Rooh is. Rooh is the isness or the beingness. Rooh is being, being always present.

What is Rooh?

No Idea.

What is Nafs?

No idea too.

Frankly and clearly saying no idea at all.

Who used such terms of rooh and nafs originally?

They have to give the real meaning and explanation for the question what is Rooh and what is Nafs. 

At least as to know if both of them are same or different, they have to help us.

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Rooh as per Quran is that which gives life and that which makes the body living or existing in the form it has or he has.

Qur'an says "Nafakhna feehi min roohin minna".

"We breathed into him rooh (spirit or soul or part of being God) from us."

From the above saying comes the idea and terminology of Rooh in humans as per Quran.

That which God has breathed into (in order to make him or his body living) is Rooh. 

That which is part of being God is that made everything living and existing.

Hence, as per Quran, Rooh means an aspect or element or part of being God that is directly from God. 

Or part of being God that is breathed or instilled or injected by God. 

That which makes a body living, existing and moving... 

Hence, Rooh is an aspect or element that is directly from God that make life and living (even existence) possile. 

When Rooh is in the body becomes living. Living body is nafs. 

Nafs is not only a mere body or physic, but is a living, moving, thinking and responding body. 

Nafs is not opposite to Rooh. Nafs is combination of body and Rooh 

And Nafs is nowhere in Qur'an depicted as contribution or creation of devil. Just because devil is not at all a creator or a sustainer or a destructer.

Then the question may come up. 

If the Rooh is from God, what about all other phenomenons, elements and things? 

Can there be anything other than from God? No.

Can there be anything other than living and existing. No.

Answer to the above question is 'no ' only. 

Everything is and can only be from God only, if we call the universe and universal power and central theme as God.

But it is true temporary living forms (nafs) get formed, living and then dying. 

This temporal living form and body with responsibility (with ability to respond) is Nafs.

Hence, Nafs has birth and death. After the death Nafs is not Nafs. 

Rooh has no I and you, and hence no birth and death too. 

Rooh is just supporting the body of Nafs to be Nafs by being instilled in it.

Nafs has I and you. Hence, birth and death too..

Nafs has good and evil which Rooh has no.

In that case, that which helps and makes one/body (Nafs), in relative sense, living is that which is Rooh. 

And that which is living because of help and support from Rooh his Nafs. 

Rooh has even the meaning of Gabriel, the Angel to give god's message to relative world, as per Quran.

Nafs is what or who is living the life in relative world. 

Life giving or enabling one/force (to the relative world) is Rooh and living one (in relative world) is Nafs.

Nafs means body with Rooh. 

Nafs means Living being. 

Nafs is the one which in relative world. 

Hence, Nafs has got right and wrong, front and back, past and future.

Rooh is only Rooh with no I and you in it, hence with no birth and death, with no good and evil too. 

Just because the absolute cannot have birth and death, good and evil, front and back, and past and future.

Only the Nafs with I and you has the mind and brain. 

Hence, I and you feeling too are so temporary and relative. 

I and you feeling is of Nafs, its brain, not at all of Rooh.

Nafs is that which is living in the world of relativity, hence good and evil, life and death.

See what Qur'an says:

"Wa nafsin wa maa sawwaahaa.

Fa alhamaha fujoorahaa wa thaqwaahaa.

Qad aflaha man zakkaahaa, wa qad khaaba man dassaaha"

"And by Nafs (Adam or a person or a living body, etc.), and by him who perfected (shaped) it;

Then he inspired in it (in him, in nafs) what is its wrong and what is its right;

Indeed he succeeds who purifies it (nafs) and indeed he fails who corrupts it (nafs)."

Which means Nafs is in relative world and is an aspect of relative world, hence Nafs is being made to feel its right and wrong.

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Now we will go to entomology of word Rooh and Nafs and to its possible explanation....

The word Nafs comes from the word nafas in Arabic, meaning “breathing.” 

In Arabic language Nafs may mean as “self,” or “person,” or "living body" 

The word Rooh denotes to “breath,” or “wind” or "spirit".

Sometimes the notion of the soul also is referred to as Nafs, as it is to Rooh too.

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Nafs is only an Arabic word which almost means "self", and the word Nafs is even translated as "psyche", "ego" or "soul". 

