Editing Soul (section)

==Religion==

===Buddhism===
[[File:The wheel of life, Buddhism Bhavachakra.jpg|thumb|right|[[Bhavachakra]] describing the cycle of ''saṃsāra''; the wheel of life caused by craving to a self, thus giving raise to rebirths in one of the [[Saṃsāra (Buddhism)#Realms of rebirth|six realms of existence]].]]
The concepts of {{tlit|sa|[[anatman]]}} (not-self) is fundamental to [[Buddhism]]. Early Buddhists were suspicious about the spiritual value of a soul. They wanted to clearly reject the notion of a mortal body and eternal soul dualism that [[Jainism]] posited and that lead to ascetics starving themselves to death to free the soul from the mortal prison.<ref>McClelland, N. C. (2018). Encyclopedia of Reincarnation and Karma. Ukraine: McFarland, Incorporated, Publishers. p. 17.</ref> From a historical perspective, the doctrine of {{tlit|sa|[[anatman]]}} evolved out of two main philosopico-religious beliefs: eternalism (sassata-''vada'') and annihilationism (''anuyoga'').<ref>Somaratne, G. A. The Buddha's Teaching: A Buddhistic Analysis. Singapur, Springer Nature Singapore, 2021. p. 55.</ref> The eternalists assert the eternity of the soul; ritual purity, [[Deva (Buddhism)|celestial beings]], [[Svarga|heaven]] and [[Naraka|hell]], mortification of the body, etc.<ref>Somaratne, G. A. The Buddha's Teaching: A Buddhistic Analysis. Singapur, Springer Nature Singapore, 2021. p. 58.</ref> In contrast, the annihilationists deny the immortality of the soul and believe that the soul only exists as long as the body does.<ref>Somaratne, G. A. The Buddha's Teaching: A Buddhistic Analysis. Singapur, Springer Nature Singapore, 2021. p. 58.</ref> Since they believe that the soul dies with the body, they prescribe practising self-indulgence ({{tlit|sa|kamasukhallikanuyoga}}) in order to enjoy pleasures experienced through the senses.<ref>Somaratne, G. A. The Buddha's Teaching: A Buddhistic Analysis. Singapur, Springer Nature Singapore, 2021. p. 58.</ref> The Buddha rejects both views and identifies their origins to be caused by two cravings: Desire for immortality drags people to eternalism, when life is pleassurable, while when unpleasant states lead to annihiliation because of the craving for self-discontinuity. Buddha identifies both views as soul-theories, as both identify a self through craving.<ref>Somaratne, G. A. The Buddha's Teaching: A Buddhistic Analysis. Singapur, Springer Nature Singapore, 2021. pp. 63–64.</ref>

The idea of an unchanging soul conflicts with the principles of dependent origination and cessation of all of the five aggregates.<ref>Somaratne, G. A. The Buddha's Teaching: A Buddhistic Analysis. Singapur, Springer Nature Singapore, 2021. p. 170.</ref> Due to their impermanence, they are considered "empty" or "without essence".<ref>Somaratne, G. A. The Buddha's Teaching: A Buddhistic Analysis. Singapur, Springer Nature Singapore, 2021. p. 170.</ref> Through the lens of impermanence, Buddhists recognize that all phenomena—whether physical or mental—are in a continuous cycle of arising and dissolving, with nothing being permanent, including the perception of a self or soul.<ref>Somaratne, G. A. The Buddha's Teaching: A Buddhistic Analysis. Singapur, Springer Nature Singapore, 2021. p. 69.</ref> In Buddhism, the only absolute is ''[[Sunyata|Śūnyatā]]''.<ref>Buddhist Text and Anthropological Society ''Journal of the Buddhist Text and Anthropological Society, Band 5, Teil 1'' The Society, 1897 digitalized: 21. May 2014. p. 1.</ref> The self is a retrospective evaluation of sensual experience. This sensory experience then leads to craving and the formation of the thought "this is mine", whereby creating the notion of a self. <ref>Somaratne, G. A. The Buddha's Teaching: A Buddhistic Analysis. Singapur, Springer Nature Singapore, 2021. p. 169.</ref> It is this continuity of craving to a self, which gives raise to a new birth. <ref>Somaratne, G. A. The Buddha's Teaching: A Buddhistic Analysis. Singapur, Springer Nature Singapore, 2021. p. 303.</ref> Buddhists regard the identification of an independent soul with perception as mistaken, since our perception of the world depends on the sense organs.<ref>McClelland, N. C. (2018). Encyclopedia of Reincarnation and Karma. McFarland. pp. 16–17.</ref> In the Cetana-sutta, the flow of consciousness maintains the connection between one birth to another,<ref>Somaratne, G. A. The Buddha's Teaching: A Buddhistic Analysis. Singapur, Springer Nature Singapore, 2021. p. 303.</ref> and also determines the conditions of the conceptions into the mother's womb, where they forget about their previous lives.<ref>Somaratne, G. A. The Buddha's Teaching: A Buddhistic Analysis. Singapur, Springer Nature Singapore, 2021. pp. 305–308.</ref> The {{tlit|sa|Mahavedalla-sutta}} mentions three modes of self-continuity: sensual self-continuity ({{tlit|sa|kama-bhava}}), fine-material mode ({{tlit|sa|rupa-bhava}}), and immaterial self-continuity ({{tlit|sa|arupa-bhava}}), the latter two take place among those who practise absorption meditations ({{tlit|sa|jhana}}) and become {{tlit|sa|[[Brahmā (Buddhism)|brahmas]]}}.<ref>Somaratne, G. A. The Buddha's Teaching: A Buddhistic Analysis. Singapur, Springer Nature Singapore, 2021. p. 295.</ref> 

However, even this transmission consciousness cannot be identified with a soul, for the very possibility of losing consciousness would be inexplicable. Were there a soul, Buddhists would associate it with something entirely devoid of sensibility—yet such an entity would lack any basis for being identified as "me".<ref>McClelland, N. C. (2018). Encyclopedia of Reincarnation and Karma. Ukraine: McFarland, Incorporated, Publishers. p. 17.</ref> Another argument against an autonomous soul is that it could will itself to never die or get sick, however, death and sickness happen against the will of inviduals.<ref>Gethin, R. (1998). ''The foundations of Buddhism''. Oxford University Press. p. 137.</ref> The final argument is that, within Buddhist thought, nothing has been identified as unchanging or permanent.<ref>McClelland, N. C. (2018). Encyclopedia of Reincarnation and Karma. Ukraine: McFarland, Incorporated, Publishers. p. 17.</ref> Since consciousness too is impermanent, an unchanging soul cannot exist.<ref>Somaratne, G. A. The Buddha's Teaching: A Buddhistic Analysis. Singapur, Springer Nature Singapore, 2021. p. 302.</ref><ref>McClelland, N. C. (2018). Encyclopedia of Reincarnation and Karma. McFarland. p. 16.</ref> Thus, every individual is a complex interplay of physical and mental phenomena, all dependent on countless conditions; once these phenomena and conditions are removed, no enduring self can be found.<ref>Gethin, R. (1998). ''The foundations of Buddhism''. Oxford University Press. p. 139.</ref>

====Unanswerable question====
The Buddha left [[The unanswerable questions|ten questions unanswered]], one of which concerned the existence of a soul ("Is the soul one thing and the body another?" and "Who is it that is reborn?").<ref>Somaratne, G. A. The Buddha's Teaching: A Buddhistic Analysis. Singapur, Springer Nature Singapore, 2021. p. 298.</ref><ref>Karunadasa, Y. (2015). ''Early Buddhist teachings'' (New ed.). Simon and Schuster. p. 143.</ref> This led some people believe that the Buddha only rejected a soul defined through one (or more) of the [[five aggregates]] (''Skandha'').<ref>The Routledge Handbook of Philosophy of Pain. Vereinigtes Königreich, Taylor & Francis, 2017. p. 294.</ref><ref>McClelland, Norman C. Encyclopedia of Reincarnation and Karma. Ukraine, McFarland, Incorporated, Publishers, 2018. p. 18.</ref><ref>Somaratne, G. A. The Buddha's Teaching: A Buddhistic Analysis. Singapur, Springer Nature Singapore, 2021. p. 168.</ref> Another interpretation holds that he remained silent, because the Buddha considered the question irrelevant to the pursuit of enlightenment. Whether he knew the answer remains a matter of debate.<ref>Karunadasa, Y. (2018). ''Early Buddhist teachings'' (New ed.). Simon and Schuster. pp. 153–154.</ref> Yet another view argues that the Buddha remained silent, because the question itself is invalid.<ref>Somaratne, G. A. The Buddha's Teaching: A Buddhistic Analysis. Singapur, Springer Nature Singapore, 2021. p. 298.</ref>

Those who argue that the Buddha affirmed a self, independent from body and mind, as proposed by the eternalists or annihilists, argue that the soul is something transcending the five aggregates.<ref>McClelland, Norman C. Encyclopedia of Reincarnation and Karma. Ukraine, McFarland, Incorporated, Publishers, 2018. p. 18.</ref><ref>Gowans, C. (2004). Philosophy of the Buddha: An introduction. Routledge. pp. 56; 67–68.</ref> Some Buddhists of the [[Mahayana]] tradition believe that the soul is not absolute, but immortal; the soul cannot die, although influenced by karma, since the soul is unborn and unconditioned.<ref>Buddhist Text and Anthropological Society. ''Journal of the Buddhist Text and Anthropological Society, Band 5, Teil 1''. The Society, 1897, digitalized: 21 May 2014. p. 1.</ref> In support for that view, Christopher Gowan points at Buddhist texts, implying some sort of self, such as references to personal pronouns,<ref>Gowans, Christopher. Philosophy of the Buddha: An introduction. Routledge, 2004. p. 68.</ref> and the need for a self who suffers in order to aim for release in nirvana.<ref>Gowans, Christopher. Philosophy of the Buddha: An introduction. Routledge, 2004. p. 68.</ref> Due to the implicit references in the Buddhist doctrines, Gowan also rejects the view that they are merely conventions of speech,<ref>Gowans, Christopher. Philosophy of the Buddha: An introduction. Routledge, 2004. p. 68.</ref> rather the best way to understand Buddha's teachings coherently would be to distinguishing between a substantial self and an ever changing self beyond the five aggregates.<ref>Gowans, Christopher. Philosophy of the Buddha: An introduction. Routledge, 2004. pp. 72–73.</ref> The Buddha would have rejected the former, but implicitly affirmed the latter.<ref>Gowans, Christopher. Philosophy of the Buddha: An introduction. Routledge, 2004. pp. 72–73.</ref><ref>McClelland, Norman C. Encyclopedia of Reincarnation and Karma. Ukraine, McFarland, Incorporated, Publishers, 2018. p. 18.</ref>

