Related%20passage for Sanhedrin 120:20

דאיתמר השוחט בהמה לזרוק דמה לעבודת כוכבים ולהקטיר חלבה לעבודת כוכבים רבי יוחנן אמר

wherefore was it singledout? — That a comparison therewith might be drawn, and to teach you: justas sacrificing is distinguished, in that it is a service within the Templeprecincts, and the death penalty is incurred through it, so for all servicesperformed in the Temple precincts [in lawful worship] one is liable to death[when performing them idolatrously]. Hence prostration was singled out toillumine itself alone, whilst sacrificing was singled out to throw lightupon the general proposition.<span class="x" onmousemove="('comment',' For if prostration was singled out in order to throw light upon the general law, viz., that for paying honour to an idol in any shape one is liable to death, why should sacrificing have been singled out too, since thereby one certainly honours the deity? ');">19 The Master stated: 'I would have thought that the Writ refers to sacrificingwithout the Temple precincts'. But is that not punishable byextinction?20 — I might have thought:if he was warned, he is executed; if not, he is punished by extinction. Itis therefore taught otherwise. Raba, son of R. Hanan asked Abaye: Let us say that prostration was singledout in order to throw light upon the general law; and if you answer, in thatcase, why was sacrificing singled outtoo?21 To throw light upon itself,viz., that the intention to perform one act in the service of idolatry, evenif made during the performance of another [non-idolatrous] act, renders oneliable to punishment. For it has been taught: If one slaughtered a cow withthe intention of sprinkling its blood and burning its fat idolatrously, —R. Johanan said,

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