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A Treatise on the Soul

Tertullian

Chapter 51

About this work

Author: Tertullian

Chapter LI.—Death Entirely Separates the Soul from the Body.

But the operation of death is plain and obvious: it

‹ Chapter 50 Chapter 52 ›

is

the

separation

of

body

and

soul

.

Some

,

however

,

in

reference

to

the

soul’s

immortality

,

on

which

they

have

so

feeble

a

hold

through

not

being

taught

of

God

,

maintain

it

with

such

beggarly

arguments

,

that

they

would

fain

have

it

supposed

that

certain

souls

cleave

to

the

body

even

after

death

.

It

is

indeed

in

this

sense

that

Plato

,

although

he

despatches

at

once

to

heaven

such

souls

as

he

pleases

,

yet

in

his

Republic

exhibits

to

us

the

corpse

of

an

unburied

person

,

which

was

preserved

a

long

time

without

corruption

,

by

reason

of

the

soul

remaining

,

as

he

says

,

unseparated

from

the

body

.

To

the

same

purport

also

Democritus

remarks

on

the

growth

for

a

considerable

while

of

the

human

nails

and

hair

in

the

grave

.

Now

,

it

is

quite

possible

that

the

nature

of

the

atmosphere

tended

to

the

preservation

of

the

above

-

mentioned

corpse

.

What

if

the

air

were

particularly

dry

,

and

the

ground

of

a

saline

nature

?

What

,

too

,

if

the

substance

of

the

body

itself

were

unusually

dry

and

arid

?

What

,

moreover

,

if

the

mode

of

the

death

had

already

eliminated

from

the

corpse

all

corrupting

matter

?

As

for

the

nails

,

since

they

are

the

commencement

of

the

nerves

,

they

may

well

seem

to

be

prolonged

,

owing

to

the

nerves

themselves

being

relaxed

and

extended

,

and

to

be

protruded

more

and

more

as

the

flesh

fails

.

The

hair

,

again

,

is

nourished

from

the

brain

,

which

would

cause

it

endure

for

a

long

time

as

its

secret

aliment

and

defence

.

Indeed

,

in

the

case

of

living

persons

themselves

,

the

whole

head

of

hair

is

copious

or

scanty

in

proportion

to

the

exuberance

of

the

brain

.

You

have

medical

men

(

to

attest

the

fact

)

.

But

not

a

particle

of

the

soul

can

possibly

remain

in

the

body

,

which

is

itself

destined

to

disappear

when

time

shall

have

abolished

the

entire

scene

on

which

the

body

has

played

its

part

.

And

yet

even

this

partial

survival

of

the

soul

finds

a

place

in

the

opinions

of

some

men

;

and

on

this

account

they

will

not

have

the

body

consumed

at

its

funeral

by

fire

,

because

they

would

spare

the

small

residue

of

the

soul

.

There

is

,

however

,

another

way

of

accounting

for

this

pious

treatment

,

not

as

if

it

meant

to

favour

the

relics

of

the

soul

,

but

as

if

it

would

avert

a

cruel

custom

in

the

interest

even

of

the

body

;

since

,

being

human

,

it

is

itself

undeserving

of

an

end

which

is

also

inflicted

upon

murderers

.

The

truth

is

,

the

soul

is

indivisible

,

because

it

is

immortal

;

(

and

this

fact

)

compels

us

to

believe

that

death

itself

is

an

indivisible

process

,

accruing

indivisibly

to

the

soul

,

not

indeed

because

it

is

immortal

,

but

because

it

is

indivisible

.

Death

,

however

,

would

have

to

be

divided

in

its

operation

,

if

the

soul

were

divisible

into

particles

,

any

one

of

which

has

to

be

reserved

for

a

later

stage

of

death

.

At

this

rate

,

a

part

of

death

will

have

to

stay

behind

for

a

portion

of

the

soul

.

I

am

not

ignorant

that

some

vestige

of

this

opinion

still

exists

.

I

have

found

it

out

from

one

of

my

own

people

.

I

am

acquainted

with

the

case

of

a

woman

,

the

daughter

of

Christian

parents

,

who

in

the

very

flower

of

her

age

and

beauty

slept

peacefully

(

in

Jesus

)

,

after

a

singularly

happy

though

brief

married

life

.

Before

they

laid

her

in

her

grave

,

and

when

the

priest

began

the

appointed

office

,

at

the

very

first

breath

of

his

prayer

she

withdrew

her

hands

from

her

side

,

placed

them

in

an

attitude

of

devotion

,

and

after

the

holy

service

was

concluded

restored

them

to

their

lateral

position

.

Then

,

again

,

there

is

that

well

-

known

story

among

our

own

people

,

that

a

body

voluntarily

made

way

in

a

certain

cemetery

,

to

afford

room

for

another

body

to

be

placed

near

to

it

.

If

,

as

is

the

case

,

similar

stories

are

told

amongst

the

heathen

,

(

we

can

only

conclude

that

)

God

everywhere

manifests

signs

of

His

own

power

—

to

His

own

people

for

their

comfort

,

to

strangers

for

a

testimony

unto

them

.

I

would

indeed

much

rather

suppose

that

a

portent

of

this

kind

happened

from

the

direct

agency

of

God

than

from

any

relics

of

the

soul

:

for

if

there

were

a

residue

of

these

,

they

would

be

certain

to

move

the

other

limbs

;

and

even

if

they

moved

the

hands

,

this

still

would

not

have

been

for

the

purpose

of

a

prayer

.

Nor

would

the

corpse

have

been

simply

content

to

have

made

way

for

its

neighbour

:

it

would

,

besides

,

have

benefited

its

own

self

also

by

the

change

of

its

position

.

But

from

whatever

cause

proceeded

these

phenomena

,

which

you

must

put

down

amongst

signs

and

portents

,

it

is

impossible

that

they

should

regulate

nature

.

Death

,

if

it

once

falls

short

of

totality

in

operation

,

is

not

death

.

If

any

fraction

of

the

soul

remain

,

it

makes

a

living

state

.

Death

will

no

more

mix

with

life

,

than

will

night

with

day

.

Notes

1
See below, ch. liv.
2
Ch. x. p. 614.
3
Vernaculam ecclesiæ.