Souls of animals
I remember during a lecture in the business district of New York, one woman from the front row challenged me by asking the question: "Do you believe that cats have a soul?" I asked her, "Do you have a cat?" Before this woman could answer, her friend sitting next to him smiled and held up four fingers. Of all the animal lovers in the world who are interested in this issue, I have to treat cat owners with special attention. Back in Manhattan, I told a woman that since I had never hypnotized cats, I couldn't personally testify that cats have souls. This did not please her, but then I added that some of my patients stated that they actually saw animals in the Soul World between their lives.
World religions have long debated whether animals have souls. Eastern religions such as Judaism believe that the soul of an animal is equal to the human soul. In Judaism, different levels of souls are considered, the lower of which are incarnated in animals, and the higher in human beings. Muslims believe that animals have a soul, but it is not immortal because animals cannot consciously choose between heaven and hell. The Christian religions bestow an eternal soul only on righteous human beings.
The owners of animals, interacting with them, project a significant part of their own spiritual energy onto these creatures, and this exchange occurs in various ways, depending on the type of animal and its character. Do any of its features testify to the presence of a soul? We know what animals think, but we do not know to what extent such thinking extends. Dogs are protective, cats are resourceful, dolphins have complex speech patterns. Is rational thinking or its absence the criterion for the presence of a soul?
Any person who has a favorite pet will tell you that animals have individual characters, feelings, and even a sense of the needs of their owners. We know that animals can comfort us in times of bereavement or physical illness. They are able to cheer us up and speed up our recovery by selflessly giving us their love and devotion. To those people who think that animals are just sentient beings having instinctive sensations, I would say that if animals have thought images, they have a certain level of individualized energy.
My subjects report that every animal has sentient energy of one category or another, and human souls do not move up or down from one form to another. These particles of (animal) energy range from complex life forms, as in the case of chimpanzees, to the simplest structures. Although my Subjects deny the transmigration of these souls, it is possible that all organic and inorganic matter projects vibratory energy onto the Earth and probably has an important relationship to each other.
Patients who have had connections with various animals in the Soul World have told me that they all do indeed have a certain type of soul energy. They are not like human souls and just as different from each other. After death, the energy of these animals, according to my Subjects, "exists in its own separate spheres, distinct from the spheres of human souls." For a person in a state of trance, spheres are spaces that have their own special structure and functions. I have accumulated a lot of messages about the souls of animals in the World of Souls. My next Subject, named Kimoy, provides a good example of how animals have souls.
CASE 50
Dr. N: Kimoy, how do you like to relax?
Subject: I'm a rather quiet, unsociable soul, and I like two things. When I'm out of my group, I garden and play with the animals.
Dr. N: Are you really growing anything in the Soul World?
Dr. N: Tell me about how you play with animals.
S: I have a dog and a cat, and a horse. These are pets from my past life.
Dr. N: Do they just show up when you feel like it?
Dr. N: Does this mean that the "catcher" has to find your pet, and not someone who is simply made of energy, like the plants you create in your garden?
Subject: Exactly.
Dr. N: Do animals have souls, Kimoi?
S: Yes, of course there are all kinds.
Dr. N: What is the difference between human and animal souls?
S: The souls of living beings have different ... qualities. Animal souls have smaller particles of energy... smaller volume and they are not as complex and multifaceted as human souls.
Dr. N: What other differences do you know about between human and animal souls?
S: The main difference, apart from size and volume, is that animal souls are not driven by their ego. They are not burdened with personality problems like we are. They also accept and blend into their environment rather than trying to control it like human beings. (Pauses, then continues) We have a lot to learn from them.
Dr. N: You said that animal souls have their home in the Soul World. How then can you communicate with them, even with the help of the souls watching over them?
S: (wondering at my question) They have sensory energy on Earth, just like us...we co-exist physically...so why can't we communicate mentally?
Dr. N: Yes, Kimoy, but you said they have a different quality structure than our sentient energy.
Subject: Like my plants, but I can communicate with them if I want to.
Dr. N: You mentioned that you play with your dog. Can plant energy become dog energy?
S: No, because each form of life really belongs to its own category of energy, and this energy does not change into another physical form on the same planet.
Dr. N: Does this mean that a cat cannot transmigrate into higher life forms, and a human being will not in the future move into a lower life form, say a cat's body?
S: Yes, it is. Energy is created and intended for certain physical and mental forms.
