The Soul's Journey Before Birth: What Happens Before We Enter the World

Just as driving without a destination is a waste of time, living without a purpose is a waste of life.

Rabbi Moshe Chaim Luzzatto, known as the Ramchal, writes at the beginning of his classic work Mesilat Yesharim (The Path of the Just) that the foundation of a person’s spiritual journey is to first understand their purpose in life. Before anything else, one must ask: What is my role in this world? What should my goals be? Knowing why we are here, what the purpose of life is, and how to reach that goal are the essentials for mapping out a meaningful life.

The Soul's Descent: Resistance and Purpose

The Midrash (Tanchuma, Parashat Pekudei) teaches that all human souls—those who have lived and those who will live—were created on the day G-d created the world. When the time comes for a soul to be born into a physical body, G-d commands the angel in charge of souls to bring that soul down into the world, where it will enter the womb.

The soul resists. It protests and says: “Master of the Universe, I am content with the world I’ve lived in since the day You created me. Why would You place me into this impure drop, when I am holy and pure, formed from the radiance of Your glory?”

The answer it receives is simple: This is why you were created. And so, the soul is sent into the world, against its will.

A Glimpse of Paradise and Gehenna

The Zohar (Parshat Tazria, p. 43) reveals that before the soul enters the physical world, the angel shows it a glimpse of the spiritual worlds. First, it is taken to Gan Eden (Paradise), where it sees the souls of the righteous and their reward. Then it is taken to Gehenna, where it witnesses the suffering of the souls who sinned.

The souls testify to the greatness of the reward for each mitzvah, and the severity of the consequences for every transgression. The angel warns the soul: “Know that you are destined to enter the world. Be righteous and not wicked, so that you will merit to live in the World to Come.”

Swearing Loyalty to G-d

Before entering the world, G-d makes the soul take an oath to fulfill its mission: to live a life of faith, Torah, and spiritual truth.

The Zohar explains: “All souls, before coming into this world, stand in their spiritual form in the Treasury of Souls. When the time comes for a soul to be born, G-d calls upon the angel appointed over the souls and says, ‘Bring Me the spirit of this one.’ The soul appears before G-d in a form resembling that of a human body. G-d then makes the soul swear that, once in the world, it will strive to know Him and understand the mystery of faith. For anyone who comes into the world and does not make an effort to know G-d—it would have been better had they never been created.”

This is the meaning of the verse: “You have been shown to know…” (Deuteronomy 4), meaning the soul was shown these things before birth, so it could recognize truth and strive for it in this world.

Choosing a Body and Life Path

In his book Chesed L’Avraham, the Kabbalist Rabbi Avraham Azulai writes that the angel in charge of physical forms walks with the soul through the “Treasury of Bodies,” where the soul chooses the body it will inhabit—tall or short, strong or weak, attractive or not. According to this teaching, no person has a right to complain about their appearance, health, or physical condition, because it was the soul’s own choice, knowing what would best help it complete its mission.

Rabbi Bachya adds that all beings were created willingly. Before creation, G-d revealed to each soul its future circumstances, including all the events that would occur in its life, the nature of its livelihood—whether easy or difficult, self-earned or dependent on others—and even the details of its birth and death. The soul agreed to everything, knowing it was for its ultimate benefit and spiritual correction. At that moment, the angel reminds the soul: “Know that the world you are entering is called a temporary life (Chayei Sha'ah), and only after resurrection will you reach eternal life (Chayei Olam).”

Learning the Entire Torah in the Womb

The Talmud (Niddah 30) teaches that while in the womb, the soul is shown the span of human history—past and future—and is taught the entire Torah.

Before birth, the soul is again made to swear: to be righteous, not wicked, and to remain loyal to G-d and its divine purpose. When the time arrives for the soul to be born as a baby, it again resists. The soul asks the angel, “Why are you taking me out into the world?”

The angel responds: “Know this: Against your will you were created, against your will you were born, against your will you will die, and against your will you will be held accountable before the King of Kings, the Holy One, blessed be He.”

The angel then brings the soul into the world, against its will. At the moment the soul leaves the womb, the angel causes it to forget everything it saw and learned. From that point on, the baby remembers nothing of its divine origin, mission, or spiritual knowledge. (Tanchuma, Parshat Pekudei)