Summer 2025

As noted in the article, “The Sheitel Controversy,” the author reviewed a wide array of sources that could not be included due to space considerations. Links to many of these sources are presented here for those who wish to delve more deeply into this fascinating topic.

More material can be found at ‫חומר בנושא תקרובת עבודה זרה בפאות Google Drive and קונטרסים – מכון הישכם אוהבים את ה’ לחקר תקרובת העבודה זרה בפאות

Please email the author at [email protected] if you have any additional articles or books on this topic that are available to be uploaded and shared with the public, or if you are the author of an article and would like it to be removed from this page.

DISCLAIMER

► The author takes no responsibility for the appropriateness or accuracy of the material below or its halachic or hashkafic content. ◄

Annotated Summaries of Online Resources

NOTE: Some of the material below was previously available at http://www1.cs.columbia.edu/~spotter/sheitel/.  That website is no longer in service.

Can a Sheitel Be Prohibited Because of Avodah Zara? – A discussion of the halachic issues involved in the use of Indian hair written by Rabbi Yirmiyohu Kaganoff.

Chut Shani [Hebrew] – A teshuva about Indian sheitels written by Rav Shmuel Wosner and Rav Nissim Karelitz.

Dr. Mohan Transcript – Transcript of an interview with Dr. Anand Mohan, Hindu Priest and Professor of Religion and Philosophy at Queens College.

Hair from India and Avodah Zara – A series of articles about sheitels from the website Ohelsara.com.                            

Hair Identification – An article that addresses whether raw human hair can be definitively identified by touch and smell.

Halacha Berurah – A halachic article regarding the sheitel controversy, reviewed by Rav Yisroel Belsky.

Hindu Beliefs and Practices Regarding Hair Sacrifices – A compilation of information regarding the tonsuring process (cutting/shaving of hair) performed near many Hindu temples across India.

Hindu Hair and Jewish Halakha – A scholarly article on the topic that appeared in the Studies in Religion Journal (2011).

Hindu Religious Sacrifice Helps Temples and Beauty Industry Profit – An article by a MintPress staff writer and investigative reporter.

How Women in Poverty Are Supplying America’s Market for Hair – An article from NBC News regarding the human hair industry in Cambodia.

Indian Hair Sacrifices – A compilation of information regarding the Hindu tonsuring process.

Indian Hair Uncovered – A pamphlet advocating for the position that commercially sold wigs cannot be worn.

Kol Korei (English) – The English translation of a letter signed by prominent roshei yeshiva.

Kol Korei (Hebrew) – The Hebrew version of a letter signed by prominent roshei yeshiva.

Kol Torah [Hebrew] – An early teshuva about Indian sheitels written by R’ Nochum Eliezer Rabinowitz, published in the Kol Torah (Yerushalayim) Journal (1968).

Kuntres Heter Oh Hefker – An anonymous halachic essay about Indian sheitels.

Kuntres Pe’as Keidma – An anonymous sefer about Indian sheitels.

Kuntres Shakla Ve’taria – A halachic essay about Indian sheitels written by Rabbi Eliyohu Mitosov.

Letter from Dr. Diana Eck – A letter about tonsuring practices written by Dr. Eck, Professor of Comparative Religion and Indian Studies at Harvard University.

Letter from Rabbi Yitzchak Yosef – A letter (in Hebrew) to Rabbi Mordechai Gross about Indian sheitels.

Letter from HaRav Shmuel Kamenetsky – A letter (in Hebrew) about Indian sheitels

Ohr Yisroel – A copy of the Ohr Yisroel (Monsey) Koveitz #36, containing teshuvos on the topic from the Beis Din of R’ Nissim Korelitz (pages 13-21), R’ Moshe Sternbuch (22-26), R’ Yisroel Belsky (27-29), R’ Yosef Sholom Elyashiv (30-31), R’ Yechiel Tauber (32-49), R’ Nochum Eliezer Rabinowitz (50-55), R’ Chaim Yehoshua Halberstam (56-57), R’ Chaim Dovid Weiss (58-64), R’ Bentzion Wosner (65-75), R’ Yitzchok Soloveitchik (76-78), R’ Yisroel Shwartz (79-87), R’ Gavriel Zinner (88-106), R’ Eliezer Yonah Ginsburg (107-110) and R’ David Yitzchaki (111-126).

Patrick Olivelle Article – An essay about the significance of hair in Indian tradition written by Dr. Patrick Olivelle, Professor of Sanskrit and Indian Religions in the Department of Asian Studies at the University of Texas at Austin.

Patrick Olivelle Email Exchange – Correspondence with Dr. Patrick Olivelle, Professor of Sanskrit and Indian Religions in the Department of Asian Studies at the University of Texas at Austin regarding the religious meaning behind tonsuring.

Psak About Indian Sheitels – A short psak about Indian sheitels written by Rabbi Yisroel Yosef Hendel.

Psak Din on India Sheitels (1) – The first part of an essay on Indian sheitels written by Rabbi Yitzchok Reitport.

