The Kosher Compass (dot com)

A new spin on novelty gifts for Hanukah? (Left: The kosher compass; Right: Limoges dreidle)



Readers of the Jerusalem Post and other Jewish web content have recently been bombarded with the following advertising hype:

The compass that defies Nature! Just open the cover and find your way home to Jerusalem!

The Incredible Jerusalem Compass will show you the proper direction for your daily prayers, anywhere in the world. No Computer chips, no circuitry - this non-electric device spins and stops in the direction of Jerusalem from any place you are in the world [emphasis mine]. It's an incredible device that defies nature as it shows you the direction of your prayers and dreams... Recommended by leading Rabbis.

The question is: How true can this be? If it's non-electric, surely the only posibilities we are left with are magnets, mirrors and... miracles?

According to Parshablog it would seem I'm not the first to ask this question, and not the first either to be reluctant to shell out $24 to buy one and test it. (One would feel so silly buying one...) The patent having been located by the above blogger, it seems likely that the incredible kosher compass that defies nature is probably not more than a cute novelty item, based on the following two principles:

1) A non magnetized needle is attached to a regular, magnetized compass needle that is hidden beneath the compass face.

2) The angle between the two needles can be adjusted for different locations using a knob on the outside of the compass (visible in the picture but not mentioned in the hype).

If this is the case, you actually have to carry the "adjustment leaflet" with you when you travel, not just the compass, and using the thing in Jerusalem - with the exact direction for prayers changing at every block - might be a nightmare rather than "a dream".

Business is obviously swift, with some webstores already being "Sold Out" of the wonder item; but I suspect that before long interest will wane and the "the compass that defies nature," will do a vanishing act.

Disclaimer: I have not seen the compass itself and am merely speculating based on a basic knowledge of physics and an Internet Search.