So I was reading this story about Rumi, when he was in the market, the pounding sounds of all the tools become so overwhelming for him, that he began to whirl... and that's when whirling dervishes (Sema Ceremony) began. Now, what if Rumi got a sensory overload and started stimming (whirling) as a way to cope? Now, for Sufis Sema/Whirling is a way to reach ecstasy (wadj). Whirling is a way to become one with God, the universe, nature...So if children on the spectrum spin as a way to cope, whose to say that is not their way of connecting with the world, universe, God...we may all purchase weighted robes and whirl with my son!
Our family sees autism through many lenses and one of those is spiritual. This is easy to do because of the indigenous traditions we as a family follow. But this is very difficult to explain in a society that sees autism strictly as something to fix. Our son was injured by vaccination. While this is a crime against humanity, it has not stopped me from appreciating my son. That injury has given him challenges and gifts. For example my son repeats phrases a lot and he tries to make me repeat after him a lot (which is really annoying), but he has the ability to hyperfocus on things (which can also be very annoying). If you want to know about turtles, he can tell you everything about turtles! This is why I don't call him disabled. I focus on his abilities. He is capable of a lot more than he is not capable of. And for what he is not capable of, well, everyone has challenges! And we work hard to overcome those challenges everyday, but we also work hard to protect and encourage his gifts.
Here is an article and a few snippets from it that discusses mental illness & spiritually:
Rethinking Mental Illness: Are We Drugging Our Prophets and Healers?http://www.vironika.org/drugging-prophets-healers/
In his (the Shaman's) village, the symptoms we commit people for, Dr. Somé’s village recognizes as marks of a healer. They honour, respect, and nourish the very same patterns that we condemn, isolate, and drug.
We’re weeding out our geniuses. We’re killing off our prophets. We’re drugging our messiahs.
Here is an article and a few snippets from it that discusses mental illness & spiritually:
Rethinking Mental Illness: Are We Drugging Our Prophets and Healers?http://www.vironika.org/drugging-prophets-healers/
In his (the Shaman's) village, the symptoms we commit people for, Dr. Somé’s village recognizes as marks of a healer. They honour, respect, and nourish the very same patterns that we condemn, isolate, and drug.
We’re weeding out our geniuses. We’re killing off our prophets. We’re drugging our messiahs.
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