The Book That Spoke Volumes
A non-Jewish woman once brought me a book she had written about the angels and asked for my approbation. This was her third book on this subject. Every few years, she would come to me with another book and ask for my endorsement.
I took one look at her defiled book and was filled with a desire to rip it to shreds. How does a gentile woman have the audacity to profess knowing anything about the angels on High? How in the world can she know the names and missions of the Ministering Angels of Hashem? It must be that she studied the holy works of mysticism, the Kabbalah and Zohar, in a most unholy way. Her works, therefore, were saturated with impurity.
It is self-understood that I refused to give her book any sort of approval. To my utter dismay, I could not stop thinking of this vile volume for the entire week. This was due to the forces of evil which had penetrated its writing. It is well-known that when these types of forces attach themselves to a person, it is very difficult to shake them off.
The Ari writes that even passing by a slaughterhouse of non-kosher animals influences a person negatively. One should therefore make every effort to avoid this. A pregnant woman, in particular, should not go by a store that sells forbidden foods, as they can have an adverse effect on her unborn child, chas v’shalom.
I remember that in my childhood, when I lived in Morocco, I often had to walk by the gentile marketplace where non-kosher items were sold. I literally felt the negative effect of this act. Whenever I walked by on Shabbat, I felt a distinct detraction of the kedushah of the day.
The soul of the Jew is extremely sensitive. One who is concerned for its safety would do well to distance himself from any source of impurity and adhere only to holiness and sanctity.
