Soul searching (Part Two)

Now that we’ve go a better idea where the center of our body hides, and if we stay on the subject, it’s only fair to ask where does our soul hides? Here’s a question that bridges biology, philosophy, and spirituality. The idea of a “location” for the soul depends entirely on the lens through which we view it. 

Obviously, modern science does not recognize the soul as a physical entity, so it has no anatomical location. However we all agree that consciousness, that’s often conflated with the soul, is linked to brain activity—particularly the prefrontal cortex, limbic system, and neural networks—but we can’t say it’s the a soul in metaphysical terms. In fact that’s a question that all religions have addressed in their own manner. 

Christianity seems to see the soul as immaterial, residing in the whole person or “heart.” This explains why some mystics place it near the chest. In Islam, the soul is breathed into the body by God; its location is undefined but central to life. For the Hindus, the soul is eternal and resides within the body, often associated with the heart chakra, or Anahata, (the fourth of the seven main chakras) and it represents love, compassion, and balance. 

It’s found in the center of the chest and serves as a bridge between the lower, earthly chakras and the upper, spiritual chakras. Buddhism rejects the whole idea of a permanent soul, focusing instead on consciousness and karmic continuity and Taoism believes that the soul is part of the Qi flow, a diffuse, dynamic element not confined to one place. From a philosophical viewpoint “The soul is not in the body; the body is in the soul.” 

This poetic inversion suggests that the soul is a field of awareness or essence that envelops and animates the body, rather than being housed within it. Personally I feel strongly that my consciousness is fully part of my body, especially when I feel pain in my chest when I grieve, in my gut when I fear, or in my fingertips when I create something. 

This to me means that my spiritual component is everywhere and nowhere at the same time. It’s a presence, it’s totally attached to me rather than floating in a precise place and won’t ever leave me.