Anam Cara is a phrase that refers to the Celtic concept of the "soul friend" in religion and spirituality.
[1] The Martyrology of Óengus recounts an incident where Brigid of Kildare counselled a young cleric that "...anyone without a soul friend is like a body without a head.
[3] The Anam Cara involves a friendship that psychotherapist William P. Ryan describes as "compassionate presence".
[4] According to O'Donohue, the word anamchara originates in Irish monasticism, where it was applied to a monk's teacher, companion, or spiritual guide.
"[3] Their teachings were preserved and passed on by the Christian monk John Cassian, who explained that the soul friend could be clerical or lay, male or female.