What is the soul, and what is the spirit? Are soul and spirit identical concepts, or are they different from each other? The questions are not new, deep, not having a clear answer ... However, we cannot but ask them. Our essence is seeking, restless, ever wandering and languishing in ignorance, but because of this it is alive, real, developing and infinite. If we were given the opportunity to approach the truth closely and look into her eyes, we would disappear at the very same moment, evaporate, because we would lose our essence, and therefore the meaning of our existence. Therefore, in today's answer to the question "is spirit what?" there will be a small part of the truth.
Orthodoxy
The basis of the Orthodox faith is the doctrine of trichotomy in the composition of human nature, otherwise - the recognition that a person consists not only of two basic substances (soul and body), but also a third blessed gift - the spirit. However, among the teachers of the Church, the doctrine of the threefoldness of man, unfortunately, was more “self-evident” in nature than it was a deeply and comprehensively developed doctrine, as a result of which disputes and objections always arose on this issue. Opponents of trichotomy insisted that the essence of man consists only of the soul and body, and the words “spirit” and “soul” that appear in the Holy Scriptures are unambiguous concepts.
In turn, supporters of the theory of the three-component nature of man also do not differ in unity. Some believe that the soul is an absolutely intangible substance, a lower manifestation of the spirit, therefore only the human body can be material. Others assume otherwise: the spirit is the only spiritual component of man, while the body and soul are material in nature and are combined into something in one whole, sometimes designated by the biblical term “flesh”.
Many books have been written on these issues. This is the “Addition to the Word of Death” by Bishop Ignatius, “Conversations and Words of the Monk Macarius the Great”, “Soul and Angel - not the body, but the spirit” by Bishop Theophanes and many others. The reasoning is interesting, deep and instructive, but the resolution of this dispute is inherently impossible, since its depth is infinite, therefore unattainable.
The concept of the spirit in Islam
In Islam, there are such concepts as “nafs” (soul) and “ruh” (spirit). What do they mean? Scholars and interpreters of the Qur'an disagreed. Some believe that these words are synonyms, and differences can be found only in their qualities and properties. For example, the word “ruh” (spirit) can have such equivalents as “rih” - the wind conducive to the emergence of a new life, “rah” - pacification, and the concept of “nafs” (soul) comes from “nafis” - dear, priceless, and from “tanaffas” - to breathe. Among others, there are interpreters who say that from birth a person was given “hayat” (life), “ruh” (spirit) and “nafs” (soul). The spirit is the divine principle, it is bright, and the soul is human, made of clay and fire.
However, there are wise men who call not to enter into discussions about the soul and its essence, for when the Prophet was asked what the soul (spirit) is, he did not give an unambiguous answer, patiently awaiting divine revelation. The sent verse was deep and wise: "The Spirit descends from the commandment of my Lord, and you have been given very little to know about it." In other words, the existence of the spirit and its divine origin was confirmed, but its essence remained hidden and invisible. The human mind is limited. He cannot imagine concepts that do not have an obvious shape and color, do not have certain sizes, which cannot be weighed or studied in any other way. Therefore, if those who asked received a definite answer, they still could not comprehend what they heard, since in the “world of orders” there are no definitions of what is big or small, red, blue, square or round. Speaking about the soul, we can only talk about what comes from a particular soul, that or who can influence it, that can spoil or exalt it. In other words, people can only talk about the characteristics of the soul, and Allah knows the truth.
Spirit is power
In Islam, in addition to the above concept of “ruh” (spirit, soul), there is another view. Allah supports all those who believe in Him with a different spirit: “Allah inscribed faith in their hearts and strengthened them with His spirit” (Quran 58/22). That is, in addition to the spirit - the soul, which is originally located in the human body, God, according to His will, gives support and sends other possibilities. Hence the word “spirit” takes on a special meaning: spirit is power. Therefore, they say “strong in spirit” or “weak in spirit”, “a healthy spirit is felt”. However, unlike the spirit - the soul, this spirit is mortal. It disappears when the body dies.
Ordinary miracle
Once, the Monk Sergius, having a meal with the brethren of the monastery, suddenly abruptly got up from the table, turned, bowed to the west and said: "Rejoice, and you, shepherd of Christ's flock, may the blessing of the Lord be with you." The monks were very surprised, could not resist and asked the saint's father, to whom these words were addressed. Imagine their still bewildering amazement when the monk replied that the bishop of Perm, Stephen, who was heading for Moscow, stopped eight miles from the monastery. He bowed to the Holy Trinity and said the words: "Peace be with you, spiritual brother." That is why Sergius answered him. Not everyone believed the words of the Holy Elder, some hastened to the same place and soon really caught up with Stephen, who confirmed the words of Sergius.
The above example is surprising, but not unique. Both believers and scientists have had to deal with such phenomena hundreds of times. The former call what is happening a Divine miracle, changing the usual logic of things in a second. The latter try to approach the issue scientifically (S. Richet, Kotik, Oliver Lodok) and propose a theory of invisible radiation of energy by the thinking brain, i.e. every thought is energy that radiates outward and has both mental and physical properties.
