AE 710 - the organs of birth and regeneration

AE 710 [2, 3, 5, 10, 11, 25, 26]

The "womb" signifies the inmost good of love,
because all the members devoted to generation,
both with males and with females,
signify conjugial love,
and "the womb" its inmost,
because there the fetus is conceived and grows, until it is born;
moreover, it is the inmost of the genital organs,
and from it is also derived
the maternal love that is called "storge."
Because the man who is regenerating is also conceived,
and as it were carried in the womb and born,
and because regeneration
is effected by truths from the good of love,
so "to bear in the womb" signifies in the spiritual
sense the doctrine of truth from the good of love.

"Those carried from the womb"
signify those who are being regenerated by the Lord,
and "those borne from the matrix"
signify those who are regenerated.
Because the man who is being regenerated
is first conceived by the Lord, and next is born,
and lastly is educated and perfected,
and because regeneration is in this respect
like the natural generation of man,
so "to be carried from the womb"
signifies the state of the man
who is to be regenerated from conception to birth;
the birth itself and afterwards education and perfection . . .
"to deliver" means to take away
and remove evils and falsities that are from hell.

. . . because the belly seems to swell in childbearing
. . . the term "belly" is used where truths are treated of,
and "womb" where good is treated of.

. . . that man is born natural
and becomes spiritual
by a life according to truths from the Word,
is signified by
"that which is born of the flesh is flesh,
but that which is born of the spirit is spirit;"

In many passages in the Word the Lord is called
"Creator," "Maker," and "Former from the womb,"
and also "Redeemer;"
for the reason that He creates man anew,
reforms, regenerates, and has redeemed him.
It may be believed that the Lord is so called
because He created man and forms him in the womb,
but yet it is the spiritual creation and formation
that is here meant;
for the Word is both natural and spiritual . . ..

In general there are celestial truths, spiritual truths,
moral truths, civil truths, and even natural truths;
and of every kind of truth
there are species and varieties innumerable;
and since in consequence of this
the understanding of one
is never like the understanding of another,
nor the affection of one like that of another, yet,
in order that the understanding and affection may act as one,
they are so joined together in heaven
that the correspondent affection,
which belongs to the woman,
is conjoined with the correspondent understanding
which belongs to the man;
and as a result, both by correspondence
have a life that is full of love.
Now because two different affections
cannot correspond to one understanding,
therefore in heaven
one man never has and never can have several wives.

"Therefore they are no more twain but one flesh"
signifies that thus the understanding of good and truth
and the affection of good and truth
are not two but one,
in like manner as while will and understanding are two
they are nevertheless one;
and the like is true of truth and good and of faith and charity,
which indeed are two but yet one,
that is, when truth is of good and good is of truth,
so also when faith is of charity and charity is of faith;
and this also is the source of conjugial love.