HORIZONS OFSPIRITUAL

PSYCHOLOGY

Edited by

Akbar Husain • Shahrir JarnaluddinOsman Hashim • Loh Sau Cheong

Mariani Md Nor • Hamidah Sulaiman

Department of Educational Psychology and Counseling,Faculty of Education, University of Malaya

50603 Kuala Lumpur, MALAYSIA

11"i1~mj~llIii~lli1il~ll]ii~iIIIIII1A514346924

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Horizons ofSpiritual Psychology

Selection and Editiorial matterAkbar Husain, Shahrir Jamaluddin, Osman Hashim,Loh Sau Cheong, Mariani Md Nor and Hamidah Sulaiman

Individual Articles © The Contributors

First Edition, 2008

ISBN: 81-8220-278-7

[Responsibility for the facts stated, opinIOns expressed,conclusions reached and plagiarism, if any, in this title isentirely that of the Contributors. The Publisher bears noresponsibility for them whatsoever. All rights reserved. Nopart of this book may be reproduced in any manner withoutwritten permission.]

PRINTED IN INDIA

Published by Dr. N.K. Singh for Global Vision Publishing House,New Delhi-2 and Printed at Balaji Offset, Naveen Shahdara, Delhi-32.

PREFACE

The concept of spirituality is a holistic one which encompassesthe physical, mental, emotional, social and the spiritual aspects ofan individual. Spirituality is a unified quality ofbody, mind, heart,spirit or soul. A number of attempts have been made: (a) toidentify the factors or dimensions of spirituality through thedevelopment of various measures, (b) to integrate spirituality intoeducation, counseling, training and therapy, (c) to see spiritualityin health care organizations, (d) to identify and examine the roleof spiritual values in the personality development, (e) to investigatethe relationship between spirituality and well-being, and (f) toassess the role of Sufism and Buddhistic principles in the healthmaintenance behaviour.

In this book you will find ans\vers of so many questionsrelated to the complex discipline as to what is spirituality, whatelements really make up the spiritual life, how spirituality can bemeasured, what spirituality has done so far to the healthmaintenance behaviour and what spirituality can do further? Thisis what we hope that the articles published in this volume willprovide us meaningful solutions to our daily life problems.

This book contains 19 chapters based on the keynote addressesand articles presented in International Seminar on SpiritualPsychology mainly by the Indian and Malaysian participants. Thekeynote addresses and articles are not reproduced here asoriginally presented in the seminar. We expended them considerably

(vi) Horizons ofSpiritual Psychology

and arranged matter in a different order. The content of the bookamply reflects that the field of spiritual psychology is developingin a number of directions.

The language of the book is very easy and interesting foreveryone who is concerned with the maintenance of spiritualhealth. This book is an important and welcome addition to thefield of spiritual psychology. It is a good source of information tothe students, teachers, researchers, professionals in particular andfor the others who are interested in this field.

We would like to acknowledge the authors for their valuablecontributions. We also extend our appreciation to the social andstructural support provided by Prof. Dr. Noraini Idris, Dean, Facultyof Education, University of Malaya, Kuala Lumpur. It is also ourduty to acknowledge the great obligation to Global Vision PublishingHouse, New Delhi, India for printing this book.

Editors

LIST OF CONTRIBUTORS

Akanksha Tripathi, obtained M.A Degree in Psychology fromPanjab University, Chandigarh, India. She has attended andpresented papers in conferences and attended workshops. Shehas teaching experience at the undergraduate level. Her researchinterest is in the area of Health Psychology.

Akbar Husain is Professor of Psychology at the Faculty ofEducation, University ofMalaya, Kuala Lumpur. He has published15 books as sole author, editor and co-editor and 140 articles andbook chapters. These publications cover different fields ofAppliedPsychology. His current research interests are in the fields ofSpiritual Psychology, Islamic Psychology and PsychologicalAssessment. He is a recipient of some national awards.

Alvin Ng Lai Oon is senior lecturer in clinical psychology at theHealth Psychology Unit, Faculty of Allied Health Sciences,Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia. Dr. Ng obtained a Bachelorsdegree in Arts, majoring in Psychology from the University ofWestern Australia in 1997; a Bachelor of Psychology degree in1998 and a Doctor of Psychology degree iri 2002, both fromMurdoch University, Western Australia. His research intcrestincludes public health promotion, behavioural fluency, socialinfluence, applied behaviour analysis, developmental and intellectualdisabilities, and gender psychology and obesity prevention.

