The Water Libation Ceremony

1. The flute was for five or six days. This refers to the flute at the place of the water drawing, which does not override the Sabbath or the festival day. They said: He who has not seen the rejoicing of the place of the water drawing has never seen rejoicing in his life.

2. At the conclusion of the first festival day of Sukkot, they descended to the Women’s Court, and there they would make a great preparation.¹ There were golden candelabras there with four golden bowls at the top of each, and four ladders to each, and four youths from the young priests with jars of oil holding 120 log, which they poured into the bowls.

3. They made wicks from the worn-out pants and belts of the priests and used them to kindle the lamps. There was not a courtyard in Jerusalem that was not illuminated by the light of the place of the water drawing.

4. Men of piety and good deeds used to dance before them holding lighted torches, singing songs and praises. Levites with innumerable harps, lyres, cymbals, trumpets, and other musical instruments stood on the fifteen steps leading down from the Israelite Court to the Women’s Court, corresponding to the fifteen songs of ascents in Psalms, and it was on these [steps] that the Levites stood with their musical instruments and sang their songs. Two priests stood by the upper gate that led down from the Israelite Court to the Women’s Court, holding two trumpets. When the cock crowed, they sounded a teki‘ah [drawn-out blast], a teru‘ah [staccato note], and again a teki‘ah. When they reached the tenth step, they sounded a teki‘ah, a teru‘ah, and again a teki‘ah. When they reached the [Women’s Court], they sounded a teki‘ah, a teru‘ah, and again a teki‘ah. They would sound their trumpets and proceed until they reached the gate that led out to the east. When they reached the gate that led out to the east, they turned their faces from east to west and said: Our fathers who were in this place, their backs were toward the Temple of the Lord and their faces toward the east, and they worshiped the sun in the east, but as for us, our eyes are turned to the Lord. R. Judah said: They used to repeat [the last words] and say: We are the Lord’s, and our eyes are turned to the Lord.

5. There are never fewer than twenty-one blasts in the Temple, and never more than forty-eight. Every day there were twenty-one blasts in the Temple: three at the opening of the gates, nine at the morning tamid sacrifice, and nine at the evening tamid sacrifice. At the musafim [additional sacrifices for the Sabbath and festivals], they would add another nine. And on the eve of the Sabbath they would add another six: three as a sign to the people to stop working and three to mark a distinction between the holy and the profane. On the eve of the Sabbath in the intermediate days of the [Sukkot] festival, there were [therefore] forty-eight blasts: three at the opening of the gates, three at the upper gate, three at the lower gate, three at the water drawing, three at the altar, nine at the daily morning sacrifice, nine at the daily evening sacrifice, nine at the additional sacrifices, three as a sign to the people to cease from work, and three to mark a distinction between the holy and the profane.