Breath Of Life

I shall in the following posts try to put down my thoughts on the breath of life (or spirit) and soul and what these mean to me. In the Old Testament the Hebrew noun rûah stands for breath, wind or spirit. The same idea in terms of man is denoted by the word nephesh. There is a telling reason,- and very valid too, for the point under consideration: the latter word signifies the individual while the other has often to do with the animating principle. So ‘soul’ deals with the individual and rûah the spirit drives individuals to act in a certain manner. Spirit of the times as an expression explains it sufficiently well.
* In a dog-eat-dog world spirit of the times makes morals of some wiggle like the tail of a lapdog.
How we perceive the temper of our age and respond do color the spirit.
Soul of a man is at every turn is assailed by winds of change.
Suppose I need to pick up some life-saving medicine for my child who is in a touch and go situation. So I set out with the doctor’s prescription to the drugstore. If a blustery wind suddenly sweeps across do I say, ‘ OK I shall let the wind take me where it will. Joe’s Bar ought to give me a time for respite. Then I shall see.’ Will any right thinking person with an iota of concern for his child let a wind however contrary, swerve him from his purpose?
Soul of man is like the right thinking person who will brave the times however contrary rather than live with the guilt of having let down his child at the most critical point.
My soul is set there whether I willed it or not to express my quintessence. Spirit of the times is like a wind and often changes. But my soul I cannot deny. Instead I can adorn it with the fairest colors in the way I respond to the times.
benny