Where is the soul of a person before he is born and after he has died?
Since the beginning of our time people have been concerned with the question of the nature and constitution of the soul.
The Greek philosopher Plato, for example, was of the opinion that the soul is only bound to the human body for the duration of a lifetime. Before and after it was completely free of earthly restrictions
Free from space, time and gravity – that’s how I understand it.
I imagine that after my death I can be at different places and times at the same time. In this world after that there is no big and small, no end and no beginning. My fantasy about this is probably one of many.
The mortal soul
Plato’s student, Aristotle, saw it differently. He was convinced that the body was inseparable from the soul. Death would thus end not only the body but also the soul.
Mindfulness is a great concept of our time. Where do we feel, for example, when we feel sorrow or happiness? Is that where our soul is?
The soul has been suspected in many places throughout history: for example, in the liver and heart. Researchers today still cannot say with certainty what the soul is. But one is sure that it has its headquarters in the brain.
In the neurosciences, the concept of the soul is in principle rather avoided. This is considered unscientific and metaphysical. Instead, the psyche is usually spoken of as one of the numerous brain functions.
In a world in which mankind is increasingly confronted with artificial intelligence – isn’t it time to deal scientifically with the difficult subject of the place and structure of the soul?
Isn’t it the characteristic of the human being par excellence in all its incomprehensibility, which will distinguish us from our technical counterpart?