Posted Jan. 19, 2009

For Madonna and Guy Ritchie, the ties that bind are apparently fastened with a red string. The pop icon was seen leaving the Kabbalah Center in New York with kids Lourdes, 12, Rocco, 8, and David, 3, on Saturday afternoon, not long after the director made his exit with a big smile on his face.

David gets colorful, pairing his red string Kabbalah bracelet with blue nails, as he and Madonna leave the Kabbalah Center in New York. (©www.splashnews.com) More photos of Madonna

Perhaps Guy, who's in town filming "Sherlock Holmes," was grinning over a report from the London Daily Mirror that claims the pop icon, 50, whose reputation for being controlling is as strong as her Popeye-esque biceps, is undergoing "intense" Kabbalah counseling sessions in order to become "less domineering" in her relationships.

She's supposedly looking to "tweak her tikkun," which isn't nearly as naughty as it sounds. Instead, it's sort of like a spiritual tune-up.

"Madonna has been having a tough time with Kabbalah in the wake of her and Guy's split," a mole alleges to the tab. "Whenever she's in New York, she's taken to having intense private sessions with Rabbi Berg, working on her tikkun. She feels that previous relationships have broken down because she always takes control, not allowing the other party to flourish and be themselves. ... This is a pattern she is determined to alter in an effort to find the right person."

Continues the chatty snitch, "She's been taught that if you keep experiencing the same relationship problems over and over again, it's because you haven't realized where the real problem lies. As a result, Madonna is working desperately hard to try and change herself from a control queen into someone who steps back. She is fighting her demons."

Granted, the process to become less controlling sounds like it requires an extremely high level of control, but if newly surfaced reports are too be believed (a big if), the Big M may soon be able to put her lessons into practice.

The New York Post says Jesus Luz, the Brazilian slice of veal-cake Madonna was spotted with last month during the Sao Paolo leg of her Sticky & Sweet tour, is hoping to rendezvous with her in London this week as he celebrates his 22nd birthday.

What's more, Jesus appears to be under the impression that merely touching the hem of Madonna's garment -- on the rare occasion that the upper thigh-baring megastar wears something with a hem -- is enough to heal his seemingly suffering bank account.

According to the paper, Jesus, 21, is attempting to exploit his brief entry into Madonna's rarefied orbit, which came about when she reportedly took a shine to him after he posed with her for a forthcoming spread in W.

"All the modeling agencies came after him," says a source (via Glamurama.com.br), "but he chose Ford Models because [Madonna's photographer pal] Steven Klein had a talk with Katie Ford and convinced her that Jesus is, in fact, holy material."

But another mole says that the model isn't nearly as divine as he thinks he is, sniffing, "He was asking for some $135,000 a show. He did the same job last year for a mere $225. A lot of people are contacting him, but because he keeps raising his rates, they are changing their minds."

Madonna performs in Buenos Aires last December. (©Getty Images) More photos from her tour

Speaking of changing their minds, Madonna's personal trainer can't understand why anyone would call her client's hard body anything but mind-blowing, and she's doing her best to convert any negative nellies.

"Madonna will never look her age," Tracy Anderson, who is opening a gym with Madonna's BFF Gwyneth Paltrow, tells the London Daily Mirror. "She doesn't even look half her age -- she looks 19."

(Want to compare Madonna's body then and now? Simply do a search for the 20-year-old nude photo of her that will hit the auction block at Christie's next month. Just don't blame us if you can never unsee the au naturel image. For a palate-cleanser, check out these newly released outtakes from a "Hard Candy" photo shoot, in which she looks more post-surgical than sultry in bandages, boots and a seriously unsexy thong.)

"I tell people to be thankful that Madonna is showing that it's possible to be ageless -- people should applaud and celebrate that," says the completely unbiased Anderson. "Anybody who criticizes her is just jealous!"