NJHD 11-12 - Knowing the Necessities: Good & Truth

NJHD 11-12

All things in the universe,
which are according to Divine order,
have relation to good and truth.
There is nothing in heaven,
and nothing in the world,
which does not have relation to these two;
the reason is, because both good and truth
proceed from the Divine
from Whom all things are.

So it appears that there is nothing
more necessary for a person to know
than what good and truth are;
how the one has respect to the other;
and how one is conjoined to the other.
But such knowledge is especially necessary
for the person of the church;
for as all things of heaven
have relation to good and truth,
so also have all things of the church,
because the good and truth of heaven
are also the good and truth of the church.
It is on this account
that a beginning is made from good and truth.

~ On the First Day of the Week ~

Early on the first day of the week,
while it was still dark,
Mary Magdalene went to the tomb
and saw that the stone
had been removed from the entrance.
So she came running
to Simon Peter and the other disciple,
the one Jesus loved,
and said,
"They have taken the Lord out of the tomb,
and we don't know where they have put Him!"

So Peter and the other disciple started to the tomb.
Both were running,
but the other disciple outran Peter
and reached the tomb first.
He bent over and looked in
at the strips of linen lying there
but did not go in.
Then Simon Peter, who was behind him,
arrived and went into the tomb.
he saw the strips of linen lying there,
as well as the burial cloth
that had been around Jesus' head.
The cloth was folded up by itself,
separately from the linen.
Finally the other disciple,
who had reached the tomb first,
also went inside.
They saw and believed.

On the evening of that first day of the week,
when the disciples were together,
with the doors locked for fear of the Jews,
Jesus came and stood among them and said,
"Peace be with you!"
After He said this,
He showed them His hands and side.
The disciples were overjoyed when they saw the Lord.

(John 20:1-8, 19-20)

Bits from NJHD 8 & 9

NJHD 8

. . . where the church exists
the Lord is adored
and the Word is read . . ..

NJHD 9

. . . every one receives truth so far as he is in good.

. . . wisdom can come
from no other source than from heaven,
that is, through heaven from the Lord;
and in heaven there is wisdom,
because there they are in good.

Wisdom consists in seeing truth from the light of truth;
and the light of truth is the light which is in heaven.

The whole Sacred Scripture is nothing else
than the Doctrine of Love and Charity;
which is also taught by the Lord, when He says:

"You shall love the Lord your God
with all your heart,
and with all your soul,
and with all your mind;
this is the first and great commandment:
the second is like unto it,
You shall love your neighbor as yourself.
On these two commandments hang
the Law, and the Prophets."
(Matthew 22:37-39)

By the Law and the Prophets is meant the Word,
in each and all of its things.

NJHD - The New Earth

NJHD 5

By "the New Earth" is meant
the New Church on the earth;
for when a former church ceases to exist,
then a new one is established by the Lord.
For it is provided by the Lord
that there should always be a church on earth,
since by means of the church
there is a conjunction of the Lord
with the human race,
and of heaven with the world;
for there the Lord is known,
and there are the Divine truths
by which a person is conjoined to Him.
. . . The reason why a New Church
is meant by "the New Earth"
arises from the spiritual sense of the Word;
for in that sense,
by the "earth" no particular country is meant,
but the nation dwelling there,
and its Divine worship;
this, in the spiritual sense,
being what answers to earth in the natural sense.

Moreover, by "earth" in the Word,
when there is no name of any particular country
affixed to the term,
is meant the land of Canaan;
and in the land of Canaan
a church had existed from the most ancient times;
in consequence of which,
all the places therein,
and in the adjacent countries,
with the mountains and rivers,
which are mentioned in the Word,
became representative and significative
of the things which are the internals of the church,
and which are called its spiritual things.
So it is, as was said, that "earth" in the Word,
because it means the land of Canaan,
signifies the church;
in like manner here by "the New Earth";
from this comes the custom in the church
to speak of the heavenly Canaan,
by which is meant heaven.

 

NJHD 4 - The New Heaven

NJHD - The New Jerusalem and it's Heavenly Doctrine

NJHD 4

. . . with respect to this New Heaven,
it is to be known,
that it is distinct from the ancient heavens
which were formed before the coming of the Lord;
but still they are so arranged
that together with this (New Heaven)
they form one heaven.
The reason why this New Heaven
is distinct from the ancient heavens,
is because in the ancient churches
there was no other doctrine
than the doctrine of love and charity;
and then they did not know
of any doctrine of faith
separated from love and charity.
Also from this it is
that the ancient heavens constitute higher expanses,
while the New Heaven
constitutes an expanse beneath them;
for the heavens are expanses one above another.
In the highest expanse
those dwell who are called celestial angels,
many of whom were of the Most Ancient Church;
those who are there
are called celestial angels from celestial love,
which is love to the Lord.
In the expanse beneath them are those
who are called spiritual angels,
most of whom were of the Ancient Church;
they are called spiritual angels from spiritual love,
which is charity towards the neighbor.
Below these are the angels
who are in the good of faith;
these are they who have lived the life of faith.
To live the life of faith,
is to live according to the doctrine of their church;
and to live is to will and to do.
All these heavens, however, form a one,
by mediate and immediate influx from the Lord.

WH 10 - The Internal Sense of the Word

WH 10

The internal sense of the Word
is primarily for the angels,
but it is also for people.
So that it may be known what the internal sense is,
its nature and its origin,
this will be stated in summary form.
They think and speak differently in heaven
from people on earth;
in heaven spiritually and on earth naturally.
Therefore when people read the word
the angels who are with them perceive it spiritually,
and the people naturally.
So, angels are in the spiritual sense,
people in the external sense;
and yet they still make one unit
because there is a correspondence between them.
Angels not only think spiritually,
they also speak spiritually;
also, their presence with people,
and their conjunction with people
is achieved through the Word.

WH - The White Horse

WH1

CONCERNING THE WHITE HORSE
as described in the Book of Revelation, Chapter 19.

