Nephesh, Neshamah, and Ruach of the Soul
The Hebrew Scripture (Tanak) speaks of the human soul having three elements: nephesh, neshamah, and ruach. The sages are divided in their views about the nature of the human soul. Some of them (such as Maimonides in his introduction to Pirke Avot chapter) claim that the soul is a single force with three sub-categories: (1) the category which houses our desires, something men have in common with the animals; (2) the source of growth, something possessed both by animals and all manner of plants; (3) the ability to think coherently, the soul of wisdom. All these functions are part of a single soul. Others (such as Avraham Ibn Ezra in his commentary on Kohelet 7:3) claim that there are three distinct souls operating within man all of which are distinct from one another: nephesh, neshamah, and ruach.
In truth, man will never fully comprehend the origin of life and the reason why he was created. And while the finite man is unable to understand the creation, the Infinite Creator is still knowable through His self-revelation: the Torah. In the Torah, for the first time of history of mankind, He revealed Himself, namely, what was, is, and what will be. Elohim created man in His image and since then Adam’s creation is repeated in the formation of every human being. Thus, man becomes the image of Elohim not in the bodily form, but by the merit of His Breath by which he becomes a living soul. The body of Adam was first shaped out of the dust, and then the soul was thus breathed into it. Since then, the origin of life from the Breath of the Creator has always been a mystery. Yet, everyone has the principle of life embedded deep inside him and everyone born into the world has the choice of knowing right from wrong. From the inner witness of the conscientiousness, deep down in the soul man knows that he was created in the image of his Creator.
In Psa 11:1, David said that he had taken refuge in the Eternal,
In the Eternal have I taken refuge; how do you say to my soul: “Flee to your mountain, you birds”? (Psa 11:1)
Then, he stated that His soul hated the evil-doer and him that delighted in violence,
The Eternal tries the righteous, but the wicked and him who loves violence His soul hates. (Psa 11:5)
In the verses above, we find the word “soul” referring to the Creator and man, namely, both the Creator and the created having a “soul”. But what is “soul”? Does man have a single “soul” in different levels, or three “souls” within him? What about the Creator Himself?
The foreign word for Hebrew, “soul”, by its frequent has lost its meaning and turned into a universal term of an abstract reasoning. Hence, it is our desire in the following study to explain plainly what one needs to know about the human soul from Hebraic perspectives. But in order to better understand this important matter of “soul”, we will start using the Hebrew words: nephesh, neshamah, and ruach instead, as we shall have more to say upon this point presently.
The Creation of man through nephesh, neshamah, and ruach
The universe does not exist by itself, as a pot could not have existed without the potter. Likewise, man does not exist and cannot exist by himself, on himself, for himself, but is created for and with a purpose. And if man has not created himself for himself, it is Him who created him, and therefore it is Him who wants him for His purpose. As we explained elsewhere, for this reason man is being constantly recreated every second, and the soul of man is being renewed for a new life. When the Creator calls back the soul, the body dies and returns back to dust from where it came, but the soul being a spark from the Creator remains alive; it does not die. The process of man’s creation is described minutely in Gen 2:7, for the purpose to explain his relation to the Creator,
And the Eternal Elohim formed the man out of dust from the ground and breathed into his nostrils breath of lives. And the man became a living being. (Gen 2:7)
The Creator formed man from finest dust of the mater (which is a metaphor for molecules and minerals), and then breathed into him His Breath that brings life. What is this which the Creator breathed into man?
The creation of Nephesh Chayah
The process of creation of the first human being is described in the Torah in this order: (1) the Creator first formed man from dust and breathed nish’mat נִשְׁמַת chayim חַיִּים, “the breath of lives”, and (2) nephesh נֶפֶשׁ chayah חַיָּה, literally “breathing creature”, was thus created (Gen 2:7). In other words, in the moment, man rose from the dust, the Breath of life (Neshamah) was breathed into him, and consequently, a living being (nephesh) was created. Hence, the nature of man consists of a material substance, a body, and immaterial one: a soul. As nephesh chayah, “breathing creature”, does not refer to the living soul merely but to the whole man as an animated being, so the breath נְשָׁמָה neshamah does not denote something distinguished from the body and the soul. Nephesh thus becomes the first of the three (nephesh, neshamah, and ruach) levels of soul.
