What is the soul?

[Ali]

I will tentatively suggest that the soul is the essence of our being, that is framed by the physical shell as we live out our motions in this material existence.
But the soul is not constrained for long, for after the physical crumbles, there is nothing left but the essence, which slips through the net of physical reality and returns to the proverbial bosom of God, in a state of Heaven.

[Ali]

Was that a good start? I will use that as the beginning of any disucssion any would have with me regarding the nature of the soul.

[exastra]

i think there is a fine semantic distinction between soul and spirit: the former being conscience; the latter, our spiritual essence.

[foundationist]

Hmm, the entire issue does seem a little complicated when both "soul" and "spirit" are invoked. Is it not that they are the same thing with difference names? Different aspects of one thing? Or indeed two separate entities in their own right? Hmm...

[maya]

soul is james Brown. Spirit is new age. :11ztongue:

[foundationist]

Perhaps the distinction between "soul" and "spirit" (in a non-musical sense, maya ), is simply one of terminology.

I would think that the popular usage is interchangeable, that they refer to the same "essence" - perhaps in the same way that a penny is both a piece of metal and a unit of currency.

Hm...I'm sure there could have been a more relevant and non-material example to use. ???

[maya]

The soul is what you are the spirit is what drives you? hows that sound? :-

[mac1]

What is the soul?

Who knows! :- Here's a few possibilities though.

(a)Your astral body. If the soul exists, then it could possibly be descibed as an astral representation of the pysical self, in a quite traditional classic art sense. The essense of what makes us alive. This description of the soul is one in which the soul can wander away from the body in the form of either astral projection, an OOBE or an NDE. You can actually exist as 2 people, but only experience things as your astral self. People who have had NDE's often claim to have hovered above their bodies, and seen a silver thread of energy connecting the solar plexus of their astral self, to the solar plexus of their physical body. In this concept of the soul, the body is simply a shell, all that is you is your soul. This is the type of soul related to described by those who believe in the afterlife, reincarnation, auras, or the astral body.

(b) Your individuality. A much more philosophical way of looking at the soul is that it is not in any way material. The soul is the part of you that stops you from simply being a mindless automaton. This type of soul is the part of you that makes all those rash illogical descisions, the part of you that analyses everything differently to everyone else, the part of you that makes you ... ... ... well you. In this concept of the soul, it cannot leave your body, as it is not at all physical. The soul is fully integrated with the body, once it leaves you, you die, what happens after is a much debated topic.

(c) Your empathy. The part of you that can feel other peoples emotion. Some believe that the soul is your emotional center, the part of us that makes us perceptive of each others pains, desires, etc. A psychic energy that is part of you, and linked spiritually to all other souls.

(d) Human arrogance! It is entirely possible of course that there is no soul, and that the arrogant human desire to see beyond the realms of the world around us has led our species to concoct the concept of the soul as an assurance that we have more than 80 years to live. The notion that we are simply born and die through a chemical process is quite a bleak one, the possibility that the soul does not exist should therefore be considered. It is in our nature as a species to try to deny the inevitable, therefore the possibility that the soul is simply an imaginary form of pyschological security that once we die we are not gone for good, should not be overlooked. After all very few people are truly prepared to simply not exist any more, the concept of an afterlife also helps grieving, the possibility that we just die and that's it, is too hard for some people to accept.

(e) A psychic shadow. As demonstrated be anyone who has ever taken and/or seen any Kirlian photography. A warm healing energy surrounding and engulfing the physical body.

[Blue]

???
Surely, the 'soul' is whatever an individual conceives it to be?
Is it not true to say that all such conceptions come from within ourselves - are subjective - and are therefore whatever we like them to be, conceive them to be?

To say that we actually, in some objective sense, have a 'soul' or 'essence' is likely always going to be unproveable beyond ourselves and can only be validated personally within ourselves; therefore the necessity of the concept is entirely personal.
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There is, of course, to be considered, the 'out of body' experiences reported by individuals after 'surgery' or 'near death' experiences. If it can be proved that something of themselves is able to proveably 'look down' upon their physical body while under anasthesia, or whatever, does that actually 'prove' the existence of a 'soul' or 'essence', or just something we have yet to understand objectively?

[Cloud Woman]

There is nothing wrong with unprovable assumptions or assumptions that don't make sense. If we didn;t have those things we wouldn't have science. To claim to have objective knowledge would be quite a little more dangerous.

[Dave the Web]

The soul is our essence of being. The body is the shell that holds it. Our personality is like clothing but not the actual essence itself.

[Ali]

Truly you are right! We are making progress here!

[Paul3c]

[quote author=Dave the Web link=board=3;threadid=26;start=msg643#msg643 date=1055502597]
The soul is our essence of being. The body is the shell that holds it. Our personality is like clothing but not the actual essence itself.
[/quote]

I really like that definition Dave, thank you.

[Aramathaea]

although I agree quite with the statement, the questions that follows is "What is the essence?"

[Cloud Woman]

True self?