TCR 746 - Degrees of Wisdom and Their Uses

TCR 746 [1-3]

"When man was first created,
he was initiated into wisdom and its love,
not for his own sake
but that he might impart it to others from himself.
Hence it is inscribed on the wisdom of the wise,
that no one should be wise and live for himself alone,
but for others at the same time.
This is the foundation of society,
which could not otherwise exist.
To live for others is to perform uses:
uses are the bonds of society,
and these are as many as there are good uses,
and their number is infinite.
There are spiritual uses,
which are those of love to God
and love towards the neighbor;
there are moral and civil uses,
pertaining to the love of the society and country
in which a man lives,
and of his fellow-citizens among whom he dwells;
there are natural uses
pertaining to the love of the world and its necessities;
and there are corporeal uses,
pertaining to the love of self-preservation
for the sake of higher uses.

"All these uses are inscribed upon man,
and they follow in order one after another,
and when they exist together,
then one is within another.
Those who are in the first or spiritual uses
are also in the uses that follow, and they are wise.
Those who are not in spiritual uses,
but yet are in moral and civil uses,
and consequently in those that follow,
are not on that account wise,
but only appear to be so
because of their external morality
and observance of civil duty.
Those who are not in spiritual and moral uses,
but in natural and corporeal uses,
are not at all wise;
for they are satans, loving only
the world and themselves because of the world.
Those, however, who are only in corporeal uses
are the least wise of all;
for they are devils,
living for themselves alone,
and regarding themselves alone
in whatever they do for others.

"Moreover, every love has its delight,
for by delight love is kept alive;
and the delight of the love of uses is a heavenly one,
which enters successively
into the delights which follow,
and in their order
exalts them and makes them eternal."
After this, they spoke of
heavenly delights proceeding from the love of use,
and said that there are myriads and myriads of them,
and that all who go to heaven enter into those delights.