Pain, Feelings, Thoughts & Pets

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VineyardsOfEngedi

Well-known member
Nov 26, 2019
899
297
63
#1
Feelings are emotions, right? Happy, sad, etc. are they of the mind since they are not something that manifest physically? What about pain? Pain is sensed physically, is that still an emotion? Are thoughts emotions? How are feelings connected to the mind, not the brain? What is the mind in relation to the brain? It's not tangible. How are emotions wired to the body, the soul? Could someone's soul be placed in another physical body and still be that person? So weird. Maybe I should have learned this in anatomy and physiology class, I forget. If pets feel pain and have emotions does that mean they have thoughts too? And process information? I really wonder what they think.? Sigh :cautious:
 

tourist

Senior Member
Mar 13, 2014
42,598
17,062
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Tennessee
#2
I believe that pets do have thoughts but perhaps not in the way that it is readily understood. They certainly do have emotions for sure. Feelings are indeed emotions but probably can manifest themselves physically, especially negative emotions. I believe that the soul is who one truly is and has little to do with one's body. The mind is like the monitor and the brain is the computer.
 

Gideon300

Well-known member
Mar 18, 2021
5,368
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#3
Feelings are emotions, right? Happy, sad, etc. are they of the mind since they are not something that manifest physically? What about pain? Pain is sensed physically, is that still an emotion? Are thoughts emotions? How are feelings connected to the mind, not the brain? What is the mind in relation to the brain? It's not tangible. How are emotions wired to the body, the soul? Could someone's soul be placed in another physical body and still be that person? So weird. Maybe I should have learned this in anatomy and physiology class, I forget. If pets feel pain and have emotions does that mean they have thoughts too? And process information? I really wonder what they think.? Sigh :cautious:
Feelings=emotions. Very often, feelings are the consequence of thoughts. The mind is the brain. This is evidenced by the result of brain damage, when a person may not be able to think or form words anymore. This is not unusual with stroke victims.

We are a spirit person, with a soul, that inhabits a body. God's will is revealed in the spirit, where Lord Jesus dwells. The soul should "read" the spirit. The will, another aspect of the soul, should choose to follow the lead of the spirit. The soul then instructs the body to carry out the will of the person.

Emotion gives colour and personality. Monotone voices are boring. If you have no emotion in your voice, no one will take you seriously.

The soul should serve the spirit. We get in trouble when logic and reason or unruly emotion overrides the spirit. And if we fail to act on the inner witness of the spirit, God's will does not get done, even if we agree with what He says.

If the soul was transplanted to another person, it would be chaos. The mind would not match the spirit.

Physical pain is not an emotion but it does influence emotion.

Animals are controlled by instinct. They do not have free will in the human sense. No one will imprison a cat for killing a bird. Man is created in God's image, animals are not.

Animals are capable of learning. Some can work out solutions to problems. They may well be far more intelligent than we imagine. Do they think, reason and apply logic? I don't know.
 

blueluna5

Well-known member
Jul 30, 2018
658
393
63
#4
Feelings are emotions, right? Happy, sad, etc. are they of the mind since they are not something that manifest physically? What about pain? Pain is sensed physically, is that still an emotion? Are thoughts emotions? How are feelings connected to the mind, not the brain? What is the mind in relation to the brain? It's not tangible. How are emotions wired to the body, the soul? Could someone's soul be placed in another physical body and still be that person? So weird. Maybe I should have learned this in anatomy and physiology class, I forget. If pets feel pain and have emotions does that mean they have thoughts too? And process information? I really wonder what they think.? Sigh :cautious:
Feelings are energy. High energy is happy, excited. Low energy is sad, depression.

Pain is a physical pull of your energy. I wouldn't say pain is an emotion. You can be happy and still be in pain. Pain is physical and spiritual. You can feel pain in a dream.

Again feelings are energy. They are connected to the soul. In a dream you feel happy, sad, scared, etc.

Thoughts when enhanced become emotions. (Example: I thought about God bringing my husband. I was excited he brought him to me and thanked him over and over. )

You are not responsible for your thoughts if you let them go. I didn't agree with that thought and it disappeared like the wind.

