Do animals have souls?

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A priest in white and gold robes blesses a ginger cat perched on a person's shoulder during the San Anton animal blessing at a church in Madrid.

Intricately cut and painted mizrah by Israel Dov Rosenbaum, featuring a central architectural motif, lions, birds, floral patterns, and Hebrew inscriptions in each corner.

A decorative dove in a synagogue or church

A priest in white vestments sprinkles holy water to bless a small dog held by a woman in a pink sling, surrounded by people outside a church in Mexico City.

A girl in a pink dress sits on the ground creating a colorful rangoli pattern with powders to celebrate the Pongal festival in Kumbakonam, Tamil Nadu, India.

A Nepali woman kneels to feed and honor a cow adorned with marigold garlands and red powder during the Tihar festival rituals in Lalitpur, Nepal.

Monks in orange and brown robes stand on a boat, releasing a fish from a green basket into the sea as part of a ritual, with green hills visible in the background.

A woman helps a child release fish into Victoria Harbour from a net, joined by others along the waterfront as part of a Buddhist practice in Hong Kong.

Jain nuns wearing masks to avoid accidental ingestion of small insects

Digambara Jain monk seated nude on a mat beside a low reading stand and peacock-feather whisk in Shravanabelagola, India.

Do animals have souls?: Media

Images

A priest in white and gold robes blesses a ginger cat perched on a person's shoulder during the San Anton animal blessing at a church in Madrid.

Animal blessing

A priest blessing a cat on the feast day of St. Anthony of Egypt, a patron saint...

© Marcos del Mazo—LightRocket/Getty Images

Intricately cut and painted mizrah by Israel Dov Rosenbaum, featuring a central architectural motif, lions, birds, floral patterns, and Hebrew inscriptions in each corner.

Animals real and legendary depicted on a mizrach

Lions, deer, eagles, leopards, the leviathan, a wild ox, and unicorns decorate a...

The Jewish Museum, New York, Gift of Helen W. Finkel in memory of Israel Dov Rosenbaum, Bessie Rosenbaum Finkel, and Sidney Finkel (1987-136), collections.thejewishmuseum.org.

A decorative dove in a synagogue or church

A decorative dove in a synagogue or church

Mosaic floor fragment from a synagogue or church, cut stone with mortar from the...

Photograph by Katie Chao. The Jewish Museum, New York City, gift of Erwin Harvith, U 7529

A priest in white vestments sprinkles holy water to bless a small dog held by a woman in a pink sling, surrounded by people outside a church in Mexico City.

Pet blessing in Mexico City

A priest blessing a dog with holy water during the annual “Blessing of the Animals”...

© Daniel Cardenas—Anadolu/Getty Images

A girl in a pink dress sits on the ground creating a colorful rangoli pattern with powders to celebrate the Pongal festival in Kumbakonam, Tamil Nadu, India.

Decoration or food?

A young girl designing a colorful kolam (rangoli) for the Pongal...

© Eye Ubiquitous—Universal Images Group/Getty Images

A Nepali woman kneels to feed and honor a cow adorned with marigold garlands and red powder during the Tihar festival rituals in Lalitpur, Nepal.

Honoring a cow for Tihar in Nepal

A Nepali woman performing a ritual of Gai Puja (“cow worship”) during the Tihar festival,...

© Subaas Shrestha—NurPhoto/Getty Images

Monks in orange and brown robes stand on a boat, releasing a fish from a green basket into the sea as part of a ritual, with green hills visible in the background.

Free fish!

Monks from the Hong Kong Buddhist Association releasing fish into the sea during...

© KY Cheng—South China Morning Post/Getty Images

A woman helps a child release fish into Victoria Harbour from a net, joined by others along the waterfront as part of a Buddhist practice in Hong Kong.

Buddhist ritual of releasing captive animals

A woman and child participating in a Buddhist ritual of releasing into the sea unsold...

© Ed Jones—AFP/Getty Images

Jain nuns wearing masks to avoid accidental ingestion of small insects

Jain nuns wearing masks to avoid accidental ingestion of small insects

After three years of preparation, two newly ordained nuns participate in a Jain Bhagavati...

© Noah Seelam—AFP/Getty Images

Digambara Jain monk seated nude on a mat beside a low reading stand and peacock-feather whisk in Shravanabelagola, India.

A Digambara Jain monk with his peacock-feather broom used to sweep living beings out of harms way while walking

Digambara (“Sky-Clad”; i.e., naked) Jain monks do not wear clothing and have limited...

© Getty Images