Research team 
Ghena Ismail, Craig Shealy, and Ziad Nahas 
 
Collaborating organisations 
Department of Psychology, American University of Beirut; Department of Psychology, James Madison University; Department of Psychiatry, University of Minnesota 
 
On the basis of qualitative thematic analysis, this study explored psychotherapy through a 
Sufi Islamic lens. Through purposive sampling of Muslim scholars/practitioners with Sufi 
affiliations or sympathies, we conducted one-to-one interviews, the content of which 
revealed an emphasis on meditation among other therapies against a dialectic of 
transcendence and acceptance. This dialectical framework offers a lens through which 
current Islamically integrated interventions may be viewed. It, also, has a dialogic 
potential with mainstream movements within psychology that are informed by varied 
spiritual traditions. 
 
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