In the writings of John, in the Book of Revelation,
the following is a description
of the Word in its spiritual sense,
in other words the sense contained within it,
or its 'inner meaning:'

I saw heaven standing open,
and behold, a White Horse.
And the one sitting on the White Horse
was called faithful and true,
judging and fighting in righteousness.
His eyes were a flame of fire,
and on His head were many jewels.
He had a name inscribed that no one knew
but He Himself.
And He was dressed in a garment dyed with blood,
and His name is called the Word of God.
The armies that followed Him in heaven
were on white horses,
they themselves dressed in clean white linen.
On His garment and on His thigh
was written a name,
King of Kings and Lord of Lords.
(Revelation 19:11-14,16)

It is stated plainly
that the one seated on the White Horse is the Word,
and He is the Lord who is the Word,
for what is said is
that His name is called The Word of God;
and then, He has written
on His garment and on His thigh
the title King of Kings and Lord of Lords.

From the interpretation
of each individual phrase or statement
it is clear that all this serves to describe
the spiritual sense or internal meaning of the Word.
The phrase 'heaven which was standing open'
represents and signifies
that the inner meaning of the Word
is seen by those in heaven,
and consequently also by those on earth
for whom heaven stands open.
'A horse which was white' represents and signifies
an understanding of the Word
as regards its inner meanings.
That the 'white horse' means what I have said
will be clear from what follows.

It is clear that 'the one seated on it'
means the Lord in His capacity as the Word,
and thus means the Word itself,
for it is stated that
'His name is called the Word of God;'
and he is called 'faithful'
and 'judging in righteousness'
because of His goodness;
and 'true' and 'fighting in righteousness'
because of His truth,
for the Lord Himself is righteousness.
'His eyes a flame of fire' signify divine truth
radiating from the divine good
flowing from His divine love.
The 'many jewels on His head'
signify all the good and true properties of faith.
Having a 'name written which no one knew
other than He Himself'
signifies that no one sees
what is the nature of the Word
in its inner meaning except Himself,
and one to whom He reveals it.

'Dressed in a garment dyed with blood'
signifies the violence done
to the Word in its literal meaning.
'The armies in heaven
which followed Him on white horses'
signifies those who understand the Word
as regards its inner meanings.
'Those dressed in clean white linen'
signifies the same people who are endowed
with truth arising from what is good.
'On His garment and on His thigh a name written '
signifies what is true and what is good
and their specific qualities.

From all these verses,
and from those which come before and after them,
it is clear that they serve to foretell
that the spiritual or internal sense of the Word
will be laid open at around the final time of the Church;
and what will happen at that time
is also described there, Revelation 19:17-21.

 

~ He Was Given Authority, Glory and Sovereign Power ~

"In my vision at night I looked,
and there before me was one like a son of man,
coming with the clouds of heaven.
He approached the Ancient of Days
and was led into His presence.
He was given authority, glory and sovereign power;
all peoples, nations and men of every language
worshiped Him.
His dominion is an everlasting dominion
that will not pass away,
and His kingdom is one that will never be destroyed."

(Daniel 7:13-14)

HH 597-598 - Why Equilibrium Is Needed for Freedom; HH 603 - The Last Number in 'Heaven and Hell'

HH 597-598

The equilibrium between heaven and hell
has now been described,
and it has been shown that it is an equilibrium
between the good that is from heaven
and the evil that is from hell,
thus that it is a spiritual equilibrium,
which in its essence is freedom.
A spiritual equilibrium in its essence is freedom
because it is an equilibrium between good and evil,
and between truth and falsity, and these are spiritual.
. . . This freedom is given to every person by the Lord,
and is never taken away;
in fact, by virtue of its origin
it is not a person's but the Lord's,
since it is from the Lord.
Nevertheless, it is given to a person with his life
as if it were his;
and this is done that a person may have
the ability to be reformed and saved;
for without freedom
there can be no reformation or salvation.

A person cannot be reformed unless he has freedom,
for the reason that he is born into evils of every kind;
and these must be removed
in order that he may be saved;
and they cannot be removed
unless he sees them in himself
and acknowledges them,
and afterwards ceases to will them,
and finally holds them in aversion.
Not until then are they removed.
And this cannot be done
unless a person is in good as well as in evil,
since it is from good that he is able to see evils,
while from evil he cannot see good.
The spiritual goods
that a person is capable of thinking
he learns from childhood by reading the Word
and from preaching;
and he learns moral and civil good
from his life in the world.
This is the first reason
why a person ought to be in freedom.

Another reason is
that nothing is appropriated to a person
except what is done from an affection of his love.
Other things may gain entrance,
but no farther than the thought,
not reaching the will;
and whatever does not
gain entrance into the will of a person
does not become his,
for thought derives what pertains to it from memory,
while the will derives what pertains to it
from the life itself.
Only what is from the will,
or what is the same, from the affection of love,
can be called free,
for whatever a person wills or loves
that he does freely;
consequently a person's freedom
and the affection of his love or of his will are a one.
It is for this reason that a person has freedom,
in order that he may be affected by truth and good
or may love them,
and that they may thus become
as if they were his own.

In a word,
whatever does not enter into a person's freedom
has no permanence,
because it does not belong to his love or will,
and what does not belong to a person's love or will
does not belong to his spirit;
for the very being [esse] of the spirit of a person
is love or will.
It is said love or will,
since a a person wills what he loves.
This, then, is why a person can be reformed
only in freedom.

HH 603

What has been said in this work
about heaven, the world of spirits, and hell,
will be obscure to those who have no interest
in learning about spiritual truths,
but will be clear to those who have such an interest,
and especially to those
who have an affection for truth for the sake of truth,
that is, who love truth because it is truth;
for whatever is then loved
enters with light into the mind's thought,
especially truth that is loved,
because all truth is in light.

