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[Source:] Note that the substitute of “beside” for “outside” was perfectly appropriate since, at that time (although today obsolete), “outside” was one of the well-used meanings of “beside,” having first been recorded in the English Wycliffte Sermons in the 1370s.

[OED:] beside = †4. Outside of, out of, away from. Obs.

The prefix be- doesn't appear to mean 'out(side)'. So please expose and explain any (hidden and missing) semantic drifts and links. How did 'beside' evolve to mean 'outside'? What is a right way of interpreting the etymology, to understand how the semantic jumps abstracted and severed from the original literal meaning? What bridges the jumps with the original meaning?

The etymology of 'beside oneself' confused me: If your soul leaves your body, then yes, your departed soul is now outside of you. But it's unclear to me whether the soul is still beside you, or by your side. Maybe your soul aspired to the heavens and is nowhere near you anymore.
So how far out did beside mean?

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  • I actually had no clue, that, the origin of "beside yourself!" was the notion of your soul popping out of your body! Thanks for bringing this to attention.
    – Fattie
    Commented Jun 17, 2015 at 19:06
  • Beside simply means by the side of. If you're beside something you're necessarily outside it as well.
    – Anonym
    Commented Jun 17, 2015 at 19:27

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Partial answer
Beside oneself
The same metaphor is used in the term dissociation.

www.betterhealth.vic.gov.au/

People who experience a traumatic event will often have some degree of dissociation during the event itself or in the following hours, days or weeks. For example, the event seems ‘unreal’ or the person feels detached from what’s going on around them as if watching the events on television. In most cases, the dissociation resolves without the need for treatment.

'Beside oneself' is simply an earlier non medical usage for less traumatic emotions.

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    I like your excerpt about dissociation in explaining the concept of being "besides one's self". In my region and time (US Midwest / grew up in the 1960's, 70's, 80's) it was a very commonly used phrase: I'm just besides myself with grief, anger, frustration, etc.
    – Kristina Lopez
    Commented Jun 17, 2015 at 18:59
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    An excellent point, Hugh. "detached" is a $10 word for "beside yourself!"
    – Fattie
    Commented Jun 17, 2015 at 19:07
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If I am standing next to you --

so, let us say, we are both facing the same way, and our shoulders are quite close. Anything from touching to - say - 20 cm separation -

then I am "beside" you. That's all there is to it.

"If your soul leaves your body, then yes, your departed soul is now outside of you. But it's unclear to me whether the soul is still beside you, or by your side. Maybe your soul aspired to the heavens and is nowhere near you anymore."

You observe that when one's soul leaves one's body, we often thing of it as going (say) a great distance away. Truly, this is irrelevant. So what? You could also think of the soul as "hovering around the room" for ten minutes - perhaps before it goes further. The "specific mechanics" of what happens "to your soul: when it leaves your body, is totally irrelevant. It's simply a fun image that: you got such a fright, your soul hopped out of your body! It's quite separate from you now, it's 30 inches to the left! (Sure, maybe the next phase of the journey, it goes above the house, and then to the "astral plane" or something. Whatever. You're simply seeing subtleties which do not exist. It's not a deep statement on the nature of "what happens when your soul leaves!" - it's just a funny picture of your soul having "jumped out of your body!"

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