[Avodah] Segulos and how they work

[Akiva Miller]

.
The methodology of segulos is a frequent topic here, and I came across a
relevant Kitzur Shulchan Aruch that I'd like to share with the chevra.

In Hilchos Ner Shabbos 75:2, the Kitzur describes two sorts of women. The
first is "Isha k'shas ruach b'gidul banim", which ArtScroll translates as
"A woman who is dispirited  (by the challenges of) raising children." The
second is "O she'ayn lah klal - "or she has none at all." For these women,
KSA offers the following suggestion:

"It is a segula for her to say - after lighting the neros - the haftara for
the first day of Rosh Hashana." When I first saw this, I understood that
the story of Chana would comfort and encourage such a woman; what a nice
example of reasonable and psychological segula, invoking nothing that
people of our generation might call magic.

But then I questioned myself: "I must have misread that. Surely the Kitzur
said for her to *read* that haftara. But I no, his word was not "tikra -
read", but "tomar", which ArtScroll translates as "recite". Can this segula
be effective with mere recitation, with no understanding?

The Kitzur answers that question in the very next sentence: "V’tov - And it
is good for her to understand what she is saying, and to say it with
kavana."

It seems clear to me that in the view of the Kitzur, this segula will be
more effective if she understands the story, but even a mere recitation
will still be somewhat effective. What is *not* clear to me, is why a
recitation with no comprehension would be effective at all.

Akiva Miller
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