The role of Neshamah of the Creator
The breath the Creator breathed in man is called נְשָׁמָה Neshamah or Nesh’mat Chayim, literally “the Breath of lives”. It is an inspiration, as an act of inhaling, that directly comes forth from the Creator, transferred into the body, and thus forming a living person. When it is said the Creator breathed into his nostril the Breath of life, it is evident that what He breathed into man could not be the air which man breathes, but what is breathed into him is His Neshamah. Here we need to distinguish the Breath of the Creator Neshamah from the breath of man neshamah, both called in the Scripture by the same term. Therefore, the breathing into the man’s nostril can only mean that Elohim, through His own Breath, creates in a bodily form the principle of life, so that man can breathe and live on its own. Breathing, neshamah, however, is a phenomenon common to both man and animals, so that this cannot be the analogue of a higher level of life, i.e., “spiritual”, but simply neshamah is the physical manifestation of life in the body. Therefore, neshamah, does not denote the “soul” by which man is distinguished form an animal, because both man and animal have neshamah, as we see below. Therefore, neshamah is the breath through which man and animal breathe, as seen in Genesis 7:22, where we find the Hebrew term נִשְׁמַת nesh’mat, רוּחַ ruach חַיָּה chayah, literally “the breath of the wind of life”.
All in whose nostrils was the breath of the wind of life, all that was on the dry land, died. (Gen 7:22)
And when it is said that “all that was on the dry land, died”, this refers to both humans and land animals that died in the universal Flood. Hence, we learn that when man dies, his soul neshamah departs through his nostrils; it leaves the same way it entered when the Creator blew it into him at creation (see Gen 2:7).
Ruach Elohim: the creative power of the Eternal
Literally, neshamah means the inhalation and exhalation of air in the lungs of the living being, as seen in Job 27:3. In this verse, we also find that Iyov lives as long as the Ruach of Elohim is in his nostrils,
… as long as my breath (neshamah) is in me, and the Ruach of Eloah in my nostrils, (Job 27:3)
What we learn here is that neshamah, the breath in man, is the Ruach of Elohim in action. We see the creative work of Ruach (literally “wind” or “breath”) in another verse in the Book of Job,
The Wind (Ruach) of El has made me, and the breath (neshamah) of the Almighty gives me life. (Job 33:4)
What Iyov is saying here is that (1) first the Ruach of the Creator formed him, (2) then He breathed His Breath (Neshamah) in him to give him life (chayah), and (3) he became a living soul (nephesh) in this order. We should note here the parallelism between two statements: “Ruach of El has made me” and “Neshamah of the Almighty gives me life”. Hence, we learn that both Ruach and Neshamah denote the Living Breath of the Creator: Nesh’mat Ruach chayah, “Breath of the Wind of life”. Still on the same line of reasoning, the Wind (Ruach) of the Creator brings His Breath (Neshamah) to create life (chayah) in the human being (nephesh). And since both Neshamah “Breath” and Ruach “Wind”, bring life, then both terms Nesh’mat Ruach chayah, “Breath of the Wind of life” in Gen 7:22, and nesh’mat chayim, “Breath of lives” in Gen 2:7 are therefore interchangeable. Hence, we deduce that man has a twofold nature: a physical body created from minerals and molecules (the dust of the earth) and Nesh’mat Ruach chayah of the Creator: all in agreement with Gen 2:7. And the active force of life, Ruach Elohim רוּחַ־אֵל, is the creative power of the creation, as seen in Gen 1:2, and of all breathing creatures (see Gen 1:26), and Nesh’mat נִשְׁמַת Shadai שַׁדַּי (Breath of the Almighty) is the life-giving power in Job 33:4. Both, Ruach Elohim and Nesh’mat Shadai, united in the Eternal are all of Elohim (literally The Absolute Powers or Supernal Power). Thus, the Eternal, who has the creative Power רוּחַ־אֵל Ruach Elohim that brings the life-giving Power Nesh’mat נִשְׁמַת Shaddai שַׁדַּי, is One: all in agreement with the concept of the oneness of the Creator in Deuteronomy 6. Working together, they are the life-giving force of the One YHVH. For more insight on Ruach Elohim, refer to the article “The Hebrew Ruach haKodesh vs the Roman Holy Spirit“.
The three levels of soul
And as the Ruach of Elohim is not distinguished from Elohim Himself (Ruach comes forth from the Eternal Creator and is not something apart from Him), so the ruach of man is not distinguished from nephesh chayah, “the living soul”, of man (wherein the term nephesh denotes the whole human being as a physical body, neshamah a breath, and ruach a creative power). Therefore, knowing what we have learned so far, it should not come as a surprise that since man is made in the image of Him whose Ruach of El has made man and Neshamah of the Almighty gave him life, both the Creator and man have ruach, the creative power, and neshamah, the living breath. With that being said, we have the reason to believe that the “soul” that is in man is one “soul” which exists on three levels: nephesh, neshamah, and ruach. These three levels of the existence of the soul are, as follows:
(1) Nephesh (נֶפֶשׁ): the lower part, or primitive part of the human being that relates to the emotions and allows man to have some self-awareness of one’s own individuality. This part of the soul enters the physical body at creation in the mother’s womb. It is the source of one’s physical and psychological nature. This primitive soul is the seat of instincts and all emotions and desires, i.e. the emotions to love and hate, and the desire to eat, drink, procreate, etc. This is the part of what man has in common with the other living creatures. This “soul” is called nephesh in Deu 12:20 referring to basic needs of man, ” because your nephesh desires to eat meat, you may eat meat, after all the desire of your nephesh”. Nephesh thus refers to a combination of body and soul, and as such neither the soul nor the body alone are capable of performing actions, i.e., to do good or evil. Whenever this term occurs it never refers to an invisible “spirit” alone but always to the whole human being of flesh and the immaterial part of a person, which is known as “soul”. The seat of nephesh, some sages believe to be the liver, as the liver is the main organ of metabolism, and the most complex organ only second to the brain. As it is also said: “For the life (nephesh) of the flesh is in the blood” (Lev 17:11). As such nephesh is the force that circulates in the blood stream and enables man to live and grow physically and also one’s conscience. Nephesh remains active until death.
