£ib wrp of trhe theological Seminar y PRINCETON • NEW JERSEY PRESENTED BY The American Swedenborg printing and publishing society BX 8711 .A7 D413 1871 Swedenborg, Emanuel, 1688- 1772. Conjugal love and its chast i^ol i rfhl-ts CONJUGIAL LOVE AMD ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS; ALSO, ADULTEROUS LOVE AMD ITS SINFUL PLEASURES. v EMANUEL S WEDENBORG, Servant of the Lord Jeeue Chritt. BEING A TRANSLATION OF HIS "DELITI:£ SAPIENTI^E DE AMORE CONJUGIALi; P08T QUAS SEQUUNTUK VOLUPTATES INSANI/E DE AMORE SCORTATORIO. (Ameteledami, 1T«8.") NEW YORK: AMERICAN SWEDEN BORG PRINTING AND PUBLISHING SOCIETY, 18 71. Published by The American Swedenborg Printing and Publishing Society, organized for the purpose of Stereotyping, Printing, and Publishing Uniform Editions of the Theological Writings o/"Emanuel Swedenborg, and incorporated in the State of New York a. d. 1850. C B. W«BTCOTT A Ool, PRINTERS, 7* John BC.N.T. CON JUGIAL LOVE AND ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS. PRELIMINARY RELATIONS RESPECTING THE JOYS OF HEAVEN AND NUPTIALS THERE. 1. " I am aware that many who read the following pagjg and the Memorable Relations annexed to the chapters, will believe that they are fictions of the imagination ; but I solemnly declare they are not fictions, but were truly done and seen ; and that I saw them, not in any state of the mind asleep, but in a state of perfect wakefulness : .for it has pleased the Lord to manifest himself to me, and to send me to teach the things relating to the New Church, which is meant by the New Jerusalem in the Revelation : for which purpose he has opened the interiors of my mind and spirit ; by virtue of which privi- lege it has been granted me to be in the spiritual world with angels, and at the same time in the natural world witli men, and this now [1768] for twenty-five years." 2. On a certain time there appeared to me an angel flying beneath the eastern heaven, with a trumpet in his hand, which he held to his mouth, and sounded towards the north, the west, and the south. He was clothed in a robe, which waved behind him as he flew along, and was girt about the waist with a baud that shone like fire and glittered with carbuncles, and sapphires: he flew with his face downwards, and alighted gently on the ground, near where I was standing. As soon as he touched the ground with his feet, he stood erect, and walked to and fro: and on seeing me he directed his steps towards me. I was in the spirit, and was standing in that state on a little eminence in the southern quarter of the spiritual world. When he came near, I addressed him and asked him his errand, telling him that I had heard the sound of his trumpet, and had observed his descent through the air. He replied, " My commission is to CONJUGIAL LOVE call together snch of the inhabitants of this part of the spiritual world, as have come hither from the various kingdoms of Chris- tendom, and have been most distinguished for their learning, their ingenuity, and their wisdom, to assemble on this little eminence where you are now standing, and to declare their real sentiments, as to what they had thought, understood, and inwardly perceived, while in the natural world, respecting Heavenly Joy and Eternal Happiness. The occasion of my commission is this: several who have lately come from the natu- ral world, and have been admitted into our heavenly society, which is in the east, have informed us, that there is not a single person throughout the whole Christian world that is acquainted with the true nature of heavenly joy and eternal happiness; consequently that not a single person is acquainted with the pal ire of heaven. This information greatly surprised my brethren and companions ; and they said to me, ' Go down, call together and assemble those who are most eminent for wis- dom in the world of spirits, (where all men are first collected after their departure out of the natural world,) so that we may Icnow of a certainty, from the testimony of many, whether it be true that such thick darkness, or dense ignorance, respecting a future life, prevails among Christians.' " The angel then said to me, " Wait awhile, and you will see several companies of the wise ones flocking together to this place, and the Lord will pre- pare them a house of assembly." I waited, and lo! in the space of half an hour, I saw two companies from the north, two from the west, and two from the south ; and as they came near, they were introduced by the angel that blew the trumpet into the house of assembly prepared for them, where they took t leir places in the order of the quarters from which they came. There were six groups or companies, and a seventh from the east, which, from its superior light, was not visible to the rest. When they were all assembled, the angel explained to them the reason of their meeting, and desired that each company in order would declare their sentiments respecting Heavenly Joy and Eternal Happinkss. Then each company formed themselves into a ring, with their faces turned one towards another, that they might recall the ideas they had entertained upon the sub- ject in the natural world, and after examination and delibera- tion might declare their sentiments. 