Comparing the three states of Dhikr, meditation, and thinking about God: an fMRI study
Religion, Brain & Behavior September 14, 2022 M. Saraei, A. Newberg, Seyed Ruhollah Hosseini et al.
Brain activity during three Islamic spiritual practices—Dhikr, body scan meditation, and thinking about God—shares common neural networks, including the angular gyrus and parahippocampus, and differs from resting state in areas like the caudate and anterior cingulate. Twenty-two distinct neural networks were observed across 31 healthy, highly religious participants using fMRI. The three tasks also showed differences in the precuneus and posterior cingulate. The findings suggest these practices engage the default mode network in a non-directive way, supporting transcendent experiences and emotional regulation.