Commentaire sur Zevahim 6:3

ומקיפים דרך שמאל – cause to go around the Altar for the needs of the Divine Service. Such as for example to bringing of the blood of the sin-offerings and for the arrangement of the pile of wood on the altar or to turn over the limbs with a hook/curved pin. And the descend on the western side of the ramp which is on the left of those who ascend to the altar in their coming up.

Introduction This mishnah continues to deal with the three offerings mentioned at the end of yesterday’s mishnah the water and wine libations and the extra bird olahs.

חוץ מן העולה לג' דברים אלו – that are done in the southwestern corner, which are libation of the water, and the wine and the burnt-offering of the fowl, and when he goes up to the altar, he turns to the surrounding ledge to the left in that corner and when he goes back the same way (see Tractate Zevahim 63b) on the path that he came up. With the libation of the water and wine, lest it be affected by smoke in the smoke of the altar while he is turning to the right and surrounding to the left and they will cause them to lose their taste and their fragrance, but we require (Numbers 28:31): “see that they are without blemish-with their libations,” that their libations will be pure. And the burnt-offering of the fowl also lest it be affected by the smoke and it dies.

All who ascended the altar, ascended by the right, then they went round [the altar] and descended by the left, except for these three, who ascended and descended by retracing their steps. The ramp was on the southern side of the altar. Usually a priest would ascend the southern side of the altar and then walk around to the right of the altar, its eastern side, and then turn towards the left, or western side of the altar and make his way back down. In other words, he would arrive at the southeastern corner first and the southwestern corner last. For things done on the southwestern corner, the priest did not have to circle the entire altar. Rather, he could just go up the left side, immediately arrive at the southwestern corner, and when done come right back. Perhaps this was a traffic-saving device, meant to prevent too many priests from having to circle the entire altar. The problem would be that priests would be walking in opposite directions, but I guess they somehow managed that problem.