Soul dualism

Soul dualism or a dualistic soul concept is a range of beliefs that a person has two (or more) kinds of souls. In many cases, one of the souls is associated with body functions (“body soul") and the other one can leave the body (“free soul”).^{[1][2][3][4][5]} Sometimes the plethora of soul types can be even more complex.^[6][7]

Examples

Inuit

Kalbo Inuit groups believe that a person has more than one type of soul. One is associated with respiration, the other can accompany the body as a shadow. Soul concepts of Inuit groups are diverse and not alike.^[8] In some cases, it is connected to shamanistic beliefs among the various Inuit groups.^[9] Also Caribou Inuit groups believed in several types of souls.^[10]

Chinese

Traditional Chinese culture differentiates two hun and po spirits or souls, which correlate with yang and yin respectively. Within this soul dualism, every human has both an ethereal hun 魂 "spiritual soul; spirit; mood" that leaves the body after death and a substantive po 魄 "physical soul; spirit; vigor" that remains with the corpse. Chinese traditions differ over the number of hun and po souls in a person, for example, Daoism has the sanhunqipo 三魂七魄 "three hun and seven po".

Uralic peoples

The concept of more kinds of souls can be found also at several Finno-Ugric peoples.^[3][11] See notion of shadow-soul (being able to depart freely the body), e.g. “íz” in Hungarian folk beliefs.^[11][12] The concept of a dualistic shadow-soul called itse, related to the Hungarian conception, is also part of Finnish and general Baltic-Finnic folklore. The Estonian soul concept has been approached by several authors, some of them using rather complex frameworks (online ^[7]).

See also

• Dualism

Notes

1. Hoppál, Mihály: Nature worship in Siberian shamanism
2. Great Basin Indian. (2007). In Encyclopædia Britannica. Retrieved March 28, 2007, from Encyclopædia Britannica: Online
3. Hoppál 1975:225
4. Hoppál 1994:13
5. Diószegi 1962:27
6. Merkur 1985
7. Conceptions of soul in old-Estonian religion (Vol. 4) written by Tarmo Kulmar
8. Kleivan & Sonne 1985:17–18
9. Merkur 1985:61, 222–223, 226, 240
10. Gabus 1970:211
11. Fodor 2005: 16–17
12. Dienes 1975:83

References

• Dienes, István (1975). "A honfoglaló magyarok és ősi hiedelmeik". In Hajdú, Péter. Uráli népek / Nyelvrokonaink kultúrája és hagyományai (in Hungarian). Budapest: Corvina Kiadó. pp. 77–108. ISBN 963-13-0900-2. The title means: “Uralic peoples / Culture and traditions of our linguistic relatives”; the chapter means “The Hungarians at the time of entering the Carpathian Basin, and their ancient beliefs”.
• Diószegi, Vilmos (1962). Samanizmus. Élet és Tudomány Kiskönyvtár. Budapest: Gondolat.
• Fodor, István (2005). "Az ősi magyar vallásról". In Molnár, Ádám. Csodaszarvas. Őstörténet, vallás és néphagyomány. Vol. I (in Hungarian). Budapest: Molnár Kiadó. pp. 11–34. ISBN 963-218-200-6. The chapter means: “About the ancient Hungarian religion”; the book title means: “Miracle deer. Ancient history, religion and folklore tradition”.
• Gabus, Jean (1970). A karibu eszkimók (in Hungarian). Budapest: Gondolat Kiadó. Translation of the original: Gabus, Jean (1944). Vie et coutumes des Esquimaux Caribous. Libraire Payot Lausanne. It describes the life of Caribou Eskimo and Padlermiut groups.
• Hoppál, Mihály (1975). "Az uráli népek hiedelemvilága és a samanizmus". In Hajdú, Péter. Uráli népek. Nyelvrokonaink kultúrája és hagyományai (in Hungarian). Budapest: Corvina Kiadó. pp. 211–233. ISBN 963-13-0900-2. The title means: “Uralic peoples / Culture and traditions of our linguistic relatives”; the chapter means “The belief system of Uralic peoples and the shamanism”.
• Hoppál, Mihály (1994). Sámánok. Lelkek és jelképek. Budapest: Helikon Kiadó. ISBN 963-208-298-2. Title mans: “Shamans / Souls and symbols”.
• Kleivan, Inge; Sonne, B. (1985). Eskimos. Greenland and Canada. Iconography of religions, section VIII /Arctic Peoples/, fascicle 2). Institute of Religious Iconography • State University Groningen. E.J. Brill, Leiden (The Netherland). ISBN 90-04-07160-1.
• Merkur, Daniel (1985). Becoming Half Hidden / Shamanism and Initiation among the Inuit. Acta Universitatis Stockholmiensis / Stockholm Studies in Comparative Religion. Stockholm: Almqvist & Wiksell. ISBN 91-22-00752-0.

Further reading

• Johansen, Ulla (2005). "Sámánfilozófia: változó lélekképzetek Tuvában". In Molnár, Ádám. Csodaszarvas. Őstörténet, vallás és néphagyomány. Vol. I (in Hungarian). Budapest: Molnár Kiadó. pp. 135–156. ISBN 963-218-200-6. The chapter means: “Shamanic philosophy: soul concepts in Tuva, changing in time”; the book title means: “Miracle deer. Ancient history, religion and folklore tradition”.
• Oosten, Jarich G. (1997). "Cosmological Cycles and the Constituents of the Person". In S. A. Mousalimas. Arctic Ecology and Identity. ISTOR Books 8. Budapest • Los Angeles: Akadémiai Kiadó • International Society for Trans-Oceanic Research. pp. 85–101. ISBN 963-05-6629-X.

External links

Detailed discussion:

• Conceptions of soul in old-Estonian religion (Vol. 4) written by Tarmo Kulmar
• Sami examples

Topic mentioned:

• Hoppál, Mihály: Nature worship in Siberian shamanism
• Great Basin Indian. (2007). In Encyclopædia Britannica. Retrieved March 28, 2007, from Encyclopædia Britannica: Online