Dr. N: Why do you think that is?
S: (laughs back) I don't know about the higher purpose, except that mixing different types of souls is impractical.
Dr. N: Tell me, Kimoy, do you see the souls of your pets grouped together like your own soul group?S: Like I said, I don't go to their places. They don't need to call us. I cannot tell you anything about these zones, except that, according to the souls who care for them, they are divided into large groups according to their areas of habitation in the physical world: terrestrial, watery, and living in the air.
Dr. N: Are any of them connected in the Soul World?
S: As far as we can tell, whales and dolphins and seals are together, so are crows and hawks, horses and zebras, etc. Animals have their own contacts with a community of souls united by a common species that we are not given to understand - at least not to me.
Dr. N: Well...
S: (interrupts) I guess if we needed to know, we'd be told.
Dr. N: Okay, now let's get back to playing with your pets during your holidays. Can you communicate with wild animals like the wolf?
S: Only if the wolf has been domesticated.
Dr. N: Could you explain this, Kimoy?
S: (Frowning, thinking intently) Communication with animals must be productive for us in a certain setting in order for us to be motivated to work with certain life forms. My dog on Earth can be at my disposal in the World of Souls, where I recreate my house and garden, because it is natural for her to be here. Our mutual love and respect for each other on Earth is renewed here because it is good. There is something wonderful about this for both of us. Apparently, that's why it's allowed.
Dr. N: Can you tell the soul of a domesticated animal from Earth from that of a wild animal?
S: I think so. As I said, animal souls are much less complex than human souls. Domesticated animals are able to show the love and affection we need for humans. The souls of wild animals do not develop this aspect at all, and they do not really understand us at all. Most of them cannot – and should not – be limited simply because we share the same environment.
Dr. N: Do you think wild animals have a greater need for freedom?
S: Maybe, but the souls of all living beings - especially us - have a need for freedom of expression. As for the souls of pets, they are more likely to give up some freedom to exchange displays of love, affection, and protection with humans. There is some proportionality in having your pets.
Dr. N: Kimoy, you present it as if domestic animals exist on Earth to serve people.
S: It's a mutually beneficial relationship, as I said. Those of us who love animals on Earth believe that we can communicate with our pets on a subtle plane. When we return to the World of Souls and again meet our pets - and each of us in a pure state of soul - this becomes an even more obvious fact for us.
Dr. N: Is there anyone else in the Soul World who feels the same way about animal souls?
S: Few people share my love for animals. I have friends who are unwilling to interact with animal energy, even if they were connected to them on Earth. They are busy with other activities during the holidays. (Pauses and then adds) And here they lose something.
The souls who care for animals in the Soul World seem to be experts in their field. This is not a very popular specialty among my patients, but their work is very much appreciated by animal lovers. These souls are not considered animal caretakers. I once asked a Subject familiar with these kinds of skills and techniques about my dog named Socrates, who had been adored by our entire family for fifteen years. My question was, if my soul mind can create a home and a physical body for itself between lives, then can't I recreate my dog too? And this is what they answered me:
“You can do this if you have mastered the creation of energy. But even if you have this ability. Your dog will not be exactly like a real dog that a specialist can make for you. The soul caring for animals is able to find the spark of soul energy that did not die with Socrates and restore your dog exactly as you knew it on Earth. Your pet will recognize you and be able to play with you whenever you want and then leave.”
Undoubtedly, Earth-bound animal care professionals are souls who are adept at seeking out and recovering the essence of certain lower life forms. They seem to me to be creative souls who have desire and ability. to support these life forms for us in the World of Souls because of your own love for these beings of our planet.
Our association with animals on Earth may be related to the karmic aspects of our past life, and this could be another reason for the existence of souls caring for animals in the Soul World. I had a patient who is an active animal rights activist and has devoted all her past lives to alleviating animal suffering, beginning with a life in Austria in the early sixteenth century. In that life, she was a small boy whose family supplied the meat of cows and pigs to the market, which greatly traumatized him. Today, this patient refers to all animals as "my children." During her life and between lives, she spends her free time with them. It also mixes with their energy in a place called the Transformation Space to better perceive their consciousness. Kimoy essentially meant the same thing when she once said during a session: “I go into this room, which has a field of programmed animal energy, and it gives me the opportunity to feel what they feel. It allows me to understand the animals on Earth." For both of these souls, such activity is both a learning process and a recreation.
