The Difference Between Various Perceptions

22. The Difference Between Various Perceptions

There are perceptions that come to the soul through the nerves.

• Some of these we attribute to external objects that strike our senses
• Others we attribute to our body
• Others we attribute to our soul

23. Perceptions We Attribute to External Objects

External objects strike our senses which then excite movements in the brain through the nerves.

• This is then felt by our soul.

For example, we:

• see the light of a torch
• hear the sound of a bell

This sound and light are 2 different actions which excite 2 different movements in some of our nerves in the brain.

This gives our soul 2 different feelings.

This makes us think that we see the torch itself and hear the bell, not just feel the movements that come from them.

24. Internal and External Bodily Perceptions

Examples of bodily perceptions are:

• hunger, thirst, and our other natural appetites
• pain, heat, and other affections we feel as in our members

Through the same nerves, we can feel:

• the coldness of our hand
  • We can perceive that this is in us.
• the heat of the flame
  • We can perceive that this is outside of us.

25. Soul-Perceptions

These are felt as within the soul itself and have no other cause.

Examples are feelings of joy, anger, and similar emotions.

These are sometimes excited in us:

• by objects that move our nerves and
• by other causes.

I define the passsions of the soul as those perceptions which relate to the soul itself.

This does not include the bodily perceptions.

26. Imaginations That Depend Only on the Spirits Can Be as True Passions as Perceptions That Depend on Nerves

All the things that the soul perceives through the nerves can also be represented to it by flow of the animal spirits.

The only difference is that the nerve-based impressions are usually clearer and more vivid than spirits-based impressions.

This made me say in Article 21 that the spirits-based impressions are like the shadow or painting of the nerve-based impressions.

Sometimes, this painting is so similar to the thing it represents.

We can be deceived about the perceptions from:

• external objects or
• our body

But we cannot be deceived in the same way about the passions.

• This is because they are so close and so internal to our soul.

Thus, we can imagine things so strongly when were are asleep and awake.

• We feel them outside of us or in our bodies even if they are not there at all.

But when we feel the passions, we really feel them in our soul.