THE public is invited to a seminar, ‘Vulnerable Selves: Conversations in Islamic Counselling’ hosted by the Centre for Contemporary Islam (CCI) in the Department for the Study of Religions at the University of Cape Town (UCT) on December 7, 2023.
The seminar will be held in Teaching Studio 2C, Snape Building, Upper campus, University of Cape Town. https://maps.app.goo.gl/RJg7jUDJAXBBtWzh7
The Centre for Contemporary Islam (CCI) recognises the increasing interest in Islamic psychology and its potential contributions to the development of new and different approaches to psychology theory and practice.
The presenter, Sabnum Dharamsi and Stephen Abdullah Maynard, who are based in the United Kingdom, will be sharing some of their work in Islamic counselling, which is one of the key developments in Islamic psychology in the global north.
As well as theorists, Dharamsi and Maynard are pioneering co-founders of the first accredited Islamic Counselling training programme in the United Kingdom. Together, they have been at the forefront in establishing various initiatives in the field of Muslim mental health and wellness.
Their extensive work encompasses training and teaching with governmental, non-governmental and corporate clients. Their work is based on decades of experience in developing the theoretical underpinnings of a psycho-spiritual approach to wellbeing informed by Sufi spiritual teachings and mentorship.
The discussants will be Professor Wahbie Long from the Department of Psychology at UCT, and Dr Muna Bilgrami, Research Associate in the Department of Religion at the University of Johannesburg.
The seminar will be chaired by Professor Sa’diyya Shaikh, Director of the Centre for Contemporary Islam at UCT.
Presenters
Sabnum Dharamsi founded the first contemporary model of Islamic Counselling with Maynard in 1996, further developing curriculum and assessment processes for their professional qualifications. Previous work includes convening the Islamic Counselling module for Cambridge Muslim College, designing the curriculum for teaching Imams and alimiyyas for over ten years, and establishing the pioneering course ‘Counselling in the Context of Racism’ with Maynard. She also developed an assessment protocol for many regional further education areas on diversity, an early attempt towards decolonial curricula in the UK, and was Head Facilitator for the Academy of Self Knowledge (ASK), an international spiritual programme based on tassawuf. In addition to being a counsellor and clinical supervisor of many years, Dharamsi established a popular social media group on Islamic Counselling and is author of several articles.
Stephen Abdullah Maynard has been a counsellor for almost 40 years, working in mental health, drugs counselling, HIV and private practice. In 1990, with Dharamsi and the support of The Inner-City Centre and The Lincoln Clinic, he set up the Certificate in Counselling in the context of Racism, one of the first transcultural counselling certificate programmes in the UK. Together with Dharamsi in 1996 he developed the therapeutic model Islamic counselling. In 2008 he wrote the Department of Health Muslim Mental Health Scoping Report and in 2010 founded The Lateef Project, an Islamic counselling service working in Birmingham and London. He has written on Islamic Counselling and Muslim Mental Health including on the evidence of its efficacy.
Discussants
Wahbie Long, PhD, is Professor in the Department of Psychology and Deputy Dean in the Faculty of Humanites at UCT. He has held fellowships at Harvard and Durham and is a past recipient of the Early Career Achievement Award from the Society for the History of Psychology. Widely published on the history, theory, and indigenisation of psychology, his most recent book is Nation on the Couch: Inside South Africa’s Mind (MF Books, 2021), which draws on psychoanalytic theory to understand social problems in South Africa.
Muna Bilgrami, PhD, recently completed her doctorate in the study of contemporary Sufism. Having worked as an editor of books on Islam and Sufism for over 30 years, and as an author and co-author, she has also been involved in education and radio broadcasting. The subject of spiritual and religious authority lies at the centre of her research, in particular the teachings of self-mastery as filtered through the Islamic tradition. She is currently a Research Associate at the University of Johannesburg, in the Department of Religion.
Chair
Sa’diyya Shaikh, PhD, is Professor in the Study of Religions at the University of Cape Town. Her research is situated at the intersection of Islamic Studies and Gender Studies, with a special interest in Sufism. She is author of Sufi Narratives of Intimacy: Ibn ʿArabī, Gender, and Sexuality (2012); and co- author & co-editor, with Fatima Seedat, of The Women’s Khutbah Book: Contemporary Sermons on Spirituality and Justice from around the World (2022).
- For any enquiries, please contact Dr Shafieka Moos, a CCI Postdoctoral Research Fellow, at moos@uct.ac.za.