(viii) Horizons ofSpiritual Psychology

Asif Akhtar is Lecturer in the area of Marketing Management,Information Technology and General Management, Departmentof Business Administration, Aligarh Muslim University, Aligarh,India. He has done his B.Tech in Mechanical Engg. and MBAfrom Aligarh Muslim University, India. He has been teaching thestudents of MBA for the last two years. He has presented six­research paper, one in international conference and other five innational conferences. One of his papers was awarded withCummins Best Case Award in the conference held at IIM-K. Hehas attended a Faculty Development Program at IIT, Delhi. Atpresent, he is Co-Supervising the dissertation work of MBAstudents.

Ayesha Farooq is a· Lecturer in the Department of BusinessAdministration, Aligarh Muslim University, Aligarh, India. Herareas of interest are General Management, OrganizationalBehavior, and organizational Development. She has been teachingMBA students for the last eight years. She has authored sixresearch papers and attended one international and three nationalconferences. She has conducted workshops on interpersonaleffectiveness for the faculty of CCS University, Meerut. She isfounder member of Fazli Mission foundation, Dibai, which isworking for the advancement and development of poor sectionsof society and managing a higher secondary school.

Che Zarrina Binti Sa~ari is Associate Professor at theDepartment of Aqidah and Islamic Thought, Academy of IslamicStudies, University of Malaya, Kuala Lumpur. Her specializationis Sufism (Islamic Psycho-spirituality).She wrote several booksand published many articles in national and international journalsand presented more than 50 working papers in national andinternational seminars and conferences. She also wrote books,articles and working papers in Islamic ethics, Islamic thought,comparative religion and Islamic economics.

Jasvir Kaur Chahal is Senior Lecturer in Education atGovernment College of Education, Chandigarh, India since last

List ofContributors (ix)

two decades. Her areas of specialization are Philosophical andSociological Foundations of Education, Educational Psychologyand Guidance and Counseling. She is Member, Faculty ofEducation, Panjab University and has remained member of theBoard of Studies too and Curriculum construction has remainedher forte.

Jitendra Mohan was former Chairman, Department ofPsychology, Dean, Faculty of Arts, and University Fellow, PanjabUniversity, Chandigarh, India. Prof. Mohan is President, IndianAcademy of Applied Psychology. He has published 23 books, 250research papers and 30 chapters. He is a member of variousnational and international associations. He has received a numberof national and international awards from various bodies. Hisfields of special interests are Human Resource Development insports, business administration and education, performanceenhancement through mental training.

Joni Tamkin Borhan is professor at the Dept. of Shariah andEconomics, Academy of Islamic Studies, University of Malaya.He was educated at University of Malaya and obtained a Bachelorof Shariah (B.Sh) and Master of Shariah (M. Sh) in 1990 and1994 respectively. He received his Ph.D in Islamic Banking fromEdinburgh University, Scotland, UK in 1997. He has publishedand \\Titten numerous books, articles in Journals at internationaland national levels. He also presented many papers for variousconferences and workshops locally and internationally in the fieldof Islamic Studies mostly in Islamic banking, Islamic Economicsand Islamic transactions.

Khamsiah Ismail, Ph.D in Psychology, with specialization inCounselling and Clinical Psychology (2006), M. Ed in Counseling(1999), from International Islamic University Malaysia. She isworking as an Assistant Director (Head) of Counselling Unit atSector of Student Affairs, Matriculation Division, Ministry ofEducation Malaysia. Her main Interest is Integration of Islamicapproach in counseling and psychotherapy.

(x) . Horizons ofSpiritual Psychology

Loh Sau Cheong is senior lecturer in the Faculty of Education,University of Malayll. She obtained her first degree in specialeducation and her Master and Ph.D in Educational Psychology.Her research interests include motivation in learning, cognitivepsychology, teacher education, and research on children withlearning disabilities. She practices mindfulness meditation andstrongly believes the application and practicality of mindfulness indaily life.

Meena Sehgal is Professor and Head, Department of Psychology,Panjab University, Chandigarh, India. Dr. Sehgal has publishednumerous articles in books and chapters. She has attended severalnational and international conferences where she has presentedpapers and chaired sessions. Her current research interest is inthe fields of Health Psychology and Positive Psychology.

Mikail Ibrahim is Lecturer, Faculty of Major Language Studies,Islamic Science University of Malaysia, Nilai, Negeri Sembilan,Malaysia. Dr. Ibrahim has attended and presented papers in thenational conferences. His area of research interest is EducationalPsychology.

