Pulsa deNura, Pulsa diNura or Pulsa Denoura ( "The Lashes of Fire") is a purportedly ancient Kabbalistic ceremony in which the destroying angels are invoked to block heavenly forgiveness of the subject's sins, allegedly causing all the curses named in the Bible to befall him resulting in his death. It is controversial for having been allegedly invoked against several contemporary political figures, including by Yosef Dayan against Yitzchak Rabin prior to his assassination. His historicity has been questioned. In Mishpacha, a Haredi magazine, Dr. Dov Schwartz of Bar-Ilan University and the Haredi public figure Moshe Blau argued that the ceremony has no basis in traditional Judaism and actually originates in mid-20th century. Etymology Pulsa (plural: pulsei) is an Aramaic noun derived from the Latin word pulsus meaning a "blow" or "stroke". Nura is an Aramaic noun meaning "fire". Sources The phrase pulsa dinura appears in several stories in classical rabbinic literature (though not with the meaning of a mystical curse): Adam told Rabbi Akiva that angels were beating him with a stick of fire in punishment for his sins. And according to the description of Gehenna by Joshua ben Levi, who, similarly to Dante Alighieri, wandered through hell under the guidance of the angel Duma, Absalom still dwells there, having the rebellious heathen in charge; and when the angels with their fiery rods run also against Absalom to smite him like the rest, a heavenly voice says: "Spare Absalom, the son of David, My servant." God punished the angel Metatron with pulsei denura for having misled Elisha ben Abuyah. God punished the angel Gabriel with pulsei denura for not performing his task properly when Jerusalem was destroyed. Elijah was punished in heaven with pulsei denura for having disclosed a heavenly secret to humankind. Rava said that if Levi ben Sisi were alive, he would strike with pulsei denura another rabbi who had misrepresented his opinion. The term is mentioned once in the Zohar, where it is described as a heavenly punishment against a person who does not fulfill their religious obligations. Some adherents of Kabbalah developed the idea of invoking a curse against a sinner, which they termed pulsa deNura. The source for this modern ritual is not to be found in Kabbalah, but among the Hebrew magical manuals of antiquity, such as Sefer HaRazim and The Sword of Moses. In contrast to the ceremony, Judaism discourages praying that an