Üsküdar University Founding Rector, Psychiatrist Prof. Dr. Nevzat Tarhan participated as a speaker in the “VII. International Symposium on Psychology of Spirituality” hosted by Ibn Haldun University. Making striking evaluations under the title “Contemporary Human and Existential Crisis,” Tarhan stated; “The world is in a great crisis, and the remedy lies in the wisdom of Anatolia. The source of this is within us. We are sitting on significant spiritual wealth, but we are unaware of it.” Emphasizing that spiritual counseling is about making individuals feel valued, Tarhan said “People are currently experiencing a problem of loneliness. They need to feel valued.”
“The spiritual dimension of humanity has begun to be scientifically accepted”
The symposium, which lasted two days at Ibn Haldun University's Başakşehir Campus, attracted intense interest from expert psychologists, psychiatrists, and academics in the field.
Prof. Dr. Nevzat Tarhan pointed out a major change in the definitions regarding human existence, stating that humanity's spiritual dimension has begun to be accepted in scientific categories. Tarhan; “Until now, when defining the human model, we defined it as the biopsychosocial model. That is, human as a biological, psychological, and sociological being. But now, we define humanity as the biopsychosocial spiritual model. In this regard, in 2014, Arizona and Columbia Universities jointly published the ‘Post-Materialist Manifesto.’ According to this work, it was announced that materialism has collapsed. Materialism is no longer sufficient to explain the world. According to the new perspective presented, based on the philosophy of the unity of sciences, there is a need for new perspectives that question the meaning of the other life. This other worldview has begun to be seriously considered as a scientific category. It has begun to be accepted that humans are not just psychobiological and psychosocial beings, but also have a psycho-spiritual dimension. Due to the pandemic, with the elimination of physical contact, they actually call it social distance, but in reality, physical distance emerged. Here, the world is seriously heading towards a new era, a psychological chaos. Humanity, especially the Western world, is in search of a solution to escape this situation. The remedy is within us, but we don't know how to produce and present it. We are currently sitting on a spiritual treasure. We have our Rumi, our Yunus, but we don't know how to use them. Westerners have discovered and started presenting these values of ours. It's a good thing they did.”
“Evolution and the capitalist approach have collapsed; the answer to all questions is the concept of Tawhid”
Stating that the capitalist approach and the concept of evolution have collapsed, Tarhan emphasized that it is understood the universe is managed by an external power. Tarhan; “Capitalist ethics state that humans are homo economicus, an economic being. They argue that rational ethics is reason, and that we don't need any other value. However, this order, the thesis that everything is reason, has gone bankrupt. The modern world was built on three critical variables: secularism, narcissism, and materialism. Secularism states that everything is in this world. When Einstein was asked, he said he believed in Spinoza's God. Spinoza, on the other hand, sees nature as God. Starting from this perspective, I wrote the books titled ‘Psychology of Wisdom 1-2’. In the work, I tried to explain that this is a misconception and that the solution lies in the belief of Tawhid. As evidence, I presented the Higgs boson. The Higgs boson, quantum dynamics, and quantum philosophy show us that the universe must be managed by a power external to the universe. In the section titled ‘The Evolution of Evolution,’ I stated that the concept of evolution views everything as nature and needs to be rewritten. This is already an incomplete theory. In the USA, by court order, the theory of intelligent design is now taught as an alternative to the theory of evolution in high schools. Intelligent design is a universe design. The universe is a simulation. We are currently living in a metaverse. Real life is the afterlife, and the world is a metaverse. I'm not saying this as a mere analogy. In this world, we do not belong to the world; we are not a part of the world.”
