Two letters of blessing for recovery handwritten and signed by the "Tzaddik of Jerusalem", R. Aryeh Levin, addressed to his friend R. Refael Tzvi Yehudah Meltzer, Rabbi of Rehovot (son of R. Isser Zalman Meltzer). Jerusalem, [Tishrei and Cheshvan 1961].

Enclosed with the two letters: A leaf handwritten by R. Aryeh with an incantation against the evil eye that he was accustomed to say (based on a tradition he received from R. Chaim Berlin and his father the Netziv of Volozhin – see below), and another leaf with a copying of the incantation handwritten by R. Refael Tzvi Yehudah Meltzer, Rabbi of Rehovot.

In the first letter (on postcard), dated Erev Shabbat of Chol HaMoed Sukkot (16th Tishrei; postmarked 18th Tishrei 1962), R. Aryeh writes to him: "May our dear R. Tzvi Yehudah son of Hinda Beila recover and heal; may G-d protect him, heal him completely and grant him good physical health, and surround him with good will like a shield, show him His salvation and secure him with good counsel. May a good decree come from the palace for good, life and peace".

In the second letter (on the official stationery of the Beit Aryeh yeshiva, dated Sunday of Toldot [23rd Cheshvan 1961], R, Aryeh writes that on Friday "I was informed by your sister, the righteous Rebbetzin… Sarah [Rebbetzin Sarah Ben-Menachem] that your health condition is improving, very desirably. My Shabbat was delightful, and we are not letting it escape our mind to pray to G-d for your complete and full recovery". R. Aryeh goes on to apologize "that I did not visit you all the time while you were sick for various reasons… but I never let it escape my mind to pray for your welfare in public".

Apparently, it was in this correspondence that R. Aryeh sent him the incantation against the evil eye – which R. Aryeh had famously received from his teacher R. Chaim Berlin on the last day of his life (in the formula that "his father the Netziv gave him before his death"; see: Simchah Raz, Tzaddik Yesod Olam, p. 266). R. Aryeh made extensive use of this incantation to nullify the evil eye, and many stories are told of it. His son R. Simchah Shlomo Levin, who received the formula from his father, recounted in his father's name that he would use it to nullify the evil eye even though it involved some kind of danger to the user [he also recounts that his brother R. Refael Binyamin Levin was concerned by this formula and would rather recite another formula his father received from R. Yosef Zundel of Salant in Jerusalem].

The "Tzaddik of Jerusalem" R. Aryeh Levin (1885-1969), excelled in Torah and in charitable deeds. He served as the spiritual director and supervisor of the Etz Chaim Torah school. An alumnus of Lithuanian yeshivot Hlusk, Slutsk, Volozhin and the Torat Chaim yeshiva in Jerusalem, he was a cherished disciple of the leading Torah scholars of the generation: R. Refael Shapiro of Volozhin, R. Chaim Berlin, R. Shlomo Elyashiv the Leshem, R. Baruch Ber Leibowitz, R. Avraham Yitzchak HaKohen Kook, his brother-in-law R. Tzvi Pesach Frank and R. Yitzchak Ze'ev Soloveitchik of Brisk. He immigrated to Jerusalem in his youth and married the granddaughter of the head of the Jerusalem Beit Din, R. Chaim Yaakov Shapira. He was renowned for his dedication to acts of benevolence. He was a beloved friend to one and all, wholeheartedly sharing the difficulties and joys of his brethren. During the British Mandate he would regularly visit the prisoners in the British jails in order to encourage them, and he was known as the "rabbi of the prisoners". He was a beloved figure among all strata of society in Eretz Israel, regardless of their religious orientation, including many of the militants (of Lehi and the Irgun) who were close with him before the State of Israel was formed. He lent an ear to all and had true love for each and every one of his fellow Jews.

The recipient of the letters,   R. (Refael) Tzvi Yehudah Meltzer (1899-1969), son of R. Isser Zalman Meltzer and son-in-law of R. Tzvi Steinman, first Rabbi of Rehovot. Studied in the Mir, Slutsk and Novardok yeshivas, and served as mashgiach in the Kletsk yeshiva (of his brother-in-law R. Aharon Kotler). He immigrated to Eretz Israel in 1925 along with his father, and disseminated Torah. In 1936 he was appointed Rabbi of Pardes Hanna, where he established the Kletsk yeshiva and Midrashiat Noam. In 1947 he was appointed Rabbi of Rehovot, succeeding his father-in-law R. Tzvi Steinman, and established the Kletsk yeshiva (later renamed Yeshivat HaDarom). In 1951 he retired from his position as Rabbi of the city, appointing R. Elimelech Bar Shaul as his successor, while he continued to serve as head of the city's Beit Din and dean of Yeshivat HaDarom.

4 leaves. Varying size and condition. Overall good condition. Enclosed envelope with stamp, with the recipient and sender handwritten by R. Aryeh Levin.