"Therefore the soul, which is the first principle of life, is not a body, but the act of a body; thus heat, which is the principle of calefaction, is not a body, but an act of a body."
— St. Thomas Aquinas (1225-1274)
Work Title
Date
1273
Metaphor
"Therefore the soul, which is the first principle of life, is not a body, but the act of a body; thus heat, which is the principle of calefaction, is not a body, but an act of a body."
Metaphor in Context
It is manifest that not every principle of vital action is a soul, for then the eye would be a soul, as it is a principle of vision; and the same might be applied to the other instruments of the soul: but it is the "first" principle of life, which we call the soul. Now, though a body may be a principle of life, or to be a living thing, as the heart is a principle of life in an animal, yet nothing corporeal can be the first principle of life. For it is clear that to be a principle of life, or to be a living thing, does not belong to a body as such; since, if that were the case, every body would be a living thing, or a principle of life. Therefore a body is competent to be a living thing or even a principle of life, as "such" a body. Now that it is actually such a body, it owes to some principle which is called its act. Therefore the soul, which is the first principle of life, is not a body, but the act of a body; thus heat, which is the principle of calefaction, is not a body, but an act of a body.
(I, Q75, A1 )
(I, Q75, A1 )
Provenance
Reading at Past Masters
Citation
St. Thomas Aquinas, Summa Theologiae, trans. Fathers of the English Dominican Province (London: Burns, Oates, and Washburne, 1912-36; New York: Benziger, 1947-48; New York: Christian Classics, 1981). Text from Intelex Past Masters, The Collected Works of St. Thomas Aquinas. Electronic edition. <Link to Past Masters>
Date of Entry
06/14/2011