“Spiritual counseling is not preaching, but making individuals feel valued”
Sharing insights on the concepts to which the modern world reduces humans, Tarhan made statements about the importance of spiritual counseling. Tarhan; “Humans are not products of the world; they came to the world later and are only a part of it. Therefore, secularism, or worldliness, is contrary to human psychological nature. It is impossible for someone who sees life as solely confined to this world to be happy. In times of illness, calamity, or when things are not going well, people suddenly emerge from that fake world and confront reality, experiencing existential crises, and suicides occur. Work on spiritual counseling for those experiencing existential crises is very important. In such a situation, it is even necessary not to act like a preacher. Those working in this field should not preach to clients; be an active listener, listen for half an hour, and even if nothing else happens, they will feel valued and not alone. You will touch their soul, and they will hold onto life. Therefore, spiritual counseling is essentially about making individuals feel valued. People are currently experiencing a problem of loneliness. They need to feel valued.”
“People are not happy because they cannot experience the feeling of 'tevekkül' correctly”
Making statements about the changes occurring in human psychology in our age, Tarhan stated; “The greatest harm of modernism has been to damage people's feelings of attachment. We believe in Allah, but we do not trust Allah. To trust is to believe and accept His existence. We believe in the Creator of this world's ship, but we do not trust, we do not surrender. Surrendering is this: it doesn't mean giving up entirely. To practice tevekkül means to trust in Allah's plan. There are things humans can control and things they cannot. There are things within my power, and things beyond it. In such situations, there is a higher will, a power, that knows everything and controls everything. If I surrender to this and trust, it will happen, he says. The inner peace that this meaning provides is immense. People who claim to be believers in this age are not happy because they cannot achieve this peace. That is, they are not happy because they cannot surrender to Allah's ship.”
“Narcissism is spreading like an epidemic in the world”
Speaking about the effects of modernism on human psychology, Tarhan drew attention to the fact that narcissism is spreading like an epidemic throughout the world. Tarhan; “Within the cage provided by secularism in the world, we cannot feel happy. We are in a fake cage, unable to see outside. It is necessary to get out of that cage. Narcissism, another harm caused by modernism, is seen as selfishness becoming a personality trait. The individual considers themselves important and superior, has sanctified their self-interest, and feeds on praise. Their biggest fear is the fear of being ordinary. That's why they want everything to be special. They act with the feeling of 'either I will succeed or I will die.' They are success-oriented. They make themselves happy by being called intelligent and talented, and the capitalist system feeds this. There is a book about this called 'The Narcissism Epidemic'. Narcissism has become an epidemic, a plague, in the world.”
“Modernism is experiencing a civilization crisis”
Stating that modernism is experiencing a crisis, Tarhan expressed that this crisis can only be overcome with spiritual values. Tarhan; “There are civilization crises remaining from the late Ottoman Empire and the Republican period. We need to overcome these crises. Modernism is currently helpless; there is a strong need for spiritual values. We need to break free from the status quo and articulate this according to the needs of our time. The civilization crisis, hedonism, pleasure-seeking, narcissism, and ultimately states of loneliness and unhappiness have gripped people. Unhappiness, depression, and suicide rates have increased. Modernism is experiencing a civilization crisis. In a 2018 loneliness study conducted jointly by Manchester and the BBC, the rate of elderly people who said 'I feel lonely' was 27%, while among those aged 16-24, the rate was 40%. The younger generation is 'older'. These statistics show that the world is in crisis. The solution is with us; we need to take action.”
“Spirituality will come to the forefront more, and its source is in our culture”
Stating that spiritualism and spirituality will come to the forefront more in overcoming modernism's crises, Tarhan emphasized that this problem can be solved by transmitting the wisdom of Anatolia to the whole world. Tarhan; “Post-materialist science essentially means spiritual sciences. The capitalist doctrine that states human is homo economicus now says that human is homo psychologicus. When people make investments and decide on purchasing behavior, they do not only decide based on profit-loss analysis or basic needs; they invest more in what they love. They invest more where they trust, with appreciation and praise. As a rational actor, not only reason but also emotions are a scientific category here. A theory called expectation theory has been developed. Science is changing, spirituality is more on humanity's agenda, and spiritual psychology will be discussed more. Its source is the wisdom of Anatolia. We have a responsibility to implement this in life.”