Prof. Nevzat Tarhan: I had a childhood intertwined with nature
We got to know him from the screens with his unique, naïve and serene style. He is a special person who deeply affects our lives with his dozens of books, always aims to invest in people and uses all his resources in this direction. One of the leading physicians of our country, Psychiatrist, Neuropsychologist, Author and President of Üsküdar University Prof. Nevzat Tarhan... We had a nice and enjoyable interview with him for our magazine.
First of all, I would like to talk about your childhood and teenage years. What was your childhood like? Did you spend your childhood in Amasya? What was your youth like, did you have adolescent problems? How did you get through this period?
was born in Merzifon, a charming Anatolian town, and spent my childhood there. Our house had a garden of 600 square meters and a forest area surrounded by greenery. In other words, I was born and raised in a house that was very much in nature. In the garden, there were fruits such as mulberries, black mulberries, cranberries and apples. We grew up in a house with animal species. We also had bees. There were also chickens, ducks, and geese. In other words, I spent a great childhood in such an environment. I attended primary school at Namık Kemal and secondary school at Merzifon Secondary School. I can say that I had a childhood intertwined with nature.
In high school, I went to Kuleli Military High School. When I remember those times, I remember and experience very positive, warm, and happy feelings. In the period covering adolescence, when I graduated from high school and went to university, I was questioning existence. Think back to the time before March 12th... In other words, the most active period was between the sixty-eight generation and March 12... At that time, my dormitory was in Kumkapı in İstanbul. There was the Beyaz Saray in Beyazıt. There was also the Sahaflar Bazaar. Those were the places I visited most often and got used to reading. I used to go to Gülhane Park a lot and read there as well. Şemsi Pasha Grove was also among places I frequently visited. I have studied many of my classes there. In other words, I have never been detached from green and nature. Kuleli Military High School is also a place where there are always trees. Right behind it is Kandilli.
In military high school, I was very confused. I was constantly looking for answers to the questions that occupied my mind... At that time, they make people read anti-religious books. When I went to college, I started researching existence. I started Cerrahpaşa with the university exam. While I was studying at Kuleli, there was always a sense of emptiness inside me. I finished high school with that sense of emptiness. I can say that that feeling of emptiness at the university pushed me to read books and research.
"A PROFESSION IS LIKE A DRESS, NOT LIKE SKIN"
You are a very successful and famous physician. Was it your childhood dream to become a physician? Or was it a random choice? Based on this question, every child is asked the question "What will you be when you grow up?" How should parents analyze the answer to this question?
When they asked me during primary and secondary school years, I used to say that I want to be an electronics engineer... It is not about being a doctor... My uncle was one of the first cardiologists in Türkiye and worked in Samsun. He stayed in America for 7 years. In our family, my mother was always a role model, and for her there was a dignity of being a physician. My other uncle was also a dentist. For this reason, an interest and sympathy for medicine has developed in our family.
In the primary school, there was the Merzifon Public Library. We can say that the Clock Tower is there, where the old madrasah is. I used to go there to study. My mother used to direct me to the library. In primary school, there was an encouragement in our family to read books. My father used to read at home and loved to read Yahya Kemal's books and poems. I can say that there was support and encouragement in the family about reading books. In fact, I came on a weekend summer vacation from college with a wad of books. I would stay under the tree I used to go to for hours and read those books. It got to the point where my parents started joking with me. They used to say "take a break now, you will rot"... They used to joke with me, asking if I were incubating.
Now I am a physician, a psychiatrist. In my medical profession, I have not forgotten my predisposition and interest in electronic engineering. Now I have integrated that engineering into my profession. I entered Cerrahpaşa Medicine. It seemed more advantageous to me then. In medicine, I also chose psychiatry. Psychiatry, the psychiatry that deals with the recording of electrical signals in the brain, is about that point. My interest in engineering led me to combine electronics with psychiatry. I did this without realizing it. So, I can say that there has been a trend.
In response to parents' questions such as which profession do you want for their children, I can say that children should not make an early decision on this issue. It is nice for children to have an ideal. It is very good that the child has a goal. Entering the university, choosing a field… In such a case, it is necessary to promote the profession correctly. In other words, parents should not present the promotion of profession as a lifestyle for the child. Person A chooses profession; however, person B can be successful in that profession. It should not be forgotten that a diploma does not mean a profession. I always say that a profession is like a dress, not like skin. If it becomes like skin, you cannot change it. However, if it is like a dress, you can make various changes on it if necessary. You can use it in your life without damaging your identity.
“I AM ADDICTED TO ISTANBUL"
What kind of lifestyle do you have? How does the hustle and bustle of Istanbul affect you? What do you do to avoid this stress? What advice would you give to people?
I can say that I am addicted to Istanbul. I came to Istanbul with high school. I came to GATA in 1988. I have been in Istanbul since and after graduation. Decades have passed and I have been in Istanbul. After getting used to living in Istanbul, I cannot stay too long when I go to a quiet, calm place for vacation or a program. The chaos here appeals to me.
