- What is the soul?
The soul is a concept of human life that has been interpreted differently by different people, with ancient philosophers arguing that the soul only exists in humans and not in other animals and plants (Baker & Goetz, 2011). Whether or not, this is factual, has been a theme of deliberation in the fields of religion and philosophy. Even more complicated is the relationship between the body and soul. It may be difficult to understand how the material body is linked to the soul which is presumably intangible and invisible. Plato explains the soul as having faculties or parts. The philosopher then argues that the various classes of people in society are driven into their occupations.
According to Plato, the entrepreneurial class in the society, which he refers to as the producers, are governed by their desires or what he refers to as appetites. For instance, Plato says that the producers are driven by their desire for money and luxuries. Further, Plato explains that the warriors, who make up the auxiliary class, are driven by the part referred to as the spirits. Such spirits are the force behind the warriors’ courage and morale. As such, he argues that the soul is the natural determinant of an individual’s destiny as it is unchangeable (Plato & Bloom, 1991). Lastly, Plato says that the noble class, which is made up of rulers, is driven by the highest faculty that concerns itself with wisdom.
The best and most appropriate illustration of the nature of the soul, and its correlation to the body, is through religion. In my religion, Islam, the soul is deemed to be immortal. As such, it goes to God, Allah when the body dies. The Quran, our holy book, explains that, upon death, the soul is exposed to higher knowledge – knowledge that it could not perceive while entrapped in the human body. The Quran says: "God takes the souls (al-anfus) at the time of their death, and those that did not during their sleep; then He withholds those on whom He has passed the decree of death and sends the others back till an appointed term; most surely there are signs in this for a people who reflect." (Qur'an 39:42). This shows the immortal nature of the soul.
The main argument for the platonic view of the soul is that, indeed, the leaders in society are deemed the wisest people and are thought to be in such a state of affairs that they can perceive that which an ordinary being cannot perceive. However, this case can be opposed by the fact that, in most cases, the entrepreneurial class and even the warriors advise the leaders on matters of essence. Are not our presidents and leaders advised on various matters by the businessmen other security personnel? This disputes that people are stuck to using one faculty of the soul. The fact that an ordinary individual can be the advisor of a prominent leader means that not only the leaders are capable of using their higher faculties of reasoning to make judgments. The other classes of society can as well hold high degrees of intellect. In De Anime, Aristotle observes that the soul is basically concerned with the difference between the mortal and the non living objects. In the real life however, it is true that it is not just the human kind that possess a soul.
In my view, therefore, Aristotle is right in saying that the soul cannot possibly be divided into various parts as does Plato. The soul is basically concerned with the state of either being alive or not alive. There is enough proof that other animals do have souls. Considering the fact that souls are associated with emotions and feelings, it is worth concluding that the animals have souls as well as humans do. The fact that animals do display such emotions as fear, fright, anger and rage is a clear indication that animals possess souls. This is to say that Aristotle’s theory that the soul is the property distinguishing life from lack of life. Aquinas observes that souls are immortal and move from one corporeal shape to another. In De Anime, Aristotle explains that souls are substances over forms. This is because souls are intangible and invisible, yet they exist and control the actions of the substance, which is the physical body.
In my own understanding, the soul is an immortal form in the body of a human being. This form, from my point of view, is the factor that differentiates the living from the dead. From my own analysis of the Buddhist and Hinduism explanations of the soul, I imagine the soul is an immortal form, and not substance. The Buddhist and Hinduism approaches, the soul leaves the dead body and goes through a cycle in such a way that it penetrates the body of a newly born individual and re-lives.
- The infinite openness of the human mind
Debatably, the human mind is the most complicated organ. Philosophy has it that the human mind has infinite capacity. The term capacity is interchangeably used with the word openness. Arguably, the human mind, which is said to be closely connected to the heart, is the central system for reason and judgment. Similarly, it is the human mind that translates things to the body. Augustine & Foley (2006), note that the human mind is capable of perceiving and interpreting unusually many things at once. According to Augustine, the human mind’s capacity to learn is not limited. From the study of Augustine’s confessions, the most complicated thing for brainpower to do is to learn knowledge that is against ideology.
Essentially, ideology is something that is commonly believed by members of a society as being true. It is human nature to reject those things that are against ideology (Thomas & Kreeft, 1990). In real life, for example, a child takes what the parents teach them as being the gospel truth. As such, the teachings of the parent are the foundations of a child’s ideology. If a parent teaches his son that sweets are dangerous, it will not be easy for another person to convince the child that sweets are good. It is not because the individual does not know how to convince, but because the information he is introducing to the child is against the child’s ideology. In other words, the human mind will not be able to accommodate anti-ideology information, however, open it is.
The idea of infinite openness of the mind can be countered by religious perspectives. In religion, the mind is thought to be linked to the heart in such a manner that the brain perceives something, which is then interpreted by the heart. Whether or not the confusion is brought by language, this is a metaphysical idea which cannot be verified. Many philosophers have argued that religion is a heap of fallacies. Even so it is common across all religions that the Supreme Being judges the human being by the purity of their heart. This is an indication that metaphysically, it is the heart and not minds that thinks. The Quran says: Have they not traveled throughout the Earth, with their hearts to reason with, and ears to hear with? Truly it is not the eyes that become blind, but do the hearts which are in the chests (Al-Hajj, 22: 46).this verse is an indication that the mind has no capacity at all. Instead, it is the heart that learns and reasons.
