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Memorize a Masterpiece

Challenge your brain by learning a favorite verse by heart

By

Staying Sharp

Updated June 13, 2024

Updated June 13, 2024

Statue of Abraham Lincoln at the Lincoln Memorial

Gene Chutka/Getty Images

Quick Win

Reciting a favorite text is a great party trick, and it's an excellent way to stimulate your brain, too.

Try This Today

Surf the web or visit the library to find a poem you really enjoy. Not into poetry? Try memorizing a famous speech by a historical figure or childhood hero.
Write the words in your own handwriting, then commit the text to memory by dividing it into smaller pieces.
Once you have the whole thing memorized, practice reciting it out loud. If you make a mistake, start from the beginning. When you’re ready, perform it for a loved one!

Why

Maybe you haven't attempted to memorize a text since grade school — if at all. But this rewarding activity can be an excellent mental workout. In an MRI study that compared 25 healthy young men with 25 Hindu priests of similar age (all were 21 to 28) who spent years memorizing hymns and other types of scriptures, the priests had greater brain plasticity, including increased gray and white matter in several brain regions involved in memory. The results were published in Scientific Reports in 2

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Legal Disclaimer: Staying Sharp, including all content and features, is offered for informational purposes and to educate users on brain health care and medical issues that may affect their daily lives. Staying Sharp is based on a holistic, lifestyle approach to brain health that encourages users to incorporate into their daily lives activities that are associated with general wellness. Nothing in the service should be considered, or used as a substitute for, medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Features including the Cognitive Assessment and Lifestyle Check-Ins, Additional Tests, exercises, and challenges assess performance at a particular moment in time on certain discrete cognitive tasks. Staying Sharp games are intended for entertainment and recreational purposes only. Various factors may affect performance, including sleep, tiredness, focus, and other social, environmental, or emotional factors. Performance is not indicative of cognitive health and not predictive of future performance or medical conditions.

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