Guest guest Posted July 17, 2003 Report Share Posted July 17, 2003 Greetings all. I welcomed the comments regarding definitions of soul and whether or not 'animals' have souls. Please consider a few disjointed thoughts on what I've read in the last few days. 1) Emmanuel, I so appreciate the quote from your Sufi mystic. I'm not sure I've ever heard a more simple, elegant and perfect definition ["Soul is the intersection of earthly heredity with divine heredity. It is where the two meet. To locate yourself in that intersection consciously is to find your place in the world wherein you can accomplish your full potential." Taj Inayat, Sufi mystic]. Thank you for sharing it. 2) Phil, we really can't say for certain what dogs or other creatures 'know', although I surely support their ability to think. Reason, deduction, insight...these are part of human cognitive processes (for some of us, anyway), and there is little data to support advanced forms of thinking or learning in nonhuman animals other than primates and perhaps dolphins. Regarding resposnes to the death of a caregiver, I have introduced this in a recent paper (JAVMA June 1st/03) as part of a review on Separation Anxiety syndrome. In this paper, I introduce (for the first time in the veterinary literature) the notion that whether or not our pets understand death does not preclude their ability to bond with and feel the impact of the loss of an attachment figure. Some day, perhaps, they will be able to tell us more... 3) Do animals have souls. I would agree with several among us who have declared that they must. But I also think that trees and insects have a spark of that as well. Perhaps that is why I appreciated Emmanuel's contributed quote. Don't all forms of life possess earthly heredity, and doesn't the magic that we call life also give them divine heredity? Yehuda's explanation of Jewish belief that human 'soul' is above that of other animals is also relevant. However, my interpretation is that human soul vs. nonhuman soul is different, not necessarily better. Perhaps there is a scale of soul energy that parallels the phylogenetic scale. That would make it all the more important for humans to continue to be the Noah's with every generation, and to make sure that the energy of all life survives the floods of our own day. Thanks for listening. Dr. Stefanie Schwartz, DVM,MSc,DACVBDiplomate, American College of Veterinary BehavioristsDirector of Behavior Services, VCA South Shore Animal HospitalClin.Asst.Prof., Tufts University School of Veterinary MedicineNational Consultant, Antech Laboratories"Dr. Cookie"www.dr-cookie.comwww.gooddoggies.org Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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