The animal soul refers to a non-physical entity that resides within the physical body of all animal species on Earth. It is the essence that is believed to be associated with how animals think and feel, as well as providing the possibility of existence after death.

The interpretation of animal souls varies on region, time-period, philosophical and religious belief systems. Despite this, much like the human soul, many of these systems treat the soul of the animal as existing separate from its physical body. It is through the unification of these two facets that make each and every animal unique.

This concept is shared by a number of religions, in particular Buddhism, where it forms the basis surrounding their belief in soul reincarnation. (BBC 2018) On the contrary, Native American tribes maintain that every animal species shares its essence with all of that same animal type and it is only their bodies that are different. (Animal Spirit 2018)

Some religions, however, reject the existence of the animal soul entirely. 17^th century English Christians commonly believed that animals were simply created for the intended use of man. (Harrison 1993) This perspective was heavily influenced by the philosophical teachings of Aristotle on the soul. Aristotle argued that the soul can be considered through three hierarchical “degrees”. At the top, human beings with “rational souls” and then below them were the souls of animals, which he referred to as having “sensitive souls” (Aristotle on the Soul 2018)

Accounts surrounding the notion of animal souls arise through distinct forms of literature and art, and in turn, highlight the similarities and differences that have prevailed throughout time. For instance, using animal totem art Native American tribes could convey their views on animal souls. (Animal Spirit 2018) Comparably, however, Mesoamerican cultures accomplished this through iconography. Specifically, depictions that can be traced back to the classic period of Mesoamerican civilization showcase iconography that combines human beings with qualities of Jaguars to reflect individuals that exhibited political and religious dominance at the time. (Gossen 1996) This profound link between humans and animal souls is a heavily recurring theme across many of the religious and philosophical depictions.

Traditionally Christian adherents have believed that humans are the only creatures with souls and were created to rule over all other living entities. The basis of this outlook derives from the numerous examples within both testaments of the Bible, most commonly, the concept which emerges from the book of Genesis that states God created man (but not animals) in his image. (Zavada 2018)

Furthermore, the book of Exodus highlights a greater significance for the life of human beings through one of the ten commandments explicitly forbidding the killing of another human being. Such a view is not reciprocated for the killing of animals and therefore Christian theologists such as St Thomas Aquinas argued that animals do have souls, but they are not immortal like that of the human soul. (Eardley Still 2010) That is, the soul of the animal will cease to exist following the death of its physical body.

In spite of this, the gospel does offer a few depictions of heaven and the Christian afterlife, and in one such portrayal, from the apostle John, does he include the existence of horses in heaven. (Zavada 2018)

For Christians, the greatest contention for the existence of the animal soul derives from the idea that it cannot achieve redemption in life. In their mind, Jesus Christ died for the sins of mankind, not for animals, insinuating that since an animal cannot reconcile its sins, its soul cannot go to heaven. (Zavada 2018) It is also worth mentioning that Christians draw on the idea that animals, like human beings, were given by God what is known as the ‘breath of life’ but this is not typically considered to be the same as a soul. (Compelling Truth 2018)

Buddhists treat animals and the existence of their souls with equal footing to that of human beings. Under the doctrine of Karma, Buddhists believe that all things have souls and all of these souls have the potential to achieve enlightenment. (BBC 2018) Additionally, it is their belief that this soul will experience reincarnation based upon the actions of the individual in life. Specifically, a human soul can be reborn into an animal in another life.

Yet Buddhists have not always seen this approach as a positive one. A human soul that is reincarnated into an animal is a result of wrongdoings in a previous life and ultimately a step backwards in the path to achieving nirvana. This is because animals were not capable of actively improving their Karma and thus, Buddhists had previously considered animal souls to be inferior to that of humans. (BBC 2018) In fact, it is widely believed that all Buddhists are vegetarian because of their views to animals but this is not accurate. Although it depends on the tradition, the Buddha never explicitly forbid it, thus early adherents have been known to eat meat. (BBC 2018)

In contemporary society, since the teachings of Buddhism do not revolve around the existence of any god, Buddhists do not accept that humans were intended to be superior to other living things. Instead it teaches that there is no afterlife, but rather the souls in all livings things are reincarnated depending on their karma and confirms the existence of animal souls through this cycle. (The Buddhist Attitude to Animal Life 2018)

An understanding in the Native American perspective on the soul stems from their belief surrounding the concept of Animism; that every living and non-living entity in the universe has a soul. In fact, whilst animism maintains that everything has a soul, Native American Indian tribes especially draw on the significance of animal souls. (Animal Spirit 2018) For them, the souls of animals were accompanied by certain powers and abilities that could be useful for the tribe and its individual members.

It is believed that a small number of distinct animals will resonate with and assist throughout an individual’s life. These animals are commonly referred to as spirit guides. (Animal Spirit 2018) Furthermore, spirit guides are not exclusive to one individual but also each of the tribes treated some animal souls as their main protectors. These tribes would pay homage to their spiritual protectors through the creation of animal totems. These totems could come in many forms such as a crest, totem pole, an emblem, figurine etc. (Legends of America)

Unlike many belief systems, Native American tribes simultaneously treated the soul and the animal as both the same thing and two separate entities. For instance, the physical body of a bear is unique to itself, however, the soul of the bear contains the knowledge and experience of all other bears that have ever existed. The animal soul had the ability symbolize specific values and it was these values that individuals and tribes would potentially resonate with during their lifetime.