Psak Din on India Sheitels (2) – The second part of an essay on Indian sheitels written by Rabbi Yitzchok Reitport.

R’ Abadi Teshuva – A teshuva about Indian sheitels written by R’ Yitzchok Abadi.

R’ Belsky Letter – A copy of the letter that R’ Yisroel Belsky sent to R’ Yosef Sholom Elyashiv about Indian sheitels.

R’ Elyashiv Ksav Yad – A copy of the handwritten teshuva of R’ Yosef Sholom Elyashiv about Indian sheitels, which was subsequently printed in Koveitz Teshuvos Rav Elyashiv, volume 1.

R’ Elyashiv Teshuva 1 – A teshuva about Indian sheitels published in Koveitz Teshuvos Rav Elyashiv, volume 1.

R’ Elyashiv Teshuva 2 – A teshuva about Indian sheitels published in Koveitz Teshuvos Rav Elyashiv, volume 3.

R’ Menashe Klein Teshuva – A teshuva about Indian sheitels written by R’ Menashe Klein.

R’ Orot Teshuva – A teshuva about Indian sheitels written by R’ Eliyohu Orot.

R’ Weiss Teshuvos – A series of teshuvos about Indian sheitels written by R’ Chaim Yosef Dovid Weiss.

Response to STAR-K Article – Written by Rabbi Ahron Shapiro.

Rosh Dovid Index – A table of contents of the Kuntres Rosh Dovid about Indian sheitels, written by R’ Chaim Yosef Dovid Weiss, published at the end of Teshuvos Vayaan Dovid volume 6.

Rosh Dovid Siman 1 – The 1^st teshuva in Kuntres Rosh Dovid about Indian sheitels, written by R’ Chaim Yosef Dovid Weiss.

Rosh Dovid Simanim 2-4 – The 2^nd and 3^rd and 4^th teshuva in Kuntres Rosh Dovid about Indian sheitels, written by R’ Chaim Yosef Dovid Weiss.

Rosh Dovid Simanim 5-6 – The 5^th and 6^th teshuva in Kuntres Rosh Dovid about Indian sheitels, written by R’ Chaim Yosef Dovid Weiss.

Rosh Dovid Simanim 7-8 – The 7^th and 8^th teshuva in Kuntres Rosh Dovid about Indian sheitels, written by R’ Chaim Yosef Dovid Weiss.

Rosh Dovid Simanim 9-11 – The 9^th and 10^th and 11^thteshuva in Kuntres Rosh Dovid about Indian sheitels, written by R’ Chaim Yosef Dovid Weiss.

Shulchan HaLevi – A teshuva about Indian sheitels written by Rav Yisroel Belsky.

Taktzir HaSugya – A summary of halachic issues regarding Indian sheitels.

Teshuvos Vehanhogos 1 – A teshuva about Indian sheitels written by Rav Moshe Sternbuch.

Teshuvos Vehanhogos 2 – The second teshuva about Indian sheitels written by Rav Moshe Sternbuch.

Teshuvos Vehanhogos 3 – The third teshuva about Indian sheitels written by Rav Moshe Sternbuch.

The Hair Trade’s Dirty Secret – An article from The Guardian newspaper about the wig industry.

The Great Sheitel Kiddush Hashem – An explanation of Rav Elyashiv’s psak regarding Indian sheitels, written by Rabbi Dovid Moshe Fleisch.

The Hamodia Advertisement Forbidding Sheitels – A response to the kol koreh about Indian sheitels published in the Hamodia newspaper, written by Rabbi Yair Hoffman.

The Hard Labor That Fuels the Hair Trade – An article about the human wig industry published in the online Sapiens Anthropology Magazine.

The Return of the Shaitel Controversy – Source sheets from the Headlines Radio Show #167 that aired April 21, 2018. (The audio of the episode is available at The Return of the Shaitel Controversy)

The Return of the Shaitel Controversy, Part II – Source sheets from the Headlines Radio Show #168 that aired April 28, 2018. (The audio of the episode is available at The Return of the Shaitel Controversy Part 2)

The Sheitel Controversy – Essay referencing the Kashrus Kurrents “Sheitel Controversy” article in the Daf Topics newsletter published by Mercaz Daf Yomi.

Today’s Sheitels in Halacha – A halachic essay about Indian sheitels written by Rabbi Moshe Ephraim Indik.

Transcribed Interviews – A transcription of interviews with employees at the Tirumala Temple in India.

Untangling Where Your Hair Extensions Really Come From – An article from BBC News about the human wig industry.

Untitled Sefer – An untitled and anonymous sefer about Indian sheitels.

Ve’atem Ha’Deveikim – A sefer about Indian sheitels by an anonymous author.

Ve’hitzdiku Es Ha’tzadik – A sefer about Indian sheitels by an anonymous author.

Ve’Sevivav Nis’ara Me’od – A sefer about Indian sheitels written by Rabbi Sholom Duber Wolfe.

Yalkut Yosef – Psak on Indian sheitels from Rabbi Yitzchak Yosef.