JEDDAH, Jul 15 (Arab News): So-called magicians and spiritual gurus are now resorting to the Internet to advertise their services with many sending spam e-mails to members of the public after the Commission for the Promotion of Virtue and the Prevention of Vice (Haia) launched a massive crackdown.

In one such e-mail, a self-styled guru offered his service saying he could “cure all ills, solve any problems and bring back your estranged lover in only one hour.”

Another has been sending text messages claiming he can undo magic and break talismans if they ring an international number. “We have, by the grace of Allah, the ability to find quick solutions for all your problems just by hearing your voice on the telephone,” read another text message.

One message explained that God has revealed the Qur’an as a cure and bounty for believers. “We have returned many estranged wives to their husbands, cured many mentally sick people, reunited families and made wives give birth after long sterility,” it continued.

Another widely circulated e-mail message mentions a Sheikh Ahmad, a supposed astronomer and spiritual guru who specializes in dismantling talisman and is able to cure incurable diseases such as epilepsy, madness and other kinds of diseases that cannot be treated by medical doctors.

Nasser Al-Khilaifi, a young Saudi man, said he recently received an e-mail message of this kind. “The message was in Arabic. It asked me to ring a certain telephone number and that this would lead to all my problems ending. I immediately deleted the message,” he said.

Al-Khilaifi is surprised that such fraudsters are sending spam e-mails to market themselves and con simple and naïve people. “There is no excuse for what they do. I know some people are looking for magicians to solve their emotional and financial problems,” he added.

He said as long as there are naïve people who believe in sorcery and seek unrealistic solutions, such people will continue to flourish.

Youssef Al-Miraie, another Saudi, said he received a similar message on his e-mail address which he ignored. “It is obvious that after the government tightened its grip on magicians, they would resort to the Internet to find customers,” he said.

Al-Miraie said he heard a story about a magician working in a sports club who did some magic on a player and as a result his standard deteriorated and he began to have serious problems with his family.

The Haia has established special centers to fight sorcery and has trained many of its staff to deal with the problem.

Sheikh Nasser Al-Jabri, a member of the Haia, said magicians have been forced to look for alternative means to sell their rotten goods. He warned people not to fall into the trap of such people who only sell dreams and nothing more.