Chapter 6-5 Matters of the Soul

In recent years, AIGC has developed at a rapid pace, giving rise to AI-powered machines in an instant. Some people worry that these robots might threaten humanity. It's true that learning robots can easily replace most repetitive tasks, but the fundamental difference between humans and machines is that humans have souls.

Questions about the soul are varied and peculiar. In Chapter 4, we discussed that according to the "Law of Conservation of Energy" and Einstein's "Mass-energy Equivalence", the soul must have its own weight. Here, we will address some questions about relationships between the soul, fate and death, hoping to shed light on this topic and provide some initial insights.

 

• The Same Grain Feeds a Hundred Different People

The ancient saying goes: "The same grain feeds a hundred different people." Even brothers and sisters under the same roof, or twins, are no exception. Why is that? Each person possesses three souls, carrying the accumulated karma of past lives, and inherently differing in quality—high or low, strong or weak, good or evil. These differences manifest in the visible and tangible traits of people, resulting in distinctions such as virtuous or wicked, noble or ignoble. They also lead to variations in wisdom, virtue, wealth, poverty, thoughts, beliefs, behaviors and cultures. Naturally, these differences influence one's actions, desires, likes, dislikes, loves, and hatreds, giving rise to various forms of right and wrong, love and hate, joy and sorrow, success and failure, gains and losses...

The different outcomes produced by the interactions and influences among Three Souls lead to varying "greed, anger, ignorance, arrogance and doubt"（贪嗔痴慢疑）. For example, a person with a strong Life Soul may be self-centered, egotistical, possessive, subjective, competitive and highly aggressive. Conversely, a person with a weak Life Soul may be selfless but tend to be passive, timid and indecisive. Those with a keen Earth Soul are sensitive and quick-witted, while those with a dull Earth Soul appear coarse, often numb and indifferent. Due to such significant differences among people's Three Souls, the manifestations are naturally complex and diverse.

Some might ask: Didn't Buddha teach that "all sentient beings are equal（众生平等）"? This "equality" does not mean that all people are born equal, but rather that all sentient beings have "equal opportunities" for spiritual practice. The complete interpretation is: all sentient beings possess Buddha-nature and that everyone can become a Buddha. The "Three Character Classic"（《三字经》）, often recited by Chinese children, begins with "People at birth are naturally good." Here, "good" not only implies kindness, but also completeness and purity. Initially, human nature is inherently complete, much like a newborn baby who treats everything in the world equally without discrimination, pure like water, or like a blank sheet of paper that reflects whatever is written upon it. 

• Three Souls, Seven Spirits and Destiny

The Heavenly Soul governs light, while the Earth Soul is the shadow cast by the light of the Heavenly Soul upon the Life Soul. Therefore, Earth Soul is also called Shadow Soul. Without light, there can be no shadow, and there can be no shadow without a form.

After a person is born, Three Souls unite to govern one's intangible fate. The combination of fate and luck constitutes a complete human life. "Fate" refers to Life Soul, and "luck" supports Heavenly and Earth Souls, determining quality and strength of one's "fate", showing the prosperity or decline of "luck". Luck is invisible and fate is visible; luck is controlled by fate, and fate is caused by luck, luck controls the void, and fate controls reality.

The quality of a person's destiny in this world depends on whether their fate and luck are harmonious, complementary, or conflicting. If luck is stronger than fate and does not support it but suppresses it, the Three Souls within the person cannot be mutually beneficial and supportive, resulting in a frail body and weak fate. Only when fate is stronger than luck, compelling luck to support its own fate, can the Three Souls be mutually beneficial and compatible, and this person will have a deep foundation and show a strong body and prosperous fate.

If a practitioner can harmonize their fate and luck, the Heavenly Soul and the Earth Soul can align with the Life Soul. Only those whose Life Soul is stronger than Heavenly and Earth Souls find it easier to succeed in their practice. The position of the "Third-eye" is inside the center of the forehead. Practitioners with profound cultivation or special abilities can perceive all phenomena seen by Heavenly and Earth Souls within their brain via the "Third-eye" (see Chapter 7, "The Science of Torsion Field").

