Sufism Healing and Psychology - Case Study Example

Name Professor Course Date Sufism Healing and Psychology There have been various reviews on spiritual/ energy healing that has been equivocal, recommending further researches. Some researchers on this matter have believed that there has been no sufficient evidence supporting the clinical efficacy of energy healing. However, their proponents argue that although they lack clinical efficacy, they manifest clinical effectiveness. In this regard, proponents charge that clinical effectiveness will imply that benefits do outweigh harms. On the other hand, other researchers have been dismissing positive results of the energy healing as just occurring through psychological mechanisms. Among examples of energy, healing is faith healing, which purely occurs on the ground of religious faith. It utilizes healing energies and forces that come from God or spirit. This travels through the medium of a healer, effecting healing in a patient. The healer is aware that there is an endless supply of healing energy from God, flowing through him. In this regard, this study will aim to put insights into relationship between psychology and Sufi healing. Case Study Hall examined wound healing mechanisms after a deliberate bodily damage. According to a certain school of Sufism, in case of immediate contact with Divinity (Allah), the bodily damage will not harm and therefore any wound will heal rapidly. According to the Hall’s repeated analysis, in various observations and measurements, there were no evidences of pain in both experiments under laboratory conditions and outside the religious ritual context concerning this assertion. He made this report while with a Sufi practitioner (J.H.) who had been invited to Cleveland in the local radiology facility, having received the permission from a Casnazaniyyah Sufi school for performing a rapid wound healing demonstration while being filmed by hospital crew. Basing on the previous studies in Brazil, it had been hypothesized that Deliberate Body Damage could be accompanied by effects in brain waves and random event generators. In the experiment, the radiological film documented the way the skewer penetrated the cheeks in actual sense, to address skeptics that such practices could be fakery. Following its removal, there was some slight trickle of blood, which stopped after a compression with clean gauze to the cheek. The scientists and physicians present noted that the wound healed immediately after a short time. The participant also revealed that there was no pain during the removal and the insertion of the pin. It is important to note that this demonstration was done outside a religious context where chanting, singing, and drumming and head movements might have been observed. What was necessary was just asking the Shaikh about the spiritual energy for the rapid healing of the wound before piercing it. According to Hall, the rapid wound healing phenomena could not be termed as hypnosis because it lacked empirical support. This is because it did not alter any state of the participant’s consciousness (Hall, 2011, 270-275). Sufis’ Explanation of their Religious Healing According to Sufism, there is a unified theory of spiritual healing and mind/body relations. Its philosophy suggests that, by divine intervention, the world’s mechanistic operation can be suspended or superseded. It is only God who will allow mechanical laws that the world operates on. Sufis believes that it is the lower self (nafs) that hinders a human being from being closer to God (Allah). Therefore, nearness to God will obviously result in miracles like the one observed above. Elements of Sufi Healing The Sufism believes that anxiety is the root cause of minor or major illness. It is needed that peace is established so that there is a basis of healing. There is nothing, which will relieve anxiety than a person having peace. This can only happen through success. Nobody will have success without surrendering himself to Divinity (Allah). In this regard, anxiety will come as result of imperfect knowledge in God. Illness comes to human being because of his duplicity and it is not his fault, but because of the consequence, he has made. Therefore, he must repent, by accepting the responsibility of his faulty choices. Knowledge to God is unity and will enable us to understand perfect health. This will obviously build on one’s self esteem so that he can become knowable to God. This self-esteem will be instrumental as dynamic magnetism to show everything and bring them to him with fewer efforts. This explains the phenomenon of miracles including those of healing. Experts’ views Due to the growing impact and significance of Sufism (Islam religion) in the field of health, psychologists have endeavored to encourage the respect of religions, especially with regards to client attendance. Although issues regarding Sufism and other religions have been controversial in psychology, many practitioners are now embracing it hence therapists also remain vigilant of how their clients’ belief systems work so that they may be helpful in influencing their treatments. For Spiritual healing, many models have been advanced to explain scenarios like the one discussed-Sufism. According to Carroll (2013, 1), it has been possible to get relief from pain, swelling, nausea, anxiety and headache without the use of surgery or medicine. The most amazing feature about it is that the healer does not need to come in touch with the patient. Although the energy healers have been integrated into the current healing system, explanations about them have been centered on various metaphysical theories and explanations. There is a belief that energy medicine, self-hypnosis, and hypnosis share a characteristic of reducing stress, which will typically be profound in both psychological and physiological effects. In this regard, they will begin with changing an individual’s attitude, which will go on to influence his behaviors. It is important to realize that some proponents of energy medicine can advance classical conditioning while thinking about energy healing. In this regard, when a patient expects to heal, it may lead to a reduction in anxiety and stress. This is because he believes in the effectiveness of the