Heart, Mind, and Soul

There are three parts to a person, yes?

This is what I believe: that the human consciousness, that which makes us who we are as individuals and as a race, is made up of three parts--the heart, the mind, and the soul. Some say there is no soul; however, I must respectfully insist that they are wrong. Think about it. But first it would be helpful to know what I mean by "heart, mind, and soul", no?

Heart: That which feels. The emotions, the impulses, the animal instincts. In a sense, it is the "body" part of the human consciousness--important, but animals have feelings and instincts. Heart alone does not make one human.

Mind: That which reasons. The cold part of humanity. Logic. Rationality. Some would say intelligence, but intelligence is not wholly thinking.

Soul: That which senses. The most amorphous, the most argued over. This is the "sixth sense." That feeling you get, when someone is watching, or when you know what will happen before it crosses your mind. This is your subconscious, in a way. It is what truly separates humans from animals--it allows us to connect to the higher planes of existence, i.e., God. The soul is not controlled by conscious thought or be unreasoning instinct, yet it is what makes us who we are.

So, those are the three parts of human consciousness. Why three parts? Perhaps because that worked best, or perhaps to model the Holy Trinity. Eh? Or maybe that's reading too much into it. It doesn't matter much. The point is, there are three parts. These three parts are equal in all humans, but we choose to listen to one or two over the others. This, in conjunction with our surroundings, is what determines how our outer, and to a lesser extent inner, personalities develop. Someone who listens to heart above all is impulsive, irrational, full of angst and emotion. One who listens to mind first and foremost is cold, logical, an organic robot if you will. A true soul-listener, now those are rare--but they are the ones who feel their way, in spite of logic or emotion.

These are generalizations of course. Most people are a combination of the three, listening primarily to heart and mind and mostly ignoring soul. I myself am about even on them, though it's difficult to analyze yourself in this way. Maybe someone I know would have a different opinion. Which do you listen to? Heart, mind, or soul? One over the other or all three at once?

~ Figment