Religious books and theories, as well, bring out the idea that the human mind as an object that is capable of perceiving that which other creatures cannot perceive. Rationally, the human brain has the capacity to learn. In my opinion therefore, the fact that the human beings can learn animal behavior by taming them, indicates that the brain of a human being has the unlimited capability of thinking beyond the kingdom of mankind. Even so, this view has been challenged by various scholars. The opponents of the idea argue that the human mind’s capacity is determined by nurture more than nurture. In Jean-Paul Sartre’s existentialism, the human mind is portrayed as being capable of differential capacities. Sartre explains that humans have the tendency to judge their fellow human beings through assessing the achievements of such people.
In Sartre’s understanding, what I can effectively draw from the argument is that the substance without the form is just but an existing body. There is a great disparity between the form and the substance. The form lives while the substance exists. For proper interaction and functioning, therefore, the human being should try to strike an equilibrium between the substance and the higher faculties that deal with reason. Reason is an aspect of the superior senses of the soul and concerns itself with such functions as determining the actions of the body.
In real life perspectives, generalization of the fact that the human mind has infinite capacity to accommodate information and knowledge is a misconception. The nature-nurture analysis proves that naturally, the mind is capable of infinite capacity, but due to the prejudices and subjectivities brought about by the inconsistencies of the environment, the capacities of the minds become limited. In my opinion, therefore, such prejudices as religion and socio-political ideologies can tamper with the openness of the mind by creating barriers to the willingness to learn new things. Thinking of the human mind as a social organ, I could say that interactions and socializing processes are endless. It is for this reason that the brains of man will always endeavor to learn more each day. There is no time, therefore, than the mind will be said to be saturated with information.
- Human nature and private property
The study of human nature and private property is the source of such concepts as communism and capitalism. Collectivism and individualism can as well be said to be an fundamental part of the study. Human nature is usually in such a way that the individual wants the best for themselves. However, with the environment, this nature changes so as to fit into society. Human beings can be associated with innate selfishness. This is a kind of desire for the best things in a competitive world where egocentrism is an integral characteristic. It is such selfish tendencies that bring about capitalism. In my opinion from real life experiences and from the reading of other scholarly views, capitalist communities are based on Karl Marx’s conflict theory.
In The Republic of Plato, ownership of property by individuals creates social classes. Such classes are in constant conflict over the control of resources. The rich control the resources while the poor strive to get the best out of the resources. This defines the modern day capitalistic communities. Capitalism is an economy characterized by many small private businesses and private ownership of property. Human nature, as explained by Plato, is in such a way that priorities are ranked starting with self (Plato & Bloom, 1991). Ego and self play a key role in making decisions concerning limited resources.
Worth noting is the fact that such nature is altered by such sociological factors as religion. Religious teachings change the nature of humans a great deal. Islam for instance teaches that generosity is a core value of righteousness. In fact, generosity forms the five pillars of Islam. Muhammad taught much about generosity which is manifested in the third pillar referred to as Zakat. The Quran records “And whatever you spend in good, it will be repaid to you in full, and you shall not be wronged.” (Quran 2:272). From the religious standpoint, then, human nature is manipulated by the emphasis on social responsibility.
Worth considering, as well, is the relationship between collectivism, capitalism and motivation. In real life, collectivism exists in a handful of communities. Capitalism is the most common system. In a capitalistic society, competition is high as everyone struggles to attain wealth. This motivates people to work. They work out of necessity and try to satisfy their egocentric desires. In a collectivist society, people share the wealth and use combined effort. Individuals are not motivated since the industrious and the slow personalities all yield equal share.
Maritain explains that society cannot fully rely on collectivist efforts. He gives great detail to the fact that capitalist societies are better developed than the communist and socialist economies. Maritain further writes that the capitalist societies encourage motivation and innovation since the competition is stiff. I tend to support the idea that the capitalist economy is a competitive environment that provides both opportunities are threats to the entrepreneurs. The entrepreneurial skills in a capitalist economy are exceptional as every business person endeavors to sustain their firms in the market. Worth noting is the fact that the United States, being the biggest proponent of capitalism is the biggest and most powerful economy in the entire world. Unknown too many is the fact that the small businesses are the most significant contributors to the economy. The small and middle level enterprises are the biggest employers and contributors to the national income. The small businesses as well make the most significant tax paying bracket. As such, they are said to be national assets, thanks to the system of capitalism.
In my own perspective, human nature is in such a way that collectivism cannot be achieved without restrictive measures such as legal structures and administrative directives. A collectivist society is one that is, in most cases, established by religious structures and political arrangements. Even so, pure collectivist societies do not exist since individualism and the scarcity of resources cause competition. This explains why even the extreme communist nations have capitalism within their structures. In essence then, individualism is an inherent feature of the human nature, and so is egocentrism. Notably, philosophers like Plato explained society as a capitalist and competitive structure with the rich controlling the resources and the poor leading miserable lives. In The Republic of Plato, the social classes are founded on capitalism and individualism. In conclusion, then, it is quite notable that actualization of the self is a common objective among the members of society.
References
Augustine., Sheed, F. J., & Foley, M. P. (2006). Confessions. Indianapolis: Hackett Pub. Co
Baker, M. C., & Goetz, S. (2011). The soul hypothesis: Investigations into the existence of the soul. New York: Continuum.
Plato., & Bloom, A. D. (1991). The Republic of Plato. New York: Basic Books.
Thomas ., & Kreeft, P. (1990). A summa of the Summa: The essential philosophical passages of St. Thomas Aquinas' Summa theologica. San Francisco: Ignatius Press.