In a similar fashion to Native American Culture, early Mesoamerican artifacts suggest the deification of animals. (Gossen 1996) It was common for notable rulers to be associated with or even completely adopt the name and likeness of certain animal gods. This meant combining the spirit of such animal with a human to recreate a more prominent and memorable individual. One such example, is the 10^th century Toltec Ruler; ‘Topiltzin Quetzacoatl’, who was often illustrated as the personification of a serpent. (Gossen 1996)

Furthermore, non-prominent individuals were also able to express a spiritual relationship with animals in Mesoamerican culture through the concept of animal ‘soul companions’. Like Native American Culture, a number of Mesoamerican religions believed that there existed a deep bond between people and specific animals. However, instead of an individual having multiple animal connections, most of these Mesoamerican cultures highlighted the significance of one animal spirit for each person and this was referred to as the ‘wayib’. (Schnell 2018) For instance, in the Maya region, the wayib of kings was the Jaguar since it was such a highly regarded animal.These animal companions could also come in the form of birds, turtles and deer and the more prominent animal soul companions were typically treated as gods. (Schnell 2018)

Although many of these South American religious traditions offered evidence for the belief in the existence of the animal soul, it is also known that all of them participated in some form of animal sacrifice ceremonies. (Carr 2018) Taking the previous example of jaguars, the sixteenth king of Copan expressed respect by sacrificing 15 jaguars that were representative of his predecessors. (Schnell 2018) This is a concept that heavily diverges from any of the beliefs that you would see in many other religions.

Since the concept emerged, theologians and philosophers have constantly argued on the existence of the soul and the differences it brings between humans and animals. A famous example derives from the view of philosopher Descartes. Descartes argues that since animals are incapable of rationally thinking and feeling in the same way that humans do, then animals cannot have a soul.  (Descartes and Animal Rights 2018) It was also the teachings of Descartes that would later form the basis of ideas on animal souls found in Christianity throughout 17^th century England. (Harrison 1993)

However, Plato, argued that the soul should also be separated or categorized based on the being itself. For instance, he referred to humans as having what was known as a ‘rational soul’, attributed animals with an ‘animal soul’ and every other living thing with a ‘vegetative soul’. (Do Animals Have Souls 2018) This provided a hierarchal perspective surrounding the concept of the soul and it would become a view that shared many similarities to the concepts offered by Aristotle. Where Aristotle’s view on the souls differs to Plato’s is that he argues the soul cannot exist separately from the body. (Aristotle on the Soul 2018)

This outlook is not shared with 14^th Century philosopher and theologian St Augustine, who strongly advocated that the physical body and the soul are separate entities. (Salisbury 2014) This notion would support his reasoning that like Descartes, human beings are superior to all other living things and therefore St Augustine too believed that animals did not have souls.

In a contemporary setting, the animal soul is still heavily debated. However, as a result of domestication, many of the questions are brought forth as means to validate some form of afterlife. This in turn allows the owners to emotionally deal with the passing of their modern day animal companions.

Animal Spirit ***. (2018). Retrieved from https://www.warpaths2peacepipes.com/native-american-culture/animal-spirit.htm

Aristotle on the Soul. (2018). Retrieved from https://faculty.washington.edu/smcohen/320/psyche.htm

BBC - Religions - Buddhism: Animals. (2018). Retrieved from http://www.bbc.co.uk/religion/religions/buddhism/buddhistethics/animals.shtml

Carr, K. (2018). Central and South American religion | Quatr.us Study Guides. Retrieved from https://quatr.us/central-america/central-south-american-religion.htm

Descartes and Animal Rights. (2018). Retrieved from http://www.animalethics.org.uk/descartes.html

Do Animals have Souls? | New Acropolis Library. (2018). Retrieved from https://library.acropolis.org/do-animals-have-souls/

Gossen, G.H., 1996. Animal souls, co-essences, and human destiny in Mesoamerica. Monsters, tricksters, and sacred cows: Animal tales and American identities, pp.80-107.

Harrison, P., 1993. Animal souls, metempsychosis, and theodicy in seventeenth-century English thought. Journal of the History of Philosophy, 31(4), pp.519-544.

Legendsofamerica.com. (2018). Native American Totem Animals & Their Meanings – Legends of America. [online] Available at: https://www.legendsofamerica.com/na-totems/ [Accessed 5 Oct. 2018].

Peter Eardley and Carl Still, Aquinas: A Guide for the Perplexed (London: Continuum, 2010), pp. 34–35

Salisbury, J. 2014 Do Animals go to Heaven?, Medieval Philosophers Contemplate Heavenly Human Exceptionalism Retrieved from https://www.atiner.gr/journals/humanities/2014-1-1-7-SALISBURY.pdf

Schnell, J. (2018). The Wayib: Maya Spirit Companions. Retrieved from http://anthropology.msu.edu/anp363-ss13/2013/04/22/the-wayib-maya-spirit-companions/

The breath of life – What is it?. (2018). Retrieved from https://www.compellingtruth.org/breath-of-life.html

What Buddhists Believe - The Buddhist Attitude to Animal Life. (2018). Retrieved from https://www.budsas.org/ebud/whatbudbeliev/170.htm

Zavada, Jack. (2018, June 22). Do Animals Have Souls? Retrieved from https://www.thoughtco.com/do-animals-have-souls-701974{{R from move}}

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