In contrast, others hold that the Buddha remained silent on this matter, because they are invalid questions.<ref>Somaratne, G. A. The Buddha's Teaching: A Buddhistic Analysis. Singapur, Springer Nature Singapore, 2021. p. 298.</ref> When asked such a question ("Who is reborn?") the existence of a self is presupposed.<ref>Somaratne, G. A. The Buddha's Teaching: A Buddhistic Analysis. Singapur, Springer Nature Singapore, 2021. p. 58.</ref> However, if souls do not exist, noone can be reborn in the first place, and thus, there is no accurate answer to the question.<ref>Somaratne, G. A. The Buddha's Teaching: A Buddhistic Analysis. Singapur, Springer Nature Singapore, 2021. p. 58.</ref> This view also disapproves of later responses within traditional Buddhist schools, such as [[Theravada]], who answered the question on identity in paradoxical terms, yet whereby implicitly affirming some sort of Self or soul.<ref>Somaratne, G. A. The Buddha's Teaching: A Buddhistic Analysis. Singapur, Springer Nature Singapore, 2021. pp. 298–299.</ref>

====Two Truths====
In the early Buddhist text ''[[Milinda Panha|Milinda's Questions]]'', the nature of the enduring self is examined through a dialogue between the Greek king Milinda and the monk Nāgasena. When asked about his identity, Nāgasena explains that in truth, there is no Nāgasena, because his name is merely a label. To illustrate his point, he refers to Milinda's chariot and asks whether its essence lies in the axle, the wheels, or the framework. Milinda concedes that the chariot's essence is not found in any single part, but maintains that the term 'chariot' is still meaningful, as it refers to the combination of all its parts.<ref>Palden Gyal and Owen Flanagan The Routledge Handbook of Philosophy of Pain. Vereinigtes Königreich, Taylor & Francis, 2017. pp. 294–295.</ref><ref>Gethin, R. (1998). ''The Foundations of Buddhism''. Oxford University Press. p. 139.</ref> Nāgasena agrees—and adds that this is precisely his point: there is no Nāgasena beyond the five aggregates that constitute him. Like the chariot, the person is a conventional designation applied to a collection of interdependent components.<ref>Gethin, R. (1998). ''The Foundations of Buddhism''. Oxford University Press. p. 139.</ref>

The example of Milinda's chariot relates to the Buddhist [[Two truths doctrine]].<ref>Palden Gyal and Owen Flanagan The Routledge Handbook of Philosophy of Pain. Vereinigtes Königreich, Taylor & Francis, 2017. pp. 294–295.</ref> Accordingly, the conventional truth refers to phenomenal truths of the perceptive world, including persons, but ultimately, they are devoid of essence and independent existence.<ref>Palden Gyal and Owen Flanagan The Routledge Handbook of Philosophy of Pain. Vereinigtes Königreich, Taylor & Francis, 2017. pp. 294–295.</ref> Upon realization of the self as a mere convention, fear of death and attachment to self-permanence would cease, as there is no self to attach to in the first place.<ref>Palden Gyal and Owen Flanagan The Routledge Handbook of Philosophy of Pain. Vereinigtes Königreich, Taylor & Francis, 2017. pp. 294–295.</ref> This interpretation of ''Milinda's Questions'' was also compared to [[David Hume]]'s [[bundle theory]].<ref>Giles, James. "The no-self theory: Hume, Buddhism, and personal identity". Philosophy East and West 43.2 (1993): 175–200.</ref>

===Christianity===
{{See also|Soul in the Bible}} 
[[File:SoulCarriedtoHeaven.jpg|thumb|Depiction of a soul being carried to heaven by two angels by [[William-Adolphe Bouguereau]]]]

The [[Bible]] teaches that upon death, souls are immediately welcomed into [[Heaven in Christianity|heaven]], having received forgiveness of sins through accepting Christ as Savior.<ref name=":13" />{{better source needed|date=April 2025}} Believers experience death as a transition where they depart their physical bodies to dwell in God's presence.<ref name=":13" />{{better source needed|date=April 2025}} While the soul is united with God at death, the physical body remains in the grave, awaiting resurrection.<ref name=":13" />{{better source needed|date=April 2025}} At the time of the [[Universal resurrection|resurrection]], the body will be raised, perfected, and reunited with the soul.<ref name=":13" />{{better source needed|date=April 2025}} This fully restored, glorified unity of body and spirit will then exist eternally in the renewed creation described in Revelation 21–22.<ref name=":13">{{Cite web |title=What happens after death? |url=https://www.gotquestions.org/what-happens-after-death.html |website=GotQuestions}}</ref>{{better source needed|date=April 2025}}

[[Paul the Apostle]] used ''psychē'' ({{math|ψυχή}}) and ''pneuma'' ({{math|πνεῦμα}}) specifically to distinguish between the Jewish notions of ''nephesh'' (נפש), meaning soul, and ''ruah'' (רוח), meaning spirit<ref>{{cite book |last1=Αρχιμ. Βλάχος |first1=Ιερόθεος |title=Ορθόδοξη Ψυχοθεραπεία |date=30 September 1985 |location=Εδεσσα |publisher=Ιερά Μονή Τιμίου Σταυρού |page=Τι είναι η ψυχή |url=https://www.oodegr.com/oode/dogma/psyxi1.htm |access-date=25 January 2023 |chapter-url=https://eclass.uoa.gr/modules/document/file.php/THEOL160/%CE%9A%CE%B5%CE%AF%CE%BC%CE%B5%CE%BD%CE%B1%20%CE%B3%CE%B9%CE%B1%20%CF%80%CF%81%CE%BF%CF%83%CF%89%CF%80%CE%B9%CE%BA%CE%AE%20%CE%B8%CE%B5%CE%BF%CE%BB%CE%BF%CE%B3%CE%B9%CE%BA%CE%AE%20%CE%BA%CE%B1%CF%84%CE%AC%CF%81%CF%84%CE%B9%CF%83%CE%B7/%CE%9F%CE%A1%CE%98%CE%9F%CE%94%CE%9F%CE%9E%CE%97%20%CE%A8%CE%A5%CE%A7%CE%9F%CE%98%CE%95%CE%A1%CE%91%CE%A0%CE%95%CE%99%CE%91.pdf |language=Greek |chapter=Κεφάλαιο Γ' |archive-date=25 January 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230125171147/https://www.oodegr.com/oode/dogma/psyxi1.htm |url-status=live }}</ref>{{Request quotation|date=April 2025}} (also in the Septuagint, e.g. Genesis 1:2 רוּחַ אֱלֹהִים = {{math|πνεῦμα θεοῦ}} = ''spiritus Dei'' = 'the Spirit of God').{{Citation needed|date=April 2025}} This has led some Christians to espouse a [[trichotomy (philosophy)|trichotomic]] view of humans, which characterizes humans as consisting of a body (''soma''), soul (''psyche''), and spirit (''pneuma'').<ref>{{cite web |date=1 July 1912 |title=Soul |url=http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/14153a.htm |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111128201145/http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/14153a.htm |archive-date=28 November 2011 |access-date=13 November 2011 |website=newadvent.org |quote=In St. Paul we find a more technical phraseology employed with great consistency. Psyche is now appropriated to the purely natural life; pneuma to the life of supernatural religion, the principle of which is the Holy Spirit, dwelling and operating in the heart. The opposition of flesh and spirit is accentuated afresh (Romans 1:18, etc.). This Pauline system, presented to a world already prepossessed in favour of a quasi-Platonic Dualism, occasioned one of the earliest widespread forms of error among Christian writers – the doctrine of the Trichotomy. According to this, man, perfect man (teleios) consists of three parts: body, soul and spirit (soma, psyche, pneuma).}}</ref>{{better source needed|date=April 2025}} However, others{{who?|date=April 2025}} believe that "spirit" and "soul" are used interchangeably in many biblical passages and so hold to dichotomy: the view that each human comprises a body and a soul.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Baker |first=Daniel |date=2015 |title=Are We Body-and-Soul or Body-Soul-and-Spirit? |url=https://cornerstoneapex.org/blog/are-we-body-and-soul-or-body-soul-and-spirit |access-date= |website=Cornerstone Fellowship Church of Apex |language=en-US |archive-date=15 August 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240815175244/https://cornerstoneapex.org/blog/are-we-body-and-soul-or-body-soul-and-spirit |url-status=live }}</ref> The [[Authorship of the Epistle to the Hebrews|author of Hebrews]] said, "For the word of God is living and active and sharper than any two-edged sword, and piercing as far as the division of soul and spirit."<ref>{{Cite web |title=Hebrews 4:12 - New American Standard Bible |url=https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Hebrews%204:12&version=NASB |access-date=2025-04-13 |website=[[BibleGateway]] |language=en}}</ref>{{better source needed|date=April 2025}}

