The soul is the self, the "I" that inhabits the body and acts through
it. Without the soul, the body is like a light bulb without electricity,
a computer without the software, a space suit with no astronaut inside.
With the introduction of the soul, the body acquires life, sight and
hearing, thought and
speech, intelligence and emotions, will and desire, personality and
identity.
Our sages have said: "She is called by five names: Nefesh (soul), Ruach (spirit), Neshamah (breath), Chayah (life) and Yechidah (singularity). The Chassidic masters explain that the soul's five "names" actually describe five
levels or dimensions of the soul. Nefesh is the soul as the engine of physical life. Ruach is the emotional self and "personality." Neshamah is the intellectual self. Chayah is the supra-rational self--the seat of
will, desire, commitment and faith. Yechidah connotes the essence of the soul--its unity with its source, the singular essence of God....read more>>>...