Glossary · Torah Ohr · Likkutei Torah
Kelipas nogah
קליפת נוגה
Kelipas nogah (the glowing husk) · also: נוגה
The “glowing husk”: mixed good and evil, between holiness and the three wholly impure kelipos; source of the animal soul and of permitted desires, it can be refined and raised into holiness.
The word Nogah alone also means brightness or radiance (as in “brightness round about it” in Yechezkel’s vision); it names this kelipah when written קליפת נוגה / ק״נ, or in phrases like בירורי נוגה, היכלות דנוגה, לבושי נוגה.
Where it’s explained
- Likkutei Torah, Chukas 2, ¶14Kelipas nogah stands between holiness and the wholly impure kelipos, which are the root of outright evil such as murder, adultery, theft and slander. Nogah is the root of the desire for permitted things pursued for bodily pleasure and not for the sake of Heaven. It is made of good and evil: its inwardness comes from the good and is clothed in evil, and through that good it receives life from holiness.
קליפת נוגה הוא שורש היצר הרע של תאוות היתר כשהן שלא לשם שמים כי אם להנאת גופו
- Torah Ohr, Mikeitz 13, ¶4The animal soul, in which the Divine soul is enclothed, is taken from kelipas nogah and is made of ten sefiros of nogah, intellect and middos, “one opposite the other” to the ten holy sefiros of the Divine soul. The soul’s light held in the animal soul is like a flame held by the wick.
כי הנה הנה״ב נלקחה מבחי׳ ק״נ וכלולה מע״ס דנוגה שכל ומדות
- Likkutei Torah, Chukas 3, ¶7The three impure kelipos receive from nogah’s evil half. Its good half is the feeling of yesh, yet nogah can be refined to complete bittul in the Or Ein Sof, as “the host of heaven bow to You”; so at times nogah rises wholly into holiness.
בחינת ק״נ יכול להתברר ולהיות בבחינת ביטול לגמרי באור א״ס
- Likkutei Torah, Acharei 4, ¶14Desire (drunkards and gluttons) is the nourishment and inner light of nogah, and honor and pride its makifim, opposite the inner and encompassing lights of holiness drawn by Torah and mitzvos, whose foundation is bittul. Nogah is yesh, the opposite of bittul; outright forbidden things belong to the three impure kelipos far below nogah.
משא״כ בחי׳ נוגה שהוא בחי׳ יש הפך הביטול וזהו התאוה והכבוד
- Torah Ohr, Mikeitz 6, ¶24The practical mitzvos are performed with things from nogah, such as the wool of tzitzis and the parchment of tefillin; when the mitzvah is done, the sparks in nogah are refined and added light is drawn into Atzilus.
ולכן כל המצות מעשיות הם מבחי׳ נוגה כמו הצמר דציצית וקלף התפלין
Stated differently
Whether kelipas nogah, and nurture for the outside forces, reach into Atzilus
כי באצילות איהו וגרמוהי חד ושמאלא אתכליל בימינא ואין שם יניקהIn Atzilus “He and His vessels are one” and the left is included in the right, so there is no nurture there; even kelipas nogah of Beriah is still mostly good, in Yetzirah it is half good and half evil, and in Asiyah almost wholly evil with a little good mixed in.
שקליפת נוגה דאצי׳ היא טו״ר חציה טוב וחציה כלפי חוץ רעCiting Etz Chaim: there is a kelipas nogah of Atzilus, of good and evil, its inner half good and its outer half evil; the maamar then asks how a kelipah can be spoken of in Atzilus, which is G‑dliness.
Main sources
Likkutei Torah, Chukas 2, ¶14Likkutei Torah, Chukas 2, ¶15Likkutei Torah, Chukas 3, ¶7Likkutei Torah, Masei 5, ¶3Likkutei Torah, Acharei 4, ¶14Likkutei Torah, Shelach 2, ¶4Likkutei Torah, Tazria 6, ¶16Torah Ohr, Mikeitz 6, ¶24
Where it appears
In 127 paragraphs of 77 maamarim.
