An essence or entity that has a state of being. It is our soul, which is part of the divine essence that enables us to live in a physical body. When birth is to occur and a physical body prepared for its existence, spirit becomes individuated and incarnates into the world of matter. There is nothing new in that spirit. It is taking individual form. It is becoming a person. When the spirit finally withdraws--finally because it temporarily leaves when you sleep, but returns when you wake--death comes to the physical body because the animation has gone. When an individual leaves this world, its development is added to the group soul, just like a facet of a larger diamond reformed to add its own contribution.