The soul is the director that causes natural things to organize and to function a certain way. DNA is simply a record in a living cell but something must exist to imprint the genetic message in the same way a typed letter will require a programmer or a typist. Once this director is gone, the material decays back to a natural state. On this earth, there is a cycle of life entering and building and then leaving the materials behind to decay.

Complex animals have mobility and also additions to the soul’s faculties such as senses and knowledge. This allows for choices which are also a function of the soul. The animals with the most complex souls are Humans since they have the ability to make the most choices. They can override instinct and their environment to accomplish dreams. There is an advanced part of the human soul called the rational ability that follows the soul pattern of using raw materials such as a person’s passions and interests to build an object. The ultimate objective for a seed could be a beautiful flower. Of course this involves a process of time and work. The ultimate objective for a human soul is a happy life for the human that has it.

A flower that will reach its fullest potential by virtue of a good root system. It will grow by virtue of good foliage. The word virtue is used to describe something that is functioning at its best to help accomplish the soul’s ultimate objective. Virtue in a human sense describes areas that help a person achieve the most happiness in ways that last the longest. The word vice is used for the things that pull them away from the ideal. The ideal can be described as a target and there are a million ways to miss. To stay on track is more difficult but will give a person a better life.

To hit the target of virtue with our passions and actions, a person avoids having too little or too much. There is a zone in between that benefits the most for the goal of happiness. Depravity describes a state where a person loses the ability to see the target because they have gone so far to an extreme. Most of what is described in ethics applies to those who have a will to hit the target. It helps us understand why we miss at times ourselves and why others do what they do. Understanding produces empathy and having this skill is how we get along best with others. Virtues aren’t there to point out shortcomings but to give us a map to the target of contentment and happiness.