Jacob Needleman argues that both approaches are doomed. But it is absolutely real nonetheless. This is the world of our deepest intuitions and feelings, the realm of consciousness and truth. Moreover, our relationship to this inner world ultimately determines our actions in the outer world. Religious teachers refer to these two worlds when they speak of heaven and earth.
Human beings are the being that bridges the two worlds.
Animals are entirely of the earth, while heaven, it is said, is populated by beings sometimes called gods, or angels, or spirits. Even the most hard bitten materialist will speak of the spirit of a nation or team or individual. These spirit beings don't share the pain of mortality. They are above the fray. Animals experience mortality, but are not conscious of it.