نفس

نَفْسٌ ذ The soul; the spirit; the vital principle; syn. رُوحٌ: (S, M, A, Msb, K:) but between these two words is a difference [which must be fully explained hereafter, though ISd says, that it is not of the purpose of his book, the M, to explain it]: (M:) in this sense it is fem.: (Msb:) pl. [of pauc.] أَنْفُسٌ and [of mult.] نُفُوسٌ. (M, Msb.) You say, خَرَجَتْ نَفْسُهُ [ His soul, or spirit, went forth ]; (Aboo-Is-hák, S, M, Msb, K;) and so جَادَتْ نَفْسُهُ. (Msb.) And a poet says, not Aboo-Khirásh as in the S, but Hudheyfeh Ibn-Anas, (IB,) نَجَا سَالِمٌ والنَّفْسُ مِنْهُ بِشِدْقِهِ وَلَمْ يَنْجُ اـِلَّا جَفْنَ سَيْفٍ وَمِئْزَرَا i. e., [ Sálim escaped when the soul was in the side of his mouth; but he escaped not save ] with the scabbard of a sword and with a waist-wrapper. (S.) In the same sense the word is used in the saying. فِى نَفْسِ فُلَانٍ أَنْ يَفْعَلَ كَذَا وَكَذَا [but this seems rather to mean, It is in the mind of such a one to do so and so ]. (Aboo-Is-hák, M.) Some of the lexicologists assert the نَفْس and the رُوح to be one and the same, except that the former is fem., and the latter [generally or often] masc.: others say, that the latter is that whereby is life; and the former, that whereby is intellect, or reason; so that when one sleeps, God takes away his نفس, but not his روح, which is not taken save at death: and the نَفْس is thus called because of its connexion with the نَفَس [or breath]. (IAmb.) Or every man has نَفْسَانِ [ two souls ]: (I'Ab, Zj:) نَفْسُ العَقْلِ [ the soul of intellect, or reason, also called النَّفْسُ النَّاطِقَةُ (see رُوحٌ)], whereby one discriminates, [i. e., the mind, ] (I'Ab,) or نَفْسُ التَّمْيِيزِ [ the soul of discrimination ], which quits him when he sleeps, so that he does not understand thereby, God taking it away: (Zj:) and نَفْسُ الرُّوحِ [ the soul of the breath ], whereby one lives, (I'Ab,) or نَفْسُ الحَيَاةِ [ the soul of life ], and when this quits him, the breath quits with it; whereas the sleeper breathes: and this is the difference between the taking away of the نفس of the sleeper in sleep and the taking away of the نفس of the living [at death.] (Zj.) Much has been said respecting the نَفْس and the رُوح; whether they be one, or different: but the truth is, that there is a difference between them, since they are not always interchangeable: for it is said in the Kur, [xv. 29 and xxxviii. 72,] وَنَفَخْتُ فِيهِ مِنْ رُوحِى [And I have blown into him of my spirit.]; not مِنْ نَفْسِى: and [v. 116,] تَعْلَمُ مَا فِى نَفْسِى [to be explained hereafter]; not فِى رُوحِى, nor would this expression be well except from Jesus: and [lviii. 9,] وَيَقُولُونَ فِى أَنْفُسِهِمْ [ And they say in their souls, or within themselves ]: for which it would not be well to say فِى أَرْوَاحِهِمْ: and [xxxix. 57,] أَنْ تَقُولَ نَفْسٌ [ That a soul shall say ]; for which no Arab would say أَنْ تَقُولَ رُوحٌ: hence, the difference between them depends upon the considerations of relation: and this is indicated by a trad., in which it is said that God created Adam, and put into him a نَفْس and a رُوح; and that from the latter was his quality of abstaining from unlawful and indecorous things, and his understanding, and his clemency, or forbearance, and his liberality, and his fidelity; and from the former, [which is also called النَّفْسُ الأَمَّارَةُ, q. v., in art. أمر,] his appetence, and his unsteadiness, and his hastiness of disposition, and his anger: therefore one should not say that نَفْسٌ is the same as رُوحٌ absolutely, without restriction, nor رُوحٌ the same as نَفْس. (R.) The Arabs also make the discriminative نَفْس to be two; because it sometimes commands the man to do a thing or forbids him to do it; and this is on the occasion of setting about an affair that is disliked: therefore they make that which commands him to be a نفس, and that which forbids him to be as though it were another نفس: and hence the saying, mentioned by Z, فُلَانٌ يُؤَامِرُ نَفْسَيْهِ (tropical:) [ Such a one consults his two souls, or minds ]; said of a man when two opinions occur to him. (TA.) [بِنَفْسِى فُلَانٌ is an elliptical phrase sometimes used, for بِنَفْسِى فُلَانٌ مَفْدِىٌّ, which see in art. فدى.] ― -b2- (assumed tropical:) A thing's self; (S, M, A, K, TA;) used as a corroborative; (S, TA;) its whole, (Aboo-Is-hák, M, TA,) and essential constituent: (Aboo-Is-hák, M, A, K, TA:) pl. as above, أَنْفُسٌ and نُفُوسٌ. (M.) You say, رَأَيْتُ فُلَانًا نَفْسَهُ (assumed tropical:) I saw such a one himself, (S,) and جَاآءَنِى بِنَفْسِهِ [or, more properly, حَاآءَنِى هُوَ بِنَفْسِهِ (see, under the head of بِ, a remark on that preposition when used in a case of this kind, redundantly,)] He came to me himself. (S, K.) And وَلِىَ الأَمْرَ بِنَفْسِهِ [ He superintended, managed, or conducted, the affair in his own person ]. (K, in art. بشر, &c.) And حَدَّثَ نَفْسَهُ [ He talked to himself; soliloquized ]. (Msb, in art. بلو; &c.) And قَتَلَ فُلَانٌ نَفْسَهُ (assumed tropical:) [ Such a one killed himself ]: and أَهْلَكَ نَفْسَهُ (assumed tropical:) made his whole self to fall into destruction. (Aboo-Is-hák, M.) And hence, (TA,) from نَفْسُ الشَّىْءِ signifying ذَاتُهُ, (M,) the saying mentioned by Sb, نَزَلْتُ بِنَفْسِ الجَبَلِ (assumed tropical:) [ I alighted in the mountain itself ]: and نَفْسُ الجَبَلِ مُقَابِلِى (assumed tropical:) [ The mountain itself is facing me ]. (M, TA.) [Hence also the phrase] فِى نَفْسِ الأَمْرِ [meaning (assumed tropical:) in reality; in the thing itself ]: as in the saying, قَلَّلَهُ فِى نَفْسِهِ وَاـِنْ لَمْ يَكُنْ قَلِيلًا فِى نَفْسِ الأَمْرِ (assumed tropical:) [ He held it to be little in his mind though it was not little in reality ]. (Msb, art. قل.) The words of the Kur, [v. 116,] تَعْلَمُ مَا فِى نَفْسِى وَلَا أَعْلَمُ مَا فِى نَفْسِكَ mean (assumed tropical:) Thou knowest what is in myself, or in my essence, and I know not what is in thyself, or in thine essence: (Bd, K:) or Thou knowest what I conceal (M, Bd, Jel) in my نفس [or mind [...]