Glossary · Torah Ohr · Likkutei Torah
Neshamah
נשמה
Soul (neshamah)
A Jew’s soul: G‑dliness at its root (“Israel rose in thought”), brought down to be a created being in a body, a descent for the sake of ascent. Only a glimmer enters the body.
The word Neshamah names the soul as a whole (נשמות ישראל, the souls of Israel, usually the G‑dly soul). In the list nefesh, ruach, neshamah, chayah, yechidah (נרנח״י) it is the third level, which is Binah, comprehension (Likkutei Torah, Re’eh 6:5). When it stands with the other four, it means that specific level.
Where it’s explained
- Likkutei Torah, Reeh 7, ¶2The souls’ source is the supernal thought (“Israel rose in thought”), and from there they descend to be clothed in a body and an animal soul; the descent is for the sake of an ascent. Souls come from the inwardness of the vessels of Atzilus, angels from their outwardness. To explain what vessels are: in man the body is a vessel and dwelling for the soul, whose powers spread into each limb according to its nature.
נודע שהנשמות הן מבחינת פנימיות הכלים דאצילות. והמלאכים הם מבחי׳ חיצונית הכלים
- Likkutei Torah, Shir HaShirim 15, ¶3Not the whole soul is clothed in the body: only a glimmer is, while the soul as a whole stays above as a makif, called the “mazal” in the Sages’ words, which drips influence down to the soul in the body. So “the soul You gave me is pure” refers to the part above, which is not in the category of creation and is united with its Emanator.
אלא קצת הארה מן הנשמה היא המתלבשת בגוף וכל הנשמה כולה היא למעלה בבחינת מקיף ונקרא מזל
- Torah Ohr, Mishpatim 1, ¶2There are two levels of souls. Souls of Atzilus, called “seed of man” and “sons,” have Daas of G‑dliness, a felt sense like sight, since Chochmah is revealed in Atzilus. Souls of Beriah, Yetzirah and Asiyah, called “seed of beast” and “servants,” have understanding like hearing, from Binah, which nests in Beriah; nearly all souls of our generations are of this kind.
נשמות דבי״ע שהם כמעט כל הנשמות שבדורותינו כי נשמות דאצילות הן בני עלייה שהם מועטים
- Likkutei Torah, Shir HaShirim 17, ¶6In early tzaddikim such as Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai, a soul of Atzilus itself was clothed in the body. In the rest of Israel, tzaddikim and beinonim, the root of every soul is in Atzilus, but it stays hidden as a makif, and what is clothed in the body is a nefesh, ruach or neshamah of Beriah, Yetzirah and Asiyah; the root of the root, from “rose in thought,” is in every Jewish soul.
שעם היות שרש כל הנשמות הוא מאצילות אבל עכ״ז בחי׳ זו דשרש הנשמה שמאצילות אינו מלובש ולא מאיר בהגוף כלל
- Likkutei Torah, Tzav 11, ¶2In Atzilus the soul is G‑dliness itself. It becomes a created yesh, separate from the ayin, through Malchus, which hides and conceals: the soul is held in the “womb” of Nukva for seven months, from Shemini Atzeres to the seventh day of Pesach, when the souls are born.
ובכדי שתתהוה הנשמה בבחי׳ יש להיות בחי׳ נברא שהוא בחי׳ נפרד מאין ממש שהרי בהיותה באצילות היא בחי׳ אלקות ממש
Stated differently
Which souls are called “brothers and companions” (אחים וריעים)
והן הנשמות שנק׳ אחים וריעים למקום כמ״ש למען אחי ורעי כו׳ ומבואר בזהר שהן למעלה אפילו מבחי׳ בניםOnly very lofty souls, drawn from the union of Abba and Imma of Atzilus, are called brothers and companions, and they are above the level of “sons”; souls born of the union of Zeir Anpin and Nukva are called sons and are born into Beriah.
ס״ר נשמות ישראל שנמשכים מס״ר אותיות המחשבה נק׳ אחים לקוב״ה שהם המדותThe 600,000 souls of Israel, drawn from the 600,000 letters of thought, are called brothers of the Holy One, blessed be He, that is, of the middos.
נשמות ישראל נקראו רעים לז״א כמ״ש למען אחי ורעיThe souls of Israel are called companions of Zeir Anpin, as in “for the sake of my brothers and companions,” and so the souls of tzaddikim are like companions above.