HH 589, 593 - The Equilibrium Between Heaven and Hell

HH 589 [1,2]

For any thing to have existence
there must be an equilibrium of all things.
Without equilibrium is no action and reaction;
for equilibrium is between two forces,
one acting and the other reacting,
and the state of rest
resulting from like action and reaction
is called equilibrium.
In the natural world there is
an equilibrium in all things and in each thing.
. . . Everywhere there is a sort of effort
acting on the one side and reacting on the other.

All existence or all effect is produced in equilibrium,
that is, by one force acting
and another suffering itself to be acted upon,
or when one force by acting flows in,
the other receives and harmoniously submits.
In the natural world
that which acts and reacts is called force,
and also endeavor [or effort];
but in the spiritual world
that which acts and reacts is called life and will.
Life in that world is living force,
and will is living effort;
and the equilibrium itself is called freedom.
Thus spiritual equilibrium or freedom
has its outcome and permanence
in the balance between good acting on the one side
and evil reacting on the other side;
or between evil acting on the one side
and good reacting on the other side.

HH 593

The equilibrium between the heavens and the hells
is diminished or increased
in accordance with the number of those
who enter heaven and who enter hell;
and this amounts to several thousands daily.
The Lord alone, and no angel,
can know and perceive this,
and regulate and equalize it with precision;
for the Divine that goes forth from the Lord
is omnipresent,
and sees everywhere whether there is any wavering,
while an angel sees only what is near himself,
and has no perception in himself
of what is taking place even in his own society.

 

HH 584 - Being in the Light of Heaven or the Darkness of Hell

HH 584

. . . a person comes into the light of heaven
just to the extent that he acknowledges the Divine,
and establishes in himself
the things of heaven and the church;
and that he comes into the thick darkness of hell
just to the extent that he denies the Divine,
and establishes in himself what is contrary to
the truths of heaven and the church.

 

HH 576 - The Spirit and the Body; HH 577 - With Every Person; HH 581 - Why the Lord Permits Torment in Hell

HH 576

. . . it is the spirit that thinks,
and it is the body by which the spirit
expresses its thoughts in speech or writing.

HH 577 [3]

. . . for with every person there are spirits from hell
as well as angels from heaven;
and yet the Lord cannot protect a person
unless he acknowledges the Divine
and lives a life of faith and charity;
for otherwise a person turns himself away from the Lord
and turns himself to infernal spirits,
and thus his spirit becomes imbued
with malice like theirs.

HH 581

The Lord permits torments in the hells
because in no other way
can evils be restrained and subdued.
The only means of restraining and subduing evils
and of keeping the infernal crew in bonds
is the fear of punishment.
It can be done in no other way;
for without the fear of punishment and torment
evil would burst forth into madness,
and everything would go to pieces,
like a kingdom on earth
where there is no law and there are no penalties. 

HH 575 - The Gnashing of Teeth

HH 575

Gnashing of teeth is
the continual contention and combat
of falsities with each other,
consequently of those who are in falsities,
joined with contempt of others,
with enmity, mockery, ridicule, blaspheming;
and these evils burst forth into
lacerations of various kinds;
since everyone fights for his own falsity
and calls it truth.
These contentions and combats
are heard outside of these hells
like the gnashings of teeth;
and are also turned into gnashings of teeth
when truths from heaven flow in among them.
In these hells are all
who have acknowledged nature
and have denied the Divine.
In the deeper of these hells are those
that have confirmed themselves in such denials.
As such are unable to receive
any thing of light from heaven,
and are thus unable to see
any thing inwardly in themselves,
they are for the most part corporeal sensual spirits,
who believe nothing
except what they see with their eyes
and touch with their hands.
Therefore all the fallacies of the senses
are truths to them;
and it is from these that they dispute.
This is why their contentions
are heard as gnashings of teeth;
for in the spiritual world
all falsities give a grating sound,
and the teeth correspond to
the outmost things in nature
and to the outmost things in a person,
which are corporeal sensual. 

HH 562 - The Love of Self; HH 564 - Two Kinds of Dominion; HH 565 - Love Is

HH 562

The evils of those who are in the love of self
are, generally, in contempt of others, envy,
enmity against all who do not favor them,
and consequent hostility,
hatred of various kinds, revenge, cunning, deceit,
unmercifulness, and cruelty;
and in respect to religious matters
there is not merely a contempt
for the Divine and for Divine things,
which are the truths and goods of the church,
but also hostility to them.
When a person becomes a spirit
this hostility is turned into hatred;
and then he not only cannot endure to hear
these truths and goods mentioned,
he even burns with hatred against all
who acknowledge and worship the Divine.

HH 564

There are two kinds of dominion,
one of love towards the neighbor
and the other of love of self.
These two dominions in their essence
are direct opposites.
One who rules from love towards the neighbor
wills good to all,
and loves nothing so much as uses,
that is, serving others;
which is willing good to others and performing uses,
either to the church, or to the country,
or to society, or to a fellow citizen.
This is his love and the delight of his heart.
Moreover, so far as he is exalted
to dignities above others
he rejoices, not for the sake of the dignities
but for the sake of the uses
he is then able to perform
in greater abundance and of a higher order.
Such dominion exists in the heavens.

But one who rules from the love of self
wills good to no one except himself;
the uses he performs
are for the sake of his own honor and glory,
which to him are the only uses;
his end in serving others
is that he may himself be served, honored,
and permitted to rule;
he seeks dignities
not for the sake of the good offices he may render
to his country and the church,
but that he may gain eminence and glory
and thereby the delight of his heart.

Moreover this love of dominion
continues with everyone after his life in the world.
Those that have ruled
from love towards the neighbor
are entrusted with authority in the heavens;
but then it is not they who rule,
but the uses which they love;
and when uses rule
the Lord rules.
But those who have ruled from self love
while in the world,
after life in the world are in hell,
and are there vile slaves.

HH 565

. . . the love is such as is the end in view,
and all other things merely serve it as means.

