Psychai are the diminutive, winged
shades
Sunglasses or sun glasses (informally called shades or sunnies; more names below) are a form of protective eyewear designed primarily to prevent bright sunlight and high-energy visible light from damaging or discomforting the eyes. They can so ...
of the dead in
Greek mythology and some fifth century BC funerary lekythoi. Although commonly translated as "
soul" today, in the epics of
Homer, it meant "life" and did not have any connection to consciousness or psychological functions in the living. It is only later, at the end of the fifth century BC in the works of other poets such as
Pindar, that the word acquires its meaning relating to being the principal seat of intellect, emotion, and will. From there, it became possible to translate ''psyche'' as "heart" or "soul".
[Darcus Sullivan, Shirley. "Psyché in Pindar, Nemean 9.32 and 69." Revue belge de Philologie et d'Histoire 81.1 (2003): 9.]
See also
*
Soul
*
Spirit
References
{{reflist
Greek ghosts
Heart
Vitalism