… One girl, my parishioner, lost her beloved dog. The girl cried a lot, and a few days later she saw her dog in a dream - healthy and cheerful. The most interesting thing is that a radiance emanated from the dog. As this girl later told me - "I stopped crying because I realized that my dog is in a better world." How to relate to this dream? As a fantasy, or as some kind of sign from God?.. In any case, he brings up a huge and important topic: What is the fate of animals? Live allotted to them, sometimes a very short time, and sink into oblivion? Then why were they created by God at all? To entertain people, to be a toy and food for a person?
We'll talk about this today. But first we must learn one important thing: The Church has never hid from such questions. They were set by theologians and holy fathers of all times. Another thing is that for sure we cannot resolve these issues. We do not open it! Only sometimes Holy Scripture and Tradition delicately relate to this topic.
So, the fate of animals, or more broadly, the eternal fate of nature... What is it?
Let me remind you that according to Orthodox theology, our current world is in a state of damage, falling away from God. The fault of everything is the Fall of the ancestors. If we remember the biblical story about Adam and Eve, we will see that in Eden, the beautiful Garden of Eden, they lived in love with all living creatures. So it was conceived by the Lord that both man and all creation should live in love and unity with each other and with Him, the Creator and loving Father of all.
The Fall was a catastrophe on a cosmic scale, and it has consequences not only for man, but for the entire universe. Man was damaged, the whole world was damaged ... “The fall of man was at the same time the fall of nature, the curse of man became the curse of nature. And since then, man and nature, like two inseparable twins, blinded by the same darkness, mortified by the same death, laden with the same curse, go hand in hand through history along the endless paths of sin and evil; they stumble together, they fall together, they rise together, constantly striving towards the distant end of their sad history” (St. Justin Serbsky).
Death, malice, mutual annihilation entered the world. The spiritual task of man was to return the lost Paradise! Is it possible? To a greater or lesser extent, many Old Testament heroes of the spirit (and pagans, let us recall the righteous pagan Job) tried to live godly. The prophets strengthened people, saying that within the framework of this world, true communion with God is not achievable. It is possible only when the messenger of God, His Son, comes to earth.
And then the time will come reconciliation all creation with God. True, this will happen beyond the horizon of the local existence, after the transformation of the world. Then the Kingdom of Heaven will come, which will include not only people, but also animals. And in this eternity, as once, at the beginning of being, in Paradise, man and animals will live in peace and friendly communication. “Then the wolf will live with the lamb, and the leopard will lie with the kid; and the calf, and the young lion, and the ox will be together, and the little child will lead them. And the cow will graze with the bear, and their young will lie together; and the lion, like the ox, will eat straw.” And further: “And the baby will play over the hole of the asp, and the child will stretch out his hand to the nest of the snake. They will not do evil and harm on My holy mountain ... ”(Ch.).
And indeed, a new stage, or rather era the fate of man and the world was the coming into our world of the Son of God - Jesus Christ. Christ reconciles the universe and man with God. And he introduces some corrections into the picture drawn by the Old Testament prophets. Yes, the transformation of the world is still expected by us, it is in the future, but already today anyone can breathe its air, feel its aroma...
Once, when Jesus was asked when the Kingdom of God would come, He replied: “The Kingdom of God will not come in a conspicuous way, and they will not say, Lo, it is here, or, Lo, there. For, behold, the kingdom of God is within you." This means that the Kingdom of God begins to manifest itself already in this world, among us, people of this age, - inside us! When we see miracles happening through the prayers of the ascetics of the faith, as we call them - saints people, when we see how the laws of the universe, as it were, humbly yield to some higher will and power, what is it, if not detection in our world some other laws?.. Laws of the Kingdom of God...
Acquaintance with the life of holy people shows us that the Old Testament prophecies about the friendship of animals and people are already, as it were, being realized. Everyone knows the stories about the friendship of St. Sergius of Radonezh, St. Seraphim of Sarov with wild animals - bears. Oh Rev. Herman of Alaska we read from his biographer and eyewitness of his spiritual exploits: “Weasels lived near his cells. These animals are distinguished by their shyness. But they resorted to the Monk Herman and ate from his hands. They saw how the Monk Herman fed the bear. The same is known about the ancient hermit fathers, to whom they came for help and who were guarded by wild animals.
