Major rabbonim including Ravaad Eida Chareidis HaGaon HaRav Moshe Sternbuch Shlita announced a psak on a number of pending matters, which included using hair from India for a sheitel.
As is known there are houses of idol worship in India, in which ceremonies take place during which hair is cut. In 5764 Maran HaGaon HaRav Yosef Sholom Elyashiv ZT”L released a kol korei prohibiting sheitels from India. Other Gedolim including HaGaon HaRav Wosner ZT”L joined, as did HaGaon HaRav Nissim Karelitz Shlita.
The matter was raised during the past year, with rabbonim speaking out for and against. A number of weeks ago, Rav Sternbuch sent a shaliach to India with a letter with a number of questions. The shaliach returned two weeks later with testimony reflecting today’s reality, leading to the psak.
An in depth article about this issue by Rabbi Yair Hoffman was previously published on YWN. Read it for the background on this controversy.
(YWN Israel Desk – Jerusalem)
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16 Responses
As a practical matter, what portion of the sheitel market includes hair from India and how difficult would it be to replace the suspect Indian hair with hair from other sources.?
What is the position of our American poskim? While R’ Sternbuch’s psak may be binding in EY, We here in America follow our local poskim. As I understand the issue, Most of our poskim hold that Indian hair is not takravos AZ.
Was that what he was told to say at Nassau Coliseum?
Rav Sternbuch’s psak is binding on anyone who asks the sheilah of him, no one else, whether they live in the State of Israel, the United States of America or anywhere else. That is the way halacha works. You ask a competent Rav a question and get an answer that binds you. The Rav’s extreme positions on many things are well known.
Every 15 years we hear the same nonsense. And, it is well known that Reb Eliyashiv, ZT”L, was given false information when he wrote his psak. Reb Moshe, ZT”L, long ago ruled there are no problems. AND THEY DON’T USE THE HAIR TO DO ANY AVOIDE ZORA! To think the opposite is absurd. And the fact that this site — which increasing is merely an anti-Trump and a series of infomercials to raise money for something or another — is wrong for printing this.
R’ Shternbuch also thinks it’s asur md’oraisa to drive on chol hamoed outside the tchum if it’s not ltzorech mitzvah, such as visiting a parent or to make a bris (Mu”z 4:302).
Of course every psak of a gadol should be considered very seriously, but it’s also important to understand that there are many shitose on any particular halacha, and not all of them are accepted halacha lmaiseh by the olam or even by gedolei haposkim. In almost every area one can almost always find a tzad lhachmir if they so wish.
@chgolaw –
So YWN is never allowed to publish an opinion you disagree with? If Rav Sternbuch Paskens something, and your Posek says differently, we should only follow YOUR Posek and never publish anything else? Interesting. YWN readers number in the hundreds of thousands. Many of them follow the Psakim of Rav Sternbuch. Why shouldn’t they publish his Psak Halacha?
I just counted. YWN published around 75 articles the past 24 hours. I see 4 paid articles marked “communicated content”.
This site is increasingly anti-Trump? You mean all those headlines starting with “MAGA!” every time a major trump accomplishment is reached is anti-Trump.?
#Sad #FakeNews
Rav Elyashiv was not given false information- the shliach sent now confirmed everything Rav Dunner found 14 years ago- if anything the info is stronger now. Just google the legend of Neela Devi and you will see how the hair is cut totally as a sacrifice to their deity
And Indian hair is flooding the market more than ever before- just do a little research and you’ll find that “European” “Russian” hair is rare and very expensive and is usually Indian temple hair relabeled. Chinese hair is think and pin straight – unsuitable for the frum market. Indian temple hair is the most abundant remy hair available, the most affordable, genetically the most similat to European and North American hair. Look at the “Great Lengths” website- they are an international human hair extension company that only uses Indian temple hair. They write on their site how similar Indian hair is to European hair and how the Indian hair could be dyed gently all shades of color including blonde with a special osmosis process where the cuticles stay intact and the hair still looks beautiful
“Every 15 years we hear the same nonsense.”
