Mekubalim Beware1

‫בס"ד‬

Rabbi Eli Teitelbaum is no longer with us. I’m Confused, before the Chasuna From the desk of Rabbi Aryeh Shoag

• The night before his wedding, a choson was sent to see a kabalist. He became totally confused, for he was told that before writing the kesuba the name Rochel must be change! I was contacted and I knew that the choson was close to Rabbi Eli Teitelbaum z”l. After hearing the name of this Kabalist, I knew what to do. His name was on the top of Rabbi Teitelbaum’s black list. I referred the choson to his own Rosh Yeshiva. The Rosh yeshiva Rav Shmuel Kamenetzky Shlita was immediately contacted and said that he has heard that some Kabalist dislike the name ‫רחל‬ (because of roshey teivos ‫ )רח“ל‬but it’s completely absurd and there is nothing to worry about. No names should be changed, and gave a brocho, bringing to them a sense of great relief. My dear chavrusa Rabbi Eli Teitelbaum z”l, I may say was a true Tzadik nistar. He helped people day and night refusing any compensation. He wrote extensively and endlessly to make sure that the Kesuba Kabbalist swindler did not step into Brooklyn. Now after Reb Eli’s petira, this con artist is making a comeback. • Rav Aharon Teitelbaum Shlita, the Satmar Rav from Monroe gave a very critical psak against these kesubbos readers, and gave an Issur to go to them. • Rabbi Yaakov Moshe Hillel Shlita wrote an entire sefer called ‫תמים תהיה‬ all on the issur of going to these people. He told me that he is a fraud. Theses charlatans rip people off, promise to perform miracles, and then charge huge amount of money in advance. Kesuba matters must be taken back to the rabbonim. • Rabbi Shlomo Miller shlita , the Rosh HaKollel in Toronto told me that it’s a question of avoda zarah, and the Rabbonim should take the Kesuba matters in their own hands. • Rabbi Hershel Aschkenazy Shlita the Stanislaver Rav showed me the writings of the first Belzer Rav against his contemporary Mekubalim. They use Names of angels with Hashbo-os to perform ‫קבלה מעשית‬, and they are playing with peoples names and lives (see ‫)לב שמח ובא לציון‬

• Rav Menachem Fisher the Veiner Dayan from Monsey showed me what the Dakei Teshuva writes against people going to Kabalists. • Rabbi Bick Shlita told me that he interrogated this Kesuba reader for two hours and asked him what his sources are for determining if names do not coincide. The answer was: He learned it from his father who was a shochet. Your father knew what Rav Moshe Feinstein didn’t know!?! • The Rachmistrivka Rebbe shlita, told a bochur whom had had his name changed by this kabalist, that he cannot help him anymore.

Please do not take any advice from Kabbalists. Especially when you are in despair. Seek advice from your personal Rabbi with whom you discuss all your halachic issues. And if you do not have a personal Rabbi, get one or the kabalists will get you. You must understand that psychics and false Kabbalists have their own interest. They always strive to show mystic powers that they do not possess. Going to them and following their advice, may even have the reverse effect. Great caution must be exercised when one is in desperation. It is no different than going to an unfamiliar physician. Do not be fooled by testimonials. Only your personal halachic counselor may be capable of giving you the correct guidance in times of anxiety.

How to spot a false Kabbalist? 1) Name Switch. If they tell you to change your name and so that your fortune will change, never do so without discussing it with your posek and change it by your posek. Talk it over with your Rav or Moreh Derech. (Unfortunately it’s has become a practice of people changing their own names several times!). 2) Cost. If they post a Suggested Fee... [$180 = 10 x ‫ חי‬or $960] it actually reads: If you do not give the sum, my blessings may have the opposite affect on you. They say, never start up with a Kabbalist; True, for he will hurt you and your pocket. (Note, that by forcing someone to pay out of guilty conscience is worse than geneiva [theft]. It is considered gezela [robbery]) 3) Mezuzah. If they ask you to show them a Mezuzah from your house, they will always make sure to find something wrong. They’ll claim that even if it may be Kosher, it is the cause of all your troubles. If they sell you one, as a replacement,