 

HH 550 - Evil Punishes Itself

HH 550

Evil spirits are severely punished in the world of spirits
in order that, by means of punishments,
they may be deterred from doing evil.
This also appears to be from the Lord.
Yet nothing of punishment there,
is from the Lord,
but is from the evil itself.
For evil is so joined with its own punishment
that the two cannot be separated.
For the infernal crew desire and love
nothing so much as doing evil,
especially inflicting punishments and torment;
and they maltreat and inflict punishments
upon everyone who is not protected by the Lord.
When, therefore, evil is done from an evil heart,
because it thereby discards
all protection from the Lord,
infernal spirits rush upon the one who does the evil,
and inflict punishment.
This may be partly illustrated by evils
and their punishments in the world,
where the two are also joined.
For laws in the world
prescribe a penalty for every evil;
therefore, he who rushes into evil
rushes also into the penalty of evil.
The only difference is
that in the world the evil may be concealed;
but in the other life it cannot be concealed.
From these things it can be confirmed
that the Lord does evil to no one;
and that it is the same as it is in the world,
where it is not the king nor the judge nor the law
that is the cause of punishment to the guilty,
because these are not
the cause of the evil with the evil-doer.

HH 538 - Equilibrium in the Spiritual World Between Hell and Heaven

HH 538

A perception of the sphere of falsity from evil
that flows forth from hell . . .
was like a perpetual effort
to destroy all that is good and true,
combined with anger and a kind of fury
at not being able to do so,
especially an effort to annihilate and destroy
the Divine of the Lord,
and this because all good and truth are from Him.

But out of heaven
a sphere of truth from good was perceived,
whereby the fury of the effort
ascending from hell was restrained.
The result of this was an equilibrium.
This sphere from heaven was perceived to come
from the Lord alone,
although it appeared to come
from the angels in heaven.
It is from the Lord alone, and not from the angels,
because every angel in heaven acknowledges
that nothing of good and of truth is from himself,
but all is from the Lord.

HH 533. 535 - It Is Not So Difficult to Live the Life of Heaven

HH 533

That it is not so difficult
to live the life of heaven as some believe,
is now clear from this,
that when anything presents itself to a person
that he knows to be dishonest and unjust,
but to which his mind is borne,
(comes to his mind)
it is simply necessary for him to think
that it ought not to be done
because it is opposed to the Divine precepts.
If a person accustoms himself so to think,
and from so doing establishes a habit of so thinking,
he is gradually conjoined to heaven;
and so far as he is conjoined to heaven
the higher regions of his mind are opened;
and so far as these are opened
he sees whatever is dishonest and unjust,
and so far as he sees these evils
they can be dispersed,
for no evil can be dispersed until it is seen.
A person is able to enter this state
because of his freedom,
for is not any one able from his freedom so to think?
And when he has made a beginning,
the Lord performs all the good deeds with him,
and causes him not only to see the evils to be evils,
but also to refrain from willing them,
and finally to turn away from them.
This is meant by the Lord's words,

My yoke is easy and My burden is light.
(Matthew 11:30)

But it ought to be known
that the difficulty of so thinking and of resisting evils
increases so far as a person from his will does evils,
for in the same measure
he becomes accustomed to them
until he no longer sees them,
and at length loves them and,
from the delight of his love, excuses them,
and confirms them by all kinds of fallacies,
and declares them to be allowable and good.
This is what happens with those
who in early youth plunge into evils without restraint,
and then at the same time
reject Divine things from the heart.

HH 535 [3]

. . . the life that leads to heaven
is not a life withdrawn from the world,
but a life in the world;
and that a life of piety separated from a life of charity,
which is possible only in the world,
does not lead to heaven;
but a life of charity does;
and a life of charity consists in acting
honestly and justly in every employment,
in every business, and in every work,
from an interior, that is, from a heavenly, motive;
and this motive is in that life
whenever a person acts honestly and justly
because doing so is in accord with the Divine laws.
Such a life is not difficult.
But a life of piety
separate from a life of charity
is difficult;
and to the extent that such a life
is believed to lead towards heaven,
so it leads away from heaven.

HH 522-523 - The Divine Mercy Works With Divine Order

HH 522

The divine mercy is pure mercy
towards the whole human race, to save it;
and it is also unceasing towards every person,
and is never withdrawn from any one;
so that everyone is saved who can be saved.
And yet no one can be saved except by Divine means,
which means the Lord reveals in the Word.
The Divine means are what are called Divine truths,
which teach how a person must live
in order to be saved.
By these truths the Lord leads a person to heaven,
and by them He implants in a person the life of heaven.
This the Lord does for all.
But the life of heaven can be implanted in no one
unless he abstains from evil,
for evil obstructs.
So far, therefore, as a person abstains from evil
he is led by the Lord out of pure mercy
by His Divine means,
and this from infancy to the end of his life in the world
and afterwards to eternity.
This is what is meant by the Divine mercy.
And from this it is evident
that the mercy of the Lord is pure mercy,
but not apart from means,
that is, it does not look to saving all
out of mere good pleasure,
however they may have lived.

HH 523

The Lord never does anything contrary to order,
because He Himself is Order.
The Divine truth that goes forth from the Lord
is what constitutes order;
and Divine truths are the laws of order.
It is in accord with these laws
that the Lord leads a person.
Consequently to save a person
by mercy apart from means
would be contrary to Divine order,
and what is contrary to Divine order
is contrary to the Divine.
Divine order is heaven in a person,
and a person has perverted this in himself
by a life contrary to the laws of order,
which are Divine truths.
Into this order a person is brought back by the Lord
out of pure mercy by means of the laws of order;
and so far as he is brought back into this order
he receives heaven in himself;
and he that receives heaven
in himself enters heaven.
This again makes evident
that the Lord's Divine mercy is pure mercy,
and not mercy apart from means.

HH 512 - The Third State After Death

HH 512

The third state of a person after death,
that is, of his spirit, is a state of instruction.
This state is for those
who come into heaven and become angels.
It is not for those who come into hell,
because such are incapable of being taught,
and therefore their second state is also their third . . ..

