'The soul' is a widely recognised and used term in our everyday vocabulary. Not only is it a term used by the religious and spiritual communities but it also appears frequently in the media and often in the lyrics of popular music. Even people who would not consider themselves to be spiritual can be heard referring to it. So what is the soul?

If you asked a hundred people 'what do you understand by the term the soul', I suspect you would get dozens of different answers including many who would be unable to articulate their thoughts and feelings. The view I am about to present borrows heavily from the esoteric tradition based on material from one of their leading exponents, William Meader (www.meader.org). I offer the view in order that it might stimulate your own exploration of the concept. I do not hold it up to be THE truth rather it is close to MY truth as far as I currently understand the concept...The soul throughout creationIt is a widely held view in spiritual and religious communities that every manifestation of life be it a human being, a galaxy of stars or a blade of grass, is a part of the One Life (or God - if you prefer the term). We are all a part of one universal system expressing itself through a multiplicity of form. It's rather like looking at the human body and accepting that even though a finger has its own shape and function, it is nevertheless part of the human body as a whole. Just as the finger cannot exist separately to the rest of the human being, neither can any part of the universe exist separately of the One Life.

In order to understand the function of the soul, we need to contemplate its purpose as it came into being when the One Life manifested itself into multiplicity. In other words when the One Life created the universe. At this point it is useful to make a diversionary note, if one was to consider the generally held scientific view on the creation of the universe, i.e. the Big Bang, it can be argued that the evolution of the soul need not contradict the scientific view. This will be the subject of further discussion in other articles.

As the One Life came into being, it had to separate into two parts in order to be able to experience itself. In other words, it needed a mirror in order to 'see' itself. And yet if each part was to be identical to the other, it still might never experience what it is like to be IT. IT needed to be able to compare or measure one part against the other - experiencing the 'difference' would provide IT with a true measure of what IT is. Therefore IT created polarity in the form of the father and mother principle. This principle is replicated as relativity throughout the universe where we witness that nothing is absolute other than the One Life itself.We see this polarity and relativity manifested in everything. For example we can only understand and experience love in the presence of hate, completeness in the presence of loss, hot in the presence of cold, up in the presence of down. One is not possible without the other. It is the relationship between the two poles that creates experience. We literally cannot live without it. It is this relationship that in my view, holds the key to the essence of the soul.

The soul IS the relationship between the two. The soul holds the experience of every interaction that has ever taken place throughout the history of the universe - it holds the experience of life itself. The soul holds the father and mother principle throughout the universe apart, and also binds them together. It retains the memory of the original condition of oneness. It can be viewed as a universal life force that contains the imprint of every event and experience. During the last few decades Scientists have discovered a new way of defining matter as packets of energy called 'quanta'. Quanta are all interconnected and each packet exists everywhere in the universe at once - in fact they are all one. These quanta exist in a universal energy field of potential known as The Zero Point Field.

The Zero Point Field is so called because scientists have observed that the energy field exists both in a total vacuum and at the absolute zero of temperature (-273 Celsius) where supposedly no life is able to exist. The quanta appear as matter out of the universal potential only when they are observed through the senses. It's the same argument as that of a tree falling in a forest, which only makes a sound if there is someone there to observe it. In my view, the 'Field' that they have discovered is the soul itself. There is only one soul but this is expressed in multiplicity throughout the multitude of different life forms.

Individualised soulIt is very difficult to conceive of the idea that there might only be one soul in the universe. One might be prepared to accept the idea of one universal system or one life but one soul? How then do we experience individual identity? If the One Life needed to divide in order to experience of itself, why would one not assume the same aspect for the soul? It is my view that one soul is necessary to 'measure' all experience and yet the experience of the soul can be localised within an individual entity. A simple way to understand this is to consider the ocean. Every part consists of the same substance but the whole is manifested as separate seas and even down to individual waves. So one might consider the human soul similar to a wave on the ocean.In esoteric teachings, the human kingdom is the first level in evolution where the soul is individualised. The soul is housed within a 'causal body' composed of 'intelligent etheric substance'. A causal body in turn encases each and every human being. It is the causal body that enables a person to know themselves as an individual and distinct from all other life forms. Nevertheless, the causal body is just a vehicle for the soul to evolve and gain distinctive individualised experience. It is also this ability to 'know oneself' that has caused mankind great confusion. We consider ourselves to be a combination of our personality and physical body or in esoteric terms the'lower self'. In short we identify with the thoughts and feelings that are expressed from within our physical bodies.

The soul still pervades the lower self but, for most of us, it confuses itself with the lower self. This is a necessary part of the evolution of the soul because it is the experience of the soul 'returning to itself' that enables the One Life to experience life.As the soul evolves, it's ability first to relate to its 'higher self' or rather the original condition of oneness, increases. It then becomes able to manifest soulful behaviour within the lower self. When the process of complete soul infusion into the lower self has occurred, then the person can be said to be truly enlightened. This was the case for great masters such as Jesus, The Buddha and Krishna. It is a condition through which we will all evolve, although it will take many incarnations of the soul to achieve this.

To complete my point of view, it is useful to consider ways in which one might recognise the work of the soul in our daily lives. This list is inspired by William Meader and gives a very rich expression of soulfulness: The soul has the capacity to manifest selfless and sacrificial love.

The soul is operative when we are able to sense the unity within the various diverse forms in the outer world.When the soul is active in one's life, it enables you to sense and see a deeper meaning within all events in one's life and those on the world stage. Coincidence gives way to the experience of synchronicity in events. One has the feeling of being guided.

Events in one's life are seen more as an opportunity to gain experience and knowledge rather than manifesting a particular outcome.One ceases to manipulate people and events to achieve an outcome. Rather one strives to be fully active and conscious in the moment thereby knowing that right outcome will always be achieved.The resources of life are considered to be assets with which to assist humanity as a whole rather than the betterment of one's self.As the soul becomes more deeply involved in one's activities, one ceases to judge others and one's self. One senses the soul's purpose in another and sees the imperfections as vehicles for gaining experience.When a person is able to see characteristics of oneself in another, then the soul is likely to be active at that time.When the soul radiates through the personality, the person exudes inner calm. Worries and fear give way to a deep sense of knowing and a humbleness of being. The person can be said to have 'come into themselves'.

When the soul is operative, actions are conducted for the good of the whole of the One Life and the individual does not need to be seen to be making a contribution or impact in life.

I would invite you to offer your comments or alternative points of view in relation to the material above.