# Where Is Your Soul? **URL:** \ **Category:** Great Debates\ **Created:** [October 17, 2003, 4:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-is-your-soul/208042 "2003-10-17T16:13:02Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![SentientMeat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/43a26b/32.png) [@SentientMeat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SentientMeat)\ **Post date:** [October 21, 2003, 10:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-is-your-soul/208042/61 "2003-10-21T10:45:21Z")
Auras are for our souls. ---
**Author:** ![The\_Great\_Unwashed](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/the_great_unwashed/32/4791_2.png) [@The\_Great\_Unwashed](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Great_Unwashed)\ **Post date:** [October 21, 2003, 10:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-is-your-soul/208042/62 "2003-10-21T10:54:22Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by lekatt \* > \*\*Yes, the aura is brighter in relation to spiritual growth. > > The colors reveal emotions and thoughts. > > Some people see these colors surrounding others all their life, it is just natural to them and they believe everyone sees them. At least until they get old enough to learn different. > > I can see auras only by meditation. I am not very good at it. > > Love \*\* Wrong, wrong, WRONG! – no-one has ever demonstrated any ability to see auras. No-one! Never! Some have claimed to be able to do so, whether they are self-deluding or fraudulent matters not one bit – the simple fact is that they simply cannot. Okay? ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [October 21, 2003, 4:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-is-your-soul/208042/63 "2003-10-21T16:21:25Z")
You da Meat, **Sentient**. 😃 I’m expecting a post from **Lekatt** any moment now on the spiritual power of mood rings. ---
**Author:** ![lekatt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lekatt/32/7269_2.png) [@lekatt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lekatt)\ **Post date:** [October 21, 2003, 6:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-is-your-soul/208042/64 "2003-10-21T18:23:46Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Marley23 \* > \*\*It is really a good ideqa to take the accounts of people under anasthesia at face value? \*\* No, and no one does that, read the material and learn. ---
**Author:** ![lekatt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lekatt/32/7269_2.png) [@lekatt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lekatt)\ **Post date:** [October 21, 2003, 6:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-is-your-soul/208042/65 "2003-10-21T18:29:30Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Marley23 \* > \*\*You da Meat, **Sentient**. 😃 > > I’m expecting a post from **Lekatt** any moment now on the spiritual power of mood rings. \*\* And I’m expecting a post from Marley23 any moment now showing an adult attitude of respect towards the views and feelings of others. I’d say we have about the same chances of success. Love ---
**Author:** ![lekatt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lekatt/32/7269_2.png) [@lekatt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lekatt)\ **Post date:** [October 21, 2003, 6:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-is-your-soul/208042/66 "2003-10-21T18:31:28Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by The Great Unwashed \* > \*\*Wrong, wrong, WRONG! – no-one has ever demonstrated any ability to see auras. No-one! Never! Some have claimed to be able to do so, whether they are self-deluding or fraudulent matters not one bit – the simple fact is that they simply cannot. > > Okay? \*\* Not Okay. How would we be able to know anything about them if no one ever saw them. Strange. ---
**Author:** ![Isabelle](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/b5a626/32.png) [@Isabelle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Isabelle)\ **Post date:** [October 21, 2003, 6:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-is-your-soul/208042/67 "2003-10-21T18:32:54Z")
Wait a minute! Mood rings do work! I remember when I got one in the 8th grade. It read “black” all the time which I guess meant I was a cold hearted snot nose. Then I tried one a year or so again (it was my daughters) It read that I was pure in spirit, a beautiful soul and was great in bed! Who can argue with that? \ ---
**Author:** ![Isabelle](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/b5a626/32.png) [@Isabelle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Isabelle)\ **Post date:** [October 21, 2003, 6:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-is-your-soul/208042/68 "2003-10-21T18:41:42Z")
> [@](#): > > Wrong, wrong, WRONG! – no-one has ever demonstrated any ability to see auras. No-one! Never! Some have claimed to be able to do so, whether they are self-deluding or fraudulent matters not one bit – the simple fact is that they simply cannot. Just a question… How would someone who CLAIMS to read auras know how to do this? I have never seen a course offered in college and I have never seen a technical school. Is this a self taught ability kindda like reading Tarot cards? I find it VERY difficult to believe that anyone can see an aura. That would mean scintifically there was something different with their eyes compared to everyone else on this planet. ---