Good spirits, on the other hand,
are led from the second state into the third,
which is the state of their preparation for heaven
by means of instruction.
For one can be prepared for heaven
only by means of knowledges of good and truth,
that is, only by means of instruction,
since one can know what spiritual good and truth are,
and what evil and falsity are,
which are their opposites,
only by being taught.
One can learn in the world
what civil and moral good and truth are,
which are called justice and honesty,
because there are civil laws in the world
that teach what is just,
and there is interaction with others
whereby a person learns to live
in accordance with moral laws,
all of which have relation to what is honest and right.
But spiritual good and truth are learned from heaven,
not from the world.
They can be learned from the Word
and from the doctrine of the church
that is drawn from the Word
and yet unless a person in respect to his interiors
which belong to his mind
is in heaven
spiritual good and truth cannot flow into his life;
and a person is in heaven
when he both acknowledges the Divine
and acts justly and honestly
for the reason that he ought so to act
because it is commanded in the Word.
This is living justly and honestly
for the sake of the Divine,
and not for the sake of self and the world,
as ends.

But no one can so act until he has been taught,
for example, that there is a God,
that there is a heaven and a hell,
that there is a life after death,
that God ought to be loved supremely,
and the neighbor as oneself,
and that what is taught in the Word,
ought to be believed because the Word is Divine.
Without a knowledge and acknowledgment
of these things
a person is unable to think spiritually;
and if he has no thought about them
he does not will them;
for what a person does not know he cannot think,
and what he does not think he cannot will.
So it is when a person wills these things
that heaven flows into his life,
that is, the Lord through heaven,
for the Lord flows into the will
and through the will into the thought,
and through both into the life,
and the whole life of a person is from these.
All this makes clear that spiritual good and truth
are learned not from the world but from heaven,
and that one can be prepared for heaven
only by means of instruction.

Moreover, so far as the Lord
flows into the life of any one
He instructs him,
for so far He kindles the will
with the love of knowing truths
and enlightens the thought to know them;
and so far as this is done
the interiors of person are opened
and heaven is implanted in them;
and furthermore,
what is Divine and heavenly
flows into the honest things pertaining to moral life
and into the just things pertaining to civil life
in a person,
and makes them spiritual,
since a person then does these things
from the Divine,
which is doing them for the sake of the Divine.
For the things honest and just
pertaining to moral and civil life
which a person does from that source
are the essential effects of spiritual life;
and the effect derives its all
from the effecting cause,
since such as the cause is such is the effect.

 

HH 499, HH 505-506 - The Second State After Death

HH 499  

The second state of a person after death
is called the state of his interiors,
because he is then let into the interiors of his mind,
that is, of his will and thought;
while his exteriors,
which he has been in during his first state,
are laid asleep.

HH 505

When the spirit is in the state of his interiors
it becomes clearly evident
what the person was in himself
when he was in the world,
for at such times he acts from what is his own.
He that had been in the world interiorly in good
then acts rationally and wisely,
and even more wisely than in the world,
because he is released
from connection with the body,
and thus from those earthly things
that caused obscurity
and interposed as it were a cloud.
But he that was in evil in the world
then acts foolishly and insanely,
and even more insanely than in the world,
because he is free and under no restraint.
For while he lived in the world
he was sane in outward appearance,
since by means of externals
he made himself appear to be a rational man;
but when he has been stripped of his externals
his insanities are revealed.

HH 506

All that have lived a good life in the world
and have acted from conscience,
who are such as have acknowledged the Divine
and have loved Divine truths,
especially such as have applied those truths to life,
seem to themselves,
when let into the state of their interiors,
like one aroused from sleep into full wakefulness,
or like one passing from darkness into light.
They then think from the light of heaven,
thus from an interior wisdom,
and they act from good,
thus from an interior affection.
Heaven flows into their thoughts and affections
with an interior blessedness and delight
that they had previously had no knowledge of;
for they have communication with
the angels of heaven.
They then acknowledge the Lord
and worship Him from their very life,
for being in the state of their interiors
they are in their proper life;
and as freedom pertains to interior affection
they then acknowledge
and worship the Lord from freedom.
Thus, too, they withdraw from external sanctity
and come into that internal sanctity
in which worship itself truly consists.

But the state of those
that have lived an evil life in the world
and who have had no conscience,
and have in consequence denied the Divine,
is the direct opposite of this.
For everyone who lives an evil life,
inwardly in himself denies the Divine,
however much he may suppose
when in external thought
that he acknowledges the Lord
and does not deny Him;
for acknowledging the Divine
and living an evil life are opposites.
When such in the other life
enter into the state of their interiors,
and are heard speaking and seen acting,
they appear foolish;
for from their evil lusts they burst forth
into all sorts of abominations,
into contempt of others,
ridicule and blasphemy, hatred and revenge;
they plot intrigues,
some with a cunning and malice
that can scarcely be believed
to be possible in any person.
For they are then in a state of freedom
to act in harmony with the thoughts of their will,
since they are separated from the outward conditions
that restrained and checked them in the world.
In a word, they are deprived of their rationality,
because their reason while they were in the world
did not have its seat in their interiors,
but in their exteriors;
and yet they seemed to themselves
to be wiser than others.

This being their character,
while in the second state
they are let down by short intervals
into the state of their exteriors,
and into a recollection of their actions
when they were in the state of their interiors;
and some of them then feel ashamed,
and confess that they have been insane;
some do not feel ashamed;
and some are angry
because they are not permitted
to remain permanently in the state of their exteriors.
But these are shown what they would be
if they were to continue in that state,
namely, that they would attempt to accomplish
in secret ways the same evil ends,
and by semblances of goodness, honesty, and justice,
would mislead the simple in heart and faith,
and would utterly destroy themselves;
for their exteriors would at length burn
with the same fire as their interiors,
and their whole life would be consumed.