Why is this happening? It can be assumed that the grace of God, acting through the ascetic, is felt by the animals. And it is good for us, people, to be close to the saint, and animals feel that this person belongs to that world (the Kingdom of Heaven), in which there is no enmity and mutual destruction. The well-known pre-revolutionary book “Frank Stories of a Wanderer to His Spiritual Father” describes a case with an old man’s prayed rosary. Having waved away these rosaries from an angry wolf, the wanderer escaped being torn to pieces by a predatory wild beast. The book gives the following explanation for the miraculous incident: “When the first-created man Adam was in an innocent holy state, then all the animals and beasts were in subjection to him, they approached him with fear, and he called them names. The elder whose rosary was holy: what does holiness mean? Nothing else than the return of the innocent state of the first person in a sinful person through podvigs. When the soul is sanctified, the body is also sanctified. The rosary was always in the hands of the consecrated; consequently, through the touch of hands and his fumes on them, a holy power is instilled in them, the power of the innocent state of the first man.
The remarkable modern Russian thinker Tatyana Goricheva, author of the book “Holy Animals” writes: “Animals not only “moan and suffer” along with man. They are not only waiting for adoption and redemption… they are already capable, following the saints and martyrs, of penetrating into the new eon, entering the Church, we dare say, deifying themselves. In the life of St. The great martyr and healer Panteleimon is told that wild animals did not want to attack the young man. Then they were killed too. Their corpses were thrown to be eaten by birds. But the birds did not touch them. The corpses of animals lay in the sun for a long time and remained incorruptible. So we're dealing with animal relics."
Obviously, animals feel the spiritual atmosphere of Paradise...
More difficult is the theme of the eternal fate of animals. Are their souls immortal (and animals have a soul as a set of mental properties)? Perhaps the testimony of the Old Testament prophets should be understood as a poetic allegory?..
The Apostle Paul writes specifically about this: “For the creation with hope awaits the revelation of the sons of God, because the creation was subjected to futility, not voluntarily, but by the will of him who subjected it, in the hope that the creation itself will be freed from the slavery of corruption into the freedom of the glory of the children of God. For we know that the whole creation groans and travails together until now; and not only she is, but we ourselves, having the firstfruits of the Spirit, and we groan in ourselves, waiting for adoption, the redemption of our body ”().
Revelation of the sons of God- this is the time of glorification of man in the Kingdom of God. So, according to Ap. Paul, creature waiting this time? And waiting in hope that creation itself will be freed from the bondage of corruption into the freedom of glory. Private opinion app. Paul? Hardly. We read the same in many holy fathers. So, interpreting the words of ap. Paul - the creation itself will be set free... St. John Chrysostom says: "What does it mean herself? You are not alone [man], but also that which is lower than you, which has neither reason nor feelings - and that will share with you in blessings. will be released says the apostle, from slavery to decay that is, it will no longer be corruptible, but will become according to the goodness of your body. As the creation became corruptible when your body became corruptible, so also when your body is incorruptible, the creature will follow it and become corresponding to it.
Here is what St. Simeon the New Theologian: “When all creatures saw that Adam was expelled from paradise, they no longer wanted to obey him, the criminal. But God... restrained all these creatures by His strength, and out of His mercy and goodness, did not allow them to immediately rush against man and commanded that the creature remained in subjection to him, and having become corruptible, served the corruptible man for whom it was created, so that when man will be renewed again and become spiritual, incorruptible and immortal, and all creation, subjected by God to man to work for him, was freed from this work, renewed together with him, and became incorruptible and spiritual.”
In his textbook Dogmatics of the Orthodox Church, St. Justin Serbsky: “The theanthropic truth about the transfiguration of nature lives unceasingly in the theanthropic body of the Orthodox Church of Christ and will live forever... The resurrection of the dead will be the end of death not only for people, but also for visible nature, which has undergone death and decay by the sin-loving will of its arrogant master – man… By restoring man to his original state, the Lord will return nature to its original sinless state. Then not only Christ-loving people ancient kindness reborn, but also all nature…”
How will this happen? But this is not open to us. The fact that a living creature will somehow enter into eternity, will partake of the future blessings of eternal and blessed existence is the true faith of the Orthodox Church. As it will be? - We do not know.
Some thinkers have expressed their opinion on this matter, but let us remember that this is just a private theological opinion, albeit a respected one.
