[Avodah] manipulating bodily energies

[Zev Sero]

Micha Berger wrote:

> The Gra, who didn't say "Borkhuni leshalom", limited davening at a
> qever to using the qever as an emotional prod, a source of qavanah.
> Others allow asking the meis to be a meilitz yosher.

It's an explicit Zohar, which I've quoted here before.

 
> Where I would see more clear problems arising is if someone asks the
> meis to do something other than ask HQBH. To do it himself. Or "tzadiq
> gozeir ve'E-lokim meqayeim". Turning the meis or mal'akh into a force,
> a source of yeshuah, in and of itself.

How is that different?  It's still HQBH who is mekayem.  All the tzadik
does is "gozer".  Google isn't finding for me the phrase "me'achshav
maftechot haberacha beyadecha", so I'm probably misremembering the
actual words, but the concept that Hashem has given the keys of bracha
to specific people is there.  Even Bil'am Harasha had the power "asher
tevarech mevorach va'asher ta'or yu'ar".  But what does the blessing
or curse consist of?  That Hashem should do good or bad things for the
person.  I know of no hint that the person who gives the blessing or
curse has any power at all to do good or bad on his own.

Saying "the tzadik helped me" is shorthand for "the tzadik through
his brachah induced Hashem to help me".  Just as "my friend who works
at the company got me the job" is shorthand for "my friend put in a
good word for me with his boss, and that recommendation induced the
company to hire me"; if the friend did the hiring himself one would
say "my friend *gave* me the job".


-- 
Zev Sero               Something has gone seriously awry with this Court's
zev at sero.name          interpretation of the Constitution.
                       	                          - Clarence Thomas