The Delights of Wisdom Pertaining to Conjugial Love: To Which is Added The Pleasures of Insanity Pertaining To Scortatory LoveSwedenborg, Emanuel
Religion
The Delights of Wisdom Pertaining to Conjugial Love: To Which is Added The Pleasures of Insanity Pertaining To Scortatory Love
Swedenborg, Emanuel
Marriage -- Religious aspects -- New Jerusalem Church; New Jerusalem Church -- Doctrines; Sexual ethics
261. To the above I shall add THREE MEMORABLE RELATIONS. FIRST. In the
superior northern quarter near the east in the spiritual world, there
are places of instruction for boys, for youths, for men, and also for
old men: into these places all who die infants are sent and are educated
in heaven; so also all who arrive fresh from the world, and desire
information about heaven and hell, are sent to the same places. This
tract is near the east, that all may be instructed by influx from the
Lord; for the Lord is the east, because he is in the sun there, which
from him is pure love; hence the heat from that sun in its essence is
love, and the light from it in its essence is wisdom. These are inspired
into them from the Lord out of that sun; and they are inspired according
to reception, and reception is according to the love of growing wise.
After periods of instruction, those who are made intelligent are sent
forth thence, and are called disciples of the Lord. They are sent forth
first into the west, and those who do not remain there, into the south,
and some through the south into the east, and are introduced into the
societies where they are to reside. On a time, while I was meditating
respecting heaven and hell, I began to desire a universal knowledge of
the state of each, being aware, that whoever knows universals, may
afterwards comprehend particulars, because the latter are contained in
the former, as parts in a whole. In this desire I looked to the above
tract in the northern quarter near the east, where were the places of
instruction, and went there by a way then open to me. I entered one of
the colleges, where there were some young men, and addressed the chief
teachers there who gave instruction, and asked them whether they were
acquainted with the universals respecting heaven and hell. They replied,
that they knew some little; "but if we look," said they, "towards the
east to the Lord, we shall receive illustration and knowledge." They did
so, and said, "There are three universals of hell, which are
diametrically opposite to the universals of heaven. The universals of
hell are these three loves; the love of dominion grounded in self-love,
the love of possessing the goods of others grounded in the love of the
world, and adulterous love. The universals of heaven opposite to these
are the three following loves; the love of dominion grounded in the love
of use, the love of possessing worldly goods grounded in the love of
performing uses therewith, and love truly conjugial." Hereupon, after
expressing my good wishes towards them, I took my leave, and returned
home. When I was come home, it was said to me from heaven, "Examine
those three universals above and beneath, and afterwards we shall see
them in your hand." It was said _in the hand_, because whatever a man
examines intellectually, appears to the angels as if inscribed on his
hands.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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