Mishnayos Yoma Perek 2 Mishnah 2
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יומא פרק ב׳ משנה ב׳
Initially, that was the procedure; however, an incident occurred where both of them were equal as they were running and ascending on the ramp, and one of them shoved another and he fell and his leg was broken. And once the court saw that people were coming to potential danger, they instituted that priests would remove ashes from the altar only by means of a lottery. There were four lotteries there, in the Temple, on a daily basis to determine the priests privileged to perform the various services, and this, determining which priest would remove the ashes, was the first lottery.
מַעֲשֶׂה שֶׁהָיוּ שְׁנֵיהֶם שָׁוִין וְרָצִין וְעוֹלִין בַּכֶּבֶשׁ, וְדָחַף אֶחָד מֵהֶן אֶת חֲבֵרוֹ, וְנָפַל וְנִשְׁבְּרָה רַגְלוֹ. וְכֵיוָן שֶׁרָאוּ בֵית דִּין שֶׁבָּאִין לִידֵי סַכָּנָה, הִתְקִינוּ שֶׁלֹּא יְהוּ תוֹרְמִין אֶת הַמִּזְבֵּחַ אֶלָּא בְפַיִס. אַרְבָּעָה פְיָסוֹת הָיוּ שָׁם, וְזֶה הַפַּיִס הָרִאשׁוֹן:
Bartenura
אלא בפייס. זה שפירשנו:
ארבע פייסות היו שם. ארבע פעמים ביום נאספים לפייס. ולא היו מפייסים על כולם באסיפה אחת, כדי להשמיע קול ארבע פעמים שיש עם רב בעזרה, וזהו כבודו של מלך שנאמר (תהילים נ״ה:ט״ו) בבית אלהים נהלך ברגש:
אלא בפייס – as we have explained.
ארבע פייסות היו שם – four times during the day, they would be gathered to arbitrate, and they would not arbitrate for all of them in one meeting, in order to announce by sound four times that there is a large gathering of people in the courtyard, and that is for the honor of the King (i.e., God), as it is stated (Psalms 55:15): “[Sweet was our fellowship;] we walked together in God’s house.”