Tehillim 112 – the segula of Sephardic merchants and Jerusalem kabbalists
The Sephardic Mekubalim transmit a tradition about the old merchants of Jerusalem, who often used the following segula. They taught that if a person recites Psalm 112 for 7 consecutive days, this can draw: עושר “osher” (wealth), שפע “shefa” (abundance), הצלחה “hatzlacha” (success), ברכה “bracha” (blessing). The Mekubalim call Tehillim 112 – “the Psalm of Wealth, because it speaks explicitly of material abundance and wealth in the home.It is one of the few psalms in which wealth is mentioned as a blessing of the righteous.
Tehillim 112:3הוֹן וָעֹשֶׁר בְּבֵיתוֹ וְצִדְקָתוֹ עֹמֶדֶת לָעַד
- “hon va-osher be-veito, ve-tzidkato omedet la-ad” – (Wealth and prosperity are in his home, and his righteousness endures forever).
One should give tzedakah, recite Psalm 112 seven times and say a short prayer:
ריבונו של עולם תשלח לי שפע וברכה במעשה ידי
- “Ribono shel olam, tishlach li shefa u-vracha be-ma'aseh yaday” – (Master of the Universe, send me abundance and blessing in the work of my hands).
An interesting detail: The gematria of the word הון (prosperity) is 61. The gematria of the word ברכה (blessing) is 227. Adding them together gives 288, which is the number of “Rapach Nitzotzot” רפ״ח ניצוצות (288 sparks of holiness).
This further proves that wealth is the result of Heavenly blessing, not merely earnings. P'tihat MazalMoreover, in Psalm 112, the sofei tevot of the final three words form the Holy Name – הקמ, which is called “P'tihat Mazal” and elevates a person’s mazal.
כִּֽי־לְעוֹלָ֥ם לֹא־יִמּ֑וֹט לְזֵ֥כֶר ע֝וֹלָ֗ם יִהְיֶ֥ה צַדִּֽיק
- “Ki le-olam lo yimot, le-zecher olam yihyeh tzaddik” – (For he shall never be shaken; the righteous shall be remembered forever).
It is also beneficial for “P'tihat Mazal” to read the letters of this Name in Tehillim 119:
- 8 pesukim for the letter ה
- 8 pesukim for the letter ק
- 8 pesukim for the letter מ.
(A chiddush by Sila Tehilim following a personal conversation with yeshivah students, based on a lesson by Rabbi Israel Yakovov, “Sila Tehilim”)
