CAUSES AND REMEDIES OF DEPRESSION: A COMPARATIVE STUDY OF WESTERN AND MUSLIM INTELLECTUAL PERSPECTIVES

Abstract

This study explores the causes, manifestations, and remedies of depression through a comparative analysis of Western and Muslim intellectual traditions. The research investigates how major Western thinkers such as Thomas Aquinas, René Descartes, and Robert Burton understood melancholy , sorrow, and psychological suffering within philosophical, theological, and medical frameworks. At the same time, the study examines the contributions of prominent Muslim scholars and physicians including al- Fārābī , Ibn Sīnā , Abū Zayd al- Balkhī , al- Rāzī , al- Jurjānī , Ibn Rushd , Fakhr al- Dīn al- Rāzī , al- Ghazālī , and Ibn al- Qayyim .Their discussions reveal a remarkably holistic understanding of mental health in which body, soul, intellect, emotions, environment, and spiritual conditions are deeply interconnected. The research demonstrates that both traditions viewed depression not merely as a biological disorder or moral weakness, but as a multidimensional human condition arising from imbalance in physical, psychological, cognitive, social, and spiritual domains. Muslim thinkers particularly emphasized the harmony of body and soul, moderation of temperament, correction of thoughts, spiritual purification, and ethical discipline, while Western thinkers increasingly explored the interaction between cognition, emotion, and bodily processes. The study further highlights that many classical theories anticipate aspects of modern biopsychosocial and cognitive approaches to depression. By comparatively analyzing these intellectual traditions, the study seeks to present an integrated understanding of depression that combines philosophical insight, spiritual awareness, and psychological depth, thereby contributing to contemporary discussions on mental health and human well-being.