What is the soul, and what is the spirit? Are the soul and spirit the same concepts, or are they different from each other? The questions are not new, deep, without an unambiguous answer… However, we cannot but ask them. Our essence is searching, restless, eternally wandering and languishing in ignorance, but therefore alive, real, developing and infinite. If it were given to us to come close to the truth and look into its eyes, we would disappear at the same moment, evaporate, because we would lose our essence, and hence the meaning of our existence. Therefore, in today's answer to the question "spirit - what is it?" 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, in other words, the recognition that a person consists not only of two basic substances (soul and body), but also of a third gift of grace - the spirit. However, among the teachers of the Church, the doctrine of the tripartiteman, unfortunately, had a more "for granted" character than it was a deeply and comprehensively developed doctrine, as a result of which disputes and objections have always arisen on this issue. Opponents of trichotomy insisted that the essence of a person consists only of the soul and body, and the words “spirit” and “soul” found in Holy Scripture 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 non-material substance, the lowest manifestation of the spirit, therefore only the human body can be material. Others admit otherwise: the spirit is the only spiritual component of a person, while the body and soul are material in nature and are united into something unified, sometimes denoted by the biblical term “flesh.”
Many books have been written on these issues. This is the "Addendum to the Word on Death" by Bishop Ignatius, "Conversations and words of St. Macarius the Great", "Soul and Angel - not a body, but a spirit" by Bishop Theophan 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, it is unattainable.
The concept of 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,like "rih" - the wind that favors the emergence of a new life, "ravh" - appeasement, and the concept of "nafs" (soul) comes from "nafis" - dear, priceless, and from "tanaffas" - to breathe. Others include interpreters who say that from birth a person is given "khayat" (life), "ruh" (spirit) and "nafs" (soul). The spirit is the divine principle, it is bright, and the soul is human, created from clay and fire.
However, there are sages who urge not to enter into conversations about the soul and its essence, because when the Prophet was asked about what the soul (spirit) is, he did not give an unambiguous answer, patiently waiting for divine revelation. The revealed verse was deep and wise: "The Spirit descends from the command of my Lord, and it is given to you to know very little about it." In other words, the existence of the spirit and its divine origin were confirmed, but its essence remained hidden and invisible. The human mind is limited. He cannot imagine concepts that do not have an obvious form and color, do not have definite dimensions, which cannot be weighed or studied in any other way. Therefore, if the questioners received a certain answer, they still would not be able to 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, one can only talk about what comes from this or that soul, what or who can influence it, what can spoil or elevate it. In other words, people can only talk about the characteristics of the soul, and Allah knows the truth.
Spirit –this is strength
In Islam, in addition to the above concept of "ruh" (spirit, soul), there is one more idea. Allah supports all those who believe in Him with a different spirit: “Allah has inscribed faith in their heart and strengthened them with a spirit from Him” (Quran 58/22). That is, in addition to the spirit - the soul, which is originally in the human body, God, by His will, gives support and sends other opportunities. Hence the word "spirit" acquires a special meaning: spirit is power. That is why they say “strong in spirit” or “weak in spirit”, “one feels a he althy spirit”. However, unlike the spirit - the soul, this spirit is mortal. It disappears when the body dies.
Ordinary miracle
Once St. Sergius, who was having a meal with the brethren of the monastery, suddenly stood up abruptly from the table, turned around, bowed to the west and said: “Rejoice you too, shepherd of Christ’s flock, the blessing of the Lord be with you.” The monks were greatly surprised, could not resist and asked the holy father to whom these words were addressed. Imagine their even greater astonishment when the monk answered that Bishop Stefan of Perm, on his way to Moscow, had stopped eight versts from the monastery. He bowed to the Holy Trinity and said the words: "Peace be with you, spiritual brother." That's why Sergius answered him. Not everyone believed the words of the Holy Elder, some hurried to that very place and soon really caught up with Stefan, who confirmed the words of Sergius.
The above example is amazing, but not unique. Both believers and scientists have had to deal with similar phenomena hundreds of times. Firstthey call what is happening a Divine miracle, in a second changing the usual logic of things. The latter try to approach the issue scientifically (Sh. Richet, Kotik, Oliver Lodok) and propose the theory of invisible radiation of energy by the thinking brain, i.e. every thought is an energy that radiates outward and has both mental and physical properties.