3. After some deli Deration, the First Company, which was from the north, declared their opinion, that heavenly joy and eternal happiness constitute the very life of heaven ; so much so that whoever enters heaven, enters, in regard to his life, into its festivities, just as a person admitted to a marriage enters into all the festivities of a marriage. " Is not heaven," they argued, "before our eyes in a particular place above us? and is there not there and nowhere else a constant succession of satisfactions 6 AND ITS CHASTE DKLIGHTS. 3 and pleasures ? When a man therefore is admitted into heaven, he is also admitted into the fall enjoyment of all these satisfac- tions and pleasures, both as to mental perception and bodily sensation. Of course heavenly happiness, which is also eternal happiness, consists solely in admission into heaven, and that depends purely on the divine mercy and favor." They having concluded, the Second Company from the north, according to the measure of the wisdom with which they were endowed, next declared their sentiments as follows : " Heavenly joy and eternal happiness consist solely in the enjoyment of the company of angels, and in holding sweet communications with them, so that the countenance is kept continually expanded with joy ; while the smiles of mirth and pleasure, arising from cheerful and entertaining conversation, continually enliven the faces of the company. What else can constitute heavenly joys, but. the variations of such pleasures to eternity?" The Third Com- pany, which was the first of the wise ones from the western quarter, next declared their sentiments according to the ideas which flowed from their affections : " In what else," said they, " do heavenly joy and eternal happiness consist but in feasting with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob; at whose tables there will be ma abundance of rich and delicate food, with the finest and most generous wines, which will be succeeded by sports and dances of virgins and young men, to the tunes of various musical instruments, enlivened by the most melodious singing of sweet songs; the evening to conclude with dramatic exhibitions, and this again to he followed by feasting, and so on to eternity?" When they had ended, the Fourth Company, which was the second from the western quarter, declared their sentiments to the following purpose : " We have entertained," said they, "many ideas respecting heavenly joy and eternal happiness; and we have examined a variety of joys, and compared them one with another, and have at length come to the conclusion, that heavenly joys are paradisiacal joys: for what is heaven but a paradise extended from the east to the west, and from the south to the north, wherein are trees laden with fruit, and all kinds of beautiful flowers, and in the midst the magnificent tree of life, around which the blessed will take their seats, and feed on fruits most delicious to the taste, being adorned with garlands of the sweetest smelling flowers? In this paradise there will be a perpetual spring ; so that the fruits and flowers will be renewed every day with an infinite variety, and by their continual growth and freshness, added to the vernal tempera- ture of the atmosphere, the souls of the blessed will be daily fitted to receive and taste new joys, till they shall be restored to the flower of their age. and finally to their primitive state, in which Adam and his wife were created, and thus recover their paradi-o, which has been transplanted from earth to hea- 7 CONJtTGIAL LOVE ven." The Fifth Company, which was the first of the ingenious spirits from the southern quarter, next delivered their opinion: " Heavenly joys and eternal happiness," said they, " consist, solely in exalted power and dignity, and in abundance of wealth, joined with more than princely magnificence and splendor. That the joys of heaven, and their continual fruition, which is eternal happiness, consist in these things, is plain to us from the examples of such persons as enjoyed them in the former world; and also from this circumstance, that the blessed in heaven are to reign with the Lord, and to become kings and Erinces ; for they are the sons of him who is King of kings and ord of lords, and they are to sit on thrones and be ministered to by angels. Moreover, the magnificence of heaven is plainly made known to us by the description given of the New Jerusa- lem, wherein is represented the glory of heaven ; that it is to have gates, each of which shall consist of a single pearl, and streets of pure gold, and a wall with foundations of precious stones; consequently, every one that is received into heaven will have a palace of his own, glittering with gold and other costly materials, and will enjoy dignity and dominion, eacli according to his quality and station : and since we find by ex- perience, that the joys and happiness arising from such things are natural, and as it were, innate in us, and since the promise? of God cannot fail, we therefore conclude that the most happy state of heavenly life can be derived from no other source than this." After this, the Sixth Company, which was the second from the southern quarter, with a loud voice spoke as follows : "The joy of heaven and its eternal happiness consist solely in the perpetual glorification of God, in a never-ceasing festival of p aise and thanksgiving, and in the blessedness of divine worship, heightened with singing and melody, whereby the heart is kept in a constant state of elevation towards God, under a full persuasion that he accepts such