Some said that only those animals that communicated with man would enter eternity. Through communion with the immortal human soul, the animal soul also touched eternity, received grace-filled forces that would not let it disappear with the death of the body, but would allow it to live in another world...
St. Theophan the Recluse, for example, thought otherwise. He wrote that it is possible that God created some kind of "universal soul." It is into this soul that the souls of all living beings, except man, are poured after death. “There is a gradation of souls: “a certain chemical soul”, and higher - vegetable, then - animal. All these souls, lower than the spirit, in their turn "plunge into the soul of the world", dissolve in their primary substratum. “And the soul of a person cannot plunge there, but is carried away by the spirit of grief - this is after death.” The spiritual children of the famous ascetic, confessor and perspicacious elder Archimandrite Boris (Kholchev) said that he was of the same opinion: “The question about the soul was asked more than once dogs, what will happen to them after their death. Father Boris said that their souls would merge with the soul of the "world dog".
There are other, less well-known theories, but they are all just theories. How and what will actually happen - only God knows. And we and all nature will surrender to Him, the Father and the Savior, with love and trust.
Asks SvetaAnswered by Viktor Belousov, 07/29/2008
Peace be upon you, Light!
On the question of the presence of spirit and soul in animals:
only strictly observe not to eat blood, because blood is the soul: do not eat souls with meat;
()
because the soul of the body is in the blood, and I appointed it for you on the altar, to cleanse your souls, for this blood cleanses the soul;
()
The question is not even whether animals have a soul, but what is their "soul"? In the Bible, this word is often used as an equivalent of the concept of "LIFE". Look. People, instead, usually represent some kind of "incorporeal image" that continues to exist after the destruction of the organic body.
21 Who knows whether the spirit of the sons of men goes up, or the spirit of the animals goes down into the earth?
()
Even in Ezekiel, we are talking about some more animals - cherubim, at least the prophet calls them "animals", using the same word as in the chapter where it is said about living beings:
20 Wherever the spirit wanted to go, there they also went; wherever the spirit went, and the wheels rose up with them, for the spirit of the animals [was] in the wheels.
21 When those went, they went also; and when they stood, they also stood; and when they rose from the earth, then the wheels rose along with them, for the spirit of the animals [was] in the wheels.
()
16 And when the Cherubim went, then the wheels went beside them; and when the Cherubim raised their wings to rise from the earth, and the wheels were not separated, but were with them.
17 When they stood, they also stood; when they rose, they also rose; for in them [was] the spirit of animals.
()
Because of these questions, you should not quarrel with your neighbors. Better go and reconcile!
There is no clear sin in blood transfusion, and today synthetic plasma is used instead of blood. When your neighbor's life depends on this transfusion, then remember what Jesus did - He gave His blood and flesh for your salvation.
Blessings
Victor
Read more on the topic "Death, heaven and hell, soul and spirit":
For some reason, it is believed that only a person has a soul. But it's not. It also exists in animals. This was recognized both by the prominent minds of mankind, and by many ministers of the church. For example, L. N. Tolstoy once said that a person is able to pity animals because he feels: the same thing lives in them as in him. Another prominent writer, G. D. Toro, seemed to supplement his words by expressing his distrust of those religious figures and philosophers who call animals "soulless machines." But, in order to avoid unfoundedness, let's see if animals have a soul from different points of view - from different religions, science and esotericism.
Science and soul
Psychologists cannot deny the existence of a certain spiritual substance, since the name of the science they are engaged in is translated from ancient Greek as "the doctrine of the soul." As you know, these specialists correct and analyze people's behavior, teach how to build relationships with the outside world. Zoopsychologists do the same thing, only the object for their research is not a person, but an animal. And if pets are able to understand human speech, to love or be angry, to distinguish between friends and enemies, does this mean that they really have a soul?
Someone will now say that modern science does not recognize the existence of such a state in any state, even among people, let alone among animals. This is not entirely true. For example, Natalya Bekhtereva (Director of the Research Institute of the Human Brain) wrote that consciousness exists even after Dutch physiologists came to similar conclusions relatively recently. But what is consciousness? If you read it on Wikipedia, this is the state of a person's mental life, which is expressed in the experiences of the events of the external world and the life of an individual. Very similar to the definition of the soul given by some religious figures. Is not it?