 

HH 493, 498 - The First State After Death

HH 493

The first state of a person after death
resembles his state in the world,
for then he is still in externals,
having a like face, like speech, and a like disposition,
thus a like moral and civil life;
and in consequence
he is made aware that he is not still in the world
only by giving attention to what he encounters,
and from his having been told
by the angels when he was resuscitated
that he had become a spirit.
Thus is one life continued into the other,
and death is merely transition.

HH 498

This first state of a person after death
continues with some for days, with some for months,
and with some for a year;
but seldom with any one beyond a year;
for a shorter or longer time with each one
according to the agreement or disagreement
of his interiors with his exteriors.
For with everyone the exteriors and interior
must make one and correspond.
In the spiritual world no one is permitted
to think and will in one way
and speak and act in another.
Everyone there must be an image
of his own affection or his own love,
and therefore such as he is inwardly
such he must be outwardly;
and for this reason a spirit's exteriors
are first disclosed and reduced to order
that they may serve the interiors
as a corresponding plane.

HH 487 - Accepting Instruction; HH 489 - The Sight of the Inmost Heaven

HH 487 [2]

On the other hand,
those who are in heavenly love accept instruction,
and as soon as they are brought
into the evils into which they were born,
they see them from truths,
for truths make evils manifest.
From truth which is from good
any one can see evil and its falsity;
but from evil none can see what is good and true;
and for the reason that falsities of evil are darkness
and correspond to darkness;
consequently those that are in falsities from evil
are like the blind,
not seeing the things that are in light,
but shunning them instead like birds of night.
But as truths from good are light,
and correspond to light,
so those that are in truths from good
have sight and open eyes,
and discern the things that pertain to light and shade.

HH 489 [3]

Those that have applied the doctrinals of the church
which are from the Word immediately to life,
are in the inmost heaven,
and surpass all others in their delights of wisdom.
In every object they see what is Divine;
the objects they see indeed with their eyes;
but the corresponding Divine things
flow in immediately into their minds
and fill them with a blessedness
that affects all their sensations.
Thus before their eyes
all things seem to laugh, to play, and to live.

HH 479 - Every Love; HH 483-484 - Love in Act

HH 479 [5]

. . . every love wishes to be nourished on
what belongs to it,
evil love by falsities
and good love by truths.

I have sometimes been permitted to see
certain simple good spirits desiring to instruct
the evil in truths and goods;
but when the instruction was offered them
they fled far away,
and when they came to their own
they seized with great pleasure upon the falsities
that were in agreement with their love.
I have also seen good spirits
talking together about truths,
and the good who were present
listened eagerly to the conversation,
but the evil who were present paid no attention to it,
as if they did not hear it.

HH 483-484

Love in act is work and deed.

It must be understood that all works and deeds
pertain to moral and civil life,
and therefore have regard to what is honest and right,
and what is just and equitable,
what is honest and right pertaining to moral life,
and what is just and equitable to civil life.
The love from which deeds are done
is either heavenly or infernal.
Works and deeds of moral and civil life,
when they are done from heavenly love, are heavenly;
for what is done from heavenly love
is done from the Lord,
and everything done from the Lord is good.
But the deeds and works of moral and civil life
when done from infernal love are infernal;
for what is done from this love,
which is the love of self and of the world,
is done from the person himself,
and everything that is done
from a person himself is in itself evil;
for a person regarded in himself,
that is, in regard to what is his own (proprium),
is nothing but evil.

HH 475 - The Value of the Action

HH 475

Everyone can know that willing and not doing,
when there is opportunity,
is not willing;
also that loving and not doing good,
when there is opportunity,
is not loving,
but mere thought that one wills and loves;
and this is thought separate,
which vanishes and is dissipated.
Love and will constitute
the soul itself of a deed or work,
and give form to its body
in the honest and just things that the person does.
This is the sole source of a person's spiritual body,
or the body of his spirit;
that is, it is formed solely out of the things
that the person does from his love or will.
In a word, all things of person and his spirit
are contained in his deeds or works.

HH 468 - Cultivating the Rational Faculty

HH 468

The genuine rational consists of truths
and not of falsities;
whatever consists of falsities is not rational.
There are three kinds of truths,
civil, moral, and spiritual.
Civil truths relate to matters of judgment
and of government in kingdoms,
and in general to what is just and equitable in them.
Moral truths pertain to the matters of everyone's life
which have regard to
companionships and social relations,
in general to what is honest and right,
and in particular to virtues of every kind.
But spiritual truths relate to
matters of heaven and of the Church,
and in general to the good of love and the truth of faith.

In every person there are three degrees of life.
The rational is opened to the first degree by civil truths,
to the second degree by moral truths,
and to the third degree by spiritual truths.
But it ought to be known
that the rational that consists of these truths
is not formed and opened by person's knowing them,
but by his living according to them;
and by living according to them
is meant loving them from spiritual affection;
and to love truths from spiritual affection
is to love what is just and equitable
because it is just and equitable,
what is honest and right
because it is honest and right,
and what is good and true
because it is good and true;
while living according to them and loving them
from the bodily affection
is to love them for the sake of self
and for the sake of one's reputation, honor or gain.
Consequently, so far as a person loves these truths
from a bodily affection
he fails to become rational,
for he loves, not them, but himself;
and the truths are made to serve him as servants
serve their lord;
and when truths become servants
they do not enter the person
and open any degree of his life, not even the first,
but merely rest in the memory
as knowledges under a material form,
and there conjoin themselves with the love of self,
which is a bodily love.

From these things it can be confirmed
how person becomes rational,
namely, that he becomes rational to the third degree
by a spiritual love of the good and truth
which pertain to heaven and the Church,
to the second degree
by a love of what is honest and right,
and to the first degree
by a love of what is just and equitable.
These two latter loves also become spiritual
from a spiritual love of good and truth,
because that love flows into them
and conjoins itself to them
and forms in them, as it were, its own semblance.

