Excerpt from The Path of the Soulcerer by Malhpas Eventide - Spiritual Anatomy, Introduction and the Aura

The Ethereal Body:

The ethereal body is the mana-made analogue of a corporeal being; one that is made of flesh and bone. The corporeal body and the mind are two sides of the same coin—two pieces that are inescapable from one another and that are worth more than the sum of their parts. Even if one could separate the mind from the body, the mind would still need somewhere to inhabit, and thus, a new body, may it be of flesh or steel.

The spirit is to the soul what the corporeal body is to the mind. It nourishes it, protects it, and is ultimately controlled by the soul. The spirit extends from the soul in the magical plane into the defined plane.

Mana a soulcerer has access to can be divided into three parts. The mana inside one's gate is called the Deep Waters, the mana outside the tear but inside the body is called the Shallows. The mana outside the body is called the Aura. To perform techniques, one must master the basics of the ebb and flow of their soul and spirit to concentrate the desired amount of mana into their Aura. The Deep Waters are the brain of the ethereal body, whereas the spirit is made up of the Shallows which would be the muscles and the aura is the skin. The soul is the ethereal analogue of the mind. The ethereal body is also called the subtle body in Qyrazael, but the concept itself differs slightly from its western analogue.

The ethereal body can also be divided by the spiritualist method: low-spirit, middle-spirit, and high-spirit. The low-spirit is mana made physical, anchoring the spirit to the body. Such is the case for blood mana that binds vitality or wind mana that binds the breath of life. The middle-spirit is where ethereal organs are housed. And the high-spirit is the amorphous life-energy that flows through one's being. Spiritualists divide their ethereal bodies in such a way because it is useful to them. They must master themselves first and foremost, and thus the soul is not the main object of their practice.

There are many models and diagrams of the ethereal body, each depicting the spirit and soul in a limited perspective that is useful to a specific Path or even Way. Traditional soulcery does not require much in way of managing bodily mana types, and as such does not always use the triad-spirit model. It focuses more on the ebb and flow of mana from the inner gate and using it to ignite and fuel a technique or spell.

Spiritualist manuals do not write Aura with a majuscule "A." Instead, the skin of the spirit is written as "aura." Then again, there are many regional variations within different countries.

The Aura:

The Aura is the most superficial part of the spirit, whereas an aura is a body of mana dispersed in a confined space. The Aura is found outside the body as a form of natural dissipation of mana that passively prevents harmful mana from entering one's spirit. The Aura cannot be seen by a non-magical being while in normal concentrations. Mana leaks out of the body and mixes with atmospheric mana called Aether. Mana that has not been acted upon or claimed, and is not part of an ethereal body is called Aether. Aether's closest mana type is grey mana. Both are ambiguous mana types that are yet to be defined to act in a certain manner, but grey mana is more ordered and preempted to being manipulated by mana-constructs (souls and spirits) to which they belong. Grey mana has a specific signature to the being that it belongs to, and thus so does a being's Aura have a unique signature.

The Aura is the part of the ethereal body most used for techniques. For example, a soulcerer can focus mana onto their fist, and then make it denser around the edges. A punch made while this technique is in effect would be stronger than usual depending on the density of the Aura. The Aura is used for the practice of magic due to it being the most superficial pool of mana. Mana that composes the Aura is called exo-mana. The aura feels like a lukewarm bubble or mist when condensed into a physical membrane.

As a mage uses mana for a specific purpose, some of it inevitably disperses into the environment and/or decays, making the mage have to draw on the Shallows for more mana. The more practice a mage has on developing the form of their Aura, the less mana they waste.

The aura may also conduct an individual's emotions, moving in a certain pattern and containing meta-knowledge; knowledge pertaining to magic, part of the larger unit called a soul memory. Meta-knowledge is also known as arcana.

There are two common ways of pooling mana into the Aura to prepare for a technique. The first is Flow; mana flows out easily without a barrier to impede it, and thus there is more available, but some is wasted. The second is Shroud; mana flows out from the body but is impeded by a barrier of mana, and thus less is wasted. The Flow method has more available raw mana that can be used for cost heavy techniques, and the act of mana being drawn out is faster. The Shroud method takes longer to acquire as much raw mana but is more cost-efficient and reliable.

Shrouds have a passive effect of dampening kinetic damage from blows and impacts. It can be cut by a blade since it is, essentially, the physical form for the skin of one's spirit. Like a bubble, it will disperse and deflate, sending mana away into the Aether around it. Shrouds are the first and most instinctual forms of protection for any mage or magical being.