Soul and Spirit
Who is right, and what is the truth in this case? This is a great secret. 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 everything visible and invisible. However, there are also differences. What are they? The soul is the sun, huge, bright, eternal. Spirit is the energy emanating from the sun, the rays that bring light and warmth to everyone and everyone. The Spirit is that connecting thread, invisible, but very strong, that connects everyone and everything between itself and God. Thus, the soul transmits and distributes that power, faith, those experiences, feelings, knowledge, everything conscious and unconscious that is in it at the moment. The deeper the soul, the stronger and purer the spirit, the more limitless and all-encompassing it is.
A special spiritual connection is established between relatives, mother and child, people who love each other, through which people not only exchange a large amount of energy, but transfer energy of a special quality to each other. Of course, it is impossible to describe, measure or evaluate what is happening beyond our understanding. Unambiguously, it is unattainable to determine the quantity, quality or strength of spiritual connection,to fully understand and realize it, therefore the words we use are relative and conditional. They only give a glimpse of who we are.
Evil Spirit
However, the soul is not always calm, wise and sublime. It can be at different stages of development, have different degrees of spirituality, or come in all sorts of states. As the apostle Paul says, there are spiritual people (1 Cor. 2:14). There are also 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 the different kinds of connections and messages. One brave fiery heart pours out fighting spirit, the spirit of courage and honor, inflaming hundreds of other souls. The other, the mother's heart, is shed in a gentle and sweet stream of love on the child clinging to her breast. And the third face, distorted by malice and hatred, radiates an evil spirit, energy, causing fear, anxiety, or even reciprocal hatred and cruelty.
Spirit of one people
It is impossible to deny the special connection between people of the same nationality. The philosophical concept of “folk spirit”, implying the supra-individual, found in the manifestations of the objective spirit among representatives of the same people, can also be interpreted as an unknown connection between people of the “same blood”, which forms a kind of unity. Streams of beliefs, values, knowledge, experience, love, a special quality inherent only to this people, mysteriously rush along it. This force is in constant motion, but in troubled times in the history of a particular nation, it canopen up with unprecedented strength, 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 the Arbat to Plyushchikha, the pure Russian spirit wafts everywhere” (Nekrasov). What is it? There is a real paradox here. It cannot be described, or rather, it can be described in the following words: it is highly spiritual, deep, powerful, hospitable, heroic, bright, however, not a single epithet will give a 100% understanding of this phenomenon, and, despite this, the Russian spirit is easily recognizable and respected in different parts of the planet.
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 corresponds and is simultaneously created by the soul and spirit. This theory is not new. Even Oscar Wilde in his work “The Picture of Dorian Gray” brings to the readers the idea that even the most beautiful face and delicate, delicate features are distorted beyond recognition under the pressure of seemingly elusive thoughts, actions and deeds of a person hidden from the gaze of the surrounding people.
However, in addition to external changes that cannot be hidden, there are subtle, inconspicuous features of a person's appearance. You look at a woman: a beautiful cut of the eyes, plump pink lips, a perfectly straight nose - there is nothing to complain about, a real ideal of beauty! However, with a closer look, completely different sensations appear, directlyopposite. What is it? Every day, two opposite worlds spread out before us. One is visible to the eye, the other, such as the spirit of man, is hidden from view. But their significance is inversely proportional to their "visibility". Spirituality 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 it cannot be hidden under a “fashionable dress”. A minute or two, and in the next moment the fog completely dissipates, and either a dead forest or a large clearing under the rays of a bright spring sun will open before us.
Illusion and reality
Up and down, inside and outside, right and left… Whatever one may say, not only a person, but also “physical space” consists of two matters: visible and invisible. The world, inaccessible to sight, the ethereal "spirit" of the Earth is the core, the beginning of all beginnings, which generates and maintains the external world of form and visibility. Birth, death, the change of seasons, climate change, the movement of the Earth's tectonic plates - everything living and non-living experiences, on the one hand, a real drama of life, and on the other, it is just a metaphor, designed to give a vivid form to the essence of the invisible inner world. For what? Maybe in order to help each of us find our own unique, inimitable, but real key to the door with the sign “True Spirit of the World.”
