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1) MISHNAH (34b): CHANGING INTO THE BIGDEI LAVAN

(a) The Kohen Gadol is brought to the Beis HaParvah (in the Azarah) where a linen sheet is held up so that he might do Kidush Yadayim v'Raglayim and disrobes.
(b) R. Meir holds that he first disrobes and then does the Kidush.
(c) He immerses, emerges and dries himself and dons the Bigdei Lavan he is brought.
(d) (R. Meir) The first set of Bigdei Lavan came from Egypt and were valued at 12 Maneh; while the second set, from Ethiopia, were valued at 800.
(e) (Chachamim) The first set was worth 18 Maneh and the second was 12, totalling 30 Maneh.
(f) These garments were purchased at public expense, and the Kohen may add of his own funds.

(a) Question: What is Parvah?
(b) Answer: It was named for a sorcerer who built it.

(a) Question: Why did they specifically use a linen drape?
(b) Answer: To remind him of the Avodah of the day with linen.

(a) Question: Why does the Mishnah add up the Maneh of the Bigdei Lavan?
(b) Answer: The total is meant to teach us the minimum total value (with less stress on the value of each set, so long as the first set is more valuable than the second).
(c) Question: How do we know this?
(d) Answer: The multiple occurrence of Bad teaches us Bad Muvchar.

(e) Question: The Pasuk in Yechezkel seems to imply that the "other" (second) Begadim which the Kohen Gadol wears are *more* distinguished than the first?
(f) Answer: No, "other" implies *less* distinguished.

(a) The Beraisa teaches that for the "private" component of his Avodah, the Kohen Gadol may wear privately prepared Begadim, provided that they are turned over to the Public.
(b) Question: But this is obvious!?
(c) Answer: No, we might have suspected that the donation to the Public was incompletely felt and is not to be relied upon.
(d) In one incident the private Begadim were valued at 100 Maneh and turned over to the Public; in another they were worth 20,000 Maneh, but the other Kohanim would not let him wear it since it was see-through.
(e) Question: But if the threads had to be six-ply, how could he be seen through them?
(f) Answer: Like wine through thick glass.

(a) The poor person will be judged for forsaking the Torah, given the example of Hillel whose dedication to Torah study led him to freeze on the rooftop of the Beis Medrash of Shemaya and Avtalyon.
(b) The rich person will be similarly judged, given the example of R. Elazar b. Charsom who abandoned his enormous holdings (and was even mistaken for a citizen of his holdings) to learn Torah.
(c) The sinful person will be similarly judged, given the example of Yosef who withstood the temptation to sin with the wife of Potifar, as related.