The "origin of the soul" has proved a vexing question in Christianity. The major theories put forward include [[creationism (soul)|soul creationism]], [[traducianism]], and [[pre-existence]]. According to soul creationism, God creates each individual soul directly, either at the moment of conception or at some later time. According to traducianism, the soul comes from the parents by natural generation. According to the pre-existence theory, the soul exists before the moment of conception.{{Citation needed|date=April 2025}} There have been differing thoughts regarding whether human [[embryo]]s have souls from conception, or whether there is a point between conception and birth where the [[fetus]] [[ensoulment|acquires a soul]], [[consciousness]], and [[personhood]].<ref>{{cite web |last=Pacholczyk |first=Tadeusz, Father, PhD |title=Do embryos have souls? |url=http://www.catholiceducation.org/articles/medical_ethics/me0116.htm |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110629203818/http://www.catholiceducation.org/articles/medical_ethics/me0116.htm |archive-date=29 June 2011 |access-date=13 November 2011 |website=Catholiceducation.org |department=Catholic Education Resource Center}}</ref>

Corruptionism is the view that following physical death, the human being ceases to exist (until resurrection) but their soul persists in the afterlife. Survivalism holds that both the human being and their soul persist in the afterlife, as distinct entities, with the soul constituting the human.<ref name=":0">{{Cite journal |last=Oderberg |first=David S. |author-link=David S. Oderberg |date=2012-12-22 |title=Survivalism, Corruptionism, and Mereology |url=https://philosophy-of-religion.eu/index.php/ejpr/article/view/257 |journal=European Journal for Philosophy of Religion |volume=4 |issue=4 |pages=1–26 |doi=10.24204/ejpr.v4i4.257 |issn=1689-8311}}</ref> Most [[Thomism|Thomists]] hold to the corruptionist view, arguing that a human person is a composite of matter and soul.<ref name=":12">{{Cite journal |last=Spencer |first=Mark |date=2014 |title=The personhood of the separated soul |url=https://www.academia.edu/download/47972932/09NV12-3_Spencer_Personhood.pdf |journal=Nova et Vetera |volume=12 |issue=3 |pages=863–912}}</ref> Survivalists argue that while a person is not identical to their soul, it is sufficient to constitute a person.<ref name=":12" /> In recent years, a middle view has been put forward: that the separated soul is an incomplete person.<ref name=":2">{{Cite journal |last1=De Haan |first1=Daniel D. |last2=Dahm |first2=Brandon |date=2019 |title=Thomas Aquinas on Separated Souls as Incomplete Human Persons |url=https://muse.jhu.edu/article/761040 |journal=The Thomist: A Speculative Quarterly Review |language=en |volume=83 |issue=4 |pages=589–637 |doi=10.1353/tho.2019.0036 |issn=2473-3725 |archive-date=19 July 2024 |access-date=29 March 2025 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240719140208/https://muse.jhu.edu/article/761040 |url-status=live }}</ref> It argues that the soul meets most of the criteria of a person but that the survivalist view fails to capture the unnaturalness of a person surviving death.<ref name=":2" />

===Hinduism===
{{Main|Ātman (Hinduism)|Jiva}}
{{translit|sa|Ātman}} is a [[Sanskrit]] word that means inner [[self]] or soul.<ref>
{{cite dictionary
 |title= ātman
 |dictionary=Oxford Dictionaries
 |publisher=Oxford University Press
 |year=2012
|url=http://www.oxforddictionaries.com/us/definition/american_english/atman
 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151223074014/http://www.oxforddictionaries.com/us/definition/american_english/atman
 |archive-date=23 December 2015
}}
</ref><ref name=davidlorenzenatman>
{{cite book
 |first=D. |last=Lorenzen |author-link=David Lorenzen
 |year=2004
 |title=The Hindu World
 |editor1-first=Sushil |editor1-last=Mittal
 |editor2-first=Gene   |editor2-last=Thursby
 |publisher=Routledge
 |isbn=0-415-21527-7
 |pages=208–209
 |quote=Advaita and Nirguni movements, on the other hand, stress an interior mysticism in which the devotee seeks to discover the identity of individual soul (''Ātman'') with the universal ground of being (''Brahman'') or to find god within himself.
}}
</ref> In [[Hindu philosophy]], especially in the [[Vedanta]] school of [[Hinduism]], ''Ātman'' is the [[first principle]],<ref>
{{cite book |last1=Deussen |first1=Paul |author-link=Paul Deussen |title=The Philosophy of the Upanishads |last2=Geden |first2=A.S. |date=June 2010 |publisher=Cosimo Classics |isbn=978-1-61640-240-2 |page=86}}
</ref> the true self of an individual beyond identification with phenomena, the essence of an individual. In order to attain [[Moksha|liberation (''moksha'')]], a human being must acquire self-knowledge (''ātma [[jñāna]]''), which is to realize that one's true self (''Ātman'') is identical with the transcendent self ''[[Brahman]]'' according to [[Advaita Vedanta]].<ref name=davidlorenzenatman/><ref>
{{cite book |last=King |first=Richard |title=Early Advaita Vedanta and Buddhism |publisher=State University of New York Press |year=1995 |isbn=978-0-7914-2513-8 |page=64 |quote=''Ātman'' as the innermost essence or soul of man, and ''Brahman'' as the innermost essence and support of the universe. (...) Thus we can see in the [[Upanishad]]s, a tendency towards a convergence of microcosm and macrocosm, culminating in the equating of ''Ātman'' with ''Brahman''.}}
</ref> The [[Āstika and nāstika|six orthodox schools of Hinduism]] believe that there is ''Ātman'' ('self', 'essence') in every being.<ref name="Jayatilleke-2010">
{{cite book |last=Jayatilleke |first=K.N. |author-link=K. N. Jayatilleke |title=Early Buddhist Theory of Knowledge |publisher=[[Motilal Banarsidass]] |year=2010 |isbn=978-81-208-0619-1 |at=pp.&nbsp;246–249, from note&nbsp;85 onwards}}
</ref><ref name="Collins-1994">
{{cite book |last=Collins |first=Steven |title=Religion and Practical Reason |publisher=State University of New York Press |year=1994 |isbn=978-0-7914-2217-5 |editor1-last=Reynolds |editor1-first=Frank |page=64 |quote=Central to Buddhist soteriology is the doctrine of not-self (Pali: ''anattā'', Sanskrit: ''anātman'', the opposed doctrine of ''Ātman'' is central to Brahmanical thought). Put very briefly, this is the [Buddhist] doctrine that human beings have no soul, no self, no unchanging essence. |editor2-last=Tracy |editor2-first=David}}
</ref><ref name="Shankara-1908">
{{cite book |last=Shankara |first=Acharya |author-link=Adi Shankara |title=Brihad Aranyaka Upanishad and the Commentary of Sankara Acharya on its First Chapter |title-link=Brihad Aranyaka |publisher=Society for the Resuscitation of Indian Literature |year=1908 |page=2 (quote), pp.&nbsp;2–4 |translator-last=Roer |translator-first=Edward |section=Introduction |quote= |section-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=3uwDAAAAMAAJ&pg=PA2 |via=Google books}}
</ref><ref>
{{cite magazine
 |first=Katie |last=Javanaud
 |date=July–August 2013
 |title=Is the Buddhist 'no-self' doctrine compatible with pursuing ''nirvana''?
 |magazine=[[Philosophy Now]]
 |issue=97
|url=https://philosophynow.org/issues/97/Is_The_Buddhist_No-Self_Doctrine_Compatible_With_Pursuing_Nirvana
 |via=philosophynow.org  |access-date=17 September 2024  |url-status=live
 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150206211126/https://philosophynow.org/issues/97/Is_The_Buddhist_No-Self_Doctrine_Compatible_With_Pursuing_Nirvana
 |archive-date=6 February 2015
}}
</ref>

In [[Hinduism]] and [[Jainism]], a {{translit|sa|[[Jīva (Jainism)|jīva]]}} ({{langx|sa|जीव}}, ''{{IAST|jīva}}'', alternative spelling ''jiwa''; {{langx|hi|जीव}}, ''{{IAST|jīv}}'', alternative spelling ''jeev'') is a living being, or any entity imbued with a life force.<ref>
{{cite book
 |first=Matthew |last=Hall
 |year=2011
 |title=Plants as Persons: A philosophical botany
 |publisher=State University of New York Press
 |isbn=978-1-4384-3430-8
 |page=76
 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=SqzkqnETEVYC
}}
</ref> The concept of ''jīva'' in Jainism is similar to ''Ātman'' in Hinduism; however, some Hindu traditions differentiate between the two concepts, with ''jīva'' considered as an individual self, but with ''Ātman'' as that which is the universal unchanging self that is present in all living beings and everything else as the metaphysical ''Brahman''.<ref name="varenne46">
{{cite book
 |first=Jean |last=Varenne |author-link=Jean Varenne
 |title=Yoga and the Hindu Tradition
 |year=1989
 |publisher=[[Motilal Banarsidass]]
 |isbn=978-81-208-0543-9
 |pages=45–47
 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=meUWxDDqzuAC&pg=PA46
}}
</ref><ref>
{{cite book
 |last1=McLean  |first1=George F.    |author1-link=George F. McLean
 |last2=Meynell |first2=Hugo Anthony |author2-link=Hugo Anthony Meynell
 |year=1988
 |title=The Nature of Metaphysical Knowledge
 |place=Washington, DC
 |publisher=Council for Research in Values and Philosophy
 |isbn=9780819169266
 |page=32
 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=kO8-980xGk8C&dq=hiranyagarba&pg=PA32
}}
</ref> The latter is sometimes referred to as ''jīva-ātman'' (a soul in a living body).<ref name="varenne46" />

