noun
1.
a. : a spiritlike force alleged by the Austrian physician Franz Anton Mesmer (1734-1815) to reside within himself and to be active in his use of therapeutical hypnosis — compare mesmerism
b. : a spiritlike force held to reside in some individuals by the emanation of which a strong quasi-hypnotic influence can assertedly be exerted over others
2. Christian Science : error , mortal mind