**Author:** ![lekatt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lekatt/32/7269_2.png) [@lekatt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lekatt)\ **Post date:** [October 21, 2003, 8:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-is-your-soul/208042/69 "2003-10-21T20:06:28Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Isabelle \* > \*\*Just a question… > How would someone who CLAIMS to read auras know how to do this? I have never seen a course offered in college and I have never seen a technical school. Is this a self taught ability kindda like reading Tarot cards? > > I find it VERY difficult to believe that anyone can see an aura. That would mean scintifically there was something different with their eyes compared to everyone else on this planet. \*\* Yes, you can teach yourself to see them in the same manner as you grow spiritually. The halos painted around the head on ancient portraits are auras seen by the painter or by others. That is where they come from. The more spiritual you are the brighter the light. Must go to work now, later. LOve ---
**Author:** ![Isabelle](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/b5a626/32.png) [@Isabelle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Isabelle)\ **Post date:** [October 21, 2003, 8:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-is-your-soul/208042/70 "2003-10-21T20:24:20Z")
> [@](#): > > The halos painted around the head on ancient portraits are auras seen by the painter or by others. That is where they come from. The more spiritual you are the brighter the light. I doubt that but taking it to IMHO to see what others think. ---
**Author:** ![The\_Great\_Unwashed](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/the_great_unwashed/32/4791_2.png) [@The\_Great\_Unwashed](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Great_Unwashed)\ **Post date:** [October 21, 2003, 9:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-is-your-soul/208042/71 "2003-10-21T21:43:43Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by lekatt \* > \*\*Not Okay. How would we be able to know anything about them if no one ever saw them. Strange. \*\* Yes, but they’re only seeable by delusional people, and who cares what they think? (Well, besides you, obviously.) ---
**Author:** ![Edlyn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/8797f3/32.png) [@Edlyn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Edlyn)\ **Post date:** [October 21, 2003, 10:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-is-your-soul/208042/72 "2003-10-21T22:06:15Z")
It’s simply energy, **Isabelle**. I guess my thoughts on this are that perhaps some have developed their senses more than others. And on the other hand, not everyone’s eyes are the same. I know of someone who has more “rods” within their eyes which results in receiving more light. What may seem like normal lighting in a room to me can be extremely brightly lit to them, even to the point of causing discomfort. ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [October 21, 2003, 10:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-is-your-soul/208042/73 "2003-10-21T22:28:13Z")
> [@](#): > > And I’m expecting a post from Marley23 any moment now showing an adult attitude of respect towards the views and feelings of others. > > I’d say we have about the same chances of success. Pffft. (Read: :p) I’m perfectly capable of tolerating the opinions and feelings of others. On the other hand, when we start throwing around silly words like ‘proof,’ things change. I’m under no obligation to respect opinions that are thrown out there with no shred of reasonable evidence. Why should I respect a belief in auras? (Or mood rings, which you haven’t demonstrated are any less valid as spiritual indicators.) The fact that you happen to have an opinion doesn’t make it worthy of my respect or anybody else’s. I respect your right to _have_ an opinion. I think you know what I - along with about 9 out of every 10 people who reply to your posts around here (so singling me out is a little misleading) - think of your opinions. If you ever provide real backup for anything you say, it’d be different. ---
**Author:** ![DocCathode](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/doccathode/32/18773_2.png) [@DocCathode](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DocCathode)\ **Post date:** [October 22, 2003, 2:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-is-your-soul/208042/74 "2003-10-22T02:05:50Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by lekatt \* > \*\* > I can see auras only by meditation. > \*\* No, you can’t. Your MetaConscious Mind is gone. We’ve been over this. I warned you of the Pseudotheizine poisoning. I offered my help. You refused it. There was a time when your MCM could have been saved. Instead, you were content to ignore me as the contagion spread. In the end, the Pseudotheizine ate away your MCM as necrotizing fasciitis eats tissue. That part of you is gone forever. You’re a man whose hollow sockets writhe with maggots, shouting about the wonders you can see. ---
**Author:** ![Edlyn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/8797f3/32.png) [@Edlyn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Edlyn)\ **Post date:** [October 22, 2003, 2:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-is-your-soul/208042/75 "2003-10-22T02:17:10Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Marley23 \* > I’m perfectly capable of tolerating the opinions and feelings of others. I respect your right to _have_ an opinion. I’d like to see you live up to your claims. Of course you do not have to accept anything without the proof that you require. However, that doesn’t mean that that is true for everyone else. Nor should you and anyone else who has posted in this thread ridicule others that do not require such proof. I’m sure I am not the only one who enjoys exploring other ideas for thought and consideration and that includes what Lekatt would like to share. ---
**Author:** ![CurtC](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/ce73a5/32.png) [@CurtC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CurtC)\ **Post date:** [October 22, 2003, 2:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-is-your-soul/208042/76 "2003-10-22T02:37:03Z")
The idea that “soul = aura” is certainly one that I can subscribe to. They’re both fantasies, the only difference is that delusional people believe they can “see” auras. ---
