Running head: COMPARATIVE ESSAY

Comparative Essay
Maryanna Sarkissian
Health, Happiness, and Human Rights
Dr. Neiworth
Portland State University
February 18, 2016

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Abstract
The Hmong believe that diseases should be treated through rituals conducted in the home
or a space of community. Instead of turning to health care professionals when in need of help, the
Hmong use spiritual healing, which involves retrieving the lost soul from another place of
existence. Hmong Medicine is important because it has a deep relationship with religion
and culture. Much of it has to do with spiritual beliefs that revolve around shamanism.
Because of the cultural and religious differences, there are many problems doctors have to cope
with every time they get a Hmong patient whose religion is Shamanism. If the Hmong and the
people of Western Medicine could learn from each other how best to care for people, they would
realize that their care rate and success would skyrocket. Even though these two cultures are
extremely different in almost every aspect, the people could achieve great things if they learn to
grow together.

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Comparative Essay
Todays Western Medicine is very simple unlike the traditional Hmong Medicine. In
America, when an individual feels as though they have become ill, the first thing they would do
is probably make their way over to a doctor, either at a hospital or clinic, after they realize that
their over-the-counter medicine falls short of helping them. The Hmongs are different in every
sense when it comes to medicine and their ways of treating disease. The Hmong believe that
diseases should be treated through rituals conducted in the home or a space of community.
Hmongs who still follow their old traditions will most likely believe in Shamanism. What this
means is that they will try to do everything they can to treat another by themselves, and will only
go to the doctor as a last resort.
Although the Hmong do not agree on just how many souls people have (estimates range
from one to thirty-two; the Lees believe there is only one), there is a general consensus that
whatever the number, it is the life-soul, whose presence is necessary for health and happiness,
that tends to get lost. (Fadiman, 1997). Hmong believe that good health depends on soul living
in each person. The soul is what governs every individuals body. One thing that may cause loss
of soul is any form of illness or an invasive procedure of any kind. Instead of turning to health
care professionals when in need of help, the Hmong use spiritual healing, which involves
retrieving the lost soul from another place of existence. A Shaman preforms the entire practice of
soul calling during ritualistic ceremonies (Hunt, 2012).
Hmong Medicine is important because it has a deep relationship with religion
and culture. Much of it has to do with spiritual beliefs that revolve around shamanism.
For example, within the Hmong Culture, the secret to perfect health is the balance

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between the body and spirit. This is a strong belief and it usually requires the help of a
shaman, as the shaman is the center of Hmong culture.
Unlike the Hmong, Western Medicine sees the mind and body as two separate units. In
the West, the disconnect between the mind and the body has moved the evolution of medicine
and has also effected how patients are observed and are treated. It is usually the physical body
that is receiving treatment. Western Medicine does not usually pay much attention to energy
fields as medically important for any form of diagnosis or treatment.
Todays medicine is usually very straightforward. You go in to see your doctor, are
observed, diagnosed, and set up for treatment. Just diagnosing and treating the physical body can
be effective, especially when dealing with traumas, infections, and cancers. But many of todays
stress illnesses do not start out or become a significant physical change in the body. Almost
every illness has an antidote, but sometimes the medicine will not cure the problem forever, just
help reduce the symptoms. There are no soul finding rituals that are practiced and believed in to
help the patient with their occurring problems. In essence, the soul has nothing to do with how a
patient is treated or diagnosed. Everything is extremely science and fact based.
Anyone familiar with Western Medicine should agree that it is very straightforward when
it comes to the treatments available to you (Graff and Birkenstein, 2010, p. 73) You receive
either one or a couple options that you are then able to choose to help you get through your
disease or illness. Western Medicine doesnt always bring mental health or the state of your soul
into consideration. Ultimately, what is at stake here is the patient being forced to do something
that they may not believe in or feel comfortable doing (Graff and Birkenstein, 2010, p. 99).

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It is now easier to understand why the Hmong people are so hesitant to go to health care
professionals and ask for their help. The Hmong people are frequently misunderstood and denied
help that follows their form of belief and practice. If the Hmong and the people of Western
Medicine could learn from each other how best to care for people, they would realize that their
care rate and success would skyrocket. The only question left to ask is what the Hmong and the
people of Western Medicine could do to unite their people and beliefs.
Because of the cultural and religious differences, there are many problems doctors have
to cope with every time they get a Hmong patient whose religion is Shamanism. For example,
the biggest issue of the cultural differences is the fact that Hmong religion requires animal
sacrifices, especially when it comes to the attempt of trying to retrieve a lost or trapped soul, and
fixing damaged souls. It is extremely clear that no modern day hospital allows the killing and/ or
sacrifice of animals for the sake of treating Hmong patients because it is illegal. But because of
the religious conflict that is going on between the two parties, hospitals must make an exception.
After some time of conflict, Western Medicine is definitely beginning to make a step in
the right direction. Certain hospitals are beginning a training program to start introducing
shamans to the principles of Western Medicine. This was a national movement that happened to
consider patients cultural beliefs and values when deciding their medical treatment. Medical
institutions are adopting this new style across the country that helps immigrants, refugees, and
ethnic minority populations.
Even though these two cultures are extremely different in almost every aspect, the people
could achieve great things if they learn to grow together. If Western Medicine continues to move
into the right direction by adopting some of the rituals and medical remedies that the Hmong

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have been practicing for years, and if the Hmong learn to accept the medicine of Modern day
hospitals, a trust could be formed between the two cultures and countless lives would be saved.

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References
Fadiman, A. (1997). The spirit catches you and you fall down: A Hmong child, her American
doctors, and the collision of two cultures. New York: Farrar, Straus, and Giroux.
Graff, G., & Birkenstein, C. (2010). They say / I say: The moves that matter in academic writing.
New York: W.W. Norton &.
Hunt, W. (2012, July 24). March 2016. Retrieved February 19, 2016, from
http://discovermagazine.com/2012/may/11-decoding-ancient-secrets-of-white-shaman