Part 16 (1/2)
534. After this I conversed with the angels, informing them that somewhat further is revealed in the world by the Lord. They asked, ”What?” I said, ”Concerning love truly conjugial and its heavenly delights.” The angels said, ”Who does not know that the delights of conjugial love exceed those of all other loves? and who cannot see, that into some love are collected all the blessednesses, satisfactions, and delights, which can possibly be conferred by the Lord, and that the receptacle thereof is love truly conjugial, which is capable of receiving and perceiving them fully and sensibly?” I replied, ”They do not know this, because they have not come to the Lord, and lived according to his precepts, by shunning evils as sins and doing goods; and love truly conjugial with its delights is solely from the Lord, and is given to those who live according to his precepts; thus it is given to those who are received into the Lord's new church, which is meant in the Apocalypse by the New Jerusalem.” To this I added, ”I am in doubt whether in the world at this day they are willing to believe that this love in itself is a spiritual love, and hence grounded in religion, because they entertain only a corporeal idea respecting it.” Then they said to me, ”Write respecting it, and follow revelation; and afterwards the book written respecting it shall be sent down from us out of heaven, and we shall see whether the things contained in it are received; and at the same time whether they are willing to acknowledge, that that love is according to the state of religion with man, spiritual with the spiritual, natural with the natural, and merely carnal with adulterers.”
535. After this I heard an outrageous murmur from below, and at the same time these words, ”Do miracles; and we will believe you.” And I asked, ”Are not the things above-mentioned miracles?” Answer was made, ”They are not.” I again asked, ”What miracles then do you mean?” And it was said, ”Disclose and reveal things to come; and we will have faith.” But I replied, ”Such disclosures and revelation are not granted from heaven; since in proportion as a man knows things to come, in the same proportion his reason and understanding, together with his wisdom and prudence, fall into an indolence of inexertion, grow torpid, and decay.”
Again I asked, ”What other miracles shall I do?” And a cry was made, ”Do such miracles as Moses did in Egypt.” To this I answered, ”Possibly you may harden your hearts against them as Pharaoh and the Egyptians did.”
And reply was made, ”We will not.” But again I said, ”a.s.sure me of a certainty, that you will not dance about a golden calf and adore it, as the posterity of Jacob did within a month after they had seen the whole Mount Sinai on fire, and heard Jehovah himself speaking out of the fire, thus after the greatest of all miracles;” (a golden calf in the spiritual sense denotes the pleasure of the flesh;) and reply was made from below, ”We will not be like the posterity of Jacob.” But at that instant I heard it said to them from heaven, ”If ye believe not Moses and the prophets,--that is, the Word of the Lord, ye will not believe from miracles, any more than the sons of Jacob did in the wilderness, nor any more than they believed when they saw with their own eyes the miracles done by the Lord himself, while he was in the world.”
GENERAL INDEX.
PART THE FIRST.
PRELIMINARY RELATIONS RESPECTING THE JOYS OF HEAVEN AND NUPTIALS THERE, n. 1-26.
ON MARRIAGES IN HEAVEN, n. 27-41.
A man lives a man after death, n. 28-31. In this case a male is a male, and a female a female, n. 32, 33. Every one's peculiar love remains with him after death, n. 34-36. The love of the s.e.x especially remains; and with those who go to heaven, which is the case with all who become spiritual here on earth, conjugial love remains, n. 37, 38. These things fully confirmed by ocular demonstration, n. 39. Consequently there are marriages in heaven, n. 40. Spiritual nuptials are to be understood by the Lord's words, ”After the resurrection they are not given in marriage,” n. 41.
ON THE STATE OF MARRIED PARTNERS AFTER DEATH, n. 45-54.
The love of the s.e.x remains with every man after death, according to its interior quality; that is, such as it had been in his interior will and thought in the world, n. 46, 47. Conjugial love in like manner remains such as it has been anteriorly; that is, such as it had been in the man's interior will and thought in the world, n. 48. Married partners most commonly meet after death, know each other, again a.s.sociate, and for a time live together: this is the case in the first state, thus while they are in externals as in the world, n. 47*. But successively, as they put off their externals and enter into their internals, they perceive what had been the quality of their love and inclination for each other, and consequently whether they can live together or not, n.
48*. If they can live together, they remain married partners; but if they cannot, they separate, sometimes the husband from the wife, sometimes the wife from the husband, and sometimes each from the other, n. 49. In this case there is given to the man a suitable wife, and to the woman a suitable husband, n. 50. Married pairs enjoy similar communications with each other as in the world, but more delightful and blessed, yet without prolification; in the place of which they experience spiritual prolification, which is that of love and wisdom, n.
51, 52. This is the case with those who go to heaven; but it is otherwise with those who go to h.e.l.l, n. 53, 54.
ON LOVE TRULY CONJUGIAL, n. 57-73.