It is worth noting that many descriptions of studies have been published in foreign scientific publications that prove the possibility of the existence of the soul. Let's hope that soon enthusiasts will be able to "pull the string" and draw out the whole truth about the presence of such in both humans and animals. After all, they proved the existence of parallel worlds. But no one believed in their existence either.
Orthodoxy and soul
If you ask a priest whether animals have a soul, most likely he will quote from a book of Holy Scripture. It says that God gave green herbs for food to all earthly animals that have a soul: both the birds of the air, and every creeping thing (written on behalf of the Lord himself). Thus, Orthodoxy recognizes the presence of a spiritual substance in all living beings. But how to define the term "soul" and whether it is immortal is a completely different question.
It is worth noting that if you answer the question of whether animals have a soul, other quotes can be recalled from the Bible. For example, the books of Moses say that after killing an animal, its blood should be drained into the ground, and not eaten, since the soul is in the blood. Solomon mentions that man and animal are essentially the same. The Book of the prophet Isaiah says that after the establishment of the Kingdom of Heaven on Earth, not only people who are pure in spirit, but also their smaller brothers will be able to enter it. Like, then everyone will live together and peacefully, no one will kill and eat anyone.
Interestingly, the Bible mentions cats only in passing, in Jeremiah 1:21: "... and swallows, and other birds, cats climb on them." But this does not mean that such a pet is a negative character in Christianity. It’s just that the Israelis were then deeply outraged by the servile attitude of their Egyptian neighbors towards him, so they didn’t write anything about him. Thus, it is impossible to say for sure whether cats have a soul. But one thing is certain: many clergymen let pets sleep at the altar and forbid them to be kicked out of the Church. Dogs are not allowed to enter the temple just because they do not know how to behave decently and can bark during the service.
Buddhism and Hinduism
When asked if animals have souls, Hindus say yes. In their opinion, after the death of its owner, it can go to the same Paradise or Hell, where the human spirit goes. Then she receives a reincarnation, becomes anything or anyone - from the simplest microorganism to a person, depending on the accumulated karma.
Buddhists deny the existence of the soul. They believe that there is only a constant general flow of Consciousness around, which takes different forms. And Paradise or Hell for all living beings is only a psychological state. Everyone, be it a person or a cat, creates them for himself, choosing a life path. In addition, Buddhists believe in the reincarnation of man and animals in the next life. In their opinion, living beings as a result of reincarnation can become spirits, lower or higher deities, people or animals. Here everything, as in Hinduism, will depend on karma.
Do animals have a soul according to Islam?
The Qur'an teaches to be patient, merciful and fair in relation not only to each other, but also to animals. A cat is considered one of the most positive characters among Muslims, since the prophet Muhammad singled out this pet in particular: he put it on his knees during a sermon, drank from the same dishes with her, and once even cut off the sleeve of his robe so as not to wake the sleeping animal. As for whether animals go to heaven according to the Qur'an, the answer is simple: no. The soul of four-legged friends is mortal and after the death of its owners turns into dust.
Mythology
There are many different myths that mention the souls of animals. For example, the Yakut peoples in folklore have such a creature as Abaas, who lives underground. It grows from a black stone. At first, it eats the same food as humans. And then, when it turns into a giant as tall as a tree, it begins to hunt a person. Relatives of sick or dead people previously sacrificed various animals to him in order to exchange their souls for human ones.
In Japanese mythology, there are certain Shikigami. These spirits can be summoned by an Omme-do expert. According to the legends, the creatures look like birds or beasts. They can also inhabit any animal and control its body and soul. Able to escape from the control of the magician and begin to "command" him. So if you are looking for an answer to the question of whether animals have a soul according to mythology, know: yes, they do.
Philosophy and soul
Although philosophy cannot be called an exact science, it gives the most accurate answer to the question: do animals have a soul? For example, Tatyana Goryacheva in her book “Holy Animals” expressed the idea that animals are forced to “moan and suffer” near a person, waiting for the coming of the Kingdom of God. Like, they are already ready to follow the martyrs into the Church and even “be deified”. It also recalls the life of the healer Panteleimon, whom, according to legend, wild animals did not want to attack. Animals were killed and thrown to be eaten by birds, but they did not even touch them. The corpses lay incorruptible in the sun for a long time, representing the relics of the holy beasts.