**Author:** ![antechinus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/fbc32d/32.png) [@antechinus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/antechinus)\ **Post date:** [October 22, 2003, 3:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-is-your-soul/208042/77 "2003-10-22T03:33:47Z")
I always thought of the soul, or rather soul, as a type of emotional intelligence. Some people have more soul than others. Those with soul are more able to empathise with others, appreciate beauty and love, those without seem sort of disconnected and standed from humanity. For example people such as Nelson Mandela have more soul, whereas George Bush, autistic people and many criminals have little soul. The soul is part of the mind, along with intelligence and memory, and the mind resides within the central nervous system. Thus, so does the soul. Consciousness resides within the part of the CNS called the cerebrum. The traditional, mythical definition of ‘soul’ is just that - a myth. We have come along way in our understanding of the world since the term was used synonymously with ‘spirit’. When you die, so does your intelligence and memory and soul. People who see auras (migraneurs exepted) are delusional. ---
**Author:** ![SentientMeat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/43a26b/32.png) [@SentientMeat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SentientMeat)\ **Post date:** [October 22, 2003, 8:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-is-your-soul/208042/78 "2003-10-22T08:17:06Z")
> [@](#): > > Consciousness resides within the part of the CNS called the cerebrum. I must ask you where you heard this guff. No single part of the brain has ever been correlated with the illusion called “consciousness”. It appears to be a function of sensory input coupled with different layers of memory (_cf._ Susan Greenfield’s work). ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [October 22, 2003, 9:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-is-your-soul/208042/79 "2003-10-22T09:09:12Z")
> [@](#): > > Of course you do not have to accept anything without the proof that you require. However, that doesn’t mean that that is true for everyone else. I’m not even close to the only person here who insists upon proof, or at least evidence, for outlandish claims. It wouldn’t be the Straight Dope otherwise. Why my comment, which I think was a perfectly valid question, is more objectionable than all the other comments to lekatt is beyond me. > [@](#): > > I’m sure I am not the only one who enjoys exploring other ideas for thought and consideration and that includes what Lekatt would like to share. Nobody has a problem with other ideas. When you insist something is true based on nothing, you get into trouble around here (rhetorically), which is perfectly fair. > [@](#): > > For example people such as Nelson Mandela have more soul, whereas George Bush, autistic people and many criminals have little soul. I have to say, **antechinus** , that’s pretty unkind. Autism is a disorder, and it seems unfair to lump people with it in with the others, who have done something you think is reprehensible (Bush and criminals). ---
**Author:** ![lekatt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lekatt/32/7269_2.png) [@lekatt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lekatt)\ **Post date:** [October 22, 2003, 9:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-is-your-soul/208042/80 "2003-10-22T09:22:10Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Edlyn \* > \*\*It’s simply energy, **Isabelle**. I guess my thoughts on this are that perhaps some have developed their senses more than others. And on the other hand, not everyone’s eyes are the same. I know of someone who has more “rods” within their eyes which results in receiving more light. What may seem like normal lighting in a room to me can be extremely brightly lit to them, even to the point of causing discomfort. \*\* Thanks. I will explain what I know about it and leave, the thread is filling up again with detractors. The physical body resides within the soul. The overlap of the soul causes the aura. The soul also has senses, and can see the soul of others if not blocked by negative emotions in the body. Fear is the number one blocker. Anger, resentment, hate are others. Spiritual growth is the process of learning how to love the unloveable. Another way of saying it, is understanding why certain people and things are unloveable thereby gaining the knowledge needed to love under these conditions. The more spiritual you become the more you can see spiritual things. The evidence that soul or consciousness exists is found in NDEs. I have shown the links to this information earlier in this thread. I apoligize for such a simplistic explanation, but time is short for me during the week. If any are really interested come to my message board where we can continue in relative peace. Love Leroy [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-is-your-soul/208042.md?page=3) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-is-your-soul/208042.md?page=5)