I made this post to spark discussion. Please comment below how you feel and why. Gut feeling/fear of the unknown are not acceptable arguments to support your case.

by Anonymous 12 years ago

How can you not believe that you have a soul? Honestly, it's just something you feel (not a gut feeling, it's different)... It's that connection to your inner self and other human beings, that universal feeling. But I guess people who aren't religious or spiritual in some way won't understand that. Oh, and I'm guessing this will probably be downvoted.

by Anonymous 12 years ago

The reason why people disagree on this is because they are looking at it from a religious perspective or a scientific perspective. Have a soul comes with the territory of being religious, just like how not having one comes with the territory of science.

by Anonymous 12 years ago

Yeah, I get that. But all the same, I almost feel bad for people who can't even feel their own soul. I don't see it as religion; it's just the human spirit within all of us.

by Anonymous 12 years ago

That's conscience, hun.

by Anonymous 12 years ago

You can't feel a soul, otherwise there would never be debates about whether it exists.

by Anonymous 12 years ago

What you said sounds pretty unscientific and wishy-washy. What is the inner self? What kind of connection are you talking about? What is the universal feeling that you speak of? I don't believe in a soul because there is no working model for how or where the soul exists; there's nothing about human behavior that can't be explained by the actions of our brains; and also because humans evolved from other primates, yet most people think that only humans have souls, which is pretty arrogant. When, then, did the first soul appear? How did the soul evolve in Homo sapiens? Since these questions are unanswerable, most people postulate that the soul is given to us by God, which is when any discussion of the soul becomes inherently unscientific and opinionated, and therefore not worth having.

by Anonymous 12 years ago

I agree with you anon, but read my comment above; my first reply to eastcoast.

by Anonymous 12 years ago

I believe animals have souls, too. And it really has nothing to do with God. Someone can be any religion, or even Agnostic. The only person who wouldn't understand is someone who doesn't follow any religion or anything. So an Atheist, basically. Oh and just to be clear, believe whatever you want, but the OP wanted a discussion so I tried my best haha

by Anonymous 12 years ago

Athiests can believe in souls. They are not a strictly religious thingy (lack of better term). its the belief that there is something more inside you. Not every athiest is a science-spouting ninny.

by Anonymous 12 years ago

Ah. Sorry, don't know many. People can believe whatever they want, and I will believe that people have souls haha.

by Anonymous 12 years ago

Lol, typical religious person on the internet. First you ask "how can someone not believe in souls", then as soon as I tell you, you say "believe whatever you want, I tried my best" People like are you are the reason I don't believe in souls. Either you can explain why you believe, or you can't. If you can't, it means you have no reason to believe other than your wishy-washy religious thinking.

by Anonymous 12 years ago

Just for clarification, I'd still like to know what you mean by "inner self" and "connection". If you can define those terms, we could have a more thoughtful discussion about the existence of a soul.

by Anonymous 12 years ago

Well, I guess I would say that your inner self is your conscience. Your sense of right and wrong, and what you would do in a certain situation. What guides you, what defines you, etc. I guess that's part of your brain and your personality, but at the same time, there's something else deeper. If you know what self-actualization is, that's kind of what I'm talking about. Being self-aware and all that. And as for a "connection" to other human beings, I mean something like when you think of someone you haven't seen in a long time, and then they message you. Or if you are about to call someone, and then they call you. Or when you say something or say the same sentence at the same time, even if it is completely out of context. Now this is kind of off-topic, only because this is how I believe human beings are connected, not specifically anything to do with the human soul, though it is related.

by Anonymous 12 years ago

I don't think that's what you mean by connection. what you meant is unity, because we all boil down to the same thing, the same people, who all want the same stuff.

by Anonymous 12 years ago

True. That part isn't as relative to this topic.

by Anonymous 12 years ago

Ah, you're right XP

by Anonymous 12 years ago

I didn't like my last answer. I'm not a neuroscientist, I'm not the person who should be explaining consciousness and morality to you, lol. All I can say is, just because you can't explain something doesn't mean you should ascribe it to something supernatural. Yes, consciousness and morality are extremely interesting and complex subjects, but just because we can't easily explain what makes humans conscious and moral doesn't mean we should jump to the conclusion that we have souls. You can go to the Wikipedia articles for morality and consciousness and you can see all of the biological models for how they exist. There's no reason to believe that a soul is the only explanation.

by Anonymous 12 years ago

I see what you're saying and I agree to some extent. The whole subject is just really complicated. I mean yes, morality & all that is part of the way the human brain functions, and obviously there are things we haven't discovered. I guess it's just hard to explain why you believe something; you just do.

by Anonymous 12 years ago

Stop capitalizing "atheist." Seriously, it's annoying.

by Anonymous 12 years ago

I'm genuinely curious, do you believe in love? Not a complete comparison to the soul, but there's no technical evidence on "love" either.

by Anonymous 12 years ago

It's hard to answer that, since people use the word "love" in so many different ways. But I've met 90-year-olds who say they're still in love with their significant others, so I guess that's all the technical evidence I need for that.

by Anonymous 12 years ago

Techically love is a strong mixture of Dopamine and (i think) seratonin. So there's your explanation. When you look from the outside, you can see this scientific explanation perfectly. But when you are "in love", its hard to see love for what it really is.

by Anonymous 11 years ago

i've never met anyone who doesn't.. thats a scary thought. our soul is who we are. our spirit is just trapped in our flesh and it is constantly in a battle with the fleshes desires... your morals vs. desires.

by Anonymous 12 years ago

If people do not have the same belief as you it does not qualify as "scary." How very ignorant of you to say.

by Anonymous 12 years ago

it was a scary thought for me to think there is no such thing as a soul... how is that ignorant?

by Anonymous 12 years ago

Apologies, I thought you meant "I've never met anyone who doesn't [believe in souls]." I thought you were referring to the difference of opinion and beliefs as scary. My bad.

by Anonymous 12 years ago

its all good.

by Anonymous 12 years ago

I'm still on the fence about it. The scientific part of me denies the possiblity-- I accept that our brain is the core of who we are, electrical impulses, etc, etc. And then there are some things I can't really explain. Like how you can meet someone for the first time and feel like you've known them foreveer (or, conversely, that you hate their guts). I think that means you've met that person's soul in a previous life. Or how you have twins, who go through life together, but one is artsy and creative and the other is more logical. I guess I would accept either answer without much difficulty if anyone could offer proof.

by Anonymous 12 years ago

We are soul. We just have bodies.

by Anonymous 12 years ago

Wow....something about souls and no ginger comments....my faith in society goes up a few points

by Anonymous 12 years ago

I didn't...and then I read Ender's Game, and even though that's all science fiction, it would be really cool.

by Anonymous 12 years ago

I believe in conciousness and in something that distinguishes us from rocks and inanimate objects. We make decisions and choices. I don't know how you're defining a soul. I don't know if there is a god, or if souls are different from conciousness. Morality is one thing that's intuitive to most people, so maybe a soul is what causes us to feel what's "right" and "wrong".

by Anonymous 12 years ago

I don't in the religious way, but I sort of think of someone's soul as who they are. Not an actual thing, but a concept, just like consciousness.

by Anonymous 12 years ago

Think about this: brain surgery can completely change someones personality and even remove their sense of morality. How could this happen if we have souls? Why would altering the brain alter the person if we had souls? It's nice to believe that we each have a unique soul, but it does not stand up to scrutiny. Look at people with autism or other mental illnesses, some can't even connect with other people simply because of their brain chemistry.

by Anonymous 11 years ago