G-d's essential reason for creating souls was to create a certain condition where He would give them eternal existence in an ecstatic state in the World to Come. The soul was granted the capacity for self-awareness, which gives it a certain similitude to G-d Himself. What is the soul's purpose? How does the soul "give back" to G-d? The soul must learn how to utilize its powers of creation without attempting to usurp G-d.