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Aristotelian's Beliefs On The Location Of The Soul During Life

1904 Words8 Pages

Thesis/intro I argue that between the Egyptian, Chinese, and Aristotelian views, the Egyptian’s beliefs on the location of the soul during life is the most plausible. On the other hand, the Chinese/Aristotelian philosophies on the function/composition of the soul during life is more plausible. In this essay, I will discuss the Egyptian, Chinese, and Aristotelian views on the soul’s location and its function/composition during life. Then, I will discuss which aspects of each philosophy I find to be more plausible in each of these categories.
Egyptian soul:
The ancient Egyptians believed (unlike the Chinese) that the soul contained nine components, and that all of these nine components were located in the heart. The main purposes of the different aspects of the soul are often associated with helping it reach the afterlife. Thus, there were several parts of the soul, including the Akhu, Ka, Saku, and Sekhem, that existed and functioned primarily after death. Since these are irrelevant to the location or function/composition of the soul during life, I have chosen to exclude them. …show more content…

The Khabit is one’s shadow, which is considered part of the soul. It is able to detach itself from the body at will and travel, though always staying near the ba. No particular role or function has been attributed to the Kahbit. The second component of the soul is the Ba. The Ba was often depicted as a human-headed bird. The Ba has an ethereal nature, and like the Khabit, is able to fly around at will. The Ba seems to have been regarded as the essential nature of the person. Thus, the “Ba” aspect of the soul is more like our modern idea of the soul. It is one’s personality, their nature, and their

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