• Three Souls, Seven Spirits and Heatlth

In the preceding text, much has been said about Three Souls and Seven Spirits with respect to health, here we will add a few more points.

A healthy and robust body necessitates a strong and vigorous Life Soul, a clear and luminous Heavenly Soul, and a sensitive Earth Soul. Conversely, when the body is weak and afflicted with illness, Life Soul becomes depressed, Heavenly Soul murky and obscure, and Earth Soul sluggish. Throughout a person's life, the Three Souls and Seven Spirits act as the masters and roots of all the various manifestations. A person is considered normal and standard when all the souls and spirits are settled. Conversely, when a person's body is unhealthy or plagued with illness, life becomes painful. Their abilities and wisdom are difficult to manifest, and they may feel life is dull, uninteresting, filled with troubles, misery, oppression... described as "unsettled souls and unstable spirits".

In other words, you can judge a person's soul and spirit state by their mental outlook when awake and appearance when asleep. To understand the state of one's soul, you can observe a person's emotions, feelings, and dreams at night. To understand the state of one's spirits, you can simply observe their sleep. During deep sleep, people know if they are hot or cold, kicking off blankets when hot or covering themselves when cold, which is the spirits at work. Those with damaged or fallen spirits may snore, experience breath-holding, nightmares, or even Cardiac arrest. If the spirits' function is normal, breathing will be even, the digestive system will continue to work after falling asleep, and hunger will be felt in the morning; otherwise, symptoms like indigestion, acid reflux, bad breath, and dry throat will appear. The small intestine can differentiate clear from turbid fluids, and the bladder can store urine; otherwise, symptoms like bedwetting and frequent urination at night will appear. Sexual functions also recover at night; otherwise, issues like nocturnal emissions and vaginal discharge may occur.

When a person falls ill, Seven Spirits are the first to become unstable. The loss of half the spirits poses a threat to one's life. In folklore, children with all yin elements in their "Eight Characters"（birth chart, 八字）or who are physically weak are said to have unstable spirits, making them prone to "losing spirits" or "being possessed".

Three Souls are spiritual entities and energy, similar to light sources. It is said they have colors and can appear around people in different colors of light. Those with "celestial eyes", "wisdom eyes", "dharma eyes", or "yin-yang eyes" can determine a person's life state based on their energy. For example, the light around someone nearing death will be very dim, indicating that the soul is about to leave.

It is important to remind readers that apart from a few soul-related illnesses, most illnesses in life are real and still require medical treatment (see Chapter 11: Four Types of Human Diseases). Some people, without any real issues, tend to overthink and scare themselves, eventually making themselves ill from worry. TCM offers many remedies to calm the mind and improve sleep, such as amber, dragon bone, sour jujube seed, wheat, and jujube, which are effective in calming the mind, improving sleep quality, and alleviating depressive moods.

• Three Souls, Seven Spirits and Death

Three Souls accompany a person upon birth, while Seven Spirits depend entirely on physical body and are formed postnatally during fetal development. The spirits live and die with the body, cannot leave it (for long), and control its various functions. They begin to manifest as the baby separates from the mother's body and becomes an individual and end with the person's death.

For those nearing death, Seven Spirits disperse first, followed by departure of Three Souls. Most people who pass away exhibit distinctive "death appearance" beforehand, such as facial muscle wasting, ashen complexion, sunken eye sockets, cloudy eyes, sagging jaw, and darkening of the forehead—referred to as "Hippocratic facies", which indicates the gradual dispersal of Seven Spirits.

According to TCM, human body has an exit for the spirits called the "spirit gate", which is the anus. Hence, in ancient times, the first action to save a dying person was to plug the anus. Many near-death individuals lose control of their bowels and bladder. After death, mortuary workers may seal the anus of the deceased to respect them, and to prevent bodily waste from leaking out.

