The SunTrust Auditorium in the Crummer building was jam packed with people who had come to hear a presentation by Thomas P. Johnson Distinguished Visiting Scholars Dr. Luh Ketut Suryani and Dr. Cokorda Bagus Jaya Lesmana. This mother and son pair from the island of Bali in Indonesia brought the Balinese focus on harmony to the foreground while raising awareness of “The Dark Side of Paradise.”
Professor of Philosophy & Religion Hoyt Edge has been collaborating with Suryani and Lesmana for over a decade on cross-cultural research on studies in meditation and in psychological processes, trying to understand the difference between Western individualism and Balinese collectivism. He encouraged them to come share their knowledge with the Rollins community.
Now retired from her position as head psychiatrist at Udayana University in Bali, Suryani is the founder of the Suryani Institute for Mental Health. She champions inner personal peace that comes from balancing the mind, body, and most importantly, the spirit. As part of her work, she holds group relaxation and meditation sessions designed to calm the participants. Song and dance also play a key role in her effort to bring people back to their forgotten happiness from childhood. Suryani described the positive affect and self-awareness gained through meditation and trance states. “If we are creative and try to see the positive in things, the world is a brighter place,” she said.
Suryani also spoke about the importance of the cardinal directions to the Balinese people and knowing their literal place in the world. On an island where the common people often rely on traditional healers instead of doctors, Suryani and Lesmana hold an interesting position. “We are psychiatrists but [we] use [the] healer way,” Suryani said.
During the second half of the program, Lesmana noted the many changes on the island over the last five to ten years. A bombing on the island in 2002 severely damaged the tourism on the island, a main source of income for many residents. This economic difficulty, along with other factors, is tied to the recent rise in suicides on the island of 3.5 million. As a result, a leading cause has come to light: untreated mental illness. Many of the untreated are among the poor village dwellers who do not have the money to get treatment for their suffering family or friends. Out of desperation, communities are sometimes forced to chain or cage these individuals as a last resort. The Suryani Institute for Mental Health takes the fight into the field. Suryani funds her own purchases of the necessary drugs with the help of German and Australian medicinal donations. Lead by Suryani and Lesmana, a team of volunteers travels to the villages to provide free treatment for as many of the afflicted as they can, in hopes of restoring the hope of a normal life to them.
The talk was followed by a screening of a short Australian documentary that followed the Institute’s team on their village rounds. A question and answer session with the two doctors finished off the night.
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