prayers and praises, on account of the divine bounty in imparting blessedness." Some of the company added further, that this glorification would be attended with" magnificent illuminations, with most fragrant incense, and with stately processions, preceded by the chief priest with a grand trumpet, who would be followed by pri- mates and officers of various orders, by men carrying palms, and by women with golden images in their hand; 4. The Seventh Company, which, from its superior light, was invisible to the rest, came from the east of heaven, and consisted of angels of the same society as the angel that had Bounded the trumpet. When these heard in their heaven, that, not a single person throughout the Christian world was ac- quainted with the true nature of heavenly joy and eternal hap- piness, they said one to another, "Surely this cannot he true; it is impossible that such thick darkness and stupidity should AND ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS. prevail amongst Christians : let us even go down and hear whether it be true; for if it be so, it is indeed wonderful." Then those angels said to the one that had the trumpet, " You know that every one that has desired heaven, and has formed any definite conception in his mind respecting its joys, is introduced after death into those particular joys which he had imagined ; and after he experiences that such joys are only the offspring of the vain delusions of his own fancy, he is led out of his error, and instructed in the truth. This is the case with most of those in the world of spirits, who in their former life have thought about heaven, and from their notions of its joys have desired to possess them." On hearing this, the angel that had the trumpet said to the six companies of the assembled wise ones, " Follow me; and I will introduce you into your respective joys, and thereby into heaven." 5. When the angel had thus spoken, he went before them ; and he was hist attended by the company who were of opinion that the joys of heaven consisted solely in pleasant associations and entertaining conversation. These the angel introduced to an assembly of spirits in the northern quarter, who, during their abode in the former world, had entertained the same ideas of the joys of heaven. There was in the place a huge and 6pacious house, wherein all these spirits were assembled. In the house there were more than fifty different apartments, al- lotted to different kinds and subjects of conversation : in some of these apartments they conversed about such matters as they had seen or heard in the public places of resort and the streets of the city ; in others the conversation turned upon the various charms of the fair sex, with a mixture of wit and humor, pro- ducing cheerful smiles on the countenances of all present ; in others they talked about the news relating to courts, to public ministers, and state policy, and to various matters which had transpired from privy councils, interspersing many conjectures and reasonings of their own respecting the issues of such coun- cils; in others again they conversed about trade and merchan- dise; in others upon subjects of literature; in others upon points of civil prudence and morals ; and in others about affairs relating to the Church, its sects, &c. Permission was granted me to enter and look about the house ; and I saw people running from one apartment to another, seeking such company as was most suited to their own tempers and inclinations ; and in the different parties I could distinguish three kinds of per- sons ; some as it were panting to converse, some eager to ask questions, and others greedily devouring what was said. The house had four doors, one towards each quarter; and I observed several leaving their respective companies with a great desire to get out of the house. I followed some of them to the east, door, where I saw several sitting with great marks of dejection 9 CONJUGIAL LOVE on their faces; and on my inquiring into the cause of their trouble, they replied, "The doors of this house are kept shut against all persons who wish to go out ; and this is the third day since we entered, to be entertained according to our desire with company and conversation; and now we are grown so weary with continual discoursing, that we can scarcely bear to hear the sound of a human voice ; wherefore, from mere irk- someness, we have betaken ourselves to this door ; but on our knocking to have it opened, we were told, that the doors of this house are never opened to let any persons out, but only to let them in, and that we must stay here and enjoy the delights of heaven ; from which information we conclude, that we are to remain here to eternity; and this is the cause of our sorrow and lovvness of spirits ; now too we begin to feel an oppression in the breast, and to be overwhelmed with anxiety." The angel then addressing them said : " These things in which you ima- gined the true joys of heaven to consist, prove, you find, the destruction of all happiness ; since they do not of themselves constitute true heavenly joys, but only contribute thereto." " In what then," said they to the angel, "does heavenly joy con- sist?'' The angel replied briefly, "In the delight of doing something that is useful to ourselves and others; which delight derives its essence from love and its existence from wisdom. Tlie delight of being useful, originating