Want a child? Replace your wig

Rabbi advises woman trying to conceive for almost three years to remove 'immodest' wig. Shortly afterwards, she becomes pregnant

An ultra-Orthodox haredi couple which could not bear children for almost three years was offered a surprising solution recently. The two consulted Rabbi Daniel Zar, who promised them that if the woman removed her wig and replaced her head covering, she would be able to conceive a child within two months.

The husband told the Yedioth Jerusalem weekly that after two and a half years of marriage, his wife confided with a woman she met on the street, who told her that her failure to conceive might be caused by her "immodest" wig.

"Naturally, my wife wouldn't hear about it," the husband said. "As far as she was concerned, the wig issue was very important. But after that woman suggested that she raise the issue with the rabbi, my wife agreed. And indeed, the rabbi promised her that if she would remove the wig, she would get pregnant within two months.

"After she told me about it, I was very angry with him and couldn't understand how he could make such promises, but shortly after she removed the wig, my wife was pregnant. We were very surprised."

The husband said he had heard of such incidents in the past, but was convinced that they were made up. "The wig costs us more than $3,000 and was relatively immodest compared to regular wigs," he explained. "Even non-religious relatives told us that the wig was nicer than regular hair. Now we plan on donating it to cancer patients, who really needs it."

Following the incident, the woman's sisters-in-law decided to remove their wigs as well.

A haredi element with ties to senior rabbis' courtyards noted that such stories were a matter of routine. According to the source, many couples were blessed with children after accepting the advice of Rabbi Chaim Kanievsky, which included using a generator on Shabbat and growing a beard.