Lack of spiritual fulfillment leads to new trends

The ‘spiritual movement,’ which came into focus after the tragic case of architect Ece Gürel who was found four days after going missing in Istanbul's Belgrad Forest but later lost her battle for life in the hospital and particularly attracts adults experiencing a void in their spiritual, religious, and emotional lives. AKŞAM Newspaper asked  President of Üsküdar University, Psychiatrist Prof. Nevzat Tarhan why people are drawn to such movements and the potential harm they can cause.

Prof. Nevzat Tarhan, who evaluated the spiritual movement from a psychological and religious perspective, warned that spiritual voids push individuals towards spiritual approaches, and when they fail to find satisfactory answers, they may experience traumas leading as far as suicide.

"I must be the best"

Psychiatrist Prof. Nevzat Tarhan stated that as a result of spiritual emptiness, people seek different approaches such as spiritual movements, and those who fail to find what they are looking for experience psychological distress. Tarhan explained that "A person who adopts atheism as an ideology evaluates life from a perspective based on inorganic matter. If their needs are not met appropriately, people may turn to irrational spiritual fields. The competitive, 'I must be the best' mentality of modernism does not provide young people with spiritual satisfaction. Sometimes, this void is filled with atheism, entertainment, or substance use. Since these do not provide satisfactory answers, some individuals may even resort to suicide."

No scientific basis…

"Today, as a result of spiritual emptiness, people seek alternative paths. Instead of methods like 'scream therapy,' which was popular in the 1970s but abandoned due to lack of scientific support, healthy methods should be found to fulfill people's spiritual needs. When in harmony with religious beliefs, such as the monotheism found in the Qur’an, young people can find satisfying answers to their existential questions. This situation shows that we need to develop new methods to reach the younger generation."

Prof. Tarhan warned that if the need for meaning is not met, individuals may suffer significant psychological damage.

AKŞAM

Üsküdar News Agency (ÜNA)