Before the rise of “shrinks” – psychologists, psychiatrists and psychotherapists, a person’s clergy at their local religious center used to function as their counselor or therapist when they needed a shoulder to cry on. People also turned to elders in their families or communities for advice. Well, it seems we’ve come full circle in the new millennium because therapy today is again taking on a more personal and spiritual vibration. By spiritual I don’t necessarily mean “religious”. But current therapies are now taking into account the whole person – body, mind and soul.

One form of spiritual therapy is mindfulness psychology, which is based on the Buddhist theory of “mindfulness” and the practice of .

A facilitator of this form of spiritual therapy will teach his or her client techniques to bring the mind into the present moment. By releasing the past and not gazing into the future one focuses their attention on the “now”. By doing this one is able to observe things as they happen, including mental thoughts.

However, the ever-present moment does not allow one to attachment any form of commentary to what is going on because the ever-present moment is continually arising anew. This form of spiritual therapy then is a practical way to release attachments, aversions and judgments to or about events or persons in one’s life. One also releases the inner “commentary” that often takes place in the mind around thoughts. This type of spiritual therapy has proven so successful that it has developed its own school in psychology, now termed “mindfulness psychology”.

There are various other forms of spiritual therapy available today and you must do a little research and experimentation to find out which one is best for you.

Some people find the repetition of sacred sounds, or mantras, to be beneficial, while others find the simplicity of a warm bath of aromatherapy oils to be just the right medicine for their weary soul.

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