Discussed by
The Tzemach Tzedek · Biurei HaZohar (Tzemach Tzedek), vol. 1, p. תקמז
The Tzemach Tzedek distinguishes souls born of Chochmah and Binah, called brothers and companions, from souls of Z’eir Anpin and Nukva, called sons, and those called servants, and then asks why souls of Atzilus are called brothers more than the souls and angels of Beriah, Yetzirah and Asiyah.
והנה הנשמות הנקראים אחים וריעים שנולדו מחו״ב זהו ענין מולדת בית ויש נשמות שנולדו מזווג זו״נ ונקראו בנים ויש שנקראו עבדים
The Rebbe · Sefer HaMaamarim Basi LeGani, vol. 1 (old ed.), p. קסז
Following Likkutei Torah, the Rebbe limits ‘brothers and companions’ to souls of Atzilus drawn from the union of Abba and Imma, as against most souls, born into Beriah even when drawn from Z’eir Anpin and Nukva of Atzilus, and even lofty souls of Atzilus from Z’eir Anpin and Nukva, which are only a drop of their mochin.
והם נשמות דאצילות, וכמו שמסבי׳ בלקו״ת שם, שהן הנשמות שנק׳ אחים וריעים לז״א לפי שנמשכו מיחוד או״א
Which level is named as the root or source of the souls of Israel, and what “rose in thought” refers to
שרש נש״י נמשכין מבחי׳ חכמה דאצילות הנק׳ מוחין דאבאThe root of the souls is Chochmah of Atzilus, the mochin of Abba, as a child is drawn from the father’s brain; this is “rose in thought.” “Thus it rose in thought before Me” in the story of Rabbi Akiva refers to Mocha Stima’ah, far above Chochmah of Atzilus.
שרש הנשמות הוא מבחי׳ א״ק כי עלה במחשבה היינו בחי׳ א״קThe souls are rooted in “thought,” which is the level of Beriah; the root of the souls is Adam Kadmon, for “rose in thought” means Adam Kadmon.
נפשי הוא מקור נש״י שהיא מלכות דאצילות המתלבשת בבי״עThe source of the souls of Israel is Malchus of Atzilus, clothed in Beriah, Yetzirah and Asiyah, which longs to be in its root in Atzilus.
Discussed by
The Rebbe · Sefer HaMaamarim (bilti muga) 5716, p. קיט
The Rebbe reads ‘Israel rose in thought’ at every level at once: the primordial thought of Adam Kadmon, the higher ‘Ana Emloch’ before the tzimtzum, and the levels down through Atzilus; he then brings the Maggid’s reading, which roots the souls in the Essence.
וכיון שישראל עלו במחשבה, בכל פרטי המדריגות הנ״ל, לכן הם דוקא עושים את הדירה
Further in Chassidus
The Tzemach Tzedek · Biurei HaZohar (Tzemach Tzedek), vol. 1, p. תקמז
The Tzemach Tzedek explains that souls formed from the inner side of the vessels of the sefiros are G‑dliness and unite with those vessels, yet are only a glimmer separated from them, like speech within thought compared with the intellect itself.ולפ״ז גם הנשמות שמתהוים מבחי׳ פנימיות הכלים דע״ס הם ג״כ בחי׳ אלקות
The Rebbe · Sefer HaMaamarim Melukat, vol. 5, p. רפו
The Rebbe roots the souls of Israel in G‑d’s Essence, citing the Maggid’s reading of ‘Israel rose in thought’ as a father whose love engraves his son’s image in his mind, and explains why G‑d’s delight in their service preceded creation.כי השורש דישראל (דעיקר ענין אתעדל״ת הוא ע״י עבודתם של ישראל) הוא בעצמות
Short quotes, © their publishers; each page opened by a second AI reader.
Main sources
Likkutei Torah, Reeh 7, ¶2Likkutei Torah, Shir HaShirim 15, ¶3Torah Ohr, Mishpatim 1, ¶2Likkutei Torah, Shir HaShirim 17, ¶5Likkutei Torah, Shir HaShirim 17, ¶6Likkutei Torah, Tzav 11, ¶2Likkutei Torah, Nitzavim 7, ¶6
Where it appears
In 1,080 paragraphs of 303 maamarim: part of the language of nearly every page.
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.