Modern philosophers say: “We have never seen the spirit in man, and in spite of our researches into the secrets of the human body, we do not perceive a spiritual power. How can we imagine a power which is not sensible?” The theologians reply: “The spirit of the animal also is not sensible, and through its bodily powers it cannot be perceived. By what do you prove the existence of the spirit of the animal? There is no doubt that from its effects you prove that in the animal there is a power which is not in the plant, and this is the power of the senses; that is to say, sight, hearing, and also other powers; from these you infer that there is an animal spirit...
If we wish to deny everything that is not sensible, then we must deny the realities which unquestionably exist. The power of attraction is not sensible, though it certainly exists. From what do we affirm these existences? From their signs.
Selected Writings of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá P. 308
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