Anima

Anima is a Latin word meaning breath or soul. In philosophy and theology, the term denotes the essential life principle that animates living beings. In broader cultural usage, Anima appears in various forms across arts, literature, and media as a symbol of spirit, life, or inner essence.

In Aristotelian and scholastic thought, anima refers to the form of a living body—the principle of life that organizes matter into a living being. The concept was developed by Aristotle and later adapted by medieval Christian thinkers to describe the soul’s nature and its relation to the body, with ongoing debates about mortality, the afterlife, and personal identity.

In Jungian psychology, the anima is the inner feminine aspect of the male psyche, one of the archetypes guiding individuation. It is considered a bridge to the unconscious, influencing dreams, emotions, and behavior. Jung contrasted anima with animus, the corresponding feminine aspect within the female psyche.

In contemporary culture, Anima has been used as a title for artistic works. Thom Yorke released Anima, a 2019 solo album, which was accompanied by a short film of the same name directed by Paul Thomas Anderson and released on Netflix; the project blends music and visual art.

In games and fantasy literature, Anima is the title of Anima: Beyond Fantasy, a tabletop role-playing game published in the mid-2000s. The term also appears in World of Warcraft as a fictional energy that powers souls, artifacts, and character progression in the game’s later expansions.

Across contexts, Anima retains its core sense of life, spirit, or inner essence, reflecting its Latin roots and its metaphorical resonance in philosophy, psychology, and culture.