Think it- believe it - feel it. It is said this is manifestation. However in lucid dreams it works instantly. This is how you can "wake up " in a dream and decide to fly or whatever you want to do. The feeling is VERY important. That's all there is in dreams. If you feel the sensation of falling, you will.

Our soul is the spirit. There is no form, unless you want one. That is why in dreams you are typically yourself. Our soul is beneath our body. Some people have out of body experiences. Since I use to Astral project and because I lucid dream I can somewhat feel the difference between the body and the soul underneath. They move a little different but mostly the same. I assume the soul just fills in the body...like water would.

Pets have thoughts and feelings. They do not have beliefs and they are not the image of God. They don't question their existence and can't understand abstract concepts.
 
T

TheIndianGirl

Guest
#5
I forget. If pets feel pain and have emotions does that mean they have thoughts too? And process information? I really wonder what they think.?
Yes, I believe pets feel pain and emotions. For example, when you tell a dog or cat, "Bad Boy!" they know exactly what you mean. They will go through negative emotional feelings. Also, they are happy to see their owners and feel unhappy when they leave. I do think animals process information; dogs especially can be trained to perform tasks. However, I don't think they can process like a human, like think critically.
 

VineyardsOfEngedi

Well-known member
Nov 26, 2019
899
297
63
#6
Feelings=emotions. Very often, feelings are the consequence of thoughts. The mind is the brain. This is evidenced by the result of brain damage, when a person may not be able to think or form words anymore. This is not unusual with stroke victims.

We are a spirit person, with a soul, that inhabits a body. God's will is revealed in the spirit, where Lord Jesus dwells. The soul should "read" the spirit. The will, another aspect of the soul, should choose to follow the lead of the spirit. The soul then instructs the body to carry out the will of the person.

Emotion gives colour and personality. Monotone voices are boring. If you have no emotion in your voice, no one will take you seriously.

The soul should serve the spirit. We get in trouble when logic and reason or unruly emotion overrides the spirit. And if we fail to act on the inner witness of the spirit, God's will does not get done, even if we agree with what He says.

If the soul was transplanted to another person, it would be chaos. The mind would not match the spirit.

Physical pain is not an emotion but it does influence emotion.

Animals are controlled by instinct. They do not have free will in the human sense. No one will imprison a cat for killing a bird. Man is created in God's image, animals are not.

Animals are capable of learning. Some can work out solutions to problems. They may well be far more intelligent than we imagine. Do they think, reason and apply logic? I don't know.
Can you elaborate on what you mean by if we fail to act on the inner witness of the spirit, Gods will does not get done?
 

VineyardsOfEngedi

Well-known member
Nov 26, 2019
899
297
63
#7
Feelings are energy. High energy is happy, excited. Low energy is sad, depression.

Pain is a physical pull of your energy. I wouldn't say pain is an emotion. You can be happy and still be in pain. Pain is physical and spiritual. You can feel pain in a dream.

Again feelings are energy. They are connected to the soul. In a dream you feel happy, sad, scared, etc.

Thoughts when enhanced become emotions. (Example: I thought about God bringing my husband. I was excited he brought him to me and thanked him over and over. )

You are not responsible for your thoughts if you let them go. I didn't agree with that thought and it disappeared like the wind.

Think it- believe it - feel it. It is said this is manifestation. However in lucid dreams it works instantly. This is how you can "wake up " in a dream and decide to fly or whatever you want to do. The feeling is VERY important. That's all there is in dreams. If you feel the sensation of falling, you will.

Our soul is the spirit. There is no form, unless you want one. That is why in dreams you are typically yourself. Our soul is beneath our body. Some people have out of body experiences. Since I use to Astral project and because I lucid dream I can somewhat feel the difference between the body and the soul underneath. They move a little different but mostly the same. I assume the soul just fills in the body...like water would.

Pets have thoughts and feelings. They do not have beliefs and they are not the image of God. They don't question their existence and can't understand abstract concepts.
What is energy? And how is energy balanced or controlled etc? And how is it different or separate from the spiritual? And I’m not sure what you mean by you’re not responsible for your thoughts if you let them go I didn’t agree with that thought and it disappeared like the wind?
 

