkling, he would wipe his finger in the rim of the bowl out of which the sprinkling is done, but not in the body of the cow, because of cords/string that were attached on his finger that it is a disgrace to do sprinkling with them.
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Bartenura on Mishnah Parah
אליתות (wood of the fig-tree) - small pieces of wood that they kindle the pile of wood on the altar. [The word] אליתות is the language of fat-tail. Like (Isaiah 7:4): “[Do not be afraid and do not lose heart on account of those two] smoking stubs of firebrands.”
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Bartenura on Mishnah Parah
בחריות (dried branches, twigs used for fuel) – vine-shoots of palm-trees. But the Halakha is not according to Rabbi Akiba.
