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What is the difference between the soul (nafs) and the personality (shakhsiyyah), and are they one and the same?

1 min readAlso available in العربية

The self (nafs) is the soul that manages the body, while personality is the comprehensive concept of a human being's essence, encompassing all their inclinations, perceptions, thoughts, beliefs, and characteristics. The term "nafs" may also be metaphorically applied to the entire person, and it is common for both terms to be used with non-original meanings.

Summarized from the full answer at Ftawy · reviewed Sep 2, 2026

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