Spiritualism - Eternal Voice

istotle's definition of Man as a rational animal created anAobsession with intelligence. At the beginning of thetwentieth Century in 1905 Binet & Simmon introduced theconcept of IQ (intelligence quotient) which varies from personto person. IQ is an ability to learn, understand and thinklogically, and it is a nature's endowment which remains fairlyconsistant throughout the life. In mid nineteen nineties DanielGoleman popularized the concept of EQ (emotional quotient).He maintains that IQ alone is not the predictor of success andhappiness of a person. There are, according to Goleman, othercorrelates which are equally or more desired, as competencedoes not depend on rational intelligence alone. Inter alia, theseinclude understanding one's own feelings; ability to interactwith others; and to have empathy (the ability to place oneself inanother's situation.) There is a difference between intelligenceand competence. One is likely to be more competent with anaverage IQ and a high EQ. Emotional intelligence can improvewith experience and maturity.IntelligenceandAddictionBy the end of the twentieth century there was enough evidencefrom psychology, neurology, anthropology and cognitivesciences that there is a third Q that is SQ (spiritual quotient).Spiritual intelligence indicates a spiritual correlate to IQ. SQ canbring about a dramatic change in the personality. It cantransform an ordinary man into a super-human. While robotsmay have high IQ and chimpanzees have EQ, SQ however isuniquely human. Emotional intelligence is a link betweenrational intelligence and spiritual intelligence.Addiction - A ChallengeBy Dr .(Col) Rajinder SinghTo start with, a drug is taken for pleasure. Gradually, with thedevelopment of tolerance and craving, it becomes acompulsion. Addiction to drugs and alcoholism has graverepercussion on the physical and mental health of a person. Hisfamily and social life is deeply impacted. Addiction is anintractable and a chronic malady beset by many problems suchas poor motivation for treatment, disordered nature of thepersonality and other associated disorders.The first step in the management of any illness is the desire toseek help and treatment. This is lacking in addicts. Dr. CarloC. DiClemente refers to addiction and especially to alcoholismas a 'disease of denial'. This is due to various psychologicaldefenses as denial, minimization, rationalization and projection.A deep rooted personality disorder of psychopathic nature isencountered in drug addiction and alcoholism. A psychopath isan emotionally unstable person having a tendency to lie, cheatand indulge in criminal behavior. Alcoholism leads to manydisorders such as alcoholic liver disease, high blood pressure,depression, sexual dysfunction, epilepsy and dementia. Thesediseases further complicate the management of alcoholism.Perceptual AnomalyAddiction involves perceptual and experiential anomalies.When a group of people were questioned regardingvulnerability of smokers to develop lung carcinoma. A studyrevealed that only 7% of smokers believe that the connectionbetween smoking and lung cancer is conclusively proven. Asopposed to this, a large percentage of non-smokers believe thatsmoking causes cancer. Smokers tend to mitigate theirpsychological conflict by persuading themselves that smoking isnot harmful.Religion & IntelligenceWhen the relationship of religion and intelligence is considered,they may be seen as mutually exclusive of each other. On thecontrary religion can contribute to effective cognitivefunctioning, and can bring about emotional well-being andenhanced overall quality of life. It fosters healthy thinking.People who orient themselves around the attainment of spiritualends experience their lives as worthwhile, unified andmeaningful. William James, the author of Varieties of ReligiousExperience says, “Religion is one of the ways in which a mangains the gift of happiness. It often transforms the mostintolerable misery into the profoundest and most enduringhappiness."Thoughts have a powerful influence on a man's life. Duringmeditation the divine attributes are projected on to the mindand leave an impact on the psyche. Since human psyche isimmune from fear and death, thoughts of affliction and illnessare dispelled. Gurbani says:dUKu drdu Brmu Bau nisAw ] krxhwru nwnk min bisAw ] (189)Dookh(u) darad(u) bharam(u) bhao(u) nassia Karan(h)haar(u) Nanak mann(i) bassia.(My troubles, pains and doubts have fled away. The creator hasacquired an abode in Nanak's mind.)The Guru further says:jw kY ismrix hoie Anµdw ibnsY jnm mrx BY duKI ]cwir pdwrQ nv iniD pwvih bhuir n iqRsnw BuKI ] (617)Jaa(n) k-ei simran(h)i hoe anandaa Binas-ei janam maran(h) bh-ei dukheeChaar(i) padaarath nav nidh(i) paaveh(i) Bahur(i) na trisnaa bhukhee.(By meditation, the bliss is attained. The pain, fear of death andbirth is removed. One gets all the boons and all the treasures.The thirst of desire will not trouble again.)Addiction & SpiritualityIt has been observed that the primary strategy of preventionand intervention of alcohol and drug abuse should include aspiritual component. Carl Jung, an illustrious psycho-analystsays: "Prevention and recovery of addiction involvesspiritual themes."William James an eminent psychologist believes that the curefor Dipsomania (an old term for alcoholism) is 'religiomania' orthe cure for the malady of the spirit lies in spiritualism.M.K. Benson reviewed nearly 40 studies, documenting thatpeople with strong religious commitment are less likely tobecome involved in addictions.Eternal Voice Nov, 2010 - Jan, 201148 49