in love, and operating by wisdom, is the very soul and life of all heavenly joys. In the heavens there are frequent occasions of cheerful intercourse and conversation, whereby the minds (mentes) of the angels are exhilarated, their minds (animi) entertained, their bosoms de- lighted, and their bodies refreshed; but such occasions do not oicur, till they have fulfilled their appointed uses in the dis- charge of their respective business and duties. It is this ful- filling of uses that gives soul and life to all their delights and entertainments ; and if this soul and life be taken away, the contributory joys gradually cease, first exciting indifference, then disgust," and lastly sorrow and anxiety." As the angel ended, the door was thrown open, and those who were sitting near it burst out in haste, and went home to their respective labors and employments, and so found relief and refreshment to their spirits. 6. After this the angel addressed those who fancied the joys of heaven and eternal happiness consisted of partaking of feasts with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, succeeded by sports and public exhibitions, and these by other feasts, and so on to eter- nity. He said. "Follow me; and I will introduce you into the possession of your enjoyments :" and immediately he led them through a grove into a plain floored with planks, on which were set tables, fifteen on one side and fifteen on the other. They then asked, "What is the meaning of so many tables?" 10 AND ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS. 6 and the angel replied, " The first table is for Abraham, the second for Isaac, the third for Jacob, and the rest in order for the twelve apostles: on the other side are the same number of tables for their wives; the first three are for Sarah, Abraham's wife, for Rebecca, the wife of Isaac, and for Leah and Rachel, the wives of Jacob; and the other twelve are for the wives of the twelve apostles." They had not waited long before the tables were covered with dishes ; between which, at stated dis- tances, were ornaments of small pyramids holding sweetmeats. The guests stood around the tables waiting to see their respect- ive presidents : these soon entered according to their order of precedency, beginning with Abraham, and ending with the lasi of the apostles ; and then each president, taking his place at the head of his own table, reclined on a couch, and invited the by- standers to take their places, each on his couch : accordingly the men reclined with the patriarchs and apostles, and the women with their wives : and they ate and drank with much festivity, but with due decorum. When the repast was ended, the patriarchs and apostles retired; and then were introduced various sports and dances of virgins and young men ; and these were succeeded by exhibitions. At the conclusion of these entertainments, they were again invited to feasting; but with this particular restriction, that on the first day they should eat with Abraham, on the second with Isaac, on the third with Jacob, on the fourth with Peter, on the fifth with James, on the sixth with John, on the seventh with Paul, and with the rest, in order till the fifteenth day, when their festivity should be renewed again in like order, only changing their seats, and so on to eternity. After this the angel called together the company that had attended him, and said to them, ''All those whom you have observed at the several tables, had entertained the same imaginar}' ideas as yourselves, respecting the joys of heaven and eternal happiness ; and it is with the intent that they may see the vanity of such ideas, and be withdrawn from them, that those festive representations were appointed and permitted by the Lord. Those who with so much dignity pre- sided at the tables, were merely old people and feigned charac- ters, many of them husbandmen and peasants, who, wearing long beards, and from their wealth being exceedingly proud and arrogant, were easily induced to imagine that they were those patriarchs and apostles. But follow me to the ways that leqd from this place of festivity." They accordingly followed, and observed groups of fifty or more, here and there, surfeited with the load of meat which lay on their stomachs, and wishing above all things to return to their domestic employments, their professions, trades, and handicraft works ; but many of them were detained by the keepers of the grove, who questioned them concerning the davs they had feasted, and whether they 11 CONJUGIAL LOVE had as yet taken their turns with Peter and Paul ; representing to them the shame and indecency of departing till they had paid equal respect to the apostles. But the general reply was, " We are surfeited with our entertainment ; our food has be- come insipid to us, we have lost all relish for it, and the very sight of it is loathsome to us; we have spent many days and nights in such repasts of luxury, and can endure it no longer: we therefore earnestly request leave to depart." Then the keepers dismissed them, and they made all possible haste to their respective homes. After this the angel called the company that attended him, and as they went along he gave them the following information respecting heaven : — " There are in heaven," says he, " as in the world, both meats and drinks, both feasts and repasts ; and at the tables of the great there is a variety of