The English writer said that if the soul is the ability to be grateful and devoted and love, then animals, unlike many people, definitely have it. Dr. Will Tuttle lamented that man often peers into space in the hope of seeing at least someone like him, while he himself is surrounded by thousands of intelligent beings whose abilities have not yet been discovered and evaluated. Georgy Vitsin dreamed that all people fed animals. It is interesting that when the actor was buried, all the stray animals to whom he gave food came out along with the crowd of people to see him on his last journey.
One can list all the philosophers who spoke of animals as rational and mental beings for a long time: from Socrates to Peter Singer, who published the book Animal Liberation in 1975, which has become a desktop for many activists involved in protecting the rights of the lesser brothers of man. But is it not worth mentioning here that man himself is far from God and not an angelic being. He is a representative of the animal world. And if he has a soul, then why shouldn't animals have it?
Esoteric and soul
You can deny for a long time the possibility of the existence of a soul in an animal, but you should approach your beloved cat (or dog) and look into its eyes to understand: it exists. Esotericists say that pets settle next to people not only because it is more comfortable and easier for them to live, but also to protect their owner from various misfortunes. For example, red cats are able to treat various diseases and open the "doors" to the other world, while black cats protect their pets from magic, damage and the evil eye.
Some psychics believe that the souls of animals after death remain near people in the form of some kind of energy and help them in every way they can: they warn in case of danger, avert trouble, and so on. They say that sometimes you can even feel the soul of your beloved animal nearby or see him himself. However, they immediately contradict themselves, saying that demons sometimes appear to a person under the guise of former pets. Whether they should be trusted is the big question.
Where do animals go after death?
There are many versions about whether animals have a soul. In Orthodoxy, for example, as mentioned above, even in the Bible there are quotations that indicate that they have it. But then where does she go after death? There are many different theories on this. The most popular of them:
- goes through the stage of reincarnation and is reborn;
- joins a certain "world soul";
- goes to Paradise (it's not for nothing that animals and birds are painted on many icons?!);
- remains near a person in the form of an electromagnetic pulse;
- turns forever into dust, and indeed, it does not exist (according to atheists).
It seems that here everyone should choose the version that he likes the most. After all, it is impossible to make a person believe in Paradise if he is skeptical about the existence of God himself. As for whether the soul of animals is immortal, there is also no definite answer here.
Can you pray for animals?
Taking care of animals is a direct duty of a person, according to many clergymen. For example, Father Superior of the St. George Monastery Daniel says that people not only can, but are obliged to pray for their pets. For this, you can turn to their patrons: Saints Cosmas and Damian, the martyr Athenogenes, Saint Blaise, St. Sergius of Sarov and Sergius of Radonezh, who fed animals from his hands during his lifetime. But it is best, according to the minister of the Church, to "go" directly to God, since only He can give what is requested.
Do plants have a soul?
Some people ask if animals and plants have a soul. We have already talked about the existence of this substance in animals in this article. But about the presence of it in plants - yet. This is a topic for a large separate post. The only thing that can be said now is that flowers, trees and herbs are born, grow, die, know how to love. There were many cases when they died immediately after the death of their master, no matter how well they were looked after by other people. Therefore, they can be called "alive". And if so, then, most likely, they also have a soul, albeit not like the one that a person has.
As a conclusion
Today we tried to determine if animals have a soul. Much says that it really exists. But only higher beings can know for sure about this: God, angels, and so on. Modern man is unlikely to ever answer this question. In the same way, he will not be able to tell whether the souls of dead people and animals meet. But I want to believe that everything is possible. Good luck to you!
Does the animal world inherit eternal life? Or is every animal forever destroyed by earthly death?
Priest Athanasius Gumerov answers:
In his interpretation of the first chapter of the book of Genesis, St. Basil the Great clearly says that the soul of animals, unlike the human, is destructible. " May the earth bring forth the living soul. Why does the earth bring forth the living soul? That you may know the difference between the soul of cattle and the soul of man. You will soon learn how the human soul was created, and now listen to the soul of the dumb. Because, according to Scripture, the soul of every animal is its blood(Lev. 17, 11), and the condensed blood usually turns into flesh, and the decayed flesh decomposes into the earth, then, in all fairness, the soul of cattle is something earthly. So let the earth bring forth the living soul. Examine the connection of the soul with blood, blood with flesh, flesh with earth, and again in reverse order pass from earth to flesh, from flesh to blood, from blood to soul, and you will find that the soul of cattle is earth. Do not think that it is older than their bodily composition, and that it remains after the destruction of the body. Run away from the delusions of gloomy philosophers who are not ashamed to consider their soul and the soul of a dog to be homogeneous among themselves, and to say about themselves that they were once both wives, and trees, and sea fish. And although I won’t say whether they ever were fish, I’m ready to say with all my might that when they wrote this, they were more senseless than fish ”(Discourses for the Six Days. Conversation 8th). Of earthly creatures, only man is created in the image of God. One of the properties of this image is the immortality of the soul.