Soul and spirit
Who is right, and what is truth in this case? This is a great mystery. Soul and spirit are one and the same in essence, they are united into a single entity, and their origin is divine. They are primary, they are the beginning and source of all visible and invisible. However, there are differences. What are they? The soul is the sun, huge, bright, eternal. The spirit is the energy emanating from the sun, rays that bring light and warmth to everyone and everyone. Spirit is that connecting thread, invisible, but very strong that unites everyone and everything between itself and God. Thus, the soul transmits and spreads that force, faith, those experiences, feelings, knowledge, all that conscious and unconscious that is in it at the moment. The deeper the soul, the stronger and cleaner the spirit, the more boundless and all-encompassing it is.
A special spiritual connection is established between relatives, a mother and a child, loving each other, through which people not only exchange a large amount of energy, but transmit energy of a special quality to each other. Of course, it is impossible to describe, measure or evaluate what is happening outside of our understanding. Unambiguously, it is unattainable to determine the quantity, quality or strength of a spiritual connection, to fully understand and realize it, therefore the words we use are relative and conditional. They give only a small idea of who we are.
The evil spirit
However, the soul is not always calm, wise and exalted. It can be at different stages of development, have various degrees of spirituality, or arrive in all sorts of conditions. As the apostle Paul says , there are spiritual people (1 Cor. 2:14). There are people-animals, people-plants, people-angels. The first category includes people whose spirituality arrives at the stage of instincts, and the latter approach spirits without flesh. Hence, all sorts of connections and promises. One brave fiery heart pours out fighting spirit, the spirit of courage and honor, igniting hundreds of other souls. Another, the mother’s heart, spills a gentle and sweet stream of love on a child clinging to her chest. And the third person, distorted by anger and hatred, radiates an evil spirit, energy, causing fear, anxiety, or even reciprocal hatred and cruelty.
The spirit of one people
One cannot deny the special connection between people of the same nationality. The philosophical concept of “national spirit”, which implies a superindividual one, which is found in manifestations of an objective spirit among representatives of the same people, can also be interpreted as an unknown connection between people of “one blood”, which forms a kind of unity. Streams of beliefs, values, knowledge, experience, love, special qualities, peculiar only to this people, mysteriously rush through it. This force is in constant motion, but in troubled times in the history of one or another people it can open up with unprecedented power, become a stream that demolishes all dams.
Speaking of the folk spirit, it is impossible not to mention the Russian spirit: “Magic city! There, people are quiet in business, but they say they are worried about two. There, from the Kremlin, from Arbat to Plyushchikha, the pure Russian spirit is everywhere ”(Nekrasov). What is it? This is a real paradox. It can not be described, or rather, can be described in the following words: it is highly spiritual, deep, powerful, hospitable, heroic, bright, but not a single epithet will give a complete understanding of this phenomenon, and, despite this, the Russian spirit is easily recognizable and respected in different parts of the world .
The connection of spirit and form
Spirit, soul are brightly reflected in material forms. Moreover, the spirit creates forms. For example, a person, his eyes, nose, lips, body shape, movements and facial expressions - everything is consistent and at the same time created by the soul and spirit. This theory is not new. Oscar Wilde in his work “Portrait of Dorian Gray” brings to readers the idea that even the most beautiful face and delicate, subtle features are distorted beyond recognition by the press of seemingly elusive, hidden from the view surrounding human thoughts, actions and deeds.
However, in addition to external changes that cannot be concealed, there are subtle, inconspicuous features of a person's appearance. You look at a woman: a beautiful cut of eyes, puffy pink lips, a perfectly straight nose - there’s nothing to complain about, a real ideal of beauty! However, with a closer look, completely different sensations appear, directly opposite. What is it? Every day, two opposing worlds are spread out in front of us. One is visible, the other, for example, the spirit of man, is hidden from sight. But their significance is inversely proportional to their "visibility". The spiritual appearance is primary. Let the soul live deep inside us, let the spirit in the body be hidden from view, but only it is our true "I" and cannot be hidden under a "fashionable dress". A minute or two, and the next moment the fog completely dissipates, and either a dead forest or a large clearing under the rays of the bright spring sun will open before us.
Illusion and Reality
Top and bottom, inside and out, right and left ... No matter how you twist, not only a person, but also a “physical space” consists of two matters: visible and invisible. The world, inaccessible to the eye, the ethereal "spirit" of the Earth, is the core, the beginning of all principles, which generates and supports the external world of form and appearance. Birth, death, change of seasons, climate change, the movement of tectonic plates of the Earth - all living and non-living experiences, on the one hand, the real drama of life, and on the other, it is only a metaphor designed to put on the essence of the invisible inner world in a bright form. For what? Maybe in order to help each of us find our own unique, inimitable, but real key to the door with the sign "The true spirit of the world."