Glossary · Torah Ohr · Likkutei Torah
Nefesh ha’elokis
נפש האלקית
The G‑dly soul (nefesh ha’elokis)
The soul in every Jew that is “a part of G‑d above”: by nature in bittul, it needs no correction itself, and descends into the body and animal soul to refine them.
Where it’s explained
- Likkutei Torah, Haazinu 3, ¶5When a Jew says “the soul You gave me is pure,” the speaker is the vital, intellectual soul, and “the soul” is the G‑dly soul, a part of G‑d above, then created and breathed in and clothed within the animal soul like a seed sown in earth. Commands do not apply to it above, where it knew and believed of itself; it came down so the mitzvos would be done through the animal soul.
ואומרת נשמה שנתת בי היינו על בחי׳ נפש האלקית שהיא חלק אלוה ממעל וטהורה היא
- Likkutei Torah, Vayikra 5, ¶41The G‑dly soul is taken from the inwardness of the worlds, so true bittul is its nature, to pour itself into its Father’s bosom, the Or Ein Sof; the animal soul, from kelipas nogah, can reach at least bittul hayesh.
כי הנה״א היא חלק אלוה ממעל שנלקחה מפנימיות העולמות וע״כ יש בה בחי׳ הביטול האמיתי בטבעה
- Likkutei Torah, Shir HaShirim 23, ¶23The animal soul also understands but is drawn after physical things; the G‑dly soul in essence contemplates and grasps only the Or Ein Sof, so its Daas is “higher Daas” beside human intellect. When its Chochmah, Binah and Daas prevail in prayer, the animal soul’s intellect and middos are nullified into it: the tree of knowledge joined to the tree of life.
אבל נה״א עיקרה היא נפש המשכלת ומתבוננת תמיד ומשגת באור א״ס ב״ה ואין לה השכלה אחרת
- Torah Ohr, Mikeitz 12, ¶13“The lamp of G‑d is the soul of man” is the G‑dly soul, not the animal soul, which still needs refining. It needs no correction for itself; it is the wick that draws the higher bittul, and the intellect of the animal soul is the oil drawn after it.
והענין כי הנה נר הוי״ה נשמת אדם היא נה״א
- Torah Ohr, Mikeitz 12, ¶24Before it is clothed in the body, the G‑dly soul’s love is limited to its grasp, like a wick, a thing limited in itself. Only through being clothed in the animal soul, whose oil is refined and drawn after the wick, does it come to the great love “with all your might,” beyond the vessel.
משא״כ אהבת הנה״א קודם התלבשותה בגוף היה בבחי׳ גבול וכלי כפי השגת הנפש
Stated differently
The level the G‑dly soul is rooted in or taken from: Z’eir Anpin of Atzilus, above the vessels of the ten Sefiros, or a world of limit
אבל על בחינת מס״נ של הנפש האלקית ששרשה מעולם התיקון מז״א דאצי׳The animal soul is rooted in the world of Tohu; the G‑dly soul is rooted in the world of Tikkun, in Z’eir Anpin of Atzilus.
שמצד שרש נה״א עצמה שעלו במחשבה כו׳ למעלה מחיות הכלים דע״סThe root of the G‑dly soul itself, the souls that “arose in thought,” is above the life of the vessels of the ten Sefiros, which is why souls can draw the Or Ein Sof into the ten Sefiros.
כי הנפש אלקית אף שאינה צריכה תיקון מ״מ אהבתה מוגבלת לפי שנלקחה מבחי׳ גבולThe G‑dly soul needs no correction, yet its love is limited, because it was taken from a level of limit: the neshamah is drawn from Beriah, which is bounded, and ruach from Yetzirah and nefesh from Asiyah all the more.
Main sources
Likkutei Torah, Haazinu 3, ¶5Likkutei Torah, Vayikra 2, ¶1Likkutei Torah, Vayikra 5, ¶41Likkutei Torah, Shir HaShirim 23, ¶23Torah Ohr, Mikeitz 12, ¶13Torah Ohr, Mikeitz 12, ¶24
Where it appears
In 161 paragraphs of 86 maamarim.