===Islam===
{{Main|Nafs|Rūḥ}}
[[Islam]] uses two words for the soul: ''rūḥ'' (translated as 'spirit', 'consciousness', 'pneuma', or 'soul') and ''nafs'' (translated as 'self', 'ego', 'psyche', or 'soul').<ref name="Talib">{{cite journal |last1 = Deuraseh |first1 = Nurdeen |last2 = Abu Talib |first2 = Mansor |year = 2005 |title = Mental health in Islamic medical tradition |journal = The International Medical Journal |volume = 4 |issue = 2 |pages = 76–79}}</ref><ref name="brag">{{cite journal |last1 = Bragazzi |first1 = NL |last2 = Khabbache |first2 = H |display-authors = etal |year = 2018 |title = Neurotheology of Islam and Higher Consciousness States |url = http://cosmosandhistory.org/index.php/journal/article/viewFile/742/1296 |journal = Cosmos and History: The Journal of Natural and Social Philosophy |volume = 14 |issue = 2 |pages = 315–21 |archive-date = 15 June 2021 |access-date = 27 June 2020 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20210615090208/https://cosmosandhistory.org/index.php/journal/article/viewFile/742/1296 |url-status = live }}</ref> The two terms are frequently used interchangeably, although ''rūḥ'' is more often used to denote the divine spirit or "the breath of life", while ''nafs'' designates one's disposition or characteristics.<ref>{{cite book |title=[[Encyclopaedia of the Qurʾān]] |volume=5 |editor=Jane Dammen McAuliffe |year=2006 |publisher=Brill |chapter=Soul |author=[[Th. Emil Homerin]]}}</ref> The [[Taj al-'Arus min Jawahir al-Qamus]] lists several meanings of ''nafs'', including two from the [[Lisān al-ʿArab]], including spirit, self, desire, evil eye, disdain, body.<ref>Calverley, E.E., & Netton, (. (2012). Nafs. In P. Bearman (ed.), Encyclopaedia of Islam New Edition Online (EI-2 English). Brill. https://doi.org/10.1163/1573-3912_islam_COM_0833</ref> [[Lane's Lexicon]] notes that humans consist of ''nafs'' and ''rūḥ''. The former applies to the mind and the latter to life.<ref>Calverley, E.E., & Netton, (. (2012). Nafs. In P. Bearman (ed.), Encyclopaedia of Islam New Edition Online (EI-2 English). Brill. https://doi.org/10.1163/1573-3912_islam_COM_0833</ref> Attribution of ''nafs'' to [[God in Islam|God]] ([[Allah]]) is avoided.<ref>Calverley, E.E., & Netton, (. (2012). Nafs. In P. Bearman (ed.), Encyclopaedia of Islam New Edition Online (EI-2 English). Brill. https://doi.org/10.1163/1573-3912_islam_COM_0833</ref> [[Abu Mansur al-Baghdadi|Al-Bag̲h̲dādī]] also rejected that God has ''rūḥ'' in order to have life, as Christian beliefs, and proposes that all spirits (''arwāḥ'') are created.<ref>Calverley, E.E., & Netton, (. (2012). Nafs. In P. Bearman (ed.), Encyclopaedia of Islam New Edition Online (EI-2 English). Brill. https://doi.org/10.1163/1573-3912_islam_COM_0833</ref>

In the [[Quran]], ''nafs'' (plurals: ''anfus'' and ''nufūs'') refers in most cases to the person or a self.<ref>Calverley, E.E., & Netton, (. (2012). Nafs. In P. Bearman (ed.), Encyclopaedia of Islam New Edition Online (EI-2 English). Brill. https://doi.org/10.1163/1573-3912_islam_COM_0833</ref> It is used for both humans and [[djinn]] (but not to [[Angels in Islam|angels]]).<ref>Calverley, E.E., & Netton, (. (2012). Nafs. In P. Bearman (ed.), Encyclopaedia of Islam New Edition Online (EI-2 English). Brill. https://doi.org/10.1163/1573-3912_islam_COM_0833</ref> When referring to the soul it is of three types: the commanding self (''ammāra bi ’l sūʾ''), remniscient of the Hebrew ''nefes̲h̲'' (physical appetite) and the [[Apostle Paul|Pauline]] idea of "flesh" (φυχή) and is always evil, its greed must be feared, and it must be restraint.<ref>Calverley, E.E., & Netton, (. (2012). Nafs. In P. Bearman (ed.), Encyclopaedia of Islam New Edition Online (EI-2 English). Brill. https://doi.org/10.1163/1573-3912_islam_COM_0833</ref> The accusing self (''lawwāma'') is the soul of the deserters. Lastly, there is the tranquil soul (''muṭmaʾinna''). This typology of the soul is the foundation for later Muslim treatises on ethics and psychology.<ref>Calverley, E.E., & Netton, (. (2012). Nafs. In P. Bearman (ed.), Encyclopaedia of Islam New Edition Online (EI-2 English). Brill. https://doi.org/10.1163/1573-3912_islam_COM_0833</ref>

====Islamic philosophy (<span lang="ar-Latn">''falsafa''</span>)====
[[File:Miraj by Sultan Muhammad.jpg|thumb|upright=0.8|1543 illustration of Muhammad's Night Journey. His ascension to the heavens is often interpreted as an [[Allegory|allegory]] for the human soul ascending to the celestial realms in Islamic philosophy.]]
Most [[Muslim philosophers]] (Arabic: {{tlit|ar|falsafa}}), aligned with their Greek predecessors, broadly accepted that the soul is composed of non-rational and rational elements.<ref name=":14">Inati, S.(1998). Soul in Islamic philosophy. In The Routledge Encyclopedia of Philosophy. Taylor and Francis.</ref> The non-rational dimension was subdivided into the vegetative and animal souls, while the rational aspect was split into the practical and theoretical intellects.<ref>Adamson, P., & Taylor, R. C. (Eds.). (2004). The Cambridge companion to Arabic philosophy. Cambridge university press. p. 309.</ref><ref>Calverley, E. E., & Netton, (2012). Nafs. In P. Bearman (ed.), Encyclopaedia of Islam New Edition Online (EI-2 English). Brill. https://doi.org/10.1163/1573-3912_islam_COM_0833</ref> While all agreed that the non-rational soul is tied to the body, opinions diverged on the rational part: some deemed it immaterial and naturally independent of the body, whereas others asserted the entirely material nature of all soul components.<ref name=":14">Inati, S.(1998). Soul in Islamic philosophy. In The Routledge Encyclopedia of Philosophy. Taylor and Francis.</ref> [[Ibn Hazm]] uses {{tlit|ar|nafs}} and {{tlit|ar|rūḥ}} interchangeably.<ref>Calverley, E. E., & Netton, (2012). Nafs. In P. Bearman (ed.), Encyclopaedia of Islam New Edition Online (EI-2 English). Brill. https://doi.org/10.1163/1573-3912_islam_COM_0833</ref> He also rejected [[metempsychosis]] that all souls were already created then the angels were commanded to bow before [[Adam in Islam|Adam]], waiting in [[Barzakh]] until the blown into the embryo.<ref>Calverley, E. E., & Netton, (2012). Nafs. In P. Bearman (ed.), Encyclopaedia of Islam New Edition Online (EI-2 English). Brill. https://doi.org/10.1163/1573-3912_islam_COM_0833</ref>

Consensus held that during its union with the body, the non-rational soul governs bodily functions, the practical intellect manages earthly and corporeal matters, and the theoretical intellect pursues knowledge of universal, eternal truths.<ref name=":14" /> These thinkers maintained that the soul’s highest purpose or happiness lies in transcending bodily desires to contemplate timeless universal principles.<ref name=":14" /> All agreed the non-rational soul is mortal—created and inevitably perishable. However, views on the rational soul’s fate varied: [[al-Farabi]] suggested its eternal survival was uncertain; [[Avicenna|Ibn Sina]] claimed it was uncreated and immortal; and [[Averroes|Ibn Rushd]] argued that the entire soul, including all its parts, is transient and ultimately ceases to exist.<ref name=":14" />

For [[Ibn Arabi]], the soul is human potential, and the purpose of life is the actualization of that potential.<ref>Chittick, William, "Ibn ‘Arabî", The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy (Spring 2020 Edition), Edward N. Zalta (ed.), chapter 6 URL = <https://plato.stanford.edu/archives/spr2020/entries/ibn-arabi/>.</ref> Human experience is whereby always between the body ({{tlit|ar|jism}}) and spirit ({{tlit|ar|rūḥ}}),<ref>Chittick, William, "Ibn ‘Arabî", The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy (Spring 2020 Edition), Edward N. Zalta (ed.), chapter 6 URL = <https://plato.stanford.edu/archives/spr2020/entries/ibn-arabi/>. chapter 3.3</ref> and thus the indivual experience is limited to imagination ({{tlit|ar|nafsânî}}).<ref>Chittick, William, "Ibn ‘Arabî", The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy (Spring 2020 Edition), Edward N. Zalta (ed.), chapter 6 URL = <https://plato.stanford.edu/archives/spr2020/entries/ibn-arabi/>. chapter 3.3</ref> Wavering between its body and spirit, the soul can choose (free-will) between either ascending to realization or descending to the materialistic mind,<ref>Chittick, William, "Ibn ‘Arabî", The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy (Spring 2020 Edition), Edward N. Zalta (ed.), chapter 6 URL = <https://plato.stanford.edu/archives/spr2020/entries/ibn-arabi/>. chapter 3.3</ref> which Ibn Arabi compares to [[Muhammad in Islam|Muhammad's]] [[Isra' and Mi'raj|Night Journey]] ({{tlit|ar|miʿrāj}}).<ref>Chittick, William, "Ibn ‘Arabî", The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy (Spring 2020 Edition), Edward N. Zalta (ed.), chapter 6 URL = <https://plato.stanford.edu/archives/spr2020/entries/ibn-arabi/>. chapter 6.0</ref> This allows the soul to determine its own tragectory in a [[Karma|karmic]] chain of causalities, towards paradisical or infernal levels, depending on the person's understanding, traits, and actions.<ref>Chittick, William, "Ibn ‘Arabî", The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy (Spring 2020 Edition), Edward N. Zalta (ed.), chapter 6 URL = <https://plato.stanford.edu/archives/spr2020/entries/ibn-arabi/>. chapter 5</ref>