healing process as effects of mythical healing. Other studies have also believed that this is an effect of placebo, because when an individual is conditioned, he may release certain chemical that counters pain-causing agents such as endorphins, cortisol, catecholamines and adrenalines. In their regard, this may be due to the simulation of the opiod system, which is the body’s natural pharmacy. This is strengthened by the fact that a person’s strengthened beliefs about the treatment, as increased by their suggestibility, may have profound psychological effects. In this theory too, the body’s neuron system will affect or get affected by the biochemical changes in an individual’s behavior (Carroll, 2013, 1). In another theory, which has started gaining popularity, it is explained that when the process of treatment involves care, attention, affection, the patient will be encouraged to be hopeful. This, according to proponents, will trigger the body’s physical reactions, which will promote healing. According to them, healing can be a conscious and willful manipulation of energy through which a person is healed. According to supporters, energy healing has nothing to do with energy but with social complex interaction through which one undergoes in various cultural contexts (Carroll, 2013, 1). According to Doctor Chiasson, energy that is present in a human being’s body is not actually his. Blocked energy in his body can result in chronic pain. When one puts hand on another, there may be expectations, that healing process may occur, due to the transfer of the energy (Ross, 2011 para. 2-5). In another interesting study on the effect of music on germinating seedlings, it was found that more seedlings sprouted when exposed to music and healing energy compared to those in the control group. Doctor Schwarz has also explained having experienced how a woman at long distance sent healing energy to a paraplegic patient. The man regained his bladder control taking his first step. This has made him to acknowledge how the mechanisms work and he was ready to demystify them. Other healing like the Japanese Johrei heals by purifying spirit. In this case, the healer will send divine healing energy and love so that clouds of negativities can be dispelled, to release toxins and pain. In this process too, the person’s spiritual vibration will be raised (Hontz, 2014, para.1- 9). Explanatory Theories in Psychology As already noted, Sufis believe that anxiety is the root cause of minor or major illness. It is needed that peace is established so that there is a basis of healing. There is nothing, which will relieve anxiety than a person having peace. This can only happen through success. Nobody will have success without surrendering himself to Divinity. Therefore, anxiety will come as result of imperfect knowledge in God. In this regard, there is a disconnection between a human being and the reality. For Cognitive Behavioral Theory, a therapist can help to reduce suffering of the patient by inducing behavioral activation and encouraging the patient to be in connection with his social world. In this regard, behavioral therapy will include engendering increases in overt behaviors so that to bring the patient in contact with reinforcing contingencies of the environment so that he can improve in mood, thoughts and his overall quality of life. These activation behaviors will include attending religious prayers and events. In this regard, the Cognitive behavioral therapists should seek a plan that consists of both behavioral and Cognitive interventions to the mood of the client. He can include the client’s religious ideas regarding forgiveness and redemption to address his religious beliefs. From the Psychodynamic theory, a patient may be struggling with intolerable desires or impulses. When his self-structure is activated, he may deal with these impulses in different way. In this regard, psychic defenses when activated will deal with feelings that he considers harmful. From the Existential theory, at this time, the patient will have to explore his persona/ inner subconscious to reveal whether his broken connection is what really caused the harmful effect or not. For instance, the recent harmful scenario might have caused negative schema, which the patient should challenge. The Cognitive behavioral theory explains that when a patient becomes connected with the reality (God), and becomes immersed in it, it will help to avoid existential fears. From the existential point of view, the client should come to terms that are ultimate (Pimpinella , 2005, pg.128-143). Conclusion Sufism believes that anxiety, which is the major cause of illness, emanates from lack of peace due to lack of success. The basic bottom line of Sufism is that nobody will have success and peace without surrendering to Divinity (Allah). From the psychological theories, it is evident that there are some elements of conciliation. For the Psychodynamic Theory, when a person is struggling with intolerable desires, or impulses, he may need his psychic defenses to be activated. According to Cognitive Behavioral Therapists, some behaviors need to be inducted into the patient to relieve his anxiety so that his psychic defenses can deal with the harmful feelings. Existential theorist add that the harmful behaviors can only be broken if someone is subjected to ultimate reality (Divinity) to challenge bad feelings. When he becomes fully immersed in reality, he would ultimately avoid existential fears. Thus, this explains exactly what happens during the Sufi Rapid wound healing process. In this regard, fears are eliminated by subjecting the patient to ultimate reality (God). While immersed in the reality, the piercing and the removal of a skewer from his cheek do not seem to affect him because his psychic defenses have been activated to deal with harmful feelings (pain). Works Cited Carroll, Robert Todd. Energy Healing: Looking in All the Wrong Places. Skeptic's Dictionary, 2013. Hall, Howard. Sufism and Healing. University Hospital of Cleveland, 2011. Print. Hontz, Jenny. Greetings Reiki Communities. Internet Archives, 2014. Pimpinella, Emily. Religion, Psychology, and Suffering. New Hampshire: Antioch University, 2005. Ross, Carolyn C. Energy Healing. Psychology Today, 2011. Read More