- Likkutei Torah, Acharei 4 ¶14 ¶19 ¶20
- Likkutei Torah, Balak 5 ¶6 ¶36
- Likkutei Torah, Chukas 9 ¶2 ¶14
- Likkutei Torah, Emor 1 ¶36
- Likkutei Torah, Matos 2 ¶3 ¶7 ¶14 ¶18
- Likkutei Torah, Pinchas 1 ¶11
- Likkutei Torah, Shemini Atzeres 6 ¶2
- Likkutei Torah, Shir HaShirim 22 ¶18
- Likkutei Torah, Tzav 4 ¶3
- Torah Ohr, Beshalach 1 ¶8 ¶10
- Torah Ohr, Megillas Esther 3 ¶22
- Torah Ohr, Megillas Esther 11 ¶18 ¶19
- Likkutei Torah, Acharei 3 ¶2 ¶6
- Likkutei Torah, Chukas 10 ¶17
- Likkutei Torah, Nasso 2 ¶38
- Likkutei Torah, Re’eh 3 ¶13
- Likkutei Torah, Shelach 17 ¶8
- Likkutei Torah, Shir HaShirim 16 ¶12
- Likkutei Torah, Tazria 6 ¶16 ¶21 ¶22 ¶23 ¶25
- Torah Ohr, Chayei Sarah 3 ¶7
- Likkutei Torah, Shelach 12 ¶11 ¶12
- Likkutei Torah, Shir HaShirim 26 ¶9
- Likkutei Torah, Bamidbar 4 ¶2 ¶8
- Likkutei Torah, Chukas 3 ¶5 ¶6 ¶7 ¶8 ¶10 ¶11
- Likkutei Torah, Emor 4 ¶2 ¶4 ¶7
- Likkutei Torah, Masei 5 ¶3 ¶9
- Likkutei Torah, Shelach 5 ¶18
- Likkutei Torah, Shemini 2 ¶2
- Torah Ohr, Mikeitz 2 ¶2
- Torah Ohr, Yisro 6 ¶13
- Torah Ohr, Bereishis 8 ¶27 ¶29
- Likkutei Torah, Bamidbar 20 ¶16 ¶23
- Likkutei Torah, Chukas 2 ¶14 ¶15 ¶41
- Likkutei Torah, Chukas 4 ¶3 ¶4
- Likkutei Torah, Nasso 5 ¶8 ¶9 ¶14 ¶15
- Likkutei Torah, Re’eh 9 ¶1
- Likkutei Torah, Re’eh 12 ¶2
- Torah Ohr, Lech Lecha 1 ¶4
- Torah Ohr, Lech Lecha 3 ¶4
- Torah Ohr, Lech Lecha 4 ¶5 ¶6
- Torah Ohr, Mikeitz 6 ¶15 ¶24
- Torah Ohr, Mikeitz 12 ¶3 ¶13 ¶24
- Torah Ohr, Parshas Zachor 1 ¶5 ¶22
- Likkutei Torah, Balak 2 ¶29
- Likkutei Torah, Bamidbar 5 ¶2 ¶5 ¶6 ¶7
- Likkutei Torah, Ki Seitzei 6 ¶10
- Likkutei Torah, Shir HaShirim 34 ¶6
- Torah Ohr, Vayeitzei 1 ¶30
- Likkutei Torah, Shemini Atzeres 5 ¶24
- Torah Ohr, Yisro 10 ¶11 ¶14 ¶17 ¶25
- Likkutei Torah, Balak 4 ¶1 ¶4 ¶7
- Likkutei Torah, Behaaloscha 7 ¶5 ¶13
- Likkutei Torah, Masei 6 ¶1 ¶4
- Torah Ohr, Tetzaveh 1 ¶15
- Likkutei Torah, Shelach 2 ¶4
- Likkutei Torah, Shir HaShirim 10 ¶11
- Likkutei Torah, Tzav 12 ¶16
- Likkutei Torah, Vayikra 5 ¶49
- Torah Ohr, Mishpatim 5 ¶33
- Torah Ohr, Yisro 8 ¶18
- Likkutei Torah, Nasso 7 ¶3 ¶4
- Likkutei Torah, Va’eschanan 9 ¶14
- Torah Ohr, Vayechi 5 ¶4
- Likkutei Torah, Shir HaShirim 17 ¶26
- Torah Ohr, Bereishis 6 ¶9 ¶11 ¶13
- Likkutei Torah, Shir HaShirim 9 ¶3
- Torah Ohr, Bereishis 2 ¶19
- Likkutei Torah, Chukas 7 ¶6
- Torah Ohr, Mikeitz 13 ¶4
- Likkutei Torah, Matos 1 ¶22
- Likkutei Torah, Shir HaShirim 15 ¶13
- Likkutei Torah, Bamidbar 13 ¶10
- Likkutei Torah, Bechukosai 3 ¶1
- Likkutei Torah, Behaaloscha 6 ¶27
- Likkutei Torah, Kedoshim 1 ¶8
- Likkutei Torah, Shir HaShirim 39 ¶8
- Torah Ohr, Vayechi 3 ¶20
Written with AI from the paragraphs of Torah Ohr and Likkutei Torah, each entry checked by a second AI reader and every Hebrew quote checked by code; not yet reviewed by a person. Our English: CC BY-NC 4.0.