The word nafs is (or could be) mostly coming from the word in Hebrew language "nephes".

Nafs is breath and Rooh is wind or air. 

Breath and breathed. Nafs and Rooh.

That itself will give us a clearer picture. The breathing body is that is living because of the same breathing is Nafs. That which is breathed (the air even) is rooh. To which the air (rooh) is breathed is nafs.  

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The word Nafs can be (or is generally in Islam) categorised into three: 

1. Nafs Muthmainnah, a satisfied  soul. Satiated one. Needing nothing and needing nothing to avoid too. Attached, but detached. Detached, but attached.

2. Nafs Lawamah, namely the soul that regrets.

The word Lawwama means to 'self incriminate', or to 'self blame'.

Which means to have blame on (or put the blame on ) one's own self, mostly after doing or happening to do anything what it considers wrong, relatively.

Which means, a person (Nafs) does or happens to do sin, but then that person of Nafs lawwama (blaming self) incriminates himself, feels bad of it, and hence feels guilty. 

So that particular person leaves (or happens from there onwards to leave) the sins as he feels guilty about them. 

This means that such a person of Nafs lawwama (blaming self) is the one who may happen to commit a sin,  but at the same time feels remorse, regret, guilt, shame, embarrassment. 

Hence, nafs lawwama would take take a corrective action or at least would wish as if he never did it.

Person of Nafs lawwama is the one who is always fighting a battle with his own Nafs (self) . Almost in jihad Nafs.

3. Nafs Ammarah, means the self or soul that commands (mostly to do the evil and negative in the relative world of Nafs).

Nafs Ammarah will comand to himself to do all or any of the basic elements of pride (takabbur), greed, jealousy (hasad), lust (shahwah), backbiting (gheebah), stinginess (bukhl) and Malice.

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The arabic word Nafs can also be defined as “life force” or living force. 

Psychologically, in the word Nafs can even be regarded as instinctual mind or body with instinctual mind.

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Jihad al-nafs means to strive and  struggle against one's self or base instincts. Almost that which is happening with nafs lawwama.

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Nafs and Rooh is almoste similar in meaning like it is in Hibru nephes and ruach.

The word Rooḥ used by Qur'an is almost the “spirit,” in English, which means the basis or force of life.

Rooh as per Quran is the element that was breathed into Adam by God. "Nafakhna feehi min roohin minna"(we breathed in him Rooh from us). 

So, the word Rooḥ means God’s own Spirit, God's beingness.

In the meantime Nafs also has chance of getting the meaning of soul, though the word Nafs is considered to be the lowest principle of man.

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Rooh is...

Always in present, being, always present. The beingness 

Rooh is with no after and before... 

Because Rooh is absolute and from absolute which is beyond time and space...

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That is what Qur'an very specifically says about Rooh.

"Yasaloonaka anirrooh. Khulirrooha min amri rabbee"

'They ask you about Rooh. Tell them Rooh is among the affair of my God."

This means Rooh is totally an affair of God.

Rooh is an affair of being God 

And Rooh is affair from the beingness  of God. 

So Rooh is.... 

And Rooh is the real isness or real beingness. 

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Finally 

Rooh (spirit or soul) is. Rooh is The isness or the beingness. Rooh is being, being always present, the beingness. Rooh is an affair of God, an affair of being God and an affair from beingness of God. Rooh is with no I and you and with no after and before. Because Rooh is absolute and from absolute which is beyond all time and space...

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തുടക്കത്തിൽ എഴുതി വന്നപ്പോൾ ഇംഗ്ലീഷിൽ ആയി. പിന്നെയത് ഇംഗ്ലീഷിൽ തന്നെയാവട്ടെ എന്ന് കരുതി. ക്ഷമിക്കുക.

നമ്മുടെ സുഹൃത്ത് Nafeesath Beevi ( Salish Ittoop Johny  ക്ക് വേണ്ടി) പ്രത്യേകം ആവശ്യപ്പെട്ടത് കൊണ്ടും, അല്ലേലും ചെറിയൊരുണർത്തൽ നല്ലതെന്ന് തോന്നുന്നതിനാലും, നാം വെറുതെ കാല്പനികത പോലെ കാടടച്ച് പറഞ്ഞുപോകരുതല്ലോ എന്നതിനാലും മാത്രം ചിലത്.