BBC: "The kids, that's the highest cost," says Ido Lev, 30, who hasn't seen his two children for five years.
It's hard to imagine the software engineering student, now wearing jeans and a checked shirt, in the black hat and suit of the ultra-orthodox Jew he used to be.
It is seven years since he walked out of his home, cut off his curly side locks in a public toilet and slept in a shopping mall for a week.
Israel's ultra-orthodox Jews, also known as Haredim, make up roughly 10% of the population. Most live their lives in voluntary isolation from the secular world.
Men tend to spend their days studying the Jewish scriptures, which are the primary focus of education for both genders.
Posters on the walls of ultra-orthodox areas pass on community news, as many residents shield themselves from what they see as the secular influence of television and radio.
Images of women are banned, and anyone driving on the Jewish Sabbath is likely to have stones thrown at their car.
Every detail of life is determined by religious observance, says Mr Lev, "even how you put on your shoes". >>> Heather Sharp, BBC News, Jerusalem | Monday, January 11, 2010