 

HH 457 - Facial Appearance in the Spiritual World

HH 457

When the spirit of a person first enters the world of spirits,
which takes place shortly after his resuscitation . . .
his face and his tone of voice
resemble those he had in the world,
because he is then in the state of his exteriors,
and his interiors are not as yet uncovered.
This is a person's first state after death.
But subsequently his face is changed,
and becomes entirely different,
resembling his ruling affection or ruling love,
in conformity with which
the interiors of his mind had been
while he was in the world
and his spirit while it was in the body.
For the face of a person's spirit differs greatly
from the face of his body.
The face of his body is from his parents,
but the face of his spirit is from his affection,
and is an image of it.
When the life of the spirit in the body is ended,
and its exteriors are laid aside
and its interiors disclosed,
it comes into this affection.
This is a person's second state.

I have seen some
that have recently arrived from the world,
and have recognized them from their face and speech;
but seeing them afterwards
I did not recognize them.
Those that had been in good affections
appeared with beautiful faces;
but those that had been in evil affections
with misshapen faces;
for a person's spirit, viewed in itself,
is nothing but his affection;
and the face is its outward form.
Another reason why faces are changed is
that in the other life
no one is permitted to counterfeit affections
that are not his own,
and thus assume looks that are contrary to his love.
All in the other life are brought into such a state
as to speak as they think,
and to manifest in their looks and gestures
the inclinations of their will.
And because of this the faces of all become
forms and images of their affections;
and in consequence
all that have known each other in the world
know each other in the world of spirits,
but not in heaven nor in hell.

HH 445, 447, 450, 452 - When Our Soul Leaves Our Body

HH 445

When the body is no longer able
to perform the bodily functions in the natural world
that correspond to the spirit's thoughts and affections,
which the spirit has from the spiritual world,
A person is said to die.
This takes place when the respiration of the lungs
and the beatings of the heart cease.
But the person does not die;
he is merely separated from the bodily part
that was of use to him in the world,
while the person himself continues to live.

HH 447

After the separation
the spirit of a person
continues in the body for a short time,
but only until the heart's action has wholly ceased,
which happens variously
in accord with the diseased condition
that causes death,
with some the motion of the heart
continuing for some time,
with others not so long.
As soon as this motion ceases
the person is resuscitated;
but this is done by the Lord alone.
Resuscitation means
the drawing forth of the spirit from the body,
and its introduction into the spiritual world;
this is commonly called the resurrection.
The spirit is not separated from the body
until the motion of the heart has ceased,
for the reason
that the heart corresponds to the affection of love,
which is the very life of a person,
for it is from love that everyone has vital heat;
consequently as long as this conjunction continues
correspondence continues,
and thereby the life of the spirit in the body.

HH 450

The celestial angels
who are with the one that is resuscitated
do not withdraw from him,
because they love everyone;
but when the spirit comes into such a state
that he can no longer be affiliated with celestial angels,
he longs to get away from them.
When this takes place
angels from the Lord's spiritual kingdom come,
through whom is given the use of light;
for before this he saw nothing,
but merely thought.
. . . The angels are extremely careful
that only such ideas as savor of love
shall proceed from the one resuscitated.
They now tell him that he is a spirit.
When he has come into the enjoyment of light
the spiritual angels render to the new spirit
every service he can possibly desire in that state;
and teach him about the things of the other life
so far as he can comprehend them.
But if he has no wish to be taught
the spirit longs to get away from
the company of the angels.
Nevertheless, the angels do not withdraw from him,
but he separates himself from them;
for the angels love everyone,
and desire nothing so much as to render service,
to teach, and to lead into heaven;
this constitutes their highest delight.
When the spirit has thus withdrawn
he is received by good spirits,
and as long as he continues in their company
everything possible is done for him.
But if he had lived such a life in the world
as would prevent
his enjoying the company of the good
he longs to get away from the good,
and this experience is repeated
until he comes into association with such
as are in entire harmony with his life in the world;
and with such he finds his own life,
and what is surprising,
he then leads a life like that which he led in the world.

HH  452

. . . so far as any one confirms himself
against the eternal life of his soul
he confirms himself also against
whatever pertains to heaven and the church.

HH 422 - The World of Spirits: HH 424 - Thinking

HH 422

The world of spirits is
an intermediate place between heaven and hell
and also an intermediate state of a person after death.
. . . it is an intermediate place,
having the hells below it and the heavens above it,
but also that it is in an intermediate state,
since so long as a person is in it
he is not yet either in heaven or in hell.
The state of heaven in a person
is the conjunction of good and truth in him;
and the state of hell
is the conjunction of evil and falsity in him.
Whenever good in a human-spirit is conjoined to truth
he comes into heaven,
because that conjunction,
as just said, is heaven in him;
but whenever evil in a human-spirit
is conjoined with falsity
he comes into hell,
because that conjunction is hell in him.
That conjunction is effected in the world of spirits,
a person then being in an intermediate state.
It is the same thing whether you say
the conjunction of the understanding and the will,
or the conjunction of good and truth.

HH 424

This ability to think from the understanding
and not at the same time from the will is provided
that a person may be capable of being reformed;
for reformation is effected by means of truths,
and truths pertain to the understanding, as just said.
For in respect to his will
a person is born into every evil,
and therefore of himself
wills good to no one but himself;
and one who wills good to himself alone
delights in the misfortunes that befall another,
especially when they tend to his own advantage;
for his wish is to divert to himself
the goods of all others, whether honors or riches,
and so far as he succeeds in this he inwardly rejoices.
To the end that this will of a person
may be corrected and reformed,
an ability to understand truths,
and an ability to subdue by means of truths
the affections of evil that spring from the will,
are given to a person.
This is why a person has this ability
to think truths with his understanding,
and to speak them and do them.
But until a person is such
that he wills truths and does them from himself,
that is, from the heart,
he is not able to think truths from his will.
When he becomes such,
whatever he thinks from his understanding
belongs to his faith,
and whatever he thinks from his will
belongs to his love;
and in consequence his faith and his love,
like his understanding and his will,
are conjoined in him.

