Do people have souls???

[CrystalShadow]

I don't think so, I think that people just regularly confuse their 'minds' with their 'souls' (and even then, your mind is just a bunch of electrical and chemical responses in gray mushy matter).

Occam's Razor, the simplest answer is the right one. We have no solid evidence to support the existance of a soul, and therefore, at this time we must accept the fact that it probably doesn't exist.

Sorry, but that's misuse of occams razor.
It's only intended to distinguish between equivalent theories, not two ideas that have different consequences.

Also, it is essentially a mathematical convenience, since the simpler theory is easier to work with. NOT a statement of truth about how reality functions.

OT: Do we have a soul? Well, you'd first have to define what a soul is, and what it would mean to have one compared to not having one.

And since that's a question religions have a hard time agreeing on, it's almost impossible to answer.

More generally, I suppose you could argue that the 'soul' is simply a way of expressing the consequences of chaos theory and emergent behaviour.

Ie. That the behaviour of the whole cannot easily be predicted from the sum of it's parts.

But that's really just another fairly arbitrary statement that sounds interesting but doesn't really mean anything.

 

[Gigaguy64]

I believe so.

I believed that we exist in 3 parts.

A Physical body.
A Mind/Soul(also our Self or Personality).
And then a Spirit.

With all three tied to each other, so something you do to your body can effect your soul and spirit, and vice versa.

Though im the type of person who doesn't rule things out because of a lack of evidence, especially a lack of evidence both ways.

Well you just turned my shitty morning into something grand... Thank you

Awww, your welcome.
And i hope the rest of your day turns out better!

 

[loc978]

Seeing as no one is able to prove or disprove this, my take on it is as follows:

*shrug*
Don't know. Does it really matter?

 

[Jackhorse]

I do not believe we have a soul as such but it's worth considering the sould might be something other than an immortal relgion based part of you which goes to either a pretty happening place or dullsville if were naughty or nice.

I'd think the soul our moral self image which we concern ourselves with out of fear of abnormality and to placate those nagging fears that there is nothing beyond (somewhat more than nagging for me I don't worry about it but I do believe death to be death).

When a person says they wouldn't be able to look themselves in the mirror after some naughty deed which no one else would know about it's surely the hatred of abnormality and the fear that others might recognise these bad qaulities in them. The soul exists in our minds and that is enough to say it exists in one form in my mind.

 

[Axeli]

"Absence of evidence is not evidence of absence"?

I'm really tired of explaining basic logic to people, so here's the short version:

Pink Invisible Unicorn. Disprove.

 

[Madara XIII]

Well I'm one of the minorities in this so here goes...

*Puts up Giant 10 ft wall*

I believe we have souls and aren't just slaves to chemical reactions in our head. I could bring in the Frankenstein argument, but that's still lacking a bit more evidence on my part along with the fact that someone might just pounce at me and try to tear me a new one with their belief and what not.

To me a Human's personality is more than just a conditioned set of emotions and thoughts that makes us who we are. I dare say spiritual, but once again I'd be enticing the Troll cannons and flaming.

So yeah my take on the Soul is that it is what we truly are inside and associates heavily with any emotion, especially love when it's more than a mere infatuation or obsession.

*Comes out from behind my fort*

You may fire at me when ready....I got enough of a headache today ¬_¬

 

[Killersamman]

I think living things are too sensitive to not have some sort of soul, be it a manifestation of a deity or a subconscious link to each other...

 

[Danzaivar]

Hmm. I have never actually thought about it before...
I guess there is no evidence for people having souls so really there isn't anything for me to think that, however I find the idea that we're just slaves to chemicals in our bodies slightly disturbing.

I'm gonna go sit in a corner and think now
possibly going insane

Slaves to chemicals is a harder pill to swallow than being slaves to some energy plasma goop thing (a soul)?

 

[Irony's Acolyte]

Well we know we have mind (which is pretty close), which is our collection of memories, emotions, and thoughts that reside within our brains. But the only way to explain a soul is some sort of "spirit" which is not linked to physical body. This of course requires some sort of other-worldly effect or at least something that we cannot currently measure. So although right now I don't believe in humans having a soul (especially not in the traditional sense), I am open to the idea that maybe we have some sort of pattern of energy unique to us that is affected by the world around us. Since that can't be proven I don't currently believe it, but if some solid evidence were to pop up for it I'd be willing to change my views.