- Likkutei Torah, Bamidbar 18 ¶28
- Likkutei Torah, Bechukosai 6 ¶1 ¶4 ¶5
- Likkutei Torah, Matos 6 ¶17 ¶18
- Likkutei Torah, Nasso 3 ¶16
- Likkutei Torah, Pinchas 3 ¶10 ¶16 ¶18 ¶24
- Likkutei Torah, Re’eh 11 ¶5 ¶10
- Likkutei Torah, Shelach 9 ¶6
- Likkutei Torah, Shemini Atzeres 6 ¶2
- Likkutei Torah, Shir HaShirim 20 ¶8 ¶13
- Likkutei Torah, Shir HaShirim 23 ¶14 ¶23
- Likkutei Torah, Shir HaShirim 33 ¶10
- Likkutei Torah, Va’eschanan 11 ¶1 ¶6
- Likkutei Torah, Vayikra 3 ¶1 ¶3 ¶5 ¶6 ¶7 ¶9 ¶10 ¶13
- Torah Ohr, Bereishis 2 ¶5
- Torah Ohr, Vayeishev 5 ¶6 ¶9 ¶11 ¶20
- Torah Ohr, Yisro 1 ¶3 ¶9 ¶10 ¶15 ¶16
- Likkutei Torah, Nasso 7 ¶11
- Likkutei Torah, Re’eh 7 ¶22
- Likkutei Torah, Re’eh 12 ¶8 ¶9
- Likkutei Torah, Rosh Hashanah 5 ¶12 ¶20 ¶25
- Likkutei Torah, Shemini Atzeres 5 ¶4 ¶12 ¶14
- Likkutei Torah, Tzav 5 ¶30 ¶36
- Likkutei Torah, Tzav 8 ¶5 ¶6 ¶7
- Torah Ohr, Mikeitz 12 ¶13 ¶14 ¶15 ¶24 ¶27 ¶39
- Torah Ohr, Vayishlach 6 ¶10
- Likkutei Torah, Bamidbar 11 ¶4
- Likkutei Torah, Chukas 10 ¶24 ¶41 ¶43 ¶47
- Likkutei Torah, Ki Seitzei 5 ¶10
- Likkutei Torah, Shir HaShirim 27 ¶3
- Likkutei Torah, Vayikra 2 ¶1 ¶3 ¶4 ¶14 ¶16 ¶20 ¶21 ¶25
- Likkutei Torah, Bamidbar 20 ¶4
- Likkutei Torah, Bamidbar 21 ¶3 ¶4
- Likkutei Torah, Nasso 6 ¶3
- Torah Ohr, Mikeitz 2 ¶1 ¶2
- Torah Ohr, Vayeishev 4 ¶11 ¶15 ¶38
- Likkutei Torah, Pekudei 1 ¶55
- Torah Ohr, Bereishis 8 ¶1 ¶24 ¶27
- Likkutei Torah, Masei 5 ¶23
- Likkutei Torah, Matos 2 ¶9
- Likkutei Torah, Pinchas 4 ¶6
- Likkutei Torah, Shir HaShirim 5 ¶14
- Likkutei Torah, Shir HaShirim 19 ¶16
- Likkutei Torah, Tzav 7 ¶13 ¶14 ¶15
- Likkutei Torah, Vayikra 5 ¶15 ¶41 ¶44 ¶46
- Likkutei Torah, Bamidbar 5 ¶5 ¶6
- Likkutei Torah, Beshalach 1 ¶10
- Likkutei Torah, Matos 1 ¶10
- Torah Ohr, Noach 1 ¶1 ¶5 ¶6 ¶7 ¶9
- Likkutei Torah, Emor 3 ¶13
- Likkutei Torah, Shemini Atzeres 9 ¶5
- Likkutei Torah, Yom Kippur 2 ¶19 ¶23
- Torah Ohr, Mikeitz 13 ¶4 ¶5
- Torah Ohr, Mikeitz 14 ¶9
- Torah Ohr, Toldos 2 ¶6
- Likkutei Torah, Behaaloscha 6 ¶26
- Likkutei Torah, Devarim 2 ¶4
- Likkutei Torah, Emor 4 ¶12 ¶24 ¶35
- Likkutei Torah, Nitzavim 6 ¶24
- Likkutei Torah, Shelach 5 ¶19
- Torah Ohr, Chayei Sarah 2 ¶12
- Torah Ohr, Mikeitz 11 ¶4 ¶5 ¶6 ¶21
- Torah Ohr, Vayeitzei 4 ¶9
- Likkutei Torah, Masei 7 ¶12
- Likkutei Torah, Shir HaShirim 26 ¶28
- Torah Ohr, Mikeitz 1 ¶3
- Torah Ohr, Mikeitz 4 ¶25 ¶28
- Torah Ohr, Vayakhel 1 ¶28
- Likkutei Torah, Bamidbar 17 ¶2
- Likkutei Torah, Bechukosai 1 ¶2
- Likkutei Torah, Bechukosai 2 ¶25
- Likkutei Torah, Chukas 2 ¶25
- Likkutei Torah, Chukas 8 ¶9
- Likkutei Torah, Haazinu 3 ¶5 ¶6 ¶15 ¶19
- Likkutei Torah, Re’eh 8 ¶14
- Likkutei Torah, Masei 4 ¶3
- Likkutei Torah, Va’eschanan 6 ¶23
- Likkutei Torah, Sukkos 1 ¶3
- Torah Ohr, Toldos 3 ¶13
- Likkutei Torah, Shir HaShirim 8 ¶30
- Likkutei Torah, Sukkos 3 ¶3
- Likkutei Torah, Re’eh 6 ¶7
- Likkutei Torah, Vayikra 1 ¶28
- Torah Ohr, Noach 3 ¶18
- Torah Ohr, Beshalach 8 ¶4
- Torah Ohr, Vayigash 2 ¶3 ¶7
- Torah Ohr, Mikeitz 7 ¶18
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.