Nadiyah Elias is a senior lecturer at Universiti Utara Malaysia.Her research interests are in the fields of Islamic Psychology,Counseling, and Educational Psychology.

Nik RosUa Nik Yaacob is Lecturer in School of Educationalstudies, University Science Malaysia. Her areas of specializationare in Islamic Education, Islamic Psychology and Counseling,Educational Psychology, Spiritual Psychology, Childhood and HumanDevelopment.

Noh Amit presently working as Lecturer in Health PsychologyUnit, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia (UKM). His researchinterests are in the area ofpsychological issues/developments.

Noor Aisbah Rosli is Lecturer in the Department of EducationalPsychology and Counseling, University of Malaya, Kuala Lumpur.

List of Contributors (xi)

She did Master of Counseling from Northern University ofMalaysia, Kedah. She wrote a number of Books for children i.eThe series of Self-knowing, Ethics and Behavior, and Women.

Noraini Mahat is in the Department of Counseling and Discipline,Sekolah Rendah Islam AI-Amin, Gombak, Kuala Lumpur,Malaysia.

Osman Hashim is Lecturer in the Department of EducationalPsychology and Counseling, University of Malaya, Kuala Lumpur.His research interests are in special education and spirituality.

Peter Wong Sin On is lecturer in the Department of Psychologyand Counselling at Universiti Malaysia Terengganu. He earnedhis bachelor's degree from Manhattan College and holds a mastersdegree in Guidance and Counseling from Universiti Malaya. Heis a registered counselor and a qualified hypnotherapist. His areasof research interest include spirituality, humour, counseling, andpsychotherapy.

Rafidah Aga Mohd Jaladin is lecturer at the Faculty ofEducation, University ofMalaya. Rafidah is a registered Counselor(KB00196, PA00300) with the Malaysian Counselors Council andalso a life-time member of the Malaysian Counselling Association.

Saedah Siraj is Professor of Curriculum and Instruction and alsoDeputy Dean at the Faculty of Education, University of Malaya,Kuala Lumpur. She is having more than 20 years experience inteaching. She served as an external evaluator for several programsnationally and internationally. She is the author/editor of severalbooks and numerous articles and also in the editorial board forseveral international journals. Her main research ~nterests arefuture curriculum, mLearning and module-based curriculum;developing curriculum for indigenous children; and family education.

Sarah Jenkins obtained degrees from Edinburgh University andthe Society for Psychology and Healing and Birmingham University,London. Sarah trained in Analytical Psychology and is a qualified

(xii) Horizons ofSpiritual P:>ychology

Psychotherapist. For several years she worked in her own clinicin London specifically for women. She now focuses on SpirtualPsychology. Sarah has trained in alternative healing modalities,including TFT (thought field therapy) Reiki and TranscendentalMeditation.

Shaykh Muhammad Hisham Kabbani is a world-renownedauthor and religious scholar. He has devoted his life to thepromotion of the traditional Islamic principles of peace, tolerance,love, compassion and brotherhood, while opposing extremism inail its forms. In the U.S., Shaykh Kabbani serves as Chairman,Islamic Supreme Council of America; Founder, Naqshbandi SufiOrder of America; Advisor, World Organisation for ResourceDevelopment and Education; Chairman, As-Sunnah Foundationof America; Chairman, Kamilat Muslim Women's Organisation;and, Founder and President, The Muslim Magazine. He haspublished a number ofbooks.

His books include: Commentary on the Chapter ofSincerity(2007), Universe Rising (2007), The Sufi Path ofSel.f-Rezlisation(2006), Keys to the Divine Kingdom (2005), Classical Islamand the Naqshbandi Sufi Order (2004), Pearls and Coral(2005); The Islamic Perspective (2003); Encyclopedia ofMuhammad's Women Companions and the Traditions TheyRelated (1998); Angels Univeiled (1996); The Naqshbandi SufiWay (1995); Remembrance of God Liturgy of the SufiNaqshbandi Masters (1994).

Siti Aishah Hassan is Lecturer in the Department of CounselorEducation and Counseling Psychology, Faculty of EducationalStudies, Universiti Putra Malaysia, Serdang, Malaysia. Dr. Hassanis consultant for various organizations and practicing counselor.She has published a number of research articles and books. Shehas received awards and honors at the international leveL Herareas of research interest are maternal spirituality, and the use ofstructural equation modeling analysis.