====Theology (<span lang="ar-Latn">''kalam''</span>)====
[[File:4DModel.jpg|thumb|A visual rendition of the Islamic model of the soul showing the position of {{tlit|ar|nafs}} relative to other concepts]]
[[Al-Ghazali]] ({{floruit|11th century}}) reconciles the [[Sunni Islam|Sunni]] views on the soul with Avicennan philosophy ({{tlit|ar|falsafa}}).<ref>Tamer, Georges. Islam and Rationality: The Impact of al-Ghazālī. Papers Collected on His 900th Anniversary. Vol. 1. Vol. 94. Brill, 2015. p. 101.</ref> Al-Ghazali defines human as a spiritual substance ({{tlit|ar|d̲j̲awhar rūḥānī}}), neither confined, nor joined, nor separated from the body.<ref>Abul Quasem, M. (1975). The ethics of al-Ghazali: A composite ethics in Islam. p. 44.</ref><ref>Calverley, E. E., & Netton, (2012). Nafs. In P. Bearman (ed.), Encyclopaedia of Islam New Edition Online (EI-2 English). Brill. https://doi.org/10.1163/1573-3912_islam_COM_0833</ref> It possesses knowledge and perception.<ref>Calverley, E. E., & Netton, (2012). Nafs. In P. Bearman (ed.), Encyclopaedia of Islam New Edition Online (EI-2 English). Brill. https://doi.org/10.1163/1573-3912_islam_COM_0833</ref> He identifies the immaterial self with the {{tlit|ar|al-nafs al-muṭmaʾinna}} and {{tlit|ar|al-rūḥ al-amīn}} of the Quran and {{tlit|ar|nafs}} for bodily desires which must be disciplined.<ref>Calverley, E. E., & Netton, (2012). Nafs. In P. Bearman (ed.), Encyclopaedia of Islam New Edition Online (EI-2 English). Brill. https://doi.org/10.1163/1573-3912_islam_COM_0833</ref><ref>Rassool, G. H., & Luqman, M. M. (2022). Foundations of Islāmic psychology: From classical scholars to contemporary thinkers. Routledge. p. 81.</ref> He, however, refuses to elaborate on the deepest nature of the soul, as he claims it is forbidden by ''[[sharia|sharīʿah]]'', on grounds that it is beyond comprehension.<ref>Abul Quasem, M. (1975). The ethics of al-Ghazali: A composite ethics in Islam. p. 44.</ref>

According to al-Ghazali, {{tlit|ar|nafs}} consists of three elements: animals, devils, and angels.<ref>Rassool, G. H., & Luqman, M. M. (2022). Foundations of Islāmic psychology: From classical scholars to contemporary thinkers. Routledge. p. 80.</ref> The term for the self or soul is [[Qalb|heart]] ({{tlit|ar|ḳalb}}).<ref>Rassool, G. H., & Luqman, M. M. (2022). Foundations of Islāmic psychology: From classical scholars to contemporary thinkers. Routledge. p. 80.</ref><ref>Calverley, E. E., & Netton, (2012). Nafs. In P. Bearman (ed.), Encyclopaedia of Islam New Edition Online (EI-2 English). Brill. https://doi.org/10.1163/1573-3912_islam_COM_0833</ref> The {{tlit|ar|nafs}}, in al-Ghazali's concept of the soul, is best be understood as [[Psyche (psychology)|psyche]], a 'vehicle' ({{tlit|ar|markab}}) of the soul, but yet distinct.<ref>Abul Quasem, M. (1975). The ethics of al-Ghazali: A composite ethics in Islam. p. 44.</ref><ref>Rassool, G. H., & Luqman, M. M. (2022). Foundations of Islāmic psychology: From classical scholars to contemporary thinkers. Routledge. p. 81.</ref> The animalistic parts of {{tlit|ar|nafs}} is concerned with bodily functions, such as eating and sleeping, the devilish part with deceit and lies, and the angelic part with comtemplating the signs of God and preventing lust and anger.<ref>Rassool, G. H., & Luqman, M. M. (2022). Foundations of Islāmic psychology: From classical scholars to contemporary thinkers. Routledge. p. 80.</ref> Accordingly, the inclinations towards following either {{tlit|ar|nafs}} or the intellect is associated with supernatural agents: the angels inspire to follow the intellect ({{tlit|ar|ilhām}}) and the devils tempt to give in into evil ({{tlit|ar|waswās}}).<ref>amer, Georges. Islam and Rationality: The Impact of al-Ghazālī. Papers Collected on His 900th Anniversary. Vol. 1. Vol. 94. Brill, 2015. p. 104.</ref><ref>Zaroug, Abdullahi Hassan (1997). "Al-Ghazali's Sufism: A Critical Appraisal". Intellectual Discourse. 5 (2): 150.</ref>

[[Qadi Baydawi|Al-Baydawi]]'s psychology shows influence from the writings of al-Ghazali, whom he also mentions explicitly.<ref>Calverley, E. E., & Netton, (2012). Nafs. In P. Bearman (ed.), Encyclopaedia of Islam New Edition Online (EI-2 English). Brill. https://doi.org/10.1163/1573-3912_islam_COM_0833</ref> His classification of souls is elaborated in his ''{{tlit|ar|Ṭawāliʿ al-anwār}}'', authored {{circa|1300}}.<ref>Calverley, E. E., & Netton, (2012). Nafs. In P. Bearman (ed.), Encyclopaedia of Islam New Edition Online (EI-2 English). Brill. https://doi.org/10.1163/1573-3912_islam_COM_0833</ref> Like, al-Ghazali, he is in support of the existence of the soul as independent from the body and offers both rational as well as Quranic evidence.<ref>Calverley, E. E., & Netton, (2012). Nafs. In P. Bearman (ed.), Encyclopaedia of Islam New Edition Online (EI-2 English). Brill. https://doi.org/10.1163/1573-3912_islam_COM_0833</ref> He further adds that {{tlit|ar|nafs}} is created when the body is completed, but is not embodied itself, and is connected with {{tlit|ar|rūḥ}}.<ref>Calverley, E. E., & Netton, (2012). Nafs. In P. Bearman (ed.), Encyclopaedia of Islam New Edition Online (EI-2 English). Brill. https://doi.org/10.1163/1573-3912_islam_COM_0833</ref>

When discussing the souls, al-Baydawi establishes a cosmological hierarchy of heavenly Intellects.<ref>Calverley, E. E., & Netton, (2012). Nafs. In P. Bearman (ed.), Encyclopaedia of Islam New Edition Online (EI-2 English). Brill. https://doi.org/10.1163/1573-3912_islam_COM_0833</ref> Accordingly, God, in his [[Tawhid|unity]] ({{tlit|ar|tawḥīd}}), first creates the Intellect ({{tlit|ar|ʿaḳl}}), which  is neither body, nor form, but the cause of all other potentialities. From this Intellect, a third Intellect is produced up to the tenth Intellect, which in turn influences the elements and bring fourth the spirits ({{tlit|ar|arwāḥ}}). Below these Intellects are the "souls of the spheres" ({{tlit|ar|al-nufūs al-falakiyya}}) identified with the heavenly angels.<ref>Calverley, E. E., & Netton, (2012). Nafs. In P. Bearman (ed.), Encyclopaedia of Islam New Edition Online (EI-2 English). Brill. https://doi.org/10.1163/1573-3912_islam_COM_0833</ref> Below them are the incorporeal earthly angels, both [[Cherubim#In Islam|good]] and [[Shayatin|evil angels]] ({{tlit|ar|al-kurūbiyyūn}} and {{tlit|ar|al-s̲h̲ayāṭīn}}), angels in control of the elements and the "souls of reasoning" ({{tlit|ar|anfus nāṭiḳa}}), as well as djinn.<ref>Calverley, E. E. & Pollock, J. (Eds.). (2022) Nature, Man and God in Medieval Islam: Volume One. Brill. pp. 645–647.</ref><ref>Calverley, E. E., & Netton, (2012). Nafs. In P. Bearman (ed.), Encyclopaedia of Islam New Edition Online (EI-2 English). Brill. https://doi.org/10.1163/1573-3912_islam_COM_0833</ref>

====Ismailism====
[[File:Muhammad ibn Muhammad Shakir Ruzmah-'i Nathani - A Soul Symbolized as an Angel - Walters W65944A - Full Page.jpg|thumb|upright=0.8|Muhammad ibn Muhammad Shakir Ruzmah-'i Nathani{{snd}}''A Soul Symbolized as an Angel'' (1717)]]
[[Ismailism|Ismaili cosmology]] is largely described through [[Neo-Platonic]] and [[Gnosticism|Gnostic]] ideas.<ref>Walker, P. E. (1993). Early philosophical Shiism: the Ismaili Neoplatonism of Abū Yaʻqūb al-Sijistānī. Vereinigtes Königreich: Cambridge University Press. p. 95.</ref><ref>Daftary, F. (2020). Short History of the Ismailis: Traditions of a Muslim Community. Edinburgh University Press. p. 86.</ref> Two influential Ismaili teachers are [[Abu Ya'qub al-Sijistani]] during the 10th century and [[Nasir Khusraw]] during the 11th.<ref>Walker, P. E. (1993). Early philosophical Shiism: the Ismaili Neoplatonism of Abū Yaʻqūb al-Sijistānī. Vereinigtes Königreich: Cambridge University Press. p. 95.</ref> One of the Sijistani's key doctrines is the immateriality of the soul, which belongs to the spiritual domain but is captured in the body of the material world.<ref>Walker, P. E. (1993). Early philosophical Shiism: the Ismaili Neoplatonism of Abū Yaʻqūb al-Sijistānī. Vereinigtes Königreich: Cambridge University Press. p. 95.</ref><ref>Lange, C. (2015). Paradise and hell in Islamic traditions. Cambridge University Press. p. 212.</ref> In his [[soteriology|soteriological teachings]], the soul needs to discard sensual pleasures for the sake of intellectual gratification through spiritual ascension.<ref>Walker, P. E. (1993). Early philosophical Shiism: the Ismaili Neoplatonism of Abū Yaʻqūb al-Sijistānī. Vereinigtes Königreich: Cambridge University Press.</ref><ref>Daftary, F. (2020). Short History of the Ismailis: Traditions of a Muslim Community. Edinburgh University Press. p. 86.</ref><ref>Lange, C. (2015). Paradise and hell in Islamic traditions. Cambridge University Press. p. 211.</ref> One of Sijistani's arguments is, that sensual pleasure is finite, and thus cannot be part of the eternal soul.<ref>Lange, C. (2015). Paradise and hell in Islamic traditions. Cambridge University Press. p. 211.</ref> Although not made explicit by Sijistani himself, other Ismaili authors propose that a soul attached to material pleasure will be reborn in another sensual body on earth, first as a dark-skinned person, a Berber, or a Turk, then as an animals, an insects, or a plant, all believed to be progressively less likely to pursue spiritual or intellectual virtues.<ref>Lange, C. (2015). Paradise and hell in Islamic traditions. Cambridge University Press. p. 212.</ref> 