Taoist master Liu Yiming stated: "Spirits, relying on the essence of blood and Qi, become complete 49 days after birth and dissipate 49 days after death." Therefore, ancient beliefs held that the spirits completely vanish 49 days after the physical death of the body.

The gate of the three souls is not fixed and can be located anywhere in the body, with each soul leaving at different times. When a person is near death, their eyes become cloudy, especially after the departure of Heavenly Soul, causing the pupils to dilate. This is the simplest medical way to determine death. The departure of Life Soul signifies the end of life, manifesting as symptoms like fainting, shock or paralysis.

After death, Seven Spirits completely vanish within 49 days, while the souls remain and transform. The Life Soul and Earth Soul may not disappear immediately upon the body's death but will eventually fade. Individuals who accrued great virtue during their lifetime or achieved enlightenment can concentrate their soul energy without dispersing, capable of traversing time and space. Those with unresolved grievances or unfulfilled wishes may temporarily keep their soul intact due to strong consciousness concentration, potentially influencing others through possession or manifestation, leading the living to believe they have "seen ghosts". Once their wishes are fulfilled, the souls dissipate.

 Ancient beliefs hold that after death, Three Souls follow three different paths: Heavenly Soul reincarnates, Earth Soul wanders, and Life Soul guards, each returns to where they came from.

Heavenly Soul: After death, Heavenly Soul returns to its original heaven path. It is taken to a celestial place known as "Heaven's Prison", where it is detained. This energy returns to the universe but is entangled by karma accumulated over lifetimes. The Taoist believes that all Heavenly Souls originate from the "Great Void"（太虚）, or the world's origin—Tao. Everything in the world, including human emotions and desires, is illusory. Each of us is composed of Heavenly Soul and other consciousness. Ultimately, Heavenly Soul returns to the Great Void.

In "Dream of the Red Chamber"（《红楼梦》）, there is a vivid depiction of "Jia Baoyu's soul journey to the Great Void"（贾宝玉神游太虚境）: Fairy Jinghuan（警幻仙子）hints at the fate of "12 Beauties of Jinling"（金陵十二钗）, hoping the grandson Baoyu would return to the right path, revive the family and comprehend the Tao. However, Baoyu was just "a stubborn stone" and eventually failed to understand.

Earth Soul: After physical death, Earth Soul is usually taken to Hell by the underworld messengers for judgment. Various religions, including Buddhism, Christianity, and Islam, have concepts of Hell. What is Hell like? In Chinese folklore, many people have experiences of "crossing to the underworld", and there are legitimate professions like yin-yang masters. Many classical works, historical records, and unofficial histories document such experiences. According to legends, there are 18 layers of Hell, which are not floors but different levels of punishment meted out by the hell judges based on the evil deeds committed in life.

Like Heaven, Hell is shaped by one's mind and varies for each individual, influenced by their karma and merit. Interested readers can refer to texts such as "The Sutra of Bodhisattva Kṣitigarbha"（《地藏菩萨本愿经》）, "The Tibetan Book of Living and Dying"（《西藏生死书》） and others.

Hell is not a place one can only reach after death; disciples, yin-yang masters, and people with special abilities can all "travel" to Hell. In fact, everyone is born with "Third-eye". This allows children to see things invisible to adults and sense things adults cannot feel. Elderly people often say that if a child cries uncontrollably or seems very unhappy when arriving in a new place, it's not suitable for long-term stay. However, this "Third-eye" gradually close around the age of 4-5.

Earth Soul is aware of all the karmic retributions of Life Soul, and once governed the moral conduct, often referred to as the "Karmic Soul". If the underworld judges that the person has committed no evil deeds in life, the Earth Soul will ascend and merge with Heavenly Soul. The underworld will then remove this Earth Soul from its records, and the united soul will enter the Heavenly registry. If good deeds outweigh the bad, the soul may reincarnate, with the Heavenly soul, along with parts of the old Earth Soul and ancestral Earth souls, merging into a new life soul. If bad deeds outweigh the good, the Earth Soul will endure punishment in Hell.

