Types of Mental Illness According to Islamic Tradition

Abstract

The psychotherapy of the Muslim tradition is spiritual healing. Thus mental illness is cured once individuals reconcile themselves with their Creator, or God. Western approaches in psychotherapy are derived in some way from the concept of original sin, whereas Muslim traditional psychotherapy starts with concept of the human as a healthy being. The role of knowledge is emphasized by Al-Ghazzali in the method of treatment--spiritual disease is ignorance and knowledge is the cure.