When I idle, I am stressed. I feel like a lot of people are smiling right now as they read this, but it really is. A person who knows time management in Istanbul adapts to Istanbul. You will know your time management well. Yes, there is traffic, but the person will plan according to the traffic. Living in Istanbul is not something to be afraid of. There is a saying in Anatolia as follows “If you do not have time and money, do not go to Istanbul." It should not be taken too seriously either. Another beauty of Istanbul offers life opportunities to people from all segments of society. People can find a standard of living. It is a metropolis. For this reason, there is a saying attributed to Napoleon that is always said about Istanbul, "If the world were a single state, its capital should be Istanbul." Istanbul is a great crossroads for both air mobility, social mobility, economic mobility, military mobility at any time and every point. It is a great crossroads between East and West. Istanbul has both social, cultural and historical attractions. It has the potential and attractiveness to be a financial, cultural and economic capital that can be a global capital in terms of its geography.
"NATURE IS THE MOST NATURAL PSYCHOLOGIST"
We have all experienced the positive effects of nature, soil, green and water on human psychology. What is the reason for this? Why should our children be more involved with the soil?
There is something that comes from antiquity, from Pagan culture. The four elements are: "Air, water, sun-fire, earth." These four elements are actually the four sources of energy in human existence. Source of living space. Soil is one of them. All of them are the elements that make up human beings and nature. Given that man comes from the earth, what are they when you look at the inorganic substances in the human body? Carbon, oxygen, hydrogen, nitrogen. All of these are in the soil. In fact, more than half of what we call soil is bacteria. In other words, take a handful of soil from the garden, more than 50 percent of it is 2/3 of the same body, just as the water ratio in the body is 2/3, the rate of bacteria in the soil is 2/3. In fact, the soil is alive. That bacterium is already cleaning everything. It forms the fertilizer and nitrogen in the whole soil. It is he who turns the soil into fertilizer. That is, the one that turns the land into the soil. With this feature, the soil is close to human nature and is good for the biological nature of human beings. Therefore, it is contrary to the biological nature of man to cut off human contact with the soil.
Nature itself is a psychologist, and the most natural psychologist is nature. You should think so. In fact, nature heals our hearts. It is good for many morbid situations in our hearts. It calms our souls. It also clears our minds. It has such a relaxing feature; however, in this land and forest, people will act and live knowing the philosophy of it. When a person goes to nature, they should look at it contemplatively, as the old saying goes. In other words, one should be able to look at it with a deep thought. When you look at it with deep thought, nature relaxes you. Nature is not just about having shade, raining, and sun coming out. Nature and everything in nature is alive and talking like a human being. The trees are talking to each other. The roots talk to each other. This is the information obtained from scientific research. Human beings have an interaction with social life and a communication with nature. This communication becoms interaction for a person. If you approach nature with good and warm, deep thought, then nature helps, then it relaxes the person. If you see nature as an element to be destroyed and look at it as if you will cut down the tree and pluck the flower, you cannot achieve the comfort and peace expected from nature. In other words, if you look at nature and think about the beauties there, you will think about how beautifully it was created, the perfection of art, and that it is a work of art, that flowers, trees, birds, insects are all works of art. Of course, that he is the artist of that work of art. It should not be forgotten that if there is an event, there is also the subject of that event. There is no event without a subject. When you think about nature like that, then there is a sense of well-being, a sense of serenity. Thus, then you give meaning to human life, you become a part of a great meaning. Feeling that you are a part of a meaning creates a sense of trust in people and has an uncertainty relieving effect.
Living in nature and looking at nature from this perspective is good for the basic concerns of human beings. The main concern of man is the search for meaning. The second is death. The need to explain death. Another concern is the anxiety of trying to predict uncertainty. This means that when you look at nature from this point of view, that is, when you see that life and events are not by chance, and that nature works in a great mind and balance, the gratitude and well-being that people feel towards the balance in nature gives people inner peace.
"I HAVE TWO COOPS AND 4 HIVES"
Do you take nature walks, or do you have the opportunity to do sports? Do you cultivate something, even if it is for hobby purposes?
We have 5000 steps every day. I apply it 95 percent. I exercise on the treadmill in the morning, and I try to run there regularly. Since I do not have much time, I cannot spend much time in nature, on the weekend. However, the house I live in is on the edge of the forest. I can wake up to the sounds of birds. I am lucky in that regard; I would like to express my gratitude. There is a saying by Confucius. While praying to God, Confucius used to say; "Give me a house with a book and a garden full of flowers." So, being able to be in such a house is a reason of gratitude for me. I currently have two coops and bees in the garden of my house. There are 4 hives of bees. We also have fruit trees. When I am not at work, I can say that I have the chance to experience the peace of nature and bird sounds on weekends.
"I TRY TO APPLY THE RULE OF EAT EVERYTHING LESS "
What is your diet like? Do you try to eat organic? Do you prefer home cooking? What do you pay attention to in your food shopping?
There is an Azeri proverb... "If I eat less, I have nothing to do with the doctor, and if act lawful, I have nothing to do with the judge." This is the motto of life for me. I included this sentence in the introduction of my book The Psychology of Wisdom. In other words, I try to apply the rule of eat less of everything as an eating principle. İbn-i Sina also has a famous saying, "Do not eat before you are hungry, and when you eat, eat less". This is currently recommended in recent diets. That is, getting up from the table without a full stomach and not eating before getting hungry. The Mediterranean diet is also important, and all scientific indicators show this. The green plate principle is also important. I try to pay special attention to this.