Ending one's life prematurely or showing disrespect for life is considered as an extremely serious sin in the spiritual realm. Those who die unnaturally (e.g., due to disasters, accidents, murder or suicide) and whose life span has not ended may linger in their death place, becoming wandering souls until their destined lifespan concludes, and their soul can return to the underworld. Those who have committed serious crimes in life will be judged and punished in the underworld even after execution. Such souls are difficult to redeem and must endure severe punishment. Those who die violently or with unresolved grievances are given time by the underworld to disperse their resentment and settle their scores in the human world. This is why at many disaster and accident sites, rituals are performed by spiritually advanced individuals to help the souls of the deceased pass on.

However, the effectiveness of paid rituals varies greatly. In most cases, it only help the souls lingering in the human world to move on but cannot relieve their suffering in Hell. True help for the departed souls comes from the sincere efforts and merit transferred from their living relatives. "The Sutra of Bodhisattva Kṣitigarbha" recounts moving stories of Kṣitigarbha's aspirations for deceased mother, liberating her from suffering in Hell.

Life Soul: For those who die naturally, their Life Soul often lingers around the cemetery, temporarily residing in the human grave and becoming "Corpse-guarding Soul". These souls can enjoy the offerings and incense from their family and descendants. Adjusting the Feng Shui of the ancestral grave site typically aims to take care of this soul, otherwise, it can negatively affect the descendants. Those who die unnaturally and are not properly laid to rest will have their Earth Soul and Life Soul lingering in the human world. Sometimes, they follow those with weak bodies or unstable souls, causing "external illnesses", commonly referred to as accidentally "encountering ghosts" in folklore.

Although the Three Souls disperse after death, they still maintain sympathetic connection with each other until they are reborn as new life. We previously mentioned that "being on the same dimension is true". Living people and ghosts exist in different dimensions, so the living do not know the pain of ghosts. When a person truly becomes a ghost, the Earth Soul endures judgment and punishment in the underworld, and the other two souls experience the pain as if they were personally enduring it. When the Life Soul enjoys incense and offerings in the human world, the Heavenly and Earth Souls can also receive benefits.

The saying goes: "Do no evil during the day, and you will not fear ghosts knocking at night." The spiritual world is like a mirror; it has no corruption and is managed more strictly than the human world. Besides the prescribed festivals like Ghost Festival and Chinese Qingming Festival, the activities of wandering souls are regulated and do not interfere with people's normal lives.

Among all living beings, humans have the most complete Three Souls and Seven Spirits. At least one soul—Life Soul, is essential for the existence and survival of any living being. Ordinary animals and plants also possess one or two souls. However, spiritually endowed animals and plants, as depicted in "Classic of Mountains and Seas"（《山海经》）, and "Legend of the White Snake"（《白蛇传》）, can cultivate immortality or take on human form. Not all spiritually endowed animals and plants are "monsters".

 All things in the universe are divided into yin and yang; where there are gods and Buddhas, there are also demons and monsters, which can be good or evil. The concept of "one thought becoming a Buddha, one thought becoming a demon" has long been popular in Chinese literature.

The "Mahaparinirvana Sutra"（《大般涅槃经》）, the "Maha Vaipulya Mahasamghata Sutra"（《大方等大集经》）, and numerous other Buddhist scriptures record dialogues between the Buddha and Mara—the evil one.  In the widely known "The Journey to the West", Sun Wukong starts as a "stone soul" and later becomes a monkey, and finally a deity. In reality, followers of Shamanism（萨满）often worship the five household guardian animal deities: the fox, weasel, hedgehog, snake and rat. Their duty is to protect the peace of the home. Together with "Land God", "Kitchen God" and "City God", they are very close to the common people. They are righteous gods who protect the land and water, and have long been irreconcilable with evil spirits.