Lynx

Folksy yet erudite
Aug 13, 2014
27,418
9,406
113
#8
Animals are controlled by instinct. They do not have free will in the human sense. No one will imprison a cat for killing a bird. Man is created in God's image, animals are not.
I dunno... I sure imprisoned my dog for getting into all the trash in the neighborhood. :sneaky:

(Don't worry about him though. He's not suffering. I got a roll of airplane wire and made him a 270 foot run.)

(Also: Yeah, I know what you are saying. I couldn't pass up the joke though.) :whistle:
 

Lynx

Folksy yet erudite
Aug 13, 2014
27,418
9,406
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#9
We have had dogs and cats for as long as I've been alive. I was practically raised by a blue heiler who would let me pull her ears and bite her tail until mom came to rescue her (but when mom told me to stay on the porch and I started crawling down the steps, the dog growled at me - she knew what "stay" means.)

There's one thing we can do that they can't though, or at least I've never seen it, and Gideon300 touched on it: They can't really love you. The only love they have is cupboard love. My dog acts excited when he sees me because he knows I'm about to get his food or he hopes I'll pet him. As sweet as my little Nancia (cat) was, I don't kid myself - she came running every time she saw me because I scratched that spot behind her ears. The blue heiler let me yank her ears because she considered me a puppy, and dogs and cats are instinctively tolerant of puppies and kittens.
 

Gideon300

Well-known member
Mar 18, 2021
5,368
3,163
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#10
I dunno... I sure imprisoned my dog for getting into all the trash in the neighborhood. :sneaky:

(Don't worry about him though. He's not suffering. I got a roll of airplane wire and made him a 270 foot run.)

(Also: Yeah, I know what you are saying. I couldn't pass up the joke though.) :whistle:
Yes, my friend puts her dog in the laundry when any visitor comes. If there was an offence of criminal stupidity, the dog would be toast.
 

Lanolin

Well-known member
Dec 15, 2018
23,460
7,188
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#11
yes pets have emotions and experience pain but they can only tell you in their own language they dont really have human speech (except parrots...but parrots can only repeat what they already have heard) but they do have body langauge...and some apes can use sign language.
Whales and dolphins communicate by sonar.

Their thoughts would be differents from a humans obviously but they still come under Gods covenant he sent to Noah.
 

Lanolin

Well-known member
Dec 15, 2018
23,460
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#13
It was a neighbours dog that killed our chicken...and we have cats who live with us and they dont kill chickens.

Cats do kill smaller birds though but if they are well fed they dont often do this...we have them to kill rodents like mice and rats rather than poisoning them as other people do. Cats are fascinating creatures and often people forget they are naturally carnivores with a killer instinct. But God made them that way have you seen their teeth?!

He also made some birds to be scavengers eg vultures.
 

Lanolin

Well-known member
Dec 15, 2018
23,460
7,188
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#14
It is said the Holy Spirit is like a dove.
It was a dove that told Noah there was dry land.
 

blueluna5

Well-known member
Jul 30, 2018
658
393
63
#15
What is energy? And how is energy balanced or controlled etc? And how is it different or separate from the spiritual? And I’m not sure what you mean by you’re not responsible for your thoughts if you let them go I didn’t agree with that thought and it disappeared like the wind?

Literally everything is energy. Solid, liquid, gas all energy. Our souls are energy and our bodies as well. Everything in a dream is energy as well. All that is and all that exists is energy.

Every person has an energy as well. You may have heard "They have good vibes" " bad vibes" "you can cut the tension with a knife." These all relate to energy. In a dream you're running and have no idea why. How do you know the character is bad? It's their energy. There is no lying in the spiritual. The energy gives it away.

All people are energy and give and take energy. You may chuckle hearing a parent yelling at her kids to "stop yelling!" She is reflecting the energy back to them. Anger leads to anger. This is why people have a hard time talking to someone who is sad. People don't like feeling sad and they receive this energy back feeling sad for the person.

Energy is always transferring. You give and take energy all the time whether you realize it or not.

Energy in a dream is not different, other than its faster. You can pick up something blurry and keep staring at it until it appears solid. I can't tell I'm dreaming until I try to fly. I do it periodically in real life and can only hit my body obviously. So I know I'm not dreaming. Oh...I FEEL the sensation of flying. I'm not jumping off things. 😆

Thoughts are interesting. Where they come from no one knows. In a dream it can approach you like a being. I'll laugh and tell it I didn't even agree with that thought! Thoughts are real. It's very strange... when a character will tell you something that is a thought. But in a dream you feel their energy and so you know the thought is incorrect. You can learn a lot from dreams. Also God does test us in dreams. I fail them even when lucid at times.

