Ancient Cultural Beliefs: The Lungs
| Title with Link | Beliefs / Symbols and Signs |
| Ancient Egypt (c. 2700–1500 BC) | The lungs were considered one of the four essential visceral organs for the afterlife. Along with the stomach, intestines, and liver, they were removed, embalmed, and placed in a dedicated Canopic jar to be protected for eternity.
Hapi (Canopic Jar): The baboon-headed son of Horus was the specific divine guardian of the lungs. The jar itself, protected by the goddess Nephthys, symbolized the lungs’ necessity for life (and afterlife).
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| Ancient Greece (General) | The lungs were understood as the organ of breath (pneuma). Pneuma was a profound concept, meaning “breath,” “wind,” or “spirit.” It was seen as the airy, life-giving force that animated the person, and the lungs were the bellows that drew it into the body.
Pneuma: This concept was the central symbol. The act of breathing was the sign of life, and the pneuma itself was the invisible “spirit” or “life-breath” that the lungs processed. |
| Ancient Greece (Aristotle) (c. 384–322 BC) | In his cardiocentric (heart-centered) model, Aristotle believed the lungs’ primary purpose was to serve as a cooling system for the heart. He taught that the hot, passionate heart was cooled by the air brought in by the “bellows” of the lungs.
The Lungs as a “Radiator”: The main concept was that the lungs were a secondary, mechanical organ. Their entire purpose was to regulate the “vital heat” of the heart, which he saw as the true center of life and consciousness. |
| Ancient Rome (Galen) (c. 130–210 AD) | Galen had a more advanced (though still flawed) view. He believed air was drawn into the lungs, where its most important part (the “vital spirits”) was extracted and sent to the heart. There, it mixed with blood and was distributed through the arteries to animate the body.
“Vital Spirits”: This was the invisible, life-giving substance that Galen believed the lungs filtered from the air. The “sooty” waste, in turn, was exhaled. This was the first major theory of gas exchange. |
| Mesoamerica (Aztec) (c. 1300–1521 AD) | The Aztecs had a concept of a vital force or “soul” associated with breath, called ihiyotl. This force was believed to reside in the liver, but its expression was through respiration and breath. While the heart (teyolía) was the primary focus of sacrifice, the breath (ihiyotl) was a powerful force in itself.
Ihiyotl (Breath): This “breath-soul” was a powerful force, distinct from the heart-soul. The lungs were the mechanism for this force. The sigh, or a powerful exhalation, was seen as a sign of this force being expressed.
Human Sacrifice |
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