The Soul. ( Matthew 16 v 25 - 26 )

Many of us have heard of soul music, here is the question ,what is a soul?,I have often quoted Matthew 16 v 26, from the AV,which reads ,' For what is a man profited if he shall gain the whole, and lose his soul'.Professor Andrews in his book ,'Who made God', sees the soul in relation to the mind,he writes of a dualism,that of brain and mind, He writes,'Since the mind of God exists without any material substrate so,logically,does the mind of man, so he writes that man's mind( or soul or spirit) lives on after death of the physical'.  It is an intriguing idea, it was C.S.Lewis who said the following,'we don't have a soul ,we are a soul',again a interesting statement, it is the Message that hits on that idea,it reads,' What kind of a deal is it, to get everything you want but lose yourself'. The translation that William Hendriksen  uses reads, 'For what good will it do a man if he gains the whole world and forfeits his life, or what shall a man give in  exchange for his life'.It is W H,who comments on this,'was our Lord thinking of the offer which the devil once made to him ?( Mt 4 v 8 -9 ) Whatever you may think of  all this,let us not miss the seriousness of what our Saviour is saying,the importance of making the right choice, and the consequences of making the wrong choice.