But thoughts are fleeting. You are not your thoughts. It's only when you agree with it that you sin. Let it come and go, but don't acknowledge the incorrect ones.
 

VineyardsOfEngedi

Well-known member
Nov 26, 2019
899
297
63
#16
Literally everything is energy. Solid, liquid, gas all energy. Our souls are energy and our bodies as well. Everything in a dream is energy as well. All that is and all that exists is energy.

Every person has an energy as well. You may have heard "They have good vibes" " bad vibes" "you can cut the tension with a knife." These all relate to energy. In a dream you're running and have no idea why. How do you know the character is bad? It's their energy. There is no lying in the spiritual. The energy gives it away.

All people are energy and give and take energy. You may chuckle hearing a parent yelling at her kids to "stop yelling!" She is reflecting the energy back to them. Anger leads to anger. This is why people have a hard time talking to someone who is sad. People don't like feeling sad and they receive this energy back feeling sad for the person.

Energy is always transferring. You give and take energy all the time whether you realize it or not.

Energy in a dream is not different, other than its faster. You can pick up something blurry and keep staring at it until it appears solid. I can't tell I'm dreaming until I try to fly. I do it periodically in real life and can only hit my body obviously. So I know I'm not dreaming. Oh...I FEEL the sensation of flying. I'm not jumping off things. 😆

Thoughts are interesting. Where they come from no one knows. In a dream it can approach you like a being. I'll laugh and tell it I didn't even agree with that thought! Thoughts are real. It's very strange... when a character will tell you something that is a thought. But in a dream you feel their energy and so you know the thought is incorrect. You can learn a lot from dreams. Also God does test us in dreams. I fail them even when lucid at times.

But thoughts are fleeting. You are not your thoughts. It's only when you agree with it that you sin. Let it come and go, but don't acknowledge the incorrect ones.
Is energy the same as auras? Is that biblical? I’m not exactly sure I understood how you take energy from others. I’ve heard that before though but not sure how that is done?
 

Lynx

Folksy yet erudite
Aug 13, 2014
27,418
9,406
113
#17
Yeah, no, you ain't taking none of my energy. I got a cold right now. I need all the energy I can get. MINE! All mine!
 
Jan 5, 2022
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"A higher plane," hehe
www.youtube.com
#18
Is energy the same as auras? Is that biblical? I’m not exactly sure I understood how you take energy from others. I’ve heard that before though but not sure how that is done?
Living things have bioelectric/electromagnetic fields. This is just a reality. Sharks, for example, can sense these fields given off by prey using special organs called the ampullae of lorenzini.

"Energy" is kind of a weird general term so I'm always careful when people talk about it if I'm not 100% sure what they are getting at. Opening oneself up to the energies of the universe reeks of letting down one's guard against spiritual powers. But there are electromagnetic forces tied to living things and emotions can affect them. Can they be intentionally manipulated? By controlling one's emotions and thoughts, probably. By other means, scientific/physical or mystical, probably.

The Bible isn't a tome of all knowledge so some of this stuff just isn't discussed there. There's biblical, aligned with what the Bible teaches, unbiblical, directly contrary to what the Bible teaches, and extrabiblical, simply not discussed by the Bible at all. This is where the discipline of "trying the spirits" - or evaluating sources of purported truth - becomes important.

To answer the OP I think pain is not an emotion but a sensation; however, sorrow is an emotion, and its relationship to pain is difficult. Sorrow can actually be so intense that it overwhelms all sensations of pain for a time.

Animals can certainly feel pain. I don't know if they can feel emotions like sorry. It seems like it sometimes, but as @Lynx mentioned, you can usually write such cases off as self interest or instinct.

I see animals as biological machines. They have breath, and the Scriptures are clear they are to be treated humanely, but they are in all non-physical ways inferior to human beings.
 

VineyardsOfEngedi

Well-known member
Nov 26, 2019
899
297
63
#19
Living things have bioelectric/electromagnetic fields. This is just a reality. Sharks, for example, can sense these fields given off by prey using special organs called the ampullae of lorenzini.

