Heart, soul, mind - what differences did Jesus see?

[Hokomai]

When Jesus used the words ‘heart, soul and mind’ in instructing his followers on the commandments, what would the Aramaic words he used have been, and what is the distinction in meaning between them? Does the English convey it accurately?

 

[Ahimsa]

Luke 10:27 "He answered: “‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind’; and, ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’”

I don’t know the Aramaic words for these, but I prefer to define these words thus:

Heart: Feeling-Contemplation
Soul: The Breath
Strength: Bodily Action
Mind: Intellect and Attention

 

[GEddie]

It’s Greek, not Aramaic:

Heart : Kardias

Soul: psyche

Strength: ischy

Mind: Dianoia

ICXC NIKA

 

[jochoa]

When Jesus used the words ‘heart, soul and mind’ in instructing his followers on the commandments, what would the Aramaic words he used have been, and what is the distinction in meaning between them? Does the English convey it accurately?

To understand the distinction in meaning between each, I like to use the following interpretations:
heart=body
soul=spirit
mind=thoughts
strength=will
Your body and its parts are constantly experiencing feelings of qualities of peace and happiness and energy.
Your mind and its thoughts are constantly experiencing qualities of peace and happiness and energy.
Your spirit is constantly being experienced as qualities of peace and happiness and energy.
Your will is constantly of qualities of patience and kindness and motivation.
If what you will is of perfect patience, perfect kindness, and perfect motivation, then your being will be of Unbreakable Peace, Limitless Happiness, and Unstoppable Energy.

Thoughts?

 

[Hokomai]

It’s Greek, not Aramaic:

Heart : Kardias

Soul: psyche

Strength: ischy

Mind: Dianoia

ICXC NIKA

I had thought it likely Jesus spoke these words in Aramaic, and it should be possible to get back to the ones he most probably used through the later Greek. Is it possible to say what the distinctions are in Greek - for example is the heart the seat of the emotions in Greek metaphor? Where I come from, it’s the liver.

 

[John_Russell_Jr]

… my dear friend ,

… don’t know aramaic , but my ideas in engklish if you like :
… heart , mind and soul , are all part of the soul , so man is also 3 but 1 like god , being made in the image and likeness of god , but what about the 4th – strength ??? , strength is symbolic of the will of god i call the equilibrium of god , though this is not a person – in man the strength refers to the body which the other 3 need to operate , the strength of man in his body symbolises the equilibrium of god , without the body man cannot function as god cannot without his will , so man is completely made in the image and likeness of god , hope this helps dear friend …

… may god bless and love you …

… john …

 

[eddadonkey]

When Jesus used the words ‘heart, soul and mind’ in instructing his followers on the commandments, what would the Aramaic words he used have been, and what is the distinction in meaning between them? Does the English convey it accurately?

Hmm, I’ve never checked on the Aramaic words on that (mainly because the Gospels are in Greek), but I’ve read about many interpretations about these words. The ones I am most convinced of are those that get their cues from St. Thomas Aquinas.

Heart: The heart, according to what I’ve read, is the seat of the will, one’s decision-making power. It is therefore fitting that the heart is the first to be mentioned: you must first decide to love God.

Soul: The soul is what makes us alive, and these correspond to our appetites or passions—those things in us that make us move. It is fitting that the soul comes next for it is wise to be able to put your own passions and appetites under your own control before you do anything else, or your own actions will betray your love.

Mind: The mind corresponds to our wisdom and knowledge. We must know who we are loving before we could love our love, or we wouldn’t know how to love him.

Strength: Strength is used only when something is heavy, therefore strength corresponds to our commitment to love even when it is difficult to do.

In summary:

Heart corresponds to the virtue of Justice

Soul corresponds to the virtue of Temperance

Mind corresponds to the virtue of Prudence

Strength corresponds to the virtue of Fortitude

 

[Oldtimer_7]

In this passage, Jesus is quoting Deuteronomy 6:5, which follows one of the most important Scriptures in the Old Testament, called the Shema. It is the basis for the belief in one God.

ESV: Deuteronomy Chapter 6

[4] Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God, the LORD is one. [5] You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might. [6] And these words that I command you today shall be on your heart. [7] You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, and when you walk by the way, and when you lie down, and when you rise. [8] You shall bind them as a sign on your hand, and they shall be as frontlets between your eyes. [9] You shall write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates.

It would be good to find a Bible Study group in one of the mainline churches or talk to a pastor about these passages, especially if you are from a culture where Christianity is not common. Keep reading! It gets even better.

 

[InDefense]

When Jesus used the words ‘heart, soul and mind’ in instructing his followers on the commandments, what would the Aramaic words he used have been, and what is the distinction in meaning between them? Does the English convey it accurately?

Matthew 22:37 Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind.

Heart = feelings and thoughts (Jesus said what comes out of a man’s heart defiles him)
Soul = body + spirit or your entire being
Mind = G1271 ‘dianoia’ = deep thought, properly, the faculty (mind or its disposition), by implication, its exercise.