In this context, [[Nasir al-Din al-Tusi]] identifies the earthly world with {{tlit|ar|[[Sijjin|sijjīn]]}}.<ref>Lange, C. (2015). Paradise and hell in Islamic traditions. Cambridge University Press. p. 214.</ref> The {{tlit|ar|[[zabaniyah]]}} are identified with the nineteen evil forces that distract human being from heavenly truths and diverge them to material and sensual concerns, including distorted imagination ({{tlit|ar|khayāl}}).<ref>Lange, C. (2015). Paradise and hell in Islamic traditions. Cambridge University Press. p. 214.</ref> The paradisical [[houri]]s are conceptualized as items of knowledge from the spiritual world, the soul is united with in a form of metaphorical marriage, per Surah 44:54.<ref>Lange, C. (2015). Paradise and hell in Islamic traditions. Cambridge University Press. p. 214.</ref> This type of knowledge is inaccessible to those souls remaining in the earthly domain or hell.<ref>Lange, C. (2015). Paradise and hell in Islamic traditions. Cambridge University Press. p. 214.</ref>

Nasir Khusraw equates the rational soul of humans with a spirit potentially angel and demon.<ref>Nasr, S. H., and Aminrazavi, Mehdi. An Anthology of Philosophy in Persia, Vol. 2: Ismaili Thought in the Classical Age. Iran, I. B. Tauris, 2008. pp. 319–323.</ref><ref>The Oxford Handbook of Islamic Philosophy. (2017). Vereinigtes Königreich: Oxford University Press. p. 186.</ref> The soul is a potential angel or potential demon, depending on their obedience to God's law.<ref>The Oxford Handbook of Islamic Philosophy. (2017). Vereinigtes Königreich: Oxford University Press. p. 186.</ref> The obedient soul is growing to a potential angel and becomes an actual angel upon death, while the soul seeking out sensual delights is a potential demon and turns into an actual demon in the next world.<ref>The Oxford Handbook of Islamic Philosophy. (2017). Vereinigtes Königreich: Oxford University Press. p. 186.</ref><ref>Nasr, S. H., and Aminrazavi, Mehdi. An Anthology of Philosophy in Persia, Vol. 2: Ismaili Thought in the Classical Age. Iran, I. B. Tauris, 2008.</ref>

===Jainism===
{{Main|Jīva (Jainism)|Vitalism (Jainism)}}
[[File:Atman.jpg|thumb|Depiction of the concept of soul (in transmigration) in Jainism. The color gold represents {{tlit|sa|nokarma}}, the quasi-karmic matter, Cyan depicts {{tlit|sa|dravya karma}}, the subtle karmic matter, orange represents the {{tlit|sa|bhav karma}}, the psycho-physical karmic matter, and white depicts {{tlit|sa|sudhatma}}, the pure consciousness.]]

In Jainism, every living being, from plant or bacterium to human, has a soul and the concept forms the very basis of Jainism. According to Jainism, there is no beginning or end to the existence of soul. It is eternal in nature and changes its form until it attains liberation. In Jainism, {{tlit|sa|jīva}} is the immortal essence or soul of a living organism, such as human, animal, fish, or plant, which survives physical death.<ref name="jajinixxii" /> The term {{tlit|sa|ajīva}} in Jainism means 'not soul', and represents matter (including body), time, space, non-motion and motion.<ref name="jajinixxii">{{cite book|author=J Jaini|title=Outlines of Jainism|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=54A9AAAAIAAJ|year=1940|publisher=Cambridge University Press|pages=xxii–xxiii}}</ref> In Jainism, a {{tlit|sa|jīva}} is either {{tlit|sa|samsari}} (mundane, caught in cycle of rebirths) or {{tlit|sa|mukta}} ('liberated').<ref>{{Cite book |last=Siddhāntacakravartin |first=Nemicandra |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=qN82XwAACAAJ |title=Gommatsara Karma-kanda |date=1927 |publisher=Central Jaina Publishing House |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |title=Buddhism and Jainism |date=2017 |publisher=Springer Netherlands |isbn=978-94-024-0851-5 |editor-last=Sarao |editor-first=K. T. S. |editor-link=K. T. S. Sarao |series=Encyclopedia of Indian Religions |page=594 |doi=10.1007/978-94-024-0852-2_100397 |editor-last2=Long |editor-first2=Jeffery D. |editor2-link=Jeffery D. Long |chapter=Jiva }}</ref>

According to this belief until the time the soul is liberated from the {{tlit|sa|[[Saṃsāra (Jainism)|saṃsāra]]}} (cycle of repeated birth and death), it gets attached to one of these bodies based on the [[Karma in Jainism|karma]] ('actions') of the individual soul. Irrespective of which state the soul is in, it has got the same attributes and qualities. The difference between the liberated and non-liberated souls is that the qualities and attributes are manifested completely in case of {{tlit|sa|[[siddha]]}} ('liberated soul') as they have overcome all karmic bondage, whereas in case of non-liberated souls they are partially exhibited. Souls who rise victorious over wicked emotions while still remaining within physical bodies are referred to as {{tlit|sa|[[Arihant (Jainism)|arihants]]}}.<ref>{{cite book |last=Sangave |first=Vilas Adinath |author-link=Vilas Adinath Sangave |title=Aspects of Jaina religion |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=I8RUPwAACAAJ |edition=3rd
|publisher=Bharatiya Jnanpith |year=2001 |pages=15–16 |isbn=81-263-0626-2}}</ref>

Concerning the Jain view of the soul, [[Virchand Gandhi]] said that, "the soul lives its own life, not for the purpose of the body, but the body lives for the purpose of the soul. If we believe that the soul is to be controlled by the body then soul misses its power."<ref>{{cite web |title=Forgotten Gandhi, Virchand Gandhi (1864–1901) – Advocate of Universal Brotherhood |url=http://www.all-famous-quotes.com/Virchand_Gandhi_quotes.html |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130921112719/http://www.all-famous-quotes.com/Virchand_Gandhi_quotes.html |archive-date=21 September 2013 |publisher=All Famous Quotes}}</ref>

===Judaism===
The [[Hebrew language|Hebrew]] terms {{lang|he|נפש}} {{tlit|he|[[nephesh|nefesh]]}} ('living being'), {{lang|he|רוח}} {{tlit|he|[[ruach]]}} ('wind'), {{lang|he|נשמה}} {{tlit|he|neshamah}} ('breath'), {{lang|he|חיה}} {{tlit|he|chayah}} ('life') and {{lang|he|יחידה}} {{tlit|he|yechidah}} ('singularity') are used to describe the soul or spirit.<ref>''Zohar'', ''Rayah Mehemna'', ''Terumah'' 158b.  See Leibowitz, Aryeh (2018). ''The Neshamah: A Study of the Human Soul''. Feldheim. pp. 27, 110. {{ISBN|1-68025-338-7}}.</ref> 

Jewish beliefs concerning the concept and nature of the soul are complicated by a lack of singularly authoritative traditions and differing beliefs in an afterlife. The conception of an immortal soul separate from and capable of surviving a human being after death was not present in early Jewish belief,<ref>Tabor, James, [http://clas-pages.uncc.edu/james-tabor/ancient-judaism/death-afterlife-future/ What the Bible says about Death, Afterlife, and the Future.] "The ancient Hebrews had no idea of an immortal soul living a full and vital life beyond death, nor of any [[Resurrection of the Dead| resurrection or return from death]]. Human beings, like the beasts of the field, are made of "dust of the earth", and at death they return to that dust (Genesis 2:7; 3:19). The Hebrew word {{tlit|he|nephesh}}, traditionally translated 'living soul' but more properly understood as 'living creature', is the same word used for all breathing creatures and refers to nothing immortal."</ref> but became prevalent by the onset of the Common Era. This conception of the soul differed from that of the Greek, and later Christian, belief in that the soul was viewed an ontological substance which was intrinsically inseparable from the human body.<ref>
"Modern scholarship has underscored the fact that Hebrew and Greek concepts of soul were not synonymous. While the Hebrew thought world distinguished soul from body (as material basis of life), there was no question of two separate, independent entities. A person did not have a body but was an animated body, a unit of life manifesting itself in fleshly form—a psychophysical organism (Buttrick, 1962). Although Greek concepts of the soul varied widely according to the particular era and philosophical school, Greek thought often presented a view of the soul as a separate entity from body. Until recent decades Christian theology of the soul has been more reflective of Greek (compartmentalized) than Hebrew (unitive) ideas.", Moon, "Soul", in Benner & Hill (eds.), Baker encyclopedia of psychology & counseling, p. 1148 (2nd ed. 1999).</ref> At the same time, a burgeoning belief in an afterlife required some form of continued existence following the end of mortal life in order to partake in the world to come. This need for apparent dichotomy is reflected in the [[Talmud]], where the biblical psychophysical unity of the soul remains, but the possibility of the soul's simultaneous existence on both a physical and a spiritual level is embraced. This essential paradox is only reinforced by subsequent Rabbinical works.<ref name="JewSoul">{{cite book|title= The Concept of Soul in Judaism, Christianity and Islam|publisher=De Gruyter|year=2023|isbn= 9783110748239|pages=1–18}}</ref> Ultimately, the specific nature of the soul was of secondary concern to rabbinical authorities, and indeed remains as such in most modern traditions.<ref name="JewSoul"/>

