Religion and Mental Health

Most religions have three components: supernatural belief system, a code of worship and a code of conduct. Mental health involves competence in dealing with human environments without impairment of psychological functioning. Soft measures of individuals’ religion pay attention to the worship system whereas hard measures look into the employment of the belief system in dealing with everyday stress and alleviating distress as a coping lifestyle. This study is a selective review on the relationship of religion to mental health and mental ill health. The role of religious belief system for self-regulation is more important for maintenance and restoration of mental health than the performance of the system of religious worship.