FUNCTION OF THE NEUROSCIENCE ASPECT IN SURAH AL-INSYIRAH AND AL-ANKABUT IN INCREASING HAPPINESS AND ALLEVIATING STRESS DURING THE POST COVID-19 PANDEMIC ERA

Abstract

This article aims to elaborate on the functionality of the neuroscience aspect found in Surah al Insyirah and Surah al Ankabut in efforts to increase happiness and reduce stress experienced during the post COVID-19 Pandemic era. Stress is the body's response to mental stress in human beings in the course of their daily life. This stress stimulus originates from both, outside and inside the human body and involves the limbic system, which is the centre for regulating adaptation in the human body. A growing body of research suggests that long term, stress-induced activation of the sympathetic nervous system (SNS) and the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis may lead to increases in inflammation, which is known to play a key role in the pathophysiology of a variety of diseases. Furthermore, the burgeoning fields of social neuroscience and health neuroscience have begun to identify the neurocognitive mechanisms by which stress may lead to these physiological changes. Tadabur (deep reflection) on the meaning of Surah Al-Insyirah and Al-Maarij, which depict the problems faced by humans, can increase happiness and reduce the stress level in humans who are facing challenges brought about during the post COVID 19 pandemic era. Specifically, we summarize the results of neuroimaging studies that have examined the neural correlates of stress-related increases in SNS, HPA, and inflammatory activity. A set of neural systems involved in threat processing, safety processing, and social cognition are suggested as key contributors to stress-related changes in physiology.