Edit: Oh and OP its "philosophy" and "philosophical". Don't mean to be a dick and I understand its an easy mistake to make, but I just wanted to let you know as your misspellings kinda bugged me.

 

[Blind Sight]

I don't think so, I think that people just regularly confuse their 'minds' with their 'souls' (and even then, your mind is just a bunch of electrical and chemical responses in gray mushy matter).

Occam's Razor, the simplest answer is the right one. We have no solid evidence to support the existance of a soul, and therefore, at this time we must accept the fact that it probably doesn't exist.

Sorry, but that's misuse of occams razor.
It's only intended to distinguish between equivalent theories, not two ideas that have different consequences.

Indeed, that's true, I was using it in the incorrect way that's widely accepted, rather then the original form.

My point still stands though, something that lacks any physical or logical evidence to support is not a theory to be taken seriously.

 

[IrradiatedFish]

The Strangers thought we had souls, and they're an evolved alien race. Guess it must be true!

Cookie if you catch the reference!

 

[Madara XIII]

I believe so.

I believed that we exist in 3 parts.

A Physical body.
A Mind/Soul(also our Self or Personality).
And then a Spirit.

With all three tied to each other, so something you do to your body can effect your soul and spirit, and vice versa.

Though im the type of person who doesn't rule things out because of a lack of evidence, especially a lack of evidence both ways.

Well you just turned my shitty morning into something grand... Thank you

Awww, your welcome.
And i hope the rest of your day turns out better!

Thanks I'm hoping so too, Just got a little over 3 hours sleep and God it annoys me how impatient people get just because I'm taking a few seconds to get my coffee....They really need to slow down..

 

[Madara XIII]

I think living things are too sensitive to not have some sort of soul, be it a manifestation of a deity or a subconscious link to each other...

Same especially how we take the loss of a fellow Human. You can't help but feel that grief and death affects something more than just your physical well being

 

[Tipsy Giant]

I don't think so, I think that people just regularly confuse their 'minds' with their 'souls' (and even then, your mind is just a bunch of electrical and chemical responses in gray mushy matter).

Occam's Razor, the simplest answer is the right one. We have no solid evidence to support the existance of a soul, and therefore, at this time we must accept the fact that it probably doesn't exist.

BOOM knowledge boom ^

It's just another way of describing our consciousness, if the question is "does that continue after death" no-one can answer that and that is the scariest thing to come to terms with, hence superstition and religion

 

[C95J]

Nope. Option 1.

 

[Madara XIII]

I don't, I'm ginger.

Also, LEARN TO SPELL

Oh yeah!! If gingers don't have souls then how is Ronald Weasly affected by Dementors!?

You have 1 hour to present a 3 page thesis to counter my argument.....aaaaaaaaand GO!

 

[Gigaguy64]

I believe so.

I believed that we exist in 3 parts.

A Physical body.
A Mind/Soul(also our Self or Personality).
And then a Spirit.

With all three tied to each other, so something you do to your body can effect your soul and spirit, and vice versa.

Though im the type of person who doesn't rule things out because of a lack of evidence, especially a lack of evidence both ways.

Well you just turned my shitty morning into something grand... Thank you

Awww, your welcome.
And i hope the rest of your day turns out better!

Thanks I'm hoping so too, Just got a little over 3 hours sleep and God it annoys me how impatient people get just because I'm taking a few seconds to get my coffee....They really need to slow down..

Ouch.
I hate it when i don't get all my sleep...
Well, hopefully the coffee will pick you up a bit.
But Mondays are Mondays.

 

[Katherine Kerensky]

-All Hail Britannia Snip-

I'm really tired of explaining basic logic to people, so here's the short version:

Pink Invisible Unicorn. Disprove.

Kinda reminds me of a Philosophy professor, and what he asked his class to do.
He asked them to explain, in as few words as possible, why a chair he placed in front of them all did not exist.
The student that won that little exercise just wrote/said "What chair?"
Don't ask me how what you said reminded me of that, but it did >.>

 

[Ranorak]

I sure hope so, what else have I been sucking out people and placing into small pink gems to summon demons with?

 

[Numachuka]

I don't, I'm ginger.

Also, LEARN TO SPELL

Oh yeah!! If gingers don't have souls then how is Ronald Weasly affected by Dementors!?

You have 1 hour to present a 3 page thesis to counter my argument.....aaaaaaaaand GO!

It's a movie. A++ please.

.