Religious and indigenous treatment of mental illness in South India—A descriptive study

Document Abstract / Summary Overview

In a follow-up to an earlier study we decided to interview a number of religious healers and ascertain their views on mental illness. A sample of ten healers-Hindu, Muslim and Christian-were interviewed at length. In addition, jive sites of healing were visited and various religious rituals observed. The general emphasis in care is on a pluralistic holistic approach and individual healers have several models of mental illness in their repertoire. The shrines are virtually spec& in dealing with specific psychiatric problems. Some healers were able to identr.. serious mental illness and were able to refer these individuals to psychiatrists, whereas others felt that they were able to deal with these themselves, We present accounts of our interviews and highlight the advantages of the holistic approach and of qualitative methods of research.