the reality of spiritual phenomena

Traditional healing practices that existed before scientific medicine were intimately woven into indigenous cultures.  From this understanding, it is imperative to support the integration of effective modalities that best support clients.  When it comes to a holistic approach, mental disorders should provide treatment for social, psychological and and biological symptoms.  Based in this premise, forms of mental illness can manifest as disharmony and unease within a social environment.  Societal norms prioritize mental illness from a subjective, “distorted view of the circumstance” (Kumar, 2003), while holistic practices distinguish these natural phenomena as a spiritual imbalance.  Traditional healers concentrate on the imbalance of natural order, incorporating remedy that restores spiritual and psychological balance. “This is the difference between the experiences of a scientific investigator and a religious practitioner” (Kumar, 2003).

Without a cultural framework for mental illness, biomedical drugs alone are ineffectual because it lacks the empathy to assist in the healing process.   Based on the assumption that altered states of consciousness are mental disorders, the characteristics of spiritual awakenings are irrespective to clinical diagnoses.  “When Kundalini awakens, sleeping parts of the brain begin to open, and the person begins to acquire unusual powers” (Kumar, 2003).  Spiritual experiences are transformational as they can be profound and drastically change a person’s outlook on life.  Many who experience spiritual phenomena transcend towards a heightened sense of purpose, self-esteem, an increased desire to seek knowledge and greater appreciation for life.  Spiritual quality reaches beyond religious affiliation and involves a reverence for deeper connection with one-self.  “God is formless and attribute less and seekers of the path of knowledge realize God in abstract form” (Kumar, 2003).  These experiences deserve a more loving attitude and measures of support that reflect a knowledge of God.  The profound effects of spiritual awakenings deserve confident interpretation and cultural retrospect.  Spiritual awakening necessitates various methods of facilitation because these experiences involve a stronger connection with the inner self and the outer world.

Citations

Kumar, R. (2003). Experiences of Spiritual Awakening. Proceedings (Academy of Religion & Psychical Research ), 99–109.