S'il commençait à hocher la tête, le pirchei kehunah (les jeunes prêtres) frapperait devant lui avec le (etzba tzreidah) [("pirchei kehunah" :) Les jeunes, dont la barbe vient de commencer à germer (lifroach) sont appelés "pirchei". ("etzba tzreidah" :) le doigt près du pouce. "tzreidah" = "tzarata deda" ("celui-ci correspond), c'est-à-dire l'allumette du pouce, qui lui est adjacent. Ils joignaient le pouce au doigt le plus proche et le relâchaient en un clin d'œil pour que le grand prêtre ne t'endors pas], et ils lui diraient: "Notre seigneur, grand prêtre, tiens-toi debout [sur tes pieds] et enlève-la [ta chaleur] une fois sur le sol [de marbre]," [la fraîcheur de la pieds dissipant la somnolence. "hafeg" = "enlever", comme dans (Beitzah 14a): "mefigin ta'aman" ("leur saveur est enlevée")], et ils le garderaient ainsi occupé jusqu'au moment de l'abattage (de le tamid du matin).
Bartenura on Mishnah Yoma
פרחי כהונה – young men when the hair of heir beards begins to flower are called those who blossom.
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English Explanation of Mishnah Yoma
Introduction
This mishnah shows how the young priests would keep the high priest awake all night on the eve before Yom Kippur.
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Bartenura on Mishnah Yoma
באצבע צרדה – the finger that is closest to the thumb. And the language of צרדה/snap is (see Talmud Yoma 19b – a phonetic play), the match to this (the middle finger) what is it? The thumb, i.e., the sound produced with these two fingers, the nearest to the thumb, closest to it, and they would combine the thumb with the finger closest to it, and it would slip off and strike his palm and produces a sound so that the High Priest doesn’t sleep.
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English Explanation of Mishnah Yoma
If he wished to sleep, young priests would snap their middle finger before him and say: “Sir high priest, stand up and drive the sleep away by standing once on this [cold] floor. There were two things that the young priests, those with the strength to stay up all night, would do to keep the high priest awake. First they would snap their fingers at him and then they would tell him to stand on the cold floor. The rabbis believed that standing on a cold floor would wake up a tired person. If you’re not sure, try this yourself.
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Bartenura on Mishnah Yoma
עמוד – on your feet.
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English Explanation of Mishnah Yoma
They would keep him busy until the time for the slaughtering [of the daily morning offering] would arrive. Finally, they made sure to keep him busy all night so that he wouldn’t fall asleep.
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Bartenura on Mishnah Yoma
והפג אחת על הרצפה – of marble in order to remove the head, for the coolness of the feet removes the sleep and the word הפג is the language of removal, like (Talmud Betza 14a) like spices “losing their taste” when pounded the day before.
