Electrophysiological Correlates of Listening to the Recitation of Quran

Spirituality and religion have an important role in human health and behavior. Referring to religious sources are one of the solutions that people seek during experience of life stress. Listening to the recitation of Quran has been suggested to alleviate the life stress. The aim of this study was to determine the effects of listening to the recitation of the holy Quran on the brain functions in healthy people.
52 healthy subjects were recruited based on convenience sampling and were randomly placed into two groups. Quantitative Electroencephalography (qEEG) was recorded while the experimental group were listening to surah Al-Insan (experimental group), control group were listening to an Arabic text (control group). Brain activities were recorded and analyzed.
There were differences between the brain waves of the experimental and control groups. In the experimental group, all EEG frequency bands were decreased and the most of frequency bands changes observed in fronto-temporal pathway. In the control group, decrease in beta, high beta, gamma, gamma 1, gamma 2 and high gamma was evident in the central regions. In comparison to the control group, beta and gamma frequency bands increased in the experimental group.
Changes in the EEG frequency bands of fronto-temporal pathway of listening to the recitation of Quran suggest the potential use of that in alleviation of psychological disorders.