(2) Neshamah (נְשָׁמָה): the middle soul, that relates to the intellect and allows man to have some awareness of the existence and presence of his Creator. This is the subconsciousness of man that sits deep into him. The seat of this soul is in man’s brain (perhaps in the pineal gland aka the “third eye”), and it is generally referred to as the breath the Creator blew in Adam’s nostrils. The simplest way to explain neshamah is to liken it to a channel through which the Creator maintains connection with man. Unlike nephesh, which is created in man, “the breath of lives” nesh’mat chayim, is not created but given to man; it is a part of the Creator, the spark that He gives man and lives in him. Neshamah in man however is different from that in the animals. This difference is best understood by the way in which man received the breath of life and so became a living soul. The Creator breathed directly into the nostrils of Adam, the whole fulness of His personality, His Neshamah, that man may become a living soul. In contrast, the animals were created at the creative word of Elohim, but no work of the Ruach is even mentioned in the creation of sea and land animals on the fifth and sixth day of Creation, respectively. The origin of the animals’ soul was simultaneous with that of their physical existence, and their life was merely the co-existence of their neshamah in flesh. Animals do not possess conscience as humans do but merely primitive instincts encoded in their DNA that is inherited with the transmission of genetic information. Neshamah departs the body at death to return to the Creator.
(3) Ruach (רוּחַ): the higher soul is ruach, the creative power of man. It contains the physical strength of man, as well as the moral virtues and the ability to distinguish between good and evil on a higher level than neshamah. Ruach is also the state of the soul that enables man to communicate with the Eternal. Like neshamah, ruach is not created but given to man; it is a part of the Creator. We read in Ezekiel,
Thus said Adonai the Eternal to these bones, “Behold, I will cause Wind (Ruach) to enter into you, and you shall live. And I shall lay sinews on you and bring flesh in you and cover you with skin and put wind (ruach) in you, and you shall live. And you shall know that I am the Eternal“. (Eze 37:5-6)
The word of the Eternal announced here the rising of the dry bones to life: He will clothe them with flesh and put His Wind (Ruach) of life in them so that they will live again. What is notable in the prophecy is that the bones are clothed with flesh, but there is not yet any life in them (Eze 37:8). To give them life, the prophet was to prophesy, i.e., to speak or to convey message to Ruach רוּחַ chayim הַיִּים, “the Wind of lives”, so that they shall live (Eze 37:9). Then, Ruach will come into them, and they will receive life (Eze 37:10). And indeed, from the very beginning of the Scripture, the Creator identifies His power of creation with the word Ruach, the wind that hovered upon the face of the earth in Genesis 1:2. However, what we see here in the resurrection of the dead is not a mere wind or breath that brings life in the dead bones, but also an agency of prophecy. To Ruach chayim the prophet had to prophecy and through Ruach chayim the life would reenter the body to raise it up from the dead. Ruach departs the body at death to return to the Creator. For more insight into the resurrection of the dead refer to the article “The Luz—the living bone of resurrection“.
Sublime levels of soul: Chayah and Yechidah
These three levels of soul are not the only ones man can have. The rabbinic school of thought teaches that there are two more parts of the human being that are not deep-seated at birth but can be developed over time. Their development depends on the actions and beliefs of the individual, yet they are gifts from the above. These levels of the human soul are considered to represent the most sublime levels of intuitive cognition, but they need to be developed, if one has a proper connection with the Creator. These sublime levels of the soul are Chayah and Yechidah, the highest levels of the soul of high moral and intellectual value. Chayah (חיה): Literally Life; this is the part of the soul that allows man to have an awareness of the heavenly life force in itself. Yechidah (יחידה): Uniqueness; this is the highest level of the soul, in which man can achieve a full union with the Creator as humanly possible. It is the personal belief and understanding of the present author that all prophets of Israel had Chayah and the only human being that had ever possessed Yechidah is the prophet of all prophets, to whom the Eternal spoke not through dreams and visions, as He spoke to all other prophets, but directly face to face and mouth to mouth, as friends speak to each other: that prophet was Mosheh our teacher and law giver. These two levels of soul, Chayah and Yechidah, deserve a separate study, as we intend to do in the future.
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