Traditional community resources for mental health: a report of temple healing from India

According to local legend, towards the end of his life people noticed that a mere touch of his hand cured many ailments, especially mental illnesses, and stories spread about his healing powers. According to the legend of the temple, and an idea widely held among the people who come for help, it is...

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Bibliographic Details
Published inBMJ Vol. 325; no. 7354; pp. 38 - 40
Main Authors Raguram, R, Venkateswaran, A, Ramakrishna, Jayashree, Weiss, Mitchell G
Format Journal Article
LanguageEnglish
Published London British Medical Journal Publishing Group 06.07.2002
British Medical Association
BMJ Publishing Group Ltd
BMJ Publishing Group LTD
BMJ Publishing Group
BMJ
EditionInternational edition
Subjects
Alternative medicine
Biological and medical sciences
Brief psychiatric rating scale
Care and treatment
Caregivers
Community Mental Health Services - methods
Community support
Complementary therapies
Culture
Diseases
Education And Debate
Epidemiology
Ethnography
Field study
Healing
Humans
India
Low income groups
Medical sciences
Mental disorders
Mental Disorders - therapy
Mental health
Mental health care
Mental illness
Miscellaneous
Mosques & temples
Physical restraints
Prevention and actions
Psychiatric facilities
Psychiatric Status Rating Scales
Psychology. Psychoanalysis. Psychiatry
Psychopathology
Psychopathology. Psychiatry
Psychosis
Public health. Hygiene
Public health. Hygiene-occupational medicine
Religion
Social psychiatry. Ethnopsychiatry
Sociocultural environment
Spiritual Therapies - methods
Temples
Tropical medicine
Villages
Asia
India
North America
Europe
Human
Treatment
Treatment efficiency
Mental health
Religion
Resource
Exploration
Psychopathology
Public health
Culture
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Summary:According to local legend, towards the end of his life people noticed that a mere touch of his hand cured many ailments, especially mental illnesses, and stories spread about his healing powers. According to the legend of the temple, and an idea widely held among the people who come for help, it is the experience of residing in the temple for a period of time, rather than therapy provided by a healer, that brings relief from mental illnesses.
Bibliography:ark:/67375/NVC-V0PBQWJ0-C
Correspondence to: Dr Raguram
PMID:12098731
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Correspondence to: Dr Raguram raguram@nimhans.kar.nic.in
Contributors: RR and JR supervised the fieldwork and RR wrote the paper with the help of AV, MW, and JR. AV conducted the fieldwork and RR and MW revised the manuscript. RR is the guarantor.
ISSN:0959-8138
0959-8146
1756-1833
1468-5833
1756-1833
DOI:10.1136/bmj.325.7354.38