Tamid Photo Essay in Lego® #7

 The Shot

Time to Make the Doughnuts

The flour offering of the Kohen Gadol is prepared early in the morning.

Tamid Photo Essay in Lego® #6

The Shot

Parts Check

The Memuneh leads a contingent of Kohanim around the perimeter of the Azarah.

Tamid Photo Essay in Lego® #5

The Shot

The Key Chain

The Memuneh retrieves a key from beneath a floor tile.

Tamid Photo Essay in Lego® #4

 The Shot

All In

The Kohanim gather to conduct a lottery.

Cutting the Omer — Chol Hamoed Pesach 5785

Most people are familiar with counting the Omer, but back in the days of the Beis Hamikdash they would also cut the Omer.

Tamid Photo Essay in Lego® #3

The Shot

Down Below

The Memuneh, along with Yonasan the Levi, make their way through the labyrinth of passageways beneath the Beis Hamikdash.

Tamid Photo Essay in Lego® #2

The Shot

Knock Knock

The Memuneh, along with Yonasan the Levi, are admitted through a small door to the side of the Nitzotz Gate.

Tamid Photo Essay in Lego® #1

The Shot

Greeting the Guards

The Memuneh, along with Yonasan the Levi, greet the guards stationed outside one of the Courtyard gates.

The Biblical Neivel: Three Opinions

On Erev Pesach, as the multitudes offered their pascal lambs in the Azarah of the Beis HaMikdash, a group of Leviim stood upon the duchan to provide musical and choral accompaniment during the avodah. This was more than just an annual performance, for the Leviim would sing and play every single day in the Beis HaMikdash. One of the instruments that featured daily was the neivel (pl. nevalim). This musical device is mentioned often in the verses of Tanach and was certainly well-known in its day, yet its exact description varies wildly among the sources.

Tamid Photo Essay in Lego®: An Introduction

Once upon a time, a long time ago...

Bedtime stories in the Elan house would often feature vignettes of the Beis Hamikdash, and Shabbos afternoons in the Elan house would often feature Lego® building sessions. While both of those activities have been few and far in between as of late (it is hard to tell your kids bedtime stories when they go to sleep after you do), I have always thought about how those two hobbies could be combined. My solution was to build small dioramas of the Beis Hamikdash out of Lego® that showcase some classic scenes from the familiar tales.

The Terry Elan Memorial Lecture 2025: Music of the Mikdash

To mark my father's yahrtzeit on 29 Shevat I delivered a new slideshow titled Music of the Mikdash: Reconstructing the musical instruments of the Leviim and recapturing the lost Song of Zion. See the full video below!

Preview of the Terry Elan Memorial Lecture 2025

On Sunday, March 2, 2025, I will be delivering a lecture in memory of my father IYH. The title is Music of the Mikdash: Reconstructing the musical instruments of the Leviim and recapturing the lost Song of Zion.

Mishnah Yomi: The Original Iron Man

Mishnah Yomi will be learning Sotah 9:10 today. There we read about Yochanan Kohen Gadol and one of the changes he instituted in the Beis Hamikdash. He was unhappy with the original method used of quieting animals prior to their slaughter and so he devised a new system.

Rashi to Bava Metzia 33a About the Route to Open the Heychal Gateway

On Bava Metzia 33a Rashi gives a description of the route taken by the Kohen as he opens the doors of the main Heychal gateway. I get the impression that these lines of Rashi have troubled many a student of the Gemara, judging by the number of people who have come over to me and asked me to explain what Rashi means here. In honor of Daf Yomi reaching this sugya I will present my elucidated version of Rashi's words as I understand them.

Yoma 71b – 73b: Storing the Mishkan

The Gemara states that the kerashim (wall beams) of the Mishkan will remain “standing forever.” This fits nicely with the account in Sotah 9a where we learn that the Mishkan components were hidden away when the First Beis Hamikdash was built. According to one approach, these components were stored in the upper level of the Heychal.