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 already been given by the learned responders. There is much confusion about translating ātman as “soul” so some comparative theology is useful is understanding the difference.

In Hebrew the word for soul is nefesh (Arabic nafs) which refers to BREATH.

In Sanskrit the word ātman is derived from two roots AN - which also refers to breath and AT which means “to wander” — that component of the individual which wanders from body to body.

In Abrahamic theology there is an inconsistency - while animals, plants etc. all breathe they do NOT posses souls. Only human beings have souls. So respiration while common to most life forms doesn’t indicate the presence of a “soul”.

In Hindu philosophy on the other hand, ātman is characterized by consciousness which is linked to the breath (prāṇa). Prāṇa is the force which connects the ātman to the physical body. Hence ātman is present in every living form of life in the universe.

The soul is a “spiritual object” possessed by a “material subject” — the physical body being integral to the notion of individuality. Hence the widespread doctrine of the Monotheists of the resurrection of the physical body on the Day of Judgement. (A very problematic doctrine indeed!)

The ātman on the other hand is a conscious subject which is temporarily occupying a physical body comprised of 70% water and a variety of other organic compounds and chemicals.

As the Gita says:– “the body is like an item of clothing, which when no longer serviceable, is discarded by the wearer in favor of another garment which is new.”

The physical body is unsubstantial, ephemeral and corruptible and will die and disintegrate never to be recomposed. The ātman transmigrates into another body. Every sentient, breathing life form is ātman or jīvātman.

So the best translation of ātman is SELF and never “soul”

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You’re drawing a fairly standard comparative-theology contrast, but a few of the details are a bit more tangled in the source traditions than your framing suggests. It’s worth tightening some of the claims so the comparison doesn’t over-simplify either side.

On nefesh / nafs, you’re right that there is a strong “life/breath” association, but it’s not limited to respiration in a narrow biological sense. In Hebrew, nefesh can mean life, living being, appetite, throat, person, and even “self” in many contexts. So while “breath” is part of the conceptual field (as with many ancient languages), it’s more accurate to say it denotes the life-principle of an embodied creature, not simply respiration. Likewise Arabic nafs develops into “self/person/psyche” as much as “breath.”

On the Abrahamic “only humans have souls” point: that’s not uniformly true across the traditions. In classical Judaism, for example, animals are sometimes described as having nefesh (life-soul), though human beings may have additional layers (like neshamah in later thought). In Christianity and Islam there is also diversity: some theologians restrict immortal rational souls to humans, but others allow broader notions of “ensouled life” while still distinguishing human moral accountability. So the sharp human/animal divide is more a later philosophical-theological tightening than a universal starting point.

Regarding ātman, a couple of corrections matter:

• The standard Sanskrit analysis is ātman is etymologically uncertain, but it is commonly linked in traditional commentary to ideas of “breath” or “essence,” though not cleanly derived from an (“to breathe”) + “AT” (“to wander”). The “wandering self” idea you mention actually aligns more with saṃsāra / jīva discourse than with etymology of the word itself.
• In most classical Indian philosophies, especially Advaita Vedānta, ātman is not the individual transmigrating entity. That role belongs to the jīva (embodied self). The ātman is ultimately the unchanging consciousness/reality, identical with Brahman in non-dual systems. So saying “ātman is what moves from body to body” fits some popular or dualistic readings, but not the major non-dual philosophical position.

On prāṇa, you’re closer to standard usage: it is indeed the life-force or vital energy associated with breath and physiological/psychic functioning, but it is generally not identical with ātman. Rather, it is one of the mediating forces within embodiment (often described as part of the subtle body).

The “self vs soul” translation issue is where your conclusion lands, and here you’re on solid ground but with a nuance:

• Translating ātman as “self” is often preferred in academic philosophy because it avoids importing Christian-style assumptions about a separable, created, immortal “soul-substance.”
• Translating it as “soul” is sometimes used in devotional or comparative theology because it preserves the intuition of an enduring inner reality.

So the real issue isn’t that “soul is wrong and self is right,” but that each English term carries different metaphysical baggage. “Self” is usually safer philosophically, but it can also sound psychologically thin unless carefully qualified.

Finally, the Bhagavad Gītā clothing analogy (body as garments) is indeed used to express continuity of consciousness through embodiment, but again whether that “consciousness” is an individual transmigrating unit or ultimately impersonal awareness depends heavily on which interpretive tradition you’re reading it through.

If you want, I can map how Advaita Vedānta, Sāṃkhya, and classical theistic Vedānta each define ātman differently, because a lot of the confusion you’re pointing at comes from those internal Indian disagreements rather than just cross-cultural translation.

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