Collection: Frontal Lobe

In Surah Al-Alaq, in the story of a man named Abu Jahl who was a cruel oppressive tribal leader in the times of the Prophet Mohammad (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him), Allah revealed a verse to warn him.

Therein Allah (SWT) says: “No indeed! if he does not stop, We will seize him by the forehead, his lying, sinful forehead” (Quran, 96:15-16).

According to a book titled ‘Essentials of Anatomy and Physiology,’ it is clearly stated that the forehead or frontal area of the brain is responsible for motivation and the foresight to plan and initiate movements. All this takes place in the prefrontal area of the brain. The part of the brain that is responsible for movement and planning is said to be seized if he does not stop. Other studies have proved that it is this prefrontal region that is responsible for the function of lying.

Another study at the University of Pennsylvania in which volunteers were questioned during a computerized interrogation showed that the volunteers who were lying had increased activity in their prefrontal and premotor cortices. Subhanallah, there is a deeper meaning behind why the Quran stated: “We will seize him by the forehead”.