Yes, animals have souls. Why would one life form have souls but not another? :shrug:
It would make no sense for one animal (human) to have a soul and not the others. Either all animals have souls (includes humans) or all animals don't have a soul. I believe that all animals have a soul, it is...
Certainly. Plants move toward sunlight and many would regard this as a simple chemical response to stimuli. Often men turn their heads when they see a pretty woman walk by. Some consistently turn their heads even if holding the hand of their girlfriend or wife. I saw one guy's head almost fall...
Read my post again. You are taking it completely out of context. :facepalm: I said a molecule compared to a dog as a statistical comparison. I wasn't talking about molecules.
It's a matter of degree of intelligence. Of course a plant is not as intelligent as a dog, but there can still be an iota however small degree of intelligence, even if just a molecule compared to that of a dog.
Intelligence and the brain don't have to be in the physical organ of a brain; there can be neurological connections and synapses in other areas of the body, case in point the many people who have lost part or most of their brain but still function pretty normally. Scientists are still studying...
I see animism as more of a "category" of beliefs rather than a specific religion. Animism includes indigenous beliefs which may or may not be true, but don't have a known, specific founder or set of scriptures.
Jainism has a specific set of scriptures and a known, founder, Mahavira in the 6th...
Consciousness, the state of having some level of awareness and/or feelings, sensations (which plants do have some degree of this, not as much as a human or animal, but some degree).
Soul, the spark of life, the thing that separates an inanimate object from a living being or form of life...
Jainism is the first (known) religion to recognize that there is consciousness, a soul in plants. Scientists today are proving or at least providing more and more evidence that this is true.
Stefano Mancuso: The roots of plant intelligence | Video on TED.com
Plant neurobiology - The science of...
Correct. The Buddha provided a path for those who can't handle the strict austerities of the Jain Dharma. That is why it has appealed to far more followers than Jainism. The Jain Dharma can take you to moksha, freedom, release and the Buddha's path is less strict and will take longer, but will...
"Unlike other religions, Jainism cannot be called a violent religion by any stretch of the imagination. There are no Jain terrorists nor is there likely to ever be any."
Sam Harris from the The End of Faith: Religion, Terror, and the Future of Reason (2004)
Watch Religulous. Read Sam Harris. Billions can be fooled into believing some very mythical stuff, like virgin births, etc. When you are raised into a set of beliefs it is easy to follow them even if they make no logical sense.