Will there be animals in the future life when the transformation of nature takes place? Opinions of exegetes fundamentally differ: some recognize this possibility, while others do not. The proponents of the first opinion can find some support in the Scriptures. The earthly paradise, in which there was a place for the dumb creature, was a prefiguration of the heavenly paradise. St. Simeon the New Theologian writes that God “arranged the whole creation in order and proper order; and he determined seven days to be in the image of the ages that would pass later in time, and he planted paradise after those seven days, so that it would be in the image of the age to come ”(Word forty-fifth). St. Isaiah, depicting the future Kingdom of the Messiah, prophesies: “And a branch will come from the root of Jesse, and a branch will grow from its root; and the Spirit of the Lord rests on him, the spirit of wisdom and understanding, the spirit of counsel and strength, the spirit of knowledge and piety; and he will be filled with the fear of the Lord, and he will judge not by the look of his eyes, nor by the hearing of his ears to decide matters. He will judge the poor with righteousness, and deal with the afflicted of the earth with truth; and with the rod of his mouth he will smite the earth, and with the breath of his mouth he will kill the wicked. And righteousness shall be the girdling of His loins, and truth shall be the girdling of His thighs. Then the wolf will live with the lamb, and the leopard will lie down with the kid; and the calf, and the young lion, and the ox will be together, and the little child will lead them. And the cow will graze with the bear, and their cubs will lie down together, and the lion, like the ox, will eat straw. And the baby will play over the hole of the asp, and the child will stretch out his hand to the snake's nest. They will not harm or destroy in all My holy mountain, for the earth will be filled with the knowledge of the Lord, as the waters cover the sea” (11:1-9). And at St. Apostle Paul has a prophecy about the future state of the world: “For I think that the present temporary sufferings are worth nothing in comparison with the glory that will be revealed in us. For the creation waits with hope for the revelation of the sons of God, because the creation was subjected to futility, not voluntarily, but by the will of the one who subjected it, in the hope that the creation itself will be freed from the slavery of corruption into the freedom of the glory of the children of God. For we know that the whole creation groans and travails together until now; and not only [she], but also we ourselves, having the firstfruits of the Spirit, and we groan within ourselves, waiting for adoption, the redemption of our body. For we are saved in hope” (Rom. 8:19-23). This place is not clearly explained by the holy fathers. Bliss. Augustine understands by creation only the human race. However, St. Simeon the New Theologian sees in the words of the apostle an indication of a future renewal that will take place over the entire created world: “But let us see how the creation has to be renewed and come back to the state of original beauty? I believe that not a single Christian will think not to believe the words of the Lord, who gave the promise to make the heavens new and the earth new, i.e., that, as our own bodies, now being destroyed into the elements and yet not turning into nothing, they will again be renewed through the resurrection, - so is heaven and earth with everything that is on it, i.e. the whole creation has to be renewed and freed from the work of corruption, and these elements together with us will become partakers of the lordship that comes from the Divine fire<...>In the same way, the creation, which has become dilapidated and has become indecent due to our sins, will be melted in fire and poured by God the Creator, as it were, and will appear new, incomparably brighter than it is now. You see how all creatures have to be renewed by fire” (Word forty-five).
With all the clarity of the prophecies about the future renewal of the created world, we are facing a mystery. What kind of dumb creatures will be with a person in the future life? It is unlikely that all the uncountable multitude of all animals that lived before will be the inhabitants of the new earth. Perhaps those of them who will live in the last moments of the fallen world.
A spiritually healthy person cannot but love those creatures that God created. Therefore, the death of our pets causes sadness. However, it is often excessive. In such cases, we have reason to think about the correctness of our spiritual dispensation. The Lord commanded us first of all to love our Heavenly Parent: “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind” (Matthew 22:37). Closely related to this commandment is a second one similar to it: love your neighbor as yourself (22:39). If we learn to observe this, then the love for animals in our soul will take its stable, but modest place.
