Chapter Two (The Spirit and The Soul )

The Spirit and the Soul in the Quran

With Islam and the revelation of the Quran we find that all the facts related to the spirit, the soul, and the heart differ in their meanings and notions. Despite their various meanings and frequent use, these concepts are clearly expressed in the Quran without any possibility of misconception. This is the eloquence miracle of the Quran. This immortal Book provides a safe shore for lost souls to anchor, which secures them against waste and loss. The Quran sheds light on the unclear and misunderstood concepts, clarifying their meanings and applications that the mind can only grasp in order to protect it from any form of distortion.
Following the advent of Islam, these concepts became subject to research and study by Moslem philosophers such as: Ibn Rushed, Ibn Sina, Ibn Taimeyah, Ibn Alqayem, Al-Ghazali, Ibn Khaldoun, Mohamed Abdu, Al-Mawdoudi, and Rashid Reda. Their researches in this area were clear, organized, and factual, avoiding any predictions or speculations. All their ideas were based on the Quran, thus providing a sound and well-based practical philosophy from which modern psychologists and philosophers in the West draw their knowledge. These westerners took their material from Islamic philosophy which they formulated according to the methods of modern research. They also admit the fact that none of them added anything to the philosophy of Islam which is based on the Quran that was revealed fourteen centuries ago.