As spiritual and mystic traditions developed, the Jewish concept of the soul underwent a number of changes. [[Kabbalah]] and other mystic traditions go into greater detail into the nature of the soul. Kabbalah separates the soul into five elements, corresponding to the [[five worlds]]:<ref>{{cite web |title=Nurturing The Human Soul&mdash;From Cradle To Grave |url=https://www.chizukshaya.com/2013/01/the-five-levels-of-mans-soul.html |website=Chizuk Shaya: Dvar Torah Resource |access-date=10 June 2022 |date=6 January 2013 |archive-date=25 October 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221025111428/https://www.chizukshaya.com/2013/01/the-five-levels-of-mans-soul.html |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Neshamah: Levels of Soul Consciousness |url=https://www.chabad.org/kabbalah/article_cdo/aid/380651/jewish/Neshamah-Levels-of-Soul-Consciousness.htm |website=Chabad.org Kabbalah Online |access-date=24 April 2024 |archive-date=23 April 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240423225245/https://www.chabad.org/kabbalah/article_cdo/aid/380651/jewish/Neshamah-Levels-of-Soul-Consciousness.htm |url-status=live }}</ref>

# {{tlit|he|[[Nephesh|Nefesh]]}}, related to natural instinct.
# {{tlit|he|[[Ruach]]}}, related to emotion.
# {{tlit|he|Neshamah}}, related to intellect.
# {{tlit|he|Chayah}}, which gazes at the transcendence of God.
# {{tlit|he|Yechidah}}, essence of the soul, which is bound to God.

Kabbalah proposed a concept of reincarnation, the {{tlit|he|[[gilgul]]}} ({{tlit|he|[[nefesh habehamit]]}}, the 'animal soul').<ref>Weiner, Rebecca [https://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/reincarnation-and-judaism Reincarnation and Judaism] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230414065736/https://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/reincarnation-and-judaism |date=14 April 2023 }}. jewishvirtuallibrary.org. Retrieved July 2 2024</ref> Some Jewish traditions assert that the soul is housed in the {{tlit|he|[[Luz (bone)|luz]]}} bone, although traditions disagree as to whether it is the [[Atlas (anatomy)|atlas]] at the top of the spine, or the [[sacrum]] at bottom of the spine.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Scholem |first=Gershom |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=qJesQGFsSwsC |title=Kabbalah |date=1978 |publisher=Meridian |isbn=978-0-452-01007-9 }}</ref>

===Shamanism===
{{See also|Soul dualism}}
[[File:Manunggul Jar.jpg|thumb|The [[Neolithic]] [[Manunggul Jar|Manunggul burial jar]] from the [[Tabon Caves]], [[Palawan]], Philippines, depicts a soul and a [[psychopomp]] journeying to the spirit world in a boat ({{circa}} 890–710 [[BCE]]).]]

Soul dualism, also called "multiple souls" or "dualistic pluralism", is a common belief in [[Shamanism]],<ref name=":5">{{Cite book |last= Sumegi |first= Angela |url= https://books.google.com/books?id=ZBtKf35fABEC |title=Dreamworlds of Shamanism and Tibetan Buddhism: The Third Place |date= 2008 |publisher= State University of New York Press |isbn= 978-0-7914-7826-4 |language =en}}</ref><ref name="Bock">{{cite thesis |last =Bock |first =Nona J.T. |date =2005 |title =Shamanic techniques: their use and effectiveness in the practice of psychotherapy |type =MSc |publisher =University of Wisconsin-Stout |url =http://www2.uwstout.edu/content/lib/thesis/2005/2005bockn.pdf |archive-date =25 October 2022 |access-date=8 March 2021 |archive-url =https://web.archive.org/web/20221025110045/http://www2.uwstout.edu/content/lib/thesis/2005/2005bockn.pdf |url-status=live }}</ref><ref name="jackson"/> and is essential in the universal and central concept of "[[soul flight]]" (also called "soul journey", "[[out-of-body experience]]", [[Religious ecstasy| "ecstasy"]], or "[[astral projection]]").<ref name="Hoppal2007">{{cite book |last1 =Hoppál |first1 =Mihály |title =Shamans and Traditions |date =2007 |publisher=[[Akadémiai Kiadó]] |location =Budapest |isbn =978-963-05-8521-7 |pages =17–26}}</ref><ref name="jackson">{{cite book |first1 =Ulf |last1 =Drobin |editor1-first =Peter |editor1-last =Jackson |title =Horizons of Shamanism |chapter =Introduction |publisher =Stockholm University Press |year =2016 |pages =xiv-xvii |isbn =978-91-7635-024-9 |url =https://library.oapen.org/bitstream/handle/20.500.12657/32054/619233.pdf?sequence=1 |archive-date =17 September 2022 |access-date =8 March 2021 |archive-url =https://web.archive.org/web/20220917102925/https://library.oapen.org/bitstream/handle/20.500.12657/32054/619233.pdf?sequence=1 |url-status =live}}</ref><ref name="Winkelman2"/> It involves the belief that humans have two or more souls, generally termed the "body soul" (or "life soul"), and the "free soul". The former is linked to bodily functions and awareness when awake, while the latter can freely wander during sleep or trance states.<ref name="Bock"/><ref name="Winkelman2">{{cite book |first1=Michael James |last1=Winkelman |editor1-first=Kasumi-Clements |editor1-last=Niki |title =Religion: Mental Religion |chapter =Shamanism and the Brain |publisher =Macmillan Reference USA |year =2016 |pages=355–372 |isbn =9780028663609 |url =https://www.researchgate.net/publication/323547873}}</ref><ref name="Winkelman">{{cite journal |last1=Winkelman |first1=Michael |title=Shamanic universals and evolutionary psychology |journal=Journal of Ritual Studies |date=2002 |volume=16 |issue=2 |pages=63–76 |jstor=44364143 |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/44364143 |archive-date=18 August 2022 |access-date=8 March 2021 |archive-url =https://web.archive.org/web/20220818035112/https://www.jstor.org/stable/44364143 |url-status =live }}</ref> In some cases, there are a plethora of soul types with different functions.<ref name="Merkur"/><ref name=Kul-ConSl>{{cite web |url =http://www.folklore.ee/folklore/vol4/hing.htm |title =Conceptions of soul in old-Estonian religion |volume =4 |last =Kulmar |first =Tarmo |author-link =:et:Tarmo Kulmar |access-date =8 March 2021 |archive-date =16 January 2019 |archive-url =https://web.archive.org/web/20190116192657/http://www.folklore.ee/folklore/vol4/hing.htm |url-status =live }}</ref> Soul dualism and multiple souls appear prominently in the traditional animistic beliefs of the [[Austronesian peoples]],<ref name="tan">{{cite book |first=Michael L. |last=Tan |title=Revisiting Usog, Pasma, Kulam |publisher=University of the Philippines Press |year=2008 |isbn=9789715425704 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=EktzHrfup1UC}}</ref><ref name="sather2018">{{cite book |author =Clifford Sather |editor =James J. Fox |title =Expressions of Austronesian Thought and Emotions |chapter =A work of love: Awareness and expressions of emotion in a Borneo healing ritual |publisher =ANU Press |year =2018 |pages =57–63 |isbn =9781760461928 |url =https://books.google.com/books?id=wAxfDwAAQBAJ}}</ref> the [[Hun and po|Chinese]] people ([[Hun and po|''hun'' and ''po'']]),<ref name="Harrell">{{cite journal |last1 =Harrell |first1 =Stevan |title =The Concept of Soul in Chinese Folk Religion |journal =[[The Journal of Asian Studies]] |date=1979 |volume=38 |issue =3 |pages =519–528 |doi =10.2307/2053785|jstor=2053785 |s2cid =162507447 |doi-access =free }}</ref> the [[Tibetan people]],<ref name=":5" /> most [[Ethnic groups of Africa|African]] peoples,<ref name="McClelland" /> most [[Indigenous peoples of the Americas#North America|Native North Americans]],<ref name="McClelland">{{cite book |last1 =McClelland |first1 =Norman C. |title =Encyclopedia of Reincarnation and Karma |date =2010 |publisher =McFarland & Company, Inc. |isbn =978-0-7864-4851-7 |pages =251, 258}}</ref><ref name="Merkur">{{cite book |last1 =Merkur |first1 =Daniel |title =Becoming Half Hidden / Shamanism and Initiation among the Inuit |date =1985 |publisher =Almqvist & Wiksell |location =Stockholm |isbn =91-22-00752-0 |pages =61, 222–223, 226, 240}}</ref> ancient [[South Asia]]n peoples,<ref name="jackson" /> Northern [[Eurasia]]n peoples,<ref name="Hop-Nat">{{cite web |last =Hoppál |first=Mihály |title=Nature worship in Siberian shamanism |url =http://www.folklore.ee/folklore/vol4/hoppal.htm |url-status=live |archive-url =https://web.archive.org/web/20181230025609/http://www.folklore.ee/folklore/vol4/hoppal.htm |archive-date=30 December 2018 |access-date =8 March 2021}}</ref><ref name="Hoppál">{{cite book |last1 =Hoppál |first1 =Mihály |title =Sámánok. Lelkek és jelképek ["Shamans / Souls and symbols"] |date =1994 |publisher =Helikon Kiadó |location =Budapest |isbn =963-208-298-2 |page =225}}</ref> and among [[Ancient Egyptians]] (the [[Ancient Egyptian conception of the soul|''ka'' and ''ba'']]).<ref name="McClelland" />

