宗教療癒對思覺失調症可能提供之助益－以「身念處」原理開展的三個出家案例報告

How Religious Therapy May Reduce the Symptoms of Schizophrenia-three Buddhist nuns as an example to illustrate the principle of ＂being mindful of the body in our bodies＂

釋昭慧(Shih, Chao-hwei)

《法印學報》 9期 (2018/12) Pp. 83-113

摘要

精神疾患的發生、病理的表達，往往會和他們所處的文化情境、所信仰的宗教內容，有著千絲萬縷的關聯。本文作者依佛法「色心交感」的因緣觀，在精神疾患的個案陳述與詮釋方面，審慎看待科學界與宗教界的各執一偏與過度推論。從佛法的觀點而言，生命包含色（物質）與心（精神）二類，此即色、受、想、行、識等「五蘊」。五蘊倘若未能平衡，就有可能產生疾患。色法中的地、水、火、風四大不調，會產生各種疾患，心、心所法－受、想、行、識倘若未能平衡，同樣也會導致各種心病－情感偏執、思想固著、意志薄弱、心識紛亂等，再嚴重下去，就構成了各式各樣的精神疾患。依緣起法則，色、心並非互不相干，它們會產生交感作用。生理疾患會影響精神狀況，精神疾患也很有可能逐漸導致生理病變的現象。至於是否唯有「接受西醫治療」一途？本文以三位比丘尼的思覺失調案例，指出：以「身念處」原理所進行的修持，確乎可以幫助患者安住於現實身心與當前生活，減緩思覺失調的症狀。在這種「以身導心」的修持進程中，個案甚至可以斷藥而不再發病，因此擺脫了藥物控制下，身心受苦的種種副作用。但這必須有團體力量的耐心陪伴與共同支持，所以並不容易普及於精神疾患與家屬之間。

關鍵字

思覺失調症 ； 身念處 ； 因緣觀 ； 療癒治療

並列摘要

There is an active interplay between the occurrence of mental disorders, along with their pathological manifestations, and the cultural context where people hold their religious beliefs. The author employs the concept of ＂dependent origination＂ emphasized by Buddhism to describe what the patients with mental illnesses have undergone, and then to interpret their symptoms. This ensures a careful examination of what the scientific and religious communities have so far proffered as assumptions, which consist of some kind of prejudices and overgeneralization. As the Buddha's teachings indicate, life consists of physical properties and spiritual characteristics. Furthermore, ＂five aggregates＂-the ＂form,＂ ＂feelings,＂ ＂perception,＂ ＂volitional actions,＂ and ＂consciousness＂ -can be identified in a being. If the five aggregates go amiss or lose their balances, disorders may follow. When the earth, water, fire, or wind suffers a loss of balance, humans are prone to all sorts of diseases. Similarly, when feelings, perception, volitional actions, and consciousness are out of balance, one may easily feel worried or distracted, with outward manifestations like paranoia, fixed thoughts, being weak-willed or mentally disturbed. If any of these symptoms deteriorate over time, other mental disorders or psychiatric diseases may follow as a result. According to the principle of ＂dependent origination,＂ physical properties and spiritual characteristics are intertwined in some ways and bring about sympathetic effects. Physiological diseases may affect one's spirit, and psychiatric disorders will probably lead to physiological diseases. Is western medicine the only choice when it comes to treating such patients? This paper uses three Buddhist nuns with schizophrenia as an example and points out that resorting to the principle of ＂being mindful of the body in our bodies＂ certainly help patients cope with the reality and be more comfortable with themselves and their lives for now, thus mitigating their schizophrenic symptoms considerably. When they make a practice of being mindful of their bodies so as to keep calm, these patients do not need to take medications to stay healthy, and will not have various side effects produced from medications. However, the patient should be kept company with a group of people who are willing to offer patience and support unconditionally, and this is not easy for many families when they have a family member with mental disorders.

並列關鍵字

Schizophrenia ； kayanupassana ； dependent origination ； Healing treatment