It is neither yours, nor mine. It is undivded. It is beyond the conception of Time and Space. It is fixed and immutable. It is outside and inside of body, yet neither. The interpretation of many people that 'atma leaves the body' or experiments over 'soul cracking the windows' is like a child's understanding of the highest science. How can that which is beyond Time and Space, that which is fixed and undivided; how can that move or crack anything? Neither can fire burn it, nor wind dry it, nor water can make it wet, nor can it be cut by weapons. It is not a 'ghost'. It is a reality. Many interpretations like 'Atma leaving the body' is because of incorrect understanding of the basic foundations of Indian knowledge which includes pillars like dharm, karm, Purush, Prakriti, Brahman, etc. Do we learn Sanskrit by the grammar used in French? Similarly, to understand Indian science, pure Indian framework needs to be embraced! One must read scriptures to see the usage of the terms himself.
I would not give definition of atma in such a complex manner. I would rather say its indestructible and difficult to know part of godly creation with godly elements in it. Tnx
Both the Supreme Lord and the living entity are known as atma. The Supreme Lord is called Paramatma, and the living entity is called the atma, the brahma or the the jiva. Jivatma is the individual, and Atma and Paramatma are Universal. Atma simply means one's true Self.
Atma, an eternal spirit soul is the spark of God; the Supreme Person. Every particle or the spark of the God is a living, aware, active, purposeful self or person. It can’t be divided or crushed. There is no end to the existence of the Atma. The self or spirit soul can never be cut into pieces by any weapon, not burned by fire, nor moistened by water, not withered by the wind.—Bhagavad Gita 2:23 The individual self is unbreakable and insoluble, and can be neither burned nor dried. –Bhagavad Gita 2:24 The body dies, but the self; the Spirit soul does not die. The body is temporary; Atma is eternal. Know that which pervades the entire body is indestructible. No one is able to destroy the imperishable self. Only the material body of the indestructible, immeasurable, and eternal living entity is subject to destruction. –Bhagavad Gita 2:17-18 For the self there is never birth nor death. Nor does the self ever cease to exist. The self or the spirit soul is unborn, eternal, ever-existing, undying, and primeval. The self is not slain when the body is slain. –Bhagavad Gita 2:20 The existence of the Atma does not depend on the existence of the body; even after the death of your body, the Atma; the self continues to exist. The body is like a machine or vehicle. Just as you leave behind a vehicle when it becomes too old or useless, so you, the spirit soul, leave behind the gross material body when it becomes useless.
