Quarterly of Quran & Medicine Summer 2011, Volume 1, Issue 1; 33-37

Voice of Quran and health: A review of performed studies in Iran

Sadeghi H.* MSc
*
Sabzevar University of Medical Sciences, Sabzevar, Iran

Abstract
Introduction: The human nature has an inner tendency toward harmony and rhythm and enjoys order and coordination.
The Holy Quran has an eloquent expression, a fluent style and an enchanting song that affects the audience. During the past
two decades, research in the area of Quran lilt and medical science in Iran has been seriously followed. The present study
has been conducted aiming at investigating and analyzing the studies undertaken in relation with the Holy Quran lilt and the
health domain in Iran.
Conclusion: The valuable results of the influence of Quran lilt especially in the area of mental health are obvious and clear.
Physicians, nurses and sociologists, beside the psychological and medication methods, can use the inspiring words of
revelation to reduce their patients’ problems and ask clients to have religious behaviors such as Quran reading in their life
schedule to reduce their stress and worries.

Keywords: the Holy Quran, Iran, Health Services

Introduction function are not exceptions [2].

In several verses, the Quran has been mentioned as a
"cure", sometimes it is known a heart healer (Asra’;
82) and some other times it is known as the source of
guidance and cure (Younes;57).
The Quran is the light in which there is no darkness. It
is the light that its brightness does not decline; it is a
string with strong cords; it is a shelter with high peaks;
it is the sea that thirsty people cannot drink its water
entirely and it is a healer that cures all terrible
diseases. The Quran is like the spring that rejuvenates
the heart, the fountain of knowledge, Source of truth,
and the river of justice. Therefore, seek your cure
through Quran. Ask for help from the Quran in time of
hardship and ask for your needs through Quran and
seek the God through Quran and go toward the
direction of God through Quran because there is no
better way for servants to approach the God than
Quran (Nahjolbalaghe, 176 and 198).
Many contemporary western scholars emphasize that
the problem of contemporary human is basically
related to the religion and moral values [1]. Divine
religions with different pretexts have entered the
human life and are going to affect and guide humans.
Among these, the last religion i.e. Islam has this claim
more than other religions and perhaps has known
humans responsible of this issue to a great extent. The
Quran is a book for human beings and is the book of
anthropology and its content is in line with the
concepts of human growth and evolution.
This comprehensive vision has wide variety of effects
and functions in the personal and social life of the
human and the issues of social and psychological
* Correspondence; Email: haj.sadeghi@yahoo.com
The spiritual exercises based on voice, go back to
thousands years ago in East, and to religions such as
Buddhism and Islam [3]. The Quran is full of verses in
which relaxation and the way of achieving it has been
mentioned.
Also, The Quran is full of stories in which people are
placed in stressful situations and has dealt with
specific strategies. Generally, the Quran invites people
to calmness and tranquility (Ebrahim, 45, Tobeh, 103,
Fath 4). There are many solutions and guidelines of
mental health in Quran verses with different
psychological categories.
For the purpose of providing mental health which is
the purpose of cognitive methods of coping with
stress, epistemological strategies deal with the
approach and view of people toward the universe, the
beginning and end of the world, life and its meaning
and their effects regarding the increase or decrease of
mental pressure and providing mental health [4].
Currently, the most important action to promote Quran
culture in medical science and teaching various
aspects of the Holy Quran in different aspects of
health is giving information to people on one hand and
educating the health care staff on the other hand. In
addition, gathering data on this issue can help the
policy makers for taking further steps in order to
functionalize this issue. In this review study the
available documents in the time period of 1996 to
2010 were investigated. These articles had assessed
the effect of the Quran voice in a scattered manner,
except for some of them. Among 43 found articles, 23
articles were in accordance with the purpose of this
research. It should be mentioned that in some cases,
Received 2010/04/04; Accepted 2010/08/23
Voice of Quran and health: A review of performed studies in Iran _________________________________________________________
articles were related to congress and seminars and
having access to the whole text of these document was
impossible and therefore the abstracts were used. The
healing issue of Quran has attracted the attention of
Iranian researchers. Comparing the conducted studies
on the effect of Quran voice on physiological
symptoms, pain and psychological problems of
patients and other people show that the most
conducted research are related to the effect of Quran
on the stress, anxiety, pain, physiological symptoms
and fertilization. The current research has been
conducted in the field of the effect of Quran voice on
health dimensions and different related factors in Iran.
The Holy Quran and Stress
Research shows that faith and spirituality are lost in
today world.
In some conducted research, the effective role of
maintaining and reading the Quran, has been specified
in reduction of depression and documentary studies
has been done regarding the spiritual issues [5]. There
is relationship between stress and religious beliefs in
people. Ghoori et al. report that the economic level of
male and female students is effective on their religious
beliefs that show the interaction of religious beliefs
and stress resulted from it [6]. According to the results
of Taghiloue et al., learning the Quran recitation is
effective on the reduction of stress in youngsters and
adolescents [7].
Kazemi et al. report the effect of Quran voice on
mental health of nursing students as positive [8];
Mahmodiyan et al., in a quasi-experimental study
state that learning life skills with approach to Quran is
effective on reducing depression in students [9];
Khatooni, considers the voice of Quran effective on
the anxiety of hospitalized patients especially in the
Intensive Care Unit [10]; Yousefi Loope et al. report
that reciting Quran is effective on reducing people’s
anxiety and depression.
[11]. Jahanmiri et al. [12], Moghadamnia and
Maghsoodi [13], Mosavi et al. [14] also, in their
studies report the positive effect of reciting Quran on
the amount of depression, anxiety and stress.
The effectiveness and the healing effect of Quran are
noteworthy in all mentioned cases.
Excessive stress can make the body ready for physical