"Energy" is kind of a weird general term so I'm always careful when people talk about it if I'm not 100% sure what they are getting at. Opening oneself up to the energies of the universe reeks of letting down one's guard against spiritual powers. But there are electromagnetic forces tied to living things and emotions can affect them. Can they be intentionally manipulated? By controlling one's emotions and thoughts, probably. By other means, scientific/physical or mystical, probably.

The Bible isn't a tome of all knowledge so some of this stuff just isn't discussed there. There's biblical, aligned with what the Bible teaches, unbiblical, directly contrary to what the Bible teaches, and extrabiblical, simply not discussed by the Bible at all. This is where the discipline of "trying the spirits" - or evaluating sources of purported truth - becomes important.

To answer the OP I think pain is not an emotion but a sensation; however, sorrow is an emotion, and its relationship to pain is difficult. Sorrow can actually be so intense that it overwhelms all sensations of pain for a time.

Animals can certainly feel pain. I don't know if they can feel emotions like sorry. It seems like it sometimes, but as @Lynx mentioned, you can usually write such cases off as self interest or instinct.

I see animals as biological machines. They have breath, and the Scriptures are clear they are to be treated humanely, but they are in all non-physical ways inferior to human beings.
It’s cool to think about, how we are walking around with electric magnetic fields. And that is a better word to describe pain, sensation. I just couldn’t think of it. It does seem to go hand in hand with sorrow.

I’m not sure I would write off animals as inferior to human beings. It is said that cats see our energy and that is why they like some and hiss at others. How do dolphins communicate, like some say, telepathically? It is said that they have a collective conscious, hive mind (maybe all of creation does). We just don’t know it but they seem to. How do wild animals understand the cycle of life but humans, quoting now, are the only animals that will inflict pain on their fellow beings for fun - C.S Lewis. I’m probably off but that’s the gist. Wild animals don’t kill for fun they kill to survive. I’ve read stories of wolves helping, children, pregnant women. There are so many stories of animals that seem to indicate they are not just some inferior species.

I think animals are far more connected to God than humans. I think animals are connected to the spiritual and maybe walk in the spiritual easier than humans do. Why? I’m not sure, maybe they don’t have egos? Maybe I’m just speaking on stuff I don’t understand 😒
 
Jan 5, 2022
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"A higher plane," hehe
www.youtube.com
#20
It’s cool to think about, how we are walking around with electric magnetic fields. And that is a better word to describe pain, sensation. I just couldn’t think of it. It does seem to go hand in hand with sorrow.

I’m not sure I would write off animals as inferior to human beings. It is said that cats see our energy and that is why they like some and hiss at others. How do dolphins communicate, like some say, telepathically? It is said that they have a collective conscious, hive mind (maybe all of creation does). We just don’t know it but they seem to. How do wild animals understand the cycle of life but humans, quoting now, are the only animals that will inflict pain on their fellow beings for fun - C.S Lewis. I’m probably off but that’s the gist. Wild animals don’t kill for fun they kill to survive. I’ve read stories of wolves helping, children, pregnant women. There are so many stories of animals that seem to indicate they are not just some inferior species.

I think animals are far more connected to God than humans. I think animals are connected to the spiritual and maybe walk in the spiritual easier than humans do. Why? I’m not sure, maybe they don’t have egos? Maybe I’m just speaking on stuff I don’t understand 😒
Eh, I think you have overly romanticized animals. Like how certain generations of American writers overly romanticized Native Americans as "noble savages."

Animals also rip children to pieces and devour them, maul people, play with their food. Shrikes impale their prey on thorns. Elephants will destroy human villages if they perceive their territory being infringed upon. Some predators will eviscerate their prey to weaken them and make them bleed to death. Nature can be exceedingly cruel.

Which is why I liken animals to biological machines. Their driving imperatives are survival and procreation.

But in general, animals are not evil. Fallen, yes, but C.S. Lewis mentioned that animals have limited capacity for good or evil while humans have a much greater capacity for good... but also a much greater capacity for evil. The Bible does talk about evil beasts as a judgment on the wicked, but I'm not entirely sure what that means. Perhaps animals demonically possessed or purposely twisted/diseased, etc.