Wow chgolaw is so learned that he has the authority to argue with the Gedolei Hador? I am so honored to use the same media outlet as such a chochom.
Rav Shternbuch also said that a wig can only be worn if the hair was watched from the time of the cutting until final production- otherwise there is no way to know if the hair is Indian or not since many times hair is mixed together
The reality if that its impossible to watch the hair from the time of the cuttings- ask any hair seller- no one sees the actual cuttings! Only in India can cuttings be seen- everywhere else cut hair is purchased from cutters, people who claim they go and cut the hair off of women in villages. But there is no way to know if they are lying or not, especially as most people dont see the actual cuttings of these supposed village women!
Not sure what changed. All poskim here and in eretz Yisroel have been paskening exactly like this for the last 10-12 years or so.
Wow!
This is amazing!
Rav Shternbuch campaigned twenty years ago to have shaitels from India declared Avodah Zarah, saying, among other things, that the hair would be brought into the temple and burned there, as a sacrifice to their gods.
Rav Shlomo Zalman Auerbach convened a Beis, which deterined that Rav Shternbuch got his facts wrong and that the shaitels were therefore 100% fine.
Of course, this was highly embarassing to Rav SHternbuch.
Rav Shlomo Zalman passes away.
Then Rav Shternbuch has his buddy, Rav Dunner, go to Rav Elyashiv to convince him that Rav Shternbuch was right all along.
Rav Dunner does that, is successful, but many Rabbonim say that, once again, after speaking to experts who actually understand what goes on in India and understan teh Hindu religion, show that Rav Shternbuch and Rav Dunner got their facts wrong (again).
And now, Rav Shternbuch sends a new shaliach, for a third shot at salvaging his reputation on this matter.
WHo would have predicted this?
For anyone who wears a sheitel and doesn’t know the inyanim of Takroves Avoda Zara and Taaruvos, and doesn’t have a realistic grasp what is going on in the hair industry, it’s time to put aside the sheitels and do some serious research. Rav Shternbuch has mentioned this several times in his weekly dvar torah sheet. This past week, parshas korach, he wrote how sometimes one pretty chashiv person comes with a potential diyuk and everyone jumps on it and turns it into a major machlokes. Rabbi Belsky’s teshuvah is invalidated by information his sources didn’t know and didn’t have, and by the fact that all that hair money has allowed the Tirumala authorities to pay for idols in the cutting room! It seems the major issue is not whether Indian hair is permitted, it’s not. The major issue is the hechsher, which is executed by ONE individual in a market where 85-99% of the hair is Takroves Avoda Zara, checking samples of already cut hair. Talk about a pathetic hechsher! No way would I hold by it! To make it worse, when trying to find wigs online we uncovered that at least some of the factories that supply numerous sheitel machers actually have FAKE HECHSHER TAGS! The biggest problem is the people who make leitzonus and excuses. Don’t be from the congregation of Korach!
RabH.
With all due respect to Rav Sternbuch, he came out with the very same psak years ago. The psak was rejected by ALL poskim at the time, incl Rav Shlomo Zamen Auerbach ZTL, Rav Elyashev, Rav Vosner, and i think Rav Moshe as well. Nothing new here.
BaruchLesin,
Nothing new changed from when Rav Belsky and others sent shluchim that investigated it thoroughly. Facts are still facts in regard to religion.
What is really happening, extremism is growing and many with an agenda to do away with ALL shetlach are campaigning against it.
Just google “BaruchLesin” as well ..
RabbiH — Who is the congregation of Korach here?
Those who choose to follow poskim other than Rav Shternbuch, who wrote in his first teshuva (thoroughly discredited by Rav Shlomo Zalman Auerbach) that the hair was burned as an offering to the Hindu gods, and who waited until Rav Shlomo Zalman was niftar so that he could use rav Dunner to trick Rav ELyashiv?
And we should take our advice about the Hindu religion from people who get their information from the internet, rather than from frum people who are expert in Hindu practice and speak the language used by pilgrims to Tirupati?
You, my friend, are the Korach, for making mahlokes!