“The Oversoul” is an essay by Ralph Waldo Emerson, first
published in 1841. The broad subject of the essay, considered
one of Emerson's best, is the human soul. Several general themes
are treated: (1) the existence and nature of the human soul; (2)
the relationship between the soul and the personal ego; (3) the
relationship of one human soul to another; and (4) the
relationship of the human soul to God. Influence of Eastern
religions, including Vedantism, is plainly evident, but the
essay also develops ideas long present in the Western tradition,
e.g., in the works of Plato, Plutarch, and Neoplatonists like
Plotinus and Proclus — all of whose writings Emerson read
extensively throughout his career  — and Emmanuel Swedenborg.
The essay attempts no systematic doctrine, but rather serves as
a work of art, something like poetry. Its virtue is in personal
insights of the author and the lofty manner of their
presentation. Emerson wishes to exhort and direct the reader to
an awakening of similar thoughts or sentimen