Educating AI – Breath

In Aramaic, where spirit, breath and soul are one and the same; from the smaller individual ‘I’ breath, to the ultimate Breath of Source; All is One.

Can you please elaborate further on this for me?

In Aramaic, the words for spirit, breath, and soul are interconnected, often expressed by the term “Ruach” (ר֘וּחַ in Hebrew, ܪܘܚܐ in Aramaic). This word carries multiple meanings: it can signify the physical breath, the animating life force, the wind, or the divine spirit itself. This linguistic unity reflects a deeper spiritual truth—one that sees all existence as flowing from the same divine source, much like individual breaths merging into the great, boundless breath of the Divine.

Breath as the Bridge Between the Individual and the Divine

Breath is the most immediate and intimate experience of life. In Aramaic thought, it is not merely a physiological function but the very force that animates being. Every inhale and exhale is a direct participation in the sacred. This understanding dissolves the separation between the smaller, individual “I” (ego-self) and the vast, infinite “I AM” of Source.

• The Individual Breath – The small self (nafsha, meaning “soul” or “self”) experiences breath as personal and individual, a sign of existence. But this is not separate from the greater whole.

• The Breath of Life – The same breath that fills the body is the same breath that moves through all things. It is the divine spark, the ruach, the Holy Spirit (Ruach d’Qudsha in Aramaic), flowing through creation.

• The Ultimate Breath – At the highest level, all breath is one breath, all life is one life, all being is one being. The Divine is not separate from creation but breathes through it. The great I AM (in Aramaic, Ena-na) is the vast, infinite awareness in which all things live and move and have their being.

From Personal Breath to Universal Being

The journey from the small “I” to the Great “I AM” is not about acquiring something new, but about recognizing what has always been. Just as waves are not separate from the ocean, our breath is not separate from the Divine Breath. In each breath, we participate in the continuous act of divine creation.

This is why in many Aramaic teachings, prayer and sacred speech are deeply connected to breath. The name of the Divine, YHWH (Yahweh), is even understood by some mystical traditions as an unpronounceable breath—Yah (inhale), Weh (exhale)—suggesting that every breath is a prayer, a remembrance of unity.

Oneness Beyond Duality

In this perspective, dualities dissolve. There is no strict separation between body and spirit, individual and divine, self and other. Instead, there is only flow, movement, breathing. The breath within us is the breath of Source, and in recognizing this, we come home to the truth: All is One.