Jīva: life, vital principle, individual soul. ‘Soul life and body are identical’ and ‘Soul and body are different’, these two frequently quoted wrong views fall under the 2 kinds of personality-belief sakkāya-ditthi see: ditthi i.e. the first one under the annihilation-belief uccheda-ditthi and the second under the eternity-belief sassata-ditthi.

Verily, if one holds the view that the soul life is identical with the body, in that case a Noble life is not possible; or if one holds the view that the soul life is something quite different, also in that case a Noble life is impossible. Both these extremes the Perfect One has avoided and shown the Middle Doctrine, which says: ‘On ignorance depend the kammic-constructions, on the kammic-constructions depends consciousness’, etc.; S. XII. 35.