What are the connotatons of "Meshulavos"?
Rashi #1: It means that the two prongs should be parallel - like rungs of a ladder (Shelivos), which fit into holes in the boards on either side.
Rashi #2 (in Eruvin, 52b) and Ramban (citing a Beraisa of Meleches ha'Mishkan): It means that the boards should be joined (by means of two short pegs that protruded from one plank, each of which fitted tightly into two holes in the plank next to it.- like a male into a female - Ramban).
Oznayim la'Torah: It means that the prongs should be equally-spaced from one another 1 like the prongs of a ladder.
See Oznayhim la'Torah.
What are the connotations of "Ishah el Achosah"?
Rashi #1: It means that the prongs had to be exactly in line with one another.
Ramban and Targum Yonasan: Refer to 26:17:1:2.
What is "le'Chol Karshei ha'Mishkan" coming to include?
Oznayim la'Torah: It includes the two western corner Kerashim and those on the east, on either side of the pillars of the entrance.
How were the Yados fitted on the base of each plank?
Rashi: The middle half of each plank was cut out 1 , to a height of one Amah, leaving a quarter on each side of the prong. so that it would fit into the hole in the socket and the board would cover the rest, so there would be no space between the boards.
Rashi #2 (according to the Riva on Pasuk 24): Almost all the Yados, the wood around them was removed on three sides - inside (towards the interior of the Mishkan), outside, and towards the middle of the board. The holes in the sockets fitted the Yados exactly. The Yados of adjacent Kerashim touched. However, the 'outer' Yados of the two corner boards were different. They did not face 'out' (north and south), rather, east, so they touched the westernmost Yados of the Kerashim on the north and south sides.
Hadar Zekenim: Half an Amah was removed from the middle, and a quarter of an Amah on each end. Yados of a quarter Amah remained, one on each side. Each socket had a hole of a quarter of an Amah in its middle into which the Yad fitted.
Hadar Zekenim: If so, the distance between Yados on one board was at least half the board's width, more than the distance between the Yados on the adjacent boards! For the boards to be flush, we must say that the holes in the sockets were not in the middle. This is unreasonable! See also Ramban's objections to Rashi's explanation. What Rashi evidently means however, is not 'half of each plank', but half of the amount that was cut out - a quarter of an Amah on both sides of the plank (as well as at the sides) and half an Amah in the middle - between the two prongs. See Oznayim la'Torah for an exact account of how the boards were cut out and how they fitted into the sockets.
QUESTIONS ON RASHI
Rashi writes that to make the Yados, more than half of the bottom Amah was removed. If the only hollow of the sockets was to hold the Yados, the sockets would weigh far more than a Kikar each!
Taima di'Kera (citing the Chazon Ish): We must say that the sockets were [partially] hollow. 1
Each socket was one by one by three quarter Amos, a quarter of the Shi'ur for a Mikveh. If it were solid, it would weigh about 890 or 1450 kilos (according to R. Chaim Na'eh or the Chazon Ish, more than double that of a Mikveh, for silver is over 10 times as dense as water). The Chazon Ish (CM 16) says that there are 20 barley seeds to a gram. It follows that a Kikar Kodesh is about 57 kilos. If the only hollow of the sockets was to hold the Yados, we must say that the Yados filled about 94% or 96% of the sockets, i.e. only about 5% was carved out, or our barley seeds are much lighter than they were then. (PF)