List of Contributors (xiii)

Syed Alwi Shahab is Associate Professor of Education at theInstitute of Education, International Islamic University Malaysia.He has obtained BA (Hons) and MA degrees in Philosophy fromNational University of Singapore; and MA in Education and PhDin Philosophy and the Social Sciences, from Stanford University,California. Dr.Shahab also practiced as a licensed Marriage andFamily Counselor, as well as a Certified ProfessionalHypnotherapist. In addition he was trained in Biofeedbackapplications, and later became a Certified NLP Trainer and EFTPractitioner.

Syed Sohail Imam, former Associate professor of GovernmentCollege University, Lahore, Pakistan, is now Associate Professorat Department of Psychology, International Islamic UniversityMalaysia. He attended several national and internationalconferences and presented research papers. Until now he hassupervised more than 100 master theses including Ph. D. theses.He contributed to Pakistan Psychological Association as executivemember, secretary general, and senior vice-president, His fieldsof interest are organizational psychology, experimental psychology,and psychometry.

CONTENTS

Preface (v)

List of Contributors (vii)

Section I

Sufism and Well·Being

l. Sufism and the Perennial Conflict ofGood and Evil 3Shaykh Muhammad Hisham Kabbani

2. Spiritual Psychology and Subjective Well·Being 49

Jitendra Mohan

Section II

Spirituality and Positive Behaviour

3. Adolescents' Spiritual Well-Being and their Emotions 75

}yjeena Sehgal, Jitendra Mohan, and Akanksha Tripathi

4. Self-Efficacy, Self-Regulation and Spirituality 105Ayesha Farooq and AsifAkhtar

5. Spiritual Values and Personality Development 125Nik Rosita Nik Yaacob

6. -Pour Noble Truths ofBuddhism 139Alvin Ng Lai Don

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7. Mindfulness: A Path ofSpiritual Awakening 153Loh Sau Cheong

8. The Integration of Spirituality into Healthcare 165Peter Wong Sin On

Section IIIPsychotherapy and Counseling

9. Relationship Between Sufism and IslamicPsychospiri tuality 177eke Zarrina Binti Sa 'ari and Joni Tamkin Borhan

10. Spiritual Aspects in Islamic Therapy and Counseling 199Nadiyah Elias

11. Islamic Spiritual Psychotherapy: The Client's Role 209Khamsiah Ismail, Noraini Mahat and SUi Aishah Hassan

12. Values Pertaining to Spirituality and Religion

in Counseling 231Rafidah Aga Mohd Jaladin and Noh Ami!

13. Psychotherapy and Kabbalah 249Sarah Jenkins

Section IVSpiritual Assessment

14. Spiritual Orientation Among Malaysians 263Akbar Husain. Osman Hashim and Noor Aishah Rosli

15. Reliability, Validity, and Dimensionality ofSpiritual

Well-being Scale 273Syed Sohai! Imam

16. Maternal Spiritual Characteristics and Sexual

Involvement 289Siti Aishah Hassan and Mikai! Ibrahim

Contents

Section V

Spirituality, Education and Religious Aspects

17. Need for Redesigning Modem Islamic SchoolCurriculum based on SpiritualitySaedah Siraj

18. Empirical Psychology Encounters SpiritualityS. A l~j/i Shahab

19. Guru Nanak's Spiritualismlas·vi,. Kaur Chahal

Index

(xvii)

313

339

351

363

11ISLAMIC SPIRITUAL PSYCHOTHERAPY:

THE CLIENT'S ROLE

Khamsiah Ismail, Noraini Mahat andSiti Aishah Hassan

The best creation of Allah is 'man'. Allah says in Surah At-Tin,"We have indeed created man in the best of mould" (95:4). Manis distinct from all other creatures as his nature reflects some ofGod's own qualities and attributes, though in a very limited sense.By breathing His spirit into man, God has endowed human beingswith a fragment of His free will (Mohsin, 1997). Man is distinctfrom the rest of the creation also because he has been endowedwith intellect (aql) and free-will (iradah). The intellect enableshim to discern right from wrong and the will enables him tochoose between right and wrong.

Although man is born in a state of original good or fitrah, heis also subject to temptation and folly. He can use these facultiesto complement his fitrah and to please Allah or to be untrue to itand displease Allah" (Mohamed, 1998). People may, because ofthe elements of intellect and free-will, decide and choose to conductthemselves in a \'/Tong or unlawful manner, and become alienatedfrom his fitrah. Though God has gifted man with freedom of will -