The word psychology came from the Greek words psyche meaning soul and ology meaning knowledge.

Originally psychology meant the study of the soul. Today that sounds religious, but back then it wasn’t.

Noah Webster wrote in his 1828 dictionary what most people even back then considered the soul to be.  He said the soul is:

The spiritual, rational and immortal substance in man, which distinguishes him from brutes; that part of man which enables him to think and reason, and which renders him a subject of moral government. The understanding; the intellectual principle. The eyes of our soul then only begin to see, when our bodily eye are closing.

The soul actually is the person themselves, not their body, but the vital and creative principle that makes them who they are.

In other words, the soul is the part of you and me that is unseen, yet drives everything.

Noah defined psychology as:

The formal study of, discussion, explanation of the human soul, the nature and properties of the soul.

Even the ancient Greeks called Psychology soul healing.

This leads us to the difference between the soul, the mind and the brain.  You can’t see the mind.  You can see the brain.  You can’t see the soul, you can see the body, you can see behavior.

Around 1879, only 50 years after Noah, psychologists decided if they couldn’t see it, they couldn’t study it.  They dropped the soul and focused on the brain and behavior, which is where we are today.

Back in the day, when they were still healing the soul, ancient Italians believed one of the most effective forms of therapy is laughter. They believed if you could make someone laugh, they’d get better.

I rather agree.  If I ever need a psychologist, I would love to have one of those old Italians.  I’ll bet they were really good at making you laugh.

Wishing you much good laughter!  May you be a very happy soul.

Love,

Ingrid

PS  My fabulous cat, Jazz (for photo see earlier blog https://wordpress.com/post/ingridgudenas.com/360) jumped on the keyboard and added to my blog.  He was laughing as he walked across the computer keys, so I’ve included it.  Here’s what he had to say:  p-0;aso=-