the most exquisite food, and all kinds of rich dainties and delicacies, wherewith their minds are exhilarated and refreshed. There are likewise 6ports and exhibitions, concerts of music, vocal and instrumen- tal, and all these things in the highest perfection. Such things are a source of joy to them, but not of happiness ; for happiness ought to be within external joys, and to flow from them. This inward happiness abiding in external joys, is necessary to give them their proper relish, and make them joys ; it enriches them, and prevents their becoming loathsome and disgusting ; and this happiness is derived to every angel from the use he perforins in his duty or employment. There is a certain vein latent in the affection of the will of every angel, which attracts his mind to the execution of some purpose or other, wherein his mind finds itself in tranquillity, and is satisfied. This tranquillity and satisfaction form a state of mind capable of receiving from the Lord the love of uses ; and from the reception of this love springs heavenly happiness, which is the life of the above- mentioned joys. Heavenly food in its essence is nothing but love, wisdom, and use united together ; that is, use effected by wisdom and derived from love ; wherefore food for the body is given to every one in heaven according to the use which he performs; sumptuous food to those who perform eminent uses; moderate, but of an exquisite relish, to those who perform less eminent uses ; and ordinary to such as live in the performance of ordinary uses ; but none at all to the slothful. 7. After this the angel called to him the company of the so- called wise ones, who supposed heavenly joys, and the eternal happiness thence derived, to consist in exalted power and do- minion, with the possession of abundant treasures, attended with more than princely splendor and magnificence, and who had been betrayed into this supposition by what is written in the Word, — that thev should be kings and princes, and should reign for ever with Christ, and should be ministered unto by 12 AND ITS CIlASTIi DELIGHTS. 7 angels: with many other similar expressions. "Follow me," said the angel to-tliem, M and I will introduce you to your joys." So he led them into a portico constructed of pillars and pyra- mids: in the front there was a low porch, through which lay the entrance to the portico; through this porch he introduced them, and lo! there appeared to he about twenty people as- sembled. After waiting some time, they were accosted by a certain person, having the garb and appearance of an angel, and who said to them, " The way to heaven is through this portico ; wait awhile and prepare yourselves ; for the elder among you are to be kings, and the younger princes." As he said this, they saw near each pillar a throne, and on each throne a silken robe, and on each robe a sceptre and crown ; and near each pyramid a seat raised three feet from the ground, and on each seat a massive gold chain, and the ensigns of an order of knighthood, fastened at each end with diamond clasps. After this they heard a voice, saying, " Go now and put on your robes; he seated, and wait awhile:" and instantly the elder ones ran to the thrones, and the younger to the seats ; and they put on their robes and seated themselves. When lo ! there arose a mist from below, which, communicating its influence to those on the thrones and the seats, caused them instantly to as- sume airs of authority, and to swell with their new greatness, and to be persuaded in good earnest that they were kings and princes. That mist was an aura of phantasy or imagination with which their minds were possessed. Then on a sudden, several young pages presented themselves, as if they came on wings from heaven ; and two of them stood in waiting behind every throne, and one behind every seat. Afterwards at inter- vals a herald proclaimed : — "Ye kings and princes, wait a little longer; your palaces in heaven are making ready for you; } our courtiers and guards will soon attend to introduce you." Then they waited and waited in anxious expectation, till their spirits were exhausted, and they grew weary with desire. After about three hours, the heavens above them were seen to open, and the angels looked down in pity upon them, and said, "Why sit ye in this state of infatuation, assuming charac- ters which do not belong to you ? They have made a mockery of you, and have changed you from men into mere images, be- cause of the imagination which has possessed you, that you should reign with Christ as kings and princes, and that angels should minister unto you. Have you forgotten the Lord's words, that whosoever would be the greatest in the kingdom of heaven must be the least of all, and the servant of all ? Learn then what is meant by kings and princes, and by reigning with Christ; that it is to be wise and perform uses. The kingdom of Christ, which is heaven, is a kingdom of uses ; for the Lord loves every one, and is desirous to do good to every one; and 8 CONJUGIAL LOVE good is the same thing as use : and as the Lord promotes good or use by the mediation of angels in heaven, and of men on eaith, therefore to such as faithfully perform uses, he commu- nicates the love thereof, and its reward, which is internal bles- sedness ; and this is true eternal happiness. There are in the heavens, as on earth, distinctions of dignity and eminence, with