HH 416 - The Immensity of Heaven and Little Children

HH 416

The immensity of the heaven of the Lord
is confirmed also by this,
that all little children,
whether born within the Church or out of it,
are adopted by the Lord and become angels;
and the number of these
amounts to a fourth or fifth part
of the whole human race on the earth.
. . . every little child, wherever born,
whether within the Church or out of it,
whether of pious or impious parents,
is received by the Lord when they die,
and is brought up in heaven,
and is taught and imbued with affections for good,
and through these with cognitions of truth,
in accordance with Divine order,
and as he becomes perfected
in intelligence and wisdom
is brought into heaven and becomes an angel.
From all this a conclusion may be formed
of the multitude of angels of heaven,
derived from this source alone,
from the first creation to the present time.

HH 402 - Delights of Use and the Five Bodily Senses

HH 402

That all the delights of heaven are delights of use
can be seen by a comparison
with the five bodily senses of a person.
There is given to each sense
a delight in accordance with its use;
to the sight, the hearing, the smell, the taste,
and the touch, each its own delight;
to the sight a delight from beauty and from forms,
to the hearing from harmonious sounds,
to the smell from pleasing odors,
to taste from fine flavors.
These uses which the senses severally perform
are known to those who study them,
and more fully to those
who are acquainted with correspondences.
Sight has such a delight
because of the use it performs to the understanding,
which is the inner sight;
the hearing has such a delight
because of the use it performs
both to the understanding and to the will
through giving attention;
the smell has such a delight
because of the use it performs to the brain,
and also to the lungs;
the taste has such a delight
because of the use it performs to the stomach,
and thus to the whole body by nourishing it.
The delight of marriage,
which is a purer and more exquisite delight of touch,
transcends all the rest because of its use,
which is the procreation of the human race
and thereby of angels of heaven.
These delights are in these senses
by an influx of heaven,
where every delight pertains to use
and is in accordance with use.

HH 397 - The Lord's Love; HH 399, 400 - Our Love to the Lord and the Neighbor

HH 397

Heaven in itself is so full of delights
that viewed in itself
it is nothing else than blessedness and delight;
for the Divine good
that flows forth from the Lord's Divine love
is what makes heaven in general and in particular
with everyone there,
and the Divine love is a longing for the salvation of all
and the happiness of all from inmosts and in fullness.
Thus whether you say heaven or heavenly joy
it is the same thing. 

HH 399

Love to the Lord is such
because the Lord's love
is a love of sharing everything it has with all,
since it wills the happiness of all.
There is a like love in every one of those who love Him,
because the Lord is in them.
From this comes the mutual sharing
of the delights of angels with one another.

HH 400 [4]

. . . that love to the Lord and love to the neighbor
wish to share with others all that is their own,
for this is their delight,
while the loves of self and of the world
wish to take away from others what they have,
and take it to themselves;
and just to the extent that they are able to do this
they are in their delight.

HH 387, 391, 394 - Occupations of the Angels

HH 387

. . . with all in the heavens
goods are goods in act,
which are uses.
Everyone there performs a use,
for the Lord's kingdom is a kingdom of uses.

HH 391

As all the societies in the heavens are distinct
in accordance with their goods
so they are distinct in accordance with their uses,
goods being goods in act,
that is, goods of charity which are uses.
There are societies employed
in taking care of little children;
others in instructing and educating them
as they grow up;
others in instructing and educating in like manner
the boys and girls
who have acquired a good disposition
from their education in the world,
and in consequence have come into heaven.
There are other societies that teach
the simple good from the Christian world,
and lead them into the way to heaven;
there are others that in like manner
teach and lead the various heathen nations.
There are some societies
that protect from infestations by evil spirits
novitiate spirits newly arrived from the world;
there are some that attend upon the spirits
who are in the lower earth;
also some that attend upon spirits
who are in the hells,
and restrain them from tormenting each other
beyond prescribed limits;
and there are some that attend upon those
who are being raised from the dead.
In general, angels from each society
are sent to people to watch over them
and to lead them away from
evil affections and consequent thoughts,
and to inspire them with good affections
so far as they will receive them in freedom;
and by means of these they also control
the deeds or works of people
by removing as far as possible evil intentions.
When angels are with men they dwell,
as it were, in their affections;
and they are near to a person just in the degree
in which he is in good from truths,
and are distant from him just in the degree
in which his life is distant from good. 
But all these employments of angels
are employments of the Lord through the angels,
for the angels perform them
not from themselves
but from the Lord.
For this reason,
in the Word in its internal sense "angels" mean,
not angels, but something of the Lord;
and this is why angels are called "gods" in the Word.

HH 394

In heaven each one is in his own occupation
in accordance with correspondence,
and the correspondence is not with the occupation
but with the use of each occupation.
He who in heaven
comes into the employment or occupation
corresponding to his use
is in exactly the same state of life
as when he was in the world,
since what is spiritual and what is natural
make one by correspondences.
Yet there is this difference,
that he is then in an interior delight,
because in a spiritual life, which is an interior life,
and therefore more receptive of heavenly blessedness.

HH 371, 372, 375 - Three Short Quotes on Heavenly Marriage Love

HH 371

As truth is the sole receptacle of good
nothing can be received from the Lord
and from heaven
by any one who is not in truths;
therefore just to the extent that the truths in a person
are conjoined to good
is a person conjoined to the Lord and to heaven.
This, then, is the very origin of marriage love,
and for this reason
that love is the very plane of Divine influx.

HH 372

Good and truth conjoined in an angel or a person
are not two but one,
since good is then good of truth
and truth is truth of good.
This conjunction may be likened to
a person's thinking what he wills
and willing what he thinks,
when the thought and will make one, that is, one mind;
for thought forms, that is, presents in form
that which the will wills,
and the will gives delight to it;
and this is why a married pair in heaven
are not called two, but one angel.

HH 375

Let it be known
that no two things mutually love each other
more than truth and good do;
and therefore it is from that love
that true marriage love descends.