There exists a love truly conjugial, which at this day is so rare, that it is not known what is its quality, and scarcely that it exists, n. 58, 59. This love originates in the marriage of good and truth, n. 60, 61.
There is a correspondence of this love with the marriage of the Lord and the church, n. 62, 63. This love, from its origin and correspondence, is celestial, spiritual, holy, pure, and clean, above every other love imparted by the Lord to the angels of heaven and the men of the church, n. 64. It is also the foundation love of all celestial and spiritual loves, and thence of all natural loves, n. 65-67. Into this love are collected all joys and delights from first to last, n. 68, 69. None, however, come into this love, and can remain in it, but those who approach the Lord, and love the truths of the church, and practise its goods, n. 70-72. This love was the love of loves with the ancients, who lived in the golden, silver, and copper ages, n. 73.
ON THE ORIGIN OF CONJUGIAL LOVE AS GROUNDED IN THE MARRIAGE OF GOOD AND TRUTH n. 83-102.
Good and truth are the universals of creation, and thence are in all created things; but they are in created subjects according to the form of each, n. 84-86. There is neither solitary good nor solitary truth; but in all cases they are conjoined, n. 87. There is the truth of good, and from this the good of truth; or truth grounded in good, and good grounded in that truth; and in those two principles is implanted from creation an inclination to join themselves together into a one, n. 88, 89. In the subjects of the animal kingdom, the truth of good, or truth grounded in good, is male (or masculine); and the good of that truth, or good grounded in that truth, is female (or feminine), n. 90, 91. From the influx of the marriage of good and truth from the Lord, the love of the s.e.x and conjugial love are derived, n. 92, 93. The love of the s.e.x belongs to the external or natural man; and hence it is common to every animal, n. 94. But conjugial love belongs to the internal or spiritual man; and hence this love is peculiar to man, n. 95, 96. With man conjugial love is in the love of the s.e.x as a gem in its matrix, n. 97.
The love of the s.e.x with man is not the origin of conjugial love, but its first rudiment; thus it is like an external natural principle, in which an internal spiritual principle is implanted, n. 98. During the implantation of conjugial love, the love of the s.e.x inverts itself, and becomes the chaste love of the s.e.x, n. 99. The male and the female were created to be the essential form of the marriage of good and truth, n.
100. Married partners are that form in their inmost principles, and thence in what is derived from those principles, in proportion as the interiors of their minds are opened, n. 101, 102.
ON THE MARRIAGE OF THE LORD AND THE CHURCH, AND ITS CORRESPONDENCE, n.
116-131.
The Lord in the Word is called the Bridegroom and Husband, and the church the bride and wife; and the conjunction of the Lord with the church, and the reciprocal conjunction of the church with the Lord, is called a marriage, n. 117. The Lord is also called a Father, and the church, a mother, n. 118, 119. The offspring derived from the Lord as a husband and father, and from the church as a wife and mother, are all spiritual; and in the spiritual sense of the Word are understood by sons and daughters, brothers and sisters, sons-in-law and daughters-in-law, and by other names of relations, n. 120. The spiritual offspring which are born from the Lord's marriage with the church, are truths and goods; truths, from which are derived understanding, perception, and all thought; and goods, from which are derived love, charity, and all affection, n. 121. From the marriage of good and truth, which proceeds from the Lord in the way of influx, man receives truth, and the Lord conjoins good thereto; and thus the church is formed by the Lord with man, n. 122-124. The husband does not represent the Lord, and the wife the church; because both together, the husband and the wife, const.i.tute the church, n. 125. Therefore there is not a correspondence of the husband with the Lord, and of the wife with the church, in the marriages of the angels in the heavens, and of men on earth, n. 126. But there is a correspondence with conjugial love, semination, prolification, the love of infants, and similar things which exist in marriages and are derived from them, n. 127. The Word is the medium of conjunction, because it is from the Lord, and thereby is the Lord, n. 128. The church is from the Lord, and exists with those who come to him and live according to his precepts, n. 129. Conjugial love is according to the state of the church, because it is according to the state of wisdom with man, n. 130. And as the church is from the Lord, conjugial love is also from him, n. 131.
ON THE CHASTE PRINCIPLE AND THE NON-CHASTE, n. 138-156.
The chaste principle and the non-chaste are predicated only of marriages and of such things as relate to marriages, n. 139, 140. The chaste principle is predicated only of monogamical marriages, or of the marriage of one man with one wife, n. 141. The Christian conjugial principle alone is chaste, n. 142. Love truly conjugial is essential chast.i.ty, n. 143. All the delights of love truly conjugial, even the ultimate, are chaste, n. 144. With those who are made spiritual by the Lord, conjugial love is more and more purified and rendered chaste, n.