abundance of the richest treasures; for there are governments and forms of government, and consequently a variety of ranks and orders of power and authority. Those of the highest rank have courts and palaces to live in, which for splendor and magnificence exceed every thing that the kings and princes of the earth can boast of; and they derive honor and glory from the number and magnificence of their courtiers, ministers, and attendants; but then these persons of high rank are chosen from those whose heartfelt delight consists in promoting the public good, and who are only externally pleased with the dis- tinctions of dignity for the sake of order and obedience; and as the public good requires that every individual, being a member of the common body, should be an instrument of use in the society to which he belongs, which use is from the Lord and is effected by angels and men as of themselves, it is plain that this is meant by reigning with the Lord." As soon as the angels had concluded, the kings and princes descended from their thrones and seats, and cast away their sceptres, crowns, and robes; and the mist which contained the aura of phantasy was dispersed, and a bright cloud, containing the aura of wisdom encompassed them, and thus they were presently restored to their sober senses. 8. After this the angel returned to the house of assembly, and called to him those who had conceived the joys of heaven and eternal happiness to consist in paradisiacal delights ; to whom he said, " Follow me, and I will introduce you into your paradisiacal heaven, that you may enter upon the beatitudes of your eternal happiness." Immediately he introduced them through a lofty portal, formed of the bougha and shoots of the finest trees interwoven with each other. After their admission, he led them through a variety of winding paths in different directions. The place was a real paradise, on the confines of heaven, intended tor the reception of such as, during their abode on earth, had fancied the whole heaven to be a single paradise, because it is so called, and had been led to conceive that after death there would be a perfect rest from all kinds of labor ; which rest would consist in a coutinual feast of pleasures, such as walking among roses, being exhilarated with the most ex- quisite wines, and participating in continual mirth and festivity; and that this kind of life could only be enjoyed in a heavenly paradise. As they followed the angel, they saw a great Dumber of old and young, of both sexes, sitting by threes and tens in a 14 AND ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS. 8 company on banks of roses ; some of whom were wreathing garlands to adorn the heads of the seniors, the arms of the young, and the bosoms of the children ; others were pressing the juice out of grapes, cherries, and mulberries, which they collected in cups, and then drank with much festivity ; some were delighting themselves with the fragrant smells that exhaled far and wide from the flowers, fruits, and odoriferous leaves of a variety of plants ; others were singing most melodious songs, to the great entertainment of the hearers ; some were sitting by the sides of fountains, and directing the bubbling streams into various forms and channels ; others were walking, and amusing one another with cheerful and pleasant conversation ; others were retiring into shady arbors to repose on couches ; besides a variety of other paradisiacal entertainment. After observing these things, the angel led his companions through various winding paths, till he brought them at length to a most beautiful grove of roses, surrounded by olive, orange, and citron trees. Here they found many persons sitting in a dis- consolate posture, with their heads reclined on their handft, and exhibiting all the signs of sorrow and discontent. The companions of the angel accosted them, and inquired into the cause of their grief. They replied, " This is the seventh day since we came into this paradise : on our first admission we seemed to ourselves to be elevated into heaven, and introduced into a participation of its inmost joj's; but after three days our pleasures began to pall on the appetite, and our relish was lost, till at length we became insensible to their taste, and found that they had lost the power of pleasing. Our imaginary joys being thus annihilated we were afraid of losing with them all the satis- faction of life, and we began to doubt whether any such thing as eternal happiness exists. We then wandered through a variety of paths and passages, in search of the gate at which we were admitted ; but our wandering was in vain : for on inquiring the way of some persons we met, they informed us, that it was im- {>ossible to find the gate, as this paradisiacal garden is a spacious abyrinth of such a nature, that whoever wishes to go out, enters further and further into it; ' wherefore,' said they, ' you must ot necessity remain here to eternity ; yon are now in the middle of the garden, where all delights are centred.' " They further said to the angel's companions, " We have now been in this place for a day and a half, and as we despair of ever finding our way out, we have sat down to repose on this bank of roses, where we view around us olive-trees, vines, orange and citron-trees, in great abundance; but the longer we look at them, the more our eyes are wearied with seeing, our