- the belief that natural objects, natural phenomena, and the universe itself possess souls.
- the belief that natural objects have souls that may exist apart from their material bodies.
- the doctrine that the soul is the principle of life and health.
- belief in spiritual beings or agencies.
- the belief that natural objects, phenomena, and the universe itself have desires and intentions
- (in the philosophies of Plato and Pythagoras) the hypothesis that there is an immaterial force that animates the universe
