Qian Zhang - Week 5

Week 5: Topic: Rethinking the Western Health Services: A Physical and Mental Health

Article: Combining Indian and Western Spiritual Psychology: Applications to Health and Social Renewal

Human understanding is limited because spiritualism is an evidential force that most often escapes the grasp of human rationalism (Oman and Singh). However, science is unwilling to follow through the steps to experience the divine revelation. Unfortunately, religious self-satisfying knowledge and experience are not testable but are transmitted through religious participation or fellowship.

            The integration of traditional Indian spiritualism during clinical treatment has significant health benefits. Patients experience psychological health improvements when engaging in specific traditional Indian health practices like meditation and yoga. Indian religious practices are associated with the restoration of health. Meditation focuses used on traditional Japanese short prayers like Ramnam restore mental and spiritual health (Oman and Singh). Tapping into such traditional practices enhances mindfulness and fosters human’s oneness with nature. Therefore, if we seek understanding, then it is necessary to understand the spirit realm because it takes spiritual intervention to create meaning out of supernatural events like calamities.

Cited Work

Oman, Doug, and Nirbhay N. Singh. "Combining Indian and Western Spiritual Psychology: Applications to Health and Social Renewal." Psychological Studies, vol. 63, no. 2, 2016, pp. 172-180.