noses with smelling, and our palates with tasting : and this is the cause of the sadness, sorrow, and weeping, in which you now behold us." On hearing this rela- tion, the attendant angel said to them, " This paradisiacal laby 15 AND ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS. rintk is truly an entrance into heaven ; I know the way that leads out of it ; and if you will follow me, I will shew it you." No sooner had he uttered those words than they arose from the ground, and, embracing the angel, attended him with his com- panions. The angel as they went along, instructed them in the true nature of heavenly joy and eternal happiness thence derived. ''They do not," said he, "consist in external paradisiacal de- lights, unless they are also attended with internal. External paradisiacal delights reach only the senses of the body ; but internal paradisiacal delights reach the affections of the soul ; and the former without the latter are devoid of all heavenly life, because they are devoid of soul ; and every delight without its corresponding soul, continually grows more and more languid and dull, and fatigues the mind more than labor. There are in every part of heaven paradisiacal gardens, in which the angels find much joy ; and so far as it is attended with a delight of the soul, the joy is real and true." Hereupon they all asked, " What is the delight of the soul, and whence is it derived ?" The angel replied, "The delight of the soul is derived from love and wisdom proceeding from the Lord ; and as love is operative, and that by means of wisdom, therefore they are both fixed together in the effect of such operation ; which effect is use. This delight enters into the soul by influx from the Lord, and descends through the superior and inferior regions of the mind into all the senses of the body, and in them is full and complete ; becoming hereby a true joy, and partaking of an eternal nature from the eternal fountain whence it proceeds. You have just now seen a para- disiacal garden; and I can assure you that there is not a single thing therein, even the smallest leaf, which does not exist from the marriage of love and wisdom in use : wherefore if a man be in this marriage, he is in a celestial paradise, and therefore in heaven." 9. After this, the conducting angel returned to the house of assembly, and addressed those who had persuaded themselves that heavenly joy and eternal happiness consist in a perpetual glorification of God, and a continued festival of prayer and praise to eternity ; in consequence of a belief they had entertained in the world that they should then see God, and because the life of heaven, originating in the worship of God, is called a perpetual sabbath. "Follow me," said the angel to them, " and 1 will iutroduce you to your joy." So he led them into a little city, in the middle of which was a temple, and where all the houses were said to be consecrated chapels. In that city they observed a great concourse of people flocking together from all parts of the neigh- boring country ; and among them a uumber of priests, who received and saluted them on their arrival, and led them by the hand to the gates of the temple, and from thence into some of the chapels around it. where they initiated them into the per 16 AND ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS. 9 petual worship of God ; telling them that the city was one of the courts leading to heaven, and that the temple was an entrance to a most spacious and magnificent temple in heaven, where the angels glorify God hy prayers and praises to eternity. "It is ordained," said they, " hoth here and in heaven, that you are first to enter into the temple, and remain there for three days and three nights ; and after this initiation you are to enter the houses of the city, which are so many chapels consecrated by us to divine worship, and in every house join the congregation in a communion of prayers, praises, and repetitions of holy things; you are to take heed -1 that nothing but pious, holy, and reli- gious subjects enter i \ our thoughts, or make a part of your conversation." After \\;'u the angel introduced his companions into the temple, which they found tilled and crowded with many persons, who on earth had lived in exalted stations, and also with many of an inferior elass: guards were stationed at the doors to prevent any one from departing until he had completed his stay of three days. Then said the angel, " Th is is the second day since the present congregation entered the temple: examine them, and you will see their manner of glorifying God." On their examining them, they observed that most of them were fast asleep, and that those who were awake were listless and yawning; many of them, in consequence of the continual elevation of their thoughts to God, without an}- attention to the inferior concerns of the body, seemed to themselves, and thence also to others, as if their faces were unconnected with their bodies ; several again had a wild and raving look with their eyes, because of their long abstraction from visible objects; in short, every one, being quite tiled out, seemed to feel an oppression at the chest, and great weariness of spirits, which showed itself in a violent aversion to what they heard from the pulpit, so that they cried out to the preacher to put an end to his discourse, for their ears were stun- ned, they could