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The word “atma” or “atman” means "soul” or “breath.” This individual soul continues through each lifetime and is part of Atman, the universal spirit flowing through all living things. In Buddhism the contrast to atman is reliance on the ego (I, me, mine), which comes from ignorance, the cause of all misery and the foundation of samsara or delusion.
Literally means "self", but is sometimes translated as "soul" or "ego." The word derives from Indo-european root *çt-men (breath) and is cognate with Old English ¿thm and German atem. In Buddhism, the misplaced or inappropriate belief in âtman is the prime consequence of ignorance, which is itself the cause of all misery and the foundation of samsara.
Âtman is an essence of things that does not depend on others; it is an intrinsic nature. The non-existence of that is selflessness.
—Bodhisattvayogacaryâcatuúatakaikâ256.1.7
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