or mental diseases through reducing its resistance [15].
The results of study of Ansari et al. shows the positive
effect of voice of Quran on depression of patients
hospitalized in psychiatry departments, that is in
accordance with the results of other studies that had
been conducted previously. Psychological treatment in
Iran has been medical so far. Although medicine is
very important in psychology, it cannot reply all the
therapeutic needs [16].
The Holy Quran; fertilization and fertility
Studies on the healing role of the Holy Quran in
physical and psychological domains do not contain all
the essential components of health system although
having valuable results. For example, regarding
fertility that is of high value in different cultures, few
studies have been conducted [17]. Khadem et al. have
reported that Quran voice is more effective that music
Therapy in the infertility treatment. Sound therapy is
one of branches of alternative medicine. The
theoretical base of this type of treatment is based on
this principle that body organs and cells extend in a
special manner and pattern. In many cases of voice
therapy the specialist tries to save and strength health
fluctuations with conducting harmonizing waves
through injured points [3]. Khadem Azghadi shows
that the rate of survival of infants born after 28 weeks
of fertility suddenly increases compared to the time
before the mentioned gestational age that is in
consistency with the concept of verses of Quran and
confirms the miracle of this issue expressed fourteen
centuries ago [18]. The voice of Quran has a
significant effect on physiological replies such as
blood oxygen saturation level, the respiratory rate and
heart rate in preterm infants [19]. Therefore, the voice
of Quran can be used for reducing the stress and
improving the physiological situation of preterm
infants as a protective care [20]. The study of
Tahmasebi, also shows that listening to the Quran
reduces the delivery pain, but this effect is
independent from the religious approach [21].
Mirmolaee et al. also, express that both voice of Quran
and music reduce the delivery pain and provide more
comfort at the time of delivery till at least four hours
after active phase. However, the Quran voice is said to
be more effective [22].
Quran, surgery and anxiety
Research shows that listening slow music reduces the
activity of sympathetic system. Ildarabadi et al. by
investigating the effect of Quran voice on patients’
vital signs before open heart surgery, report that
listening to the voice of Quran reduces body’s
physiological response to stress [23]. At present,
different medical and non-medical methods such as
sports, nutrition, appropriate diet, relaxation,
 ___________________________________________________________________________________________________ Sadeghi H.
relaxation techniques and calming music are used for
reduction of sympathetic reactions. More than 82% of
patients who undergo the angiographic operation are
anxious. This operation is unenviable and essential in
some occasions. Since the voice of Quran is effective
in reducing the anxiety of patients under the coronary
angiography and considering the advantages of this
method such as its low cost and safety, this non-
medical method can be used for reducing the patients’
anxiety before surgical operations and aggressive
diagnostic methods. In the study of Mirbagher et al.
regarding the effect of Quran voice on anxiety of
mothers before cesarean operation, the amount of
anxiety showed significant reduction in the group of
mothers who have listened to voice of Quran [24].
Generally speaking, each surgical operation is
accompanied by anxiety and agitation. The prevalence
of anxiety in women is double compared to men
because of conclusive stresses such as pregnancy and
delivery [19, 20] and the existence of anxiety in
pregnancy and delivery has negative effects such as
reduction of oxygen supply of the uterus, pattern of
abnormal fetal heart rate and early delivery [3]. Attari
et al. express that the amount of anxiety is less among
patients who listen to voice of Quran before induction
of anesthesia [25]. Nasrabadi reports that listening to
voice of Quran is effective in reducing the diastolic
blood pressure. This is while Nikbakht [26] reports
this factor non-effective [27]. The research of Heidari
also confirms the results of Nikbakht’ study [25]. In
contrast, the study results of Tajvidi et al. about the
effect of Quran voice on reducing the anxiety of
patients before open heart surgery, confirms the study
results of Nasrabbadi [28]. The study results of Majidi
report the positive effect of listening to Quran in
reducing the amount of personal and situational blood
pressure and systolic and diastolic blood pressure, the
pulse rate and respiratory rate in patients hospitalized
for angiography [29].
Quran and Hemodialysis
Living with dialysis, is a consistent challenge in
patients with the renal failure that makes changes in
the activities and causes limitation of diet. In recent
decades, Middle-aged individuals’ risk of end stage
renal disease has been increased. Dialysis patients
have many problems that cardiovascular disorder,
severe abnormalities in physical and mental
performance can be mentioned [30]. Therefore, the
quality of dialysis has is of double value in these
patients. In study of Hojjat et al, the effect of Quran
voice in normal condition, silence, Arab and Iranian
music has been compared on the adequacy of dialysis
that none of mentioned conditions have shown effect
on improving the adequacy of dialysis. However, the
calculated adequacy shows a non-significant
improvement in Quran lilt condition [31].
A further study is recommended on the effect of
Quran lilt on dialysis emergency condition, since the
probability of increasing the dialysis adequacy is more
than normal situation due to the probable reduction of
anxiety, agitation and stress in patients.
Conclusion
The growing trend of studies on the effect of Quran
voice and its advices in Iran shows that paying
attention to this issue has been extended among
researchers more than before and these studies have
been published gradually in internal and external
journals. It seems that this attention and interest of
researchers has consistency with new scientific bases
especially complementary medicine and they are in
the same direction and it’s a good opportunity for
Ministry of Health, Treatment and Medical Education
in making caring policies based on Quran issues and
operating the results of these researches in decision
making. Presenters of health services can also apply
religion and the literature of Quran in hospital and
society environment. In addition, investigation of
different dimensions and details of the way of
effecting of the voice of Quran in different teaching,
caring and treating domains are suggested to be
considered in the a genda of further studies.
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