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Can anyone give a testable definition of a soul?
Think carefully, it needs to fit only what the soul is and not what we know to be something else.
For example, a definition of life could be: "eats, breathes and replicates", but that definition also includes fire, crystals and potentially other chemical reactions.
Update: What would differentiate a person with a soul and one without? Do other animals have souls and if so, which ones - how can you tell?
16 Answers
- skeptikLv 73 years agoFavorite Answer
Not so far.
And you'd think that after thousands of years of assuming it exists, someone would have done so by now.
- strpentaLv 73 years ago
A soul is the imaginary thing you have all up inside...it looks like you when you die b/c it is the same shape.
Animals with fur (mammals) have them, even the platypus ;-)
- ?Lv 73 years ago
We are dual beings that include an eternal spirit and a physical body. The body and spirit combined is the soul.
"And the Lord God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul." Genesis 2:7
- ?Lv 63 years ago
Soul, in our language, is defined as that inner being. We often say, "I feel it in my bones", or "I love you from the depths of my heart", or "My soul is yours". It is essentially what we describe as what makes us humans. Each animal in this world has varying levels of intellect--some having more than others-- but humans seem to have something more. Our word "soul" is the definition for this "more" that we have within us. It is hard to test a word, as when we say that we "feel something in our bones", it is just speaking figuratively. We aren't actually feeling something within our bones, we are just expressing how we are feeling something more intently in that perception of emotion that us humans have.
So how then can we test it? Well, we see that there are drugs, chemicals, hormones and environmental factors that all can affect our mind, emotion, and intent, but what makes us human is not really affected by these things. Much like how we test for gravity, we test aspects of what is going on dealing with the effect. We can't see gravity, but we understand it is there. Why? Because we see things fall when we let go of them. Gravity is just a word for a force that is in effect. Much like gravity, we see things that are unique within us and don't have a way to explain them. Therefore, soul is just a word to explain what is going on within us.
- 😌Lv 63 years ago
We are souls.
Soul in Greek is psy-khe' = Greek for living being.
Soul in Hebrew is Ne'phesh = Hebrew for breathing creature.
We are living, breathing creatures.
Creature
n. Something created.
n. A living being, especially an animal: land creatures; microscopic creatures in a drop of water.
n. A human.
Ezekiel 18:20 ~ "The soul who sins is the one who will die."
- 3 years ago
Souls are make believe bullshit for weak minded ******* that are afraid of death.
- DonaldLv 73 years ago
Look in the mirror....
Look into your eyes...
What do you see?
Your spirit and soul.
Your brain is merely a muscle.
A muscle like your bicep.
Can your bicep render reason and store memories?
Electric impulses in your head won't store memories and life experiences. ( neurons )
Memory goes much deeper than this.
Do we use all of our mind when we are flesh and blood?
Your soul is your true self.
No matter what body you have. ( angelic or flesh and blood )
Source(s): Eyes mirror a persons soul. Sick people show this in their eyes...dark , cloudy? Not bright and happy. Spiritual illness. - Anonymous3 years ago
I wouldn't call the definition testable, no.
- Anonymous3 years ago
The soul is the eternal part of a person and is intertwined somehow with the mind and spirit. (sorry, not testable)