This chapter undertakes an exhaustive review of the vast literature on indigenous healing within anthropology and psychology. Although the topic of ritual healing has been popular within anthropology, in more recent times, it has also drawn the interest of scholars in psychology and related fields. Much of the early research on indigenous healing or ritual healing focussed on the practices of...
The psychological enquiry in India needs to focus on belief in the supernatural, and its role in mental health. Perhaps a key to this new direction lies in the functional approach to supernatural beliefs. The functional approach is most appropriate for creating a setting for reconciliation between believers and non-believers in the supernatural. The proposal rests on a thesis that in every...