you’re most certainly going to overpay for something you did not need in the first place!! 4) Kesuba. If they ask you to show them your Kesuba, you are looking for trouble (maybe show them your bank account and medical records too!). A kesuba is nothing more than a private marital contract, not a Kami’a (amulet). If they ask you to rewrite it or change the naming, do not hesitate to consult your Rav, as he is the one that should deal with Halacha matters, not a so-called kabalist. According to many Rabbonim, playing around with a Kesuba, has caused major halachic problems!! 5) Ayin Harah. They may can claim that someone you know is giving you an ‫עין הרע‬, and only they can see it and cure it, but for a fee. [Real ‫ צדיקים‬do not ask for any payment for such a thing, nor do they even suggest a sum]. The kabalists customary fee is $72 just for testing if they can detect an ‫עין הרע‬. If they feel an ‫עין הרע‬, there will be an additional fee of $360 for each attempt to cure it!?! 6) Tax Deductible. They, generally claim that the monies do not go towards their own pocket, instead it goes towards supporting some type of Kollel or a Yeshiva and the contributions are tax deductible. Even if it’s true, it is not Kosher money. It just shows that they are good fundraisers not authentic mekubalim. According to some, there is a concern of ‫!! מצוה הבאה בעבירה‬ 7) Haskamos: They will show what they call letters of recommendation. Most people do not bother reading them. Many letters are outdated and were acquire before they started charging for their activity. Some are just simply bogus. 8) Health Danger: They are even capable of taking you or your loved ones off medicine. They are extremely convincing and persuasive, not to mention the obvious danger (it has already resulting in fatal consequences). 9) Healer of any Disease: One kabalist publicizes in his letterhead, that he’s able to cure anything!?! For a childless couple, the kabalist requested a sofer, to write letters of some sort of sheimos on a peace of klaf. The letters would be erased on contact with liquid that would be given to the childless couple to drink. He wanted it written with human milk! The milk was to be a mixture of two nursing mothers, mother and daughter!?! When one competent Rabbi was ask about the matter and after seeing the letterhead of this Kabalist the rabbi said, I don’t know what the halacha is, but for sure I wonder if any Rebbe have ever promised as many yeshuos as this kabalist has claimed to perform.

10) Sotah. Another Kabbalist asked me to write some Sheimos on a klaf on a person’s throat. Afterward he erased the writing in wine and made him drink it like a sota!

We should educate our children on this subject, for these kabalists come and go every generation with a new twist. Don’t trust your own judgment for even the intelligent may be gullible and naïve in times of turmoil and confusion. Even great Rabbanim and Roshei Yeshiva have fallen onto the hands of these quacks. • A certain Rosh Yeshiva was taken for a ride with bogus therapy with pendulums. Even his own ‫ תלמידים‬couldn’t stop him, since the doctors had already given up. He was convinced by the Mekubalim that this was the last alternative, even though it sounded totally absurd. Weeks later he passed away. • A different Rosh Yeshiva, who suffers from Parkinson’s disease, was taken for a ride with magnetic therapy where each session is no more than a couple of minutes under a phony magnetic helmet, costing $100 a month. • A repected magid shiur and brother of a prominent rosh yeshiva asked me to make a house call to inspect their elder’s sister’s mezuzos, especially the fourth mezuzah of the house. The reason for it is, since his sister was very ill with progressive cancer and the doctors had given up on her. A kabalist from Israel claimed to feel through the telephone lines that this specific mezuzah is not kosher. She had to walk through the house placing her hand on each mezuzah until the kabalist claimed to detect the one with the problem. Uncomfortable with this but with respect I followed the Rabbi’s request. I went to check up the mezuzah. It happened to be that she had an excellent one, but unfortunately she passed away soon after. I made contact with this so called Kabalist, and he assured that he can sense the status of any mezuzah, by just having me touching it with my hand all by phone (online examination)!?! So I put him to the test, I asked him examine for me few questionable mezuzos, and he went on with his diagnosis. He gave multiple verdicts, even dough he had no idea that I was holding only one mezuzah in my hand all the time. Instead of him making an online mezuzah evaluation, I had made an online phony assessment; he is as most of the rest of Kaballists unfortunately are. The Maggid shiur explained to me, that when people are out of options, they can do absurd and ridiculous things out of desperation. Only the one that gives false hope to them is to be blame.

There is a famous saying: Why should one not accept blessings from just anyone? Because it can actually harm you.

‫ ]מפני שברכת הדיוט‬.‫ לעולם אל תהי ברכת הדיוט קלה בעיניך‬.‫ ברכות דף ז‬.‫מגילה טו‬ [‫בקל יכול להזיק אותך‬ [‫]ר' משה גבאי ז"ל חבר מובהק של האמו"ר מסקיווארא ז"ל ואדמו"ר מריבניץ ז"ל‬

A real Mekubal that has ‫ כוחות‬in not a kabalist, and does not suggest fees, nor does he check mezuzos and kesubbos. He is a tzadik, connected to Hashem; the opposite is with the Kabalist. Rabbi Chanina Ben Dosa performed great miracles. He was able to tell sick people if they would live or die. Yet, it is written in the Gemorah that his wife used to complain that there was nothing to eat in the house. (Maseches Taanis) Unlike all the so-called kabalists that are rampant now, this great Tzadik did not take a cent for his deeds. Rabbi Yakov Moshe Hillel writes that at times, Hashem sends yeshuos through these people, but only as a test for us. These yeshuos stem from the Koach haTumah and in the long run will not have god consequences. An acquaintance of mine asked Reb Hershl from Spink z”l about going to these mekubalim for help. He immediately opened a chumash Devorim with rashi and showed him the following…

‫ רש"י‬:‫יך‬ ָ ‫פרשת שפטים ָתּ ִמים ִתּ ְהיֶה ִעם ְיקֹוָק ֱאלֹ ֶק‬ ‫יג התהלך עמו בתמימות ותצפה לו ולא תחקור אחר‬,‫יח‬ ‫ אלא כל מה שיבא עליך קבל בתמימות ואז תהיה‬,‫העתידות‬ :‫עמו ולחלקו‬ Follow Hashem, not the foretellers …