Cultural Competency - Multicultural Health Generalizations: Buddhist
Buddhism and Health Care
- Buddhist Beliefs and Practices Affecting Health Care
- Religion and Health Care: Buddhism
- Understanding Buddhist Patient's Dietary Needs
- Buddhism, Health and Disease
- Buddhism and Healing
Buddhist Beliefs of Suffering and Illness
- According to Buddhist tradition, an unclear mind produces suffering and bad karma (law of cause and effect), leading to repeated reincarnations in unsatisfactory worlds.
- Relief from suffering and unsatisfactory reincarnations can be obtained by following the Noble Eightfold Path - a practical guide requiring the development of three concepts: 1- wisdom, 2- ethical conduct, and 3- mental discipline.
- Eight highly interdependent principles encompassing these concepts are:
- Wisdom -
- 1. Right Understanding
- 2. Right Thought
- Ethical conduct -
- 3. Right Speech
- 4. Right Action
- 5. Right Livelihood
- Mental discipline -
- 6. Right Effort
- 7. Right Mindfulness
- 8. Right Concentration.
- The central focus of most Buddhist practices is the achievement of a clear and calm state of mind, undisturbed by worldly actions and full of compassion.
- Illness is believed to be an unavoidable consequence of actions in this or a previous life; in other words, it may be the result of karma.
- Illness is not considered to be a consequence of punishment by a divine being, but rather a physical state that may be healed and restored through the achievement of spiritual peace and freedom from anxiety.
Sources: Minarik, P. A. (1996). Buddhist. Culture and Nursing Care: A Pocket Guide. San Francisco: University of California.
Buddhism. The Four Noble Truths, The Eightfold Path. About. (Online). http://buddhism.about.com/library/bleightpath.htm (2004, Aug. 16)
Oriental Philosophy. Philosophy 312: Oriental Philosophy Buddhism: The Eightfold Path. Phylosophy.lander.edu. (Online) http://philosophy.lander.edu/oriental/eightfold.html (2004, Aug. 16)
Chinese Buddhist Beliefs of Death and Dying
According to Chinese Buddhist beliefs, death is not always a one-way passage but sometimes a revolving door; death may be considered a revolving door through which the consciousness departs from one life and begins the journey to yet another new life. Another Chinese Buddhist belief is that human life is concurrent and inseparable from two factors: consciousness and warmth. Dying is a gradual process whereby the consciousness gradually separates from the body. Death occurs when the body has completely lost its consciousness and warmth. A dying Chinese Buddhist should stay in a peaceful and comfortable environment, preferably accompanied by the chanting of Amitabha, which may be sung by people or played by audio tapes. When a person's pulse and brain waves have ceased, traditional U.S. practice is to pronounce the person dead. However, the Buddhist belief is that the person is still actively dying; the consciousness is still in the process of separating from the body. During active dying, it is very important to avoid movement of the body or abrupt environmental changes. Therefore, it is preferred to not disturb the body in any way for at least eight additional hours, preferably until the body is cold all over. Being aware of such cultural beliefs and needs are important steps towards providing more culturally competent healthcare.
Source: Lin, Y. (1995, Jun. 17). Crossing the Gate of Death in Chinese Buddhist Culture. (Online). Buddhist Yogi C. M. Chen's Homepage.
http://www.yogichen.org/efiles/mbk16.html (2002, Nov. 27).
Buddhism and Healing
- The Buddhist understanding of good health is a balanced interaction between mind and body, as well as between life and its environment. When such interactions are out-of-balance, illness tends to arise. Buddhist theory and practice are then aimed to restore and strengthen the balance.
- In the treatment of illness, Buddhism does not reject modern medicine and its powerful array of diagnostic and therapeutic tools. Rather, it states that these can be put to most effective use in combating illness when based on, and reinforced by, a deeper understanding of the inner, subjective processes of life.
- Central to the Buddhist health and healing approach is an emphasis on spiritual strength and an overriding sense of purpose in life, based on compassionate action for others.
- While the therapeutic efficacy of these attributes is still not widely recognized by today's medical profession, Buddhism asserts that they make it possible for an individual not only to create value from severe adversity, including sickness, but to also forge an opportunity for personal growth from this adversity.
Source: "Buddhism and Health: Healing the Ills of Body and Spirit." Soka Gakkai International Quarterly. Oct. 1996. Retrieved on Feb. 2, 2007.
http://sokagakkai.info/html1/viewpoint1/today1/budd_health1.html