Belief in soul dualism is found throughout most [[Austronesian people|Austronesian]] [[shamanistic]] traditions. The reconstructed [[Proto-Austronesian]] word for the 'body soul' is ''*nawa'' ('breath', 'life', or 'vital spirit'). The body-soul is located somewhere in the [[abdominal cavity]], often in the [[liver]] or the [[heart]] (Proto-Austronesian ''*qaCay'').<ref name="tan"/><ref name="sather2018"/> The "free soul" is located in the head. Its names are usually derived from Proto-Austronesian ''*qaNiCu'' ('ghost', 'spirit [of the dead]'), which also apply to other non-human nature spirits. The "free soul" is also referred to in names that literally mean 'twin' or 'double', from Proto-Austronesian ''*duSa'' ('two').<ref name="yu2000">{{cite book |first=Jose Vidamor B. |last=Yu |title=Inculturation of Filipino-Chinese Culture Mentality |volume =3 |publisher =Editrice Pontifica Universita Gregoriana |series =Interreligious and Intercultural Investigations |year =2000 |pages =148–149 |isbn =9788876528484 |url =https://books.google.com/books?id=c4WqAOKb5c8C}}</ref><ref name="duSa">{{cite encyclopedia |author1 =Robert Blust |author1-link =Robert Blust |author2 =Stephen Trussel |title =ACD - Austronesian Comparative Dictionary - Cognate Sets - D |dictionary =Austronesian Comparative Dictionary |entry =*du |url =http://www.trussel2.com/acd/acd-s_d.htm#30339 |access-date =7 July 2018 |archive-date =20 October 2020 |archive-url =https://web.archive.org/web/20201020233130/https://www.trussel2.com/ACD/acd-s_d.htm#30339 |url-status=live }}</ref> A virtuous person is said to be one whose souls are in harmony with each other, while an evil person is one whose souls are in conflict.<ref name="mercado1991">{{cite journal |author =Leonardo N. Mercado |year =1991 |title =Soul and Spirit in Filipino Thought |journal=Philippine Studies |volume=39 |issue=3 |pages=287–302 |jstor=42633258}}</ref>

The "free soul" is said to leave the body and journey to the [[Spirit world (spiritualism)|spirit world]] during sleep, [[trance|trance-like states]], [[delirium]], [[insanity]], and at death. The duality is also seen in the healing traditions of Austronesian shamans, where illnesses are regarded as a "[[soul loss]]"—and thus to heal the sick, one must "return" the "free soul" (which may have been stolen by an evil spirit or got lost in the spirit world) into the body. If the "free soul" cannot be returned, the afflicted person dies or goes permanently insane. The [[shaman]] heals within the spiritual dimension by returning 'lost' parts of the human soul from wherever they have gone. The shaman also cleanses excess negative energies, which confuse or pollute the soul.<ref name="salazar">{{cite journal |author =Zeus A. Salazar |author-link =Zeus A. Salazar |year=2007 |title=Faith healing in the Philippines: An historical perspective |url =http://asj.upd.edu.ph/mediabox/archive/ASJ-43-02-2007/Faith%20Healing%20in%20the%20Philippines%20Zeus%20Salazar.pdf |url-status=live |journal=Asian Studies |volume=43 |issue=2v |pages=1–15 |archive-url =https://web.archive.org/web/20220917111325/https://asj.upd.edu.ph/mediabox/archive/ASJ-43-02-2007/Faith%20Healing%20in%20the%20Philippines%20Zeus%20Salazar.pdf |archive-date=17 September 2022 |access-date=22 April 2019}}</ref> 

In some ethnic groups, there can be more than two souls. Among the [[Tagbanwa people]] of the Philippines a person is said to have six souls—the "free soul" (which is regarded as the "true" soul) and five secondary souls with various functions.<ref name="tan"/> Several [[Inuit]] groups believe that a person has more than one type of soul. One is associated with respiration, the other can accompany the body as a shadow.<ref>Kleivan, Inge; Sonne, B. (1985). "Arctic peoples". Eskimos. Greenland and Canada. Institute of Religious Iconography. Iconography of religions. Leiden (The Netherlands): State University Groningen, via E.J. Brill. section VIII, fascicle 2. ISBN 90-04-07160-1.</ref> In some cases, it is connected to [[Inuit religion|shamanistic beliefs among the various Inuit groups]].<ref name="Merkur" /> [[Caribou Inuit]] groups also believed in several types of souls.<ref>Gabus, Jean (1970). A karibu eszkimók (in Hungarian). Budapest: Gondolat Kiadó. Translation of the original: Gabus, Jean (1944). Vie et coutumes des Esquimaux Caribous. Libraire Payot Lausanne.</ref>

===Sikhism===
In [[Sikhism]], the soul, referred to as the ''Ātman'', is understood as a pure consciousness without any content.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Virk |first=Hardev |date=2018 |title=Concept of Mind, Body and Soul in the Sikh Scripture (SGGS) |url=https://www.researchgate.net/publication/322622656}}</ref> The soul is considered to be eternal and inherently connected to the divine (''[[Paramatman]]''), although its journey is shaped by [[karma]]—the cumulative effect of one's actions, thoughts, and deeds. According to Sikh teachings, the soul undergoes cycles of rebirth (transmigration) until it achieves liberation (''mukti'') from this cycle, a process governed by the principles of divine order (''[[hukam]]'') and grace (''nadar'').<ref name=":10">{{Cite web |last=Hays |first=Jeffrey |title=Sikhism Beliefs: God, Karma, Duties and Justice {{!}} Facts and Details |url=https://factsanddetails.com/india/Religion_Caste_Folk_Beliefs_Death/sub7_2c/entry-8690.html |access-date=2025-04-16 |website=factsanddetails.com |language=en}}</ref>

The cycle of rebirth is influenced by the individual's attachment to worldly desires and ego (''haumai''), which obscures the soul's innate connection to the divine. Sikh scripture warns that preoccupation with material wealth, familial ties, or sensory pleasures at the moment of death can lead to rebirth in lower life forms, such as animals or spirits. Conversely, meditation on God's name ([[Naam Japo|Nam Simran]]) and remembrance of the divine (''[[Waheguru]]'') during life—and especially at death—enable the soul to merge with the eternal truth ([[Sach Khand]]), ending the cycle of reincarnation.<ref name=":10" /><ref>{{Cite web |title=What Do Sikhs Believe About the Afterlife? |url=https://www.learnreligions.com/sikhs-believe-about-the-afterlife-2993490 |access-date=2025-04-16 |website=Learn Religions |language=en}}</ref>

Central to Sikh doctrine is the belief that while karma determines the soul's trajectory, divine grace can transcend karmic limitations. The [[Guru Granth Sahib]] claims that liberation ultimately depends on God's will.<ref name=":10" /> Ethical living, including honest labor ([[Kirat Karo]]), sharing resources ([[Vand Chhako]]), and community service (''seva'').<ref name=":10" />

===Taoism===
In [[Taoism]], the idea of the "soul" is not a single, unchanging entity like in many Western traditions. Instead, it is seen as a dynamic balance of energies. Two key parts are the [[hun and po|''hun'' and ''po'']]. The ''hun'' is the "ethereal soul", linked to light, spiritual awareness, and the mind. It is considered yang ('active, upward energy') and is said to depart the body after death. The ''po'' is the "corporeal soul", tied to the body, instincts, and physical senses. It is yin ('passive, earthly energy') and stays with the body after death, dissolving back into the earth over time.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Robinet |first=Isabelle |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=9e7wzgEACAAJ |title=Taoism: Growth of a Religion |date=2022 |publisher=Stanford University Press |isbn=978-0-8047-6494-0 |language=en}}</ref>

There is significant scholarly debate about the [[Taoism|Taoist]] understanding of [[death]].<ref name=EoB>{{citation|title= Encyclopedia of Bioethics|page=2467|author=Warren T. Reich|year=1995|publisher=Simon & Schuster Macmillan |isbn=978-0-02-897355-5|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=bmaoP_Azp-4C}}</ref>  The process of death itself is described as ''[[Shijie (Daoism)|shijie]]'' or "release from the corpse", but what happens after is described variously as [[Spiritual transformation|transformation]], [[immortality]] or ascension of the soul to [[Tian|heaven]]. For example, the [[Yellow Emperor]] was said to have ascended directly to heaven in plain sight, while the [[thaumaturge]] [[Ye Fashan]] was said to have transformed into a sword and then into a column of smoke which rose to heaven.<ref name=eoT>{{citation|chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=t8h8myrpxAUC&pg=PA896|title=The encyclopedia of Taoism|chapter=shijie|author=Russell Kirkland|publisher=Routledge|year=2008|isbn=978-0-7007-1200-7}}</ref>

Taoist texts such as the [[Zhuangzi (book)|Zhuangzi]] suggest the soul is not separate from the natural world but part of the flow of the Tao (the universal principle). One passage states, "Heaven and earth were born at the same time I was, and the ten thousand things are one with me."<ref>{{Cite web |title=The Complete Works of Chuang Tzu translated by Burton Watson, Terebess Asia Online (TAO) |url=https://terebess.hu/english/chuangtzu.html#2 |access-date=2025-04-15 |website=terebess.hu}}</ref> Similarly, the ''[[Tao Te Ching|Daodejing]]'' teaches that harmony with the Tao dissolves rigid boundaries between self and cosmos: "Returning to one's roots is known as stillness. This is what is meant by returning to one's destiny."<ref>{{Cite web |title=Chapter-16-Commentary |url=https://www.centertao.org/essays/tao-te-ching/dc-lau/chapter-16-commentary/ |access-date=2025-04-15 |website=www.centertao.org}}</ref>