145, 146. The chast.i.ty of marriage exists by a total renunciation of wh.o.r.edoms from a principle of religion, n. 147-149. Chast.i.ty cannot be predicated of infants, or of boys and girls, or of young men and maidens before they feel in themselves a love of the s.e.x, n. 150. Chast.i.ty cannot be predicated of eunuchs so made, n. 151. Chast.i.ty cannot be predicated of those who do not believe adulteries to be evils in regard to religion; and still less of those who do not believe them to be hurtful to society, n. 152. Chast.i.ty cannot be predicated of those who abstain from adulteries only for various external reasons, n. 153.
Chast.i.ty cannot be predicated of those who believe marriages to be unchaste, n. 154. Chast.i.ty cannot be predicated of those who have renounced marriage by vows of perpetual celibacy, unless there be and remain in them the love of a life truly conjugial, n. 155. A state of marriage is to be preferred to a state of celibacy, n. 156.
ON THE CONJUNCTION OF SOULS AND MINDS BY MARRIAGE, WHICH IS MEANT BY THE LORD'S WORDS,--THEY ARE NO LONGER TWO BUT ONE FLESH, n. 156*-181.
From creation there is implanted in each s.e.x a faculty and inclination, whereby they are able and willing to be joined together as it were into a one, n. 157. Conjugial love conjoins two souls, and thence two minds, into a one, n. 158. The will of the wife conjoins itself with the understanding of the man, and thence the understanding of the man with the will of the wife, n. 159. The inclination to unite the man to herself is constant and perpetual with the wife, but inconstant and alternate with the man, n. 160. Conjunction is inspired into the man from the wife according to her love, and is received by the man according to his wisdom, n. 161. This conjunction is effected successively from the first days of marriage; and with those who are principled in love truly conjugial, it is effected more and more thoroughly to eternity, n. 162. The conjunction of the wife with the rational wisdom of the husband is effected from within, but with his moral wisdom from without, n. 163-165. For the sake of this conjunction as an end, the wife has a perception of the affections of her husband, and also the utmost prudence in moderating them, n. 166. Wives conceal this perception with themselves, and hide it from their husbands for reasons of necessity, in order that conjugial love, friends.h.i.+p, and confidence, and thereby the blessedness of dwelling together, and the happiness of life may be secured, n. 167. This perception is the wisdom of the wife, and is not communicable to the man; neither is the rational wisdom of the man communicable to the wife, n. 168. The wife from a principle of love is continually thinking about the man's inclination to her, with the purpose of joining him to herself; it is otherwise with the man, n. 169. The wife conjoins herself to the man by applications to the desires of his will, n. 170. The wife is conjoined to her husband by the sphere of her life flowing from the love of him, n. 171. The wife is conjoined to the husband by the appropriation of the powers of his virtue; which however is effected according to their mutual spiritual love, n. 172. Thus the wife receives in herself the image of her husband, and thence perceives, sees, and is sensible of his affections, n. 173. There are duties proper to the husband, and others proper to the wife; and the wife cannot enter into the duties proper to the husband, nor the husband into the duties proper to the wife, so as to perform them aright, n. 174, 175. These duties also, according to mutual aid, conjoin the two into a one, and at the same time const.i.tute one house, n. 176. Married partners, according to these conjunctions, become one man more and more, n. 177. Those who are principled in love truly conjugial, are sensible of their being a united man, as it were one flesh, n. 178. Love truly conjugial, considered in itself, is a union of souls, a conjunction of minds, and an endeavour towards conjunction in the bosoms, and thence in the body, n. 179. The states of this love are innocence, peace, tranquillity, inmost friends.h.i.+p, full confidence, and a mutual desire of mind and heart to do every good to each other; and the states derived from these are blessedness, satisfaction, delight, and pleasure; and from the eternal enjoyment of these is derived heavenly felicity, n. 180. These things can only exist in the marriage of one man with one wife, n. 181.
ON THE CHANGE OF THE STATE OF LIFE WHICH TAKES PLACE WITH MEN AND WOMEN BY MARRIAGE, n. 184-206
The state of a man's life, from infancy even to the end of his life, and afterwards to eternity, is continually changing, n. 185. In like manner a man's internal form, which is that of his spirit, is continually changing n. 186. These changes differ in the case of men and of women; since men from creation are forms of knowledge, intelligence, and wisdom, and women are forms of the love of those principles as existing with men, n. 187. With men there is an elevation of the mind into superior light, and with women an elevation of the mind into superior heat; and the woman is made sensible of the delights of her heat in the man's light, n. 188, 189. With both men and women, the states of life before marriage are different from what they are afterwards, n. 190.
With married partners the states of life after marriage are changed, and succeed each other according to the conjunctions of their minds by conjugial love, n. 191. Marriage also induces other forms in the souls and minds of married partners, n. 192. The woman is actually formed into a wife, according to the description in the book of creation, n. 193.
This formation is effected on the part of the wife by secret means: and this is meant by the woman's being created while the man slept, n. 194.