A new study has revealed that to interpret a religion, people rely mainly on the same recently evolved brain regions which divine the feelings and intentions of other people.

"We're interested to find where in the brain belief systems are represented, particularly those that appear uniquely human," lead researcher Jordan Grafman was quoted by the 'New Scientist' as saying.

According to the researchers of US National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke in Maryland, such beliefs "light up" the areas of our brain which have evolved most recently, such as those involved in imagination, memory and "theory of mind" – the recognition that other people and living things can have their own thoughts and intentions.

"They don't tell us about the existence of a higher order power like God. They only address how the mind and brain work in tandem to allow us to have belief systems that guide our everyday actions," Grafman said.

The researchers came to the conclusion after they gave 40 religious volunteers functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) brain scans as they responded to statements reflecting three core elements of belief.

For each statement, they had to say on a scale how much they agreed or disagreed. The volunteers were believers in Christianity, Islam and Judaism. And, the findings showed a link that religion is a product of humans' evolved brains.

"Our results are unique in demonstrating that specific components of religious belief are mediated by brain networks, and support contemporary psychological theories that ground religious belief within evolutionary adaptive cognitive functions," the researchers said.