not understand a single word he said, and the very sound of his voice was become painful to them. They then all left their seats, and, crowding in a body to the doors, broke them open, and by mere violence made their way through the guards. The priests hereupon followed, and walked close beside them, teaching, praying, sighing, and encouraging them to celebrate the solemn festival, and to glorify God, and sanctify themselves ; " and then," said they, " we will initiate you into the eternal glorification of God in that most magnificent, and spacious temple which is in heaven, and so will introduce you to the enjoyment of eternal happiness." These words, however, made but little impression upon them, on account of the listless- uess of their minds, arising from the long elevation of their thoughts above their ordinary labors and employments. But when they attempted to disengage themselves from them, the priests caught hold of their hands and garments, in order to force 2 17 CONJUGIAL LOVE them hack again into the temple to a repetition of their prayers and praises ; but in vain : they insisted on being left to them- selves to recruit their spirits ; "we shall else die," they said, " through mere faintness and weariness." At that instant, lo ! there appeared four men in white garments, with mitres on their heads; one of them while on earth had been an archbishop, and the other three bishops, all of whom had now become angels. As they approached, they addressed themselves to the priests, and said, " We have observed from heaven howj'on feed these sheep. Your instruction tends to their infatuation. Do yon not know that to glorify God means to bring forth the fruits of love ; that is, to discharge all the duties of our callings with faithfulness, sincerity, and diligence? for this is the nature of love towards God and our neighbor: and this is the bond and blessing of society. Hereby God is glorified, as well as by acts of worship •at stated times after these duties. Have you never read these words of the Lord, Herein is my Father glorified, that ye briny forth much fruit i so shall ye be my disciples, John xv. 8. Ye •priests indeed may glorify God by your attendance on his wor- ship, since this is your office, and from the discharge of it you derive honor, glory, and recompense ; but it would be as impos- sible for you as for others thus to glorify God, unless honor, glory, and recompense were annexed to your office." Having said this, the bishops ordered the doorkeepers to give free ingress and egress to all, there being so great a number of people, who, from their ignorance of the state and nature of heaven, can form no other idea of heavenly jo}" than that it consists in the per- petual worship of God. 10. After this the angel returned with his companions to the place of assembly, where the several companions of the wise ones were still waiting; and next he addressed those who fancied that heavenly joy and eternal happiness depend only on admittance into heaven, which is obtained merely by divine grace and favor ; and that in such case the persons introduced would enter into the enjoyments of heaven, just as those introduced to a court-festival or a marriage, enter into the enjoyment of such scenes. " Wait here awhile," said the angel, " until I sound my trumpet, and call together those who have been most distinguished for their wisdom in regard to the spiritual things of the Church." After some hours, there appeared nine men, each having a wreath of laurel on his head as a mark of distinction : these the angel intro- duced into the house of assembly, where all the companies befoie ^collected were still waiting; and then in their presence lie ad- dressed the nine strangers, and said, " I am informed, that in compliance with your desire, you have been permitted to ascend into heaven, according to you ideas thereof, and that you have returned to this inferior or sub-celestial earth, perfectly well informed as to the nature and state of heaven : toll us therefore IS AND fT8 CHASTE DKLIGHT3. 10 what you have seen, and how heaven appeared to yon." Then they replied in order; and the First thus began : " My idea of heaven from niy earliest infancy to the end of my life on earth was, that it was a place abounding with all sorts of blessings, satisfactions, enjoyments, gratifications, and delights ; and that if I were introduced there, I should be encompassed as by an at- mosphere of such felicities, and should receive it with the highest relish, like a bridegroom at the celebration of his nuptials, and when he enters the chamber with his bride. Full of this idea, 1 ascended into heaven, and passed the first guard and also the second ; but when I came to the third, the captain of the guard accosted me and said, " Who are you, friend?" I replied, "Is not this heaven ? My longing desire to ascend into heaven has brought me hither; I pray yon therefore permit me to enter." Then he permitted me ; and I saw angels in white garments, who came about me and examined me, and whispered to each other, 4 What new guest is this, who is not clothed in heavenly rai- ment?' I heard what they said, and thought within myself, Tliis is a similar case to that which the Lord describes, of the person who came to the wedding, and had not on a wedding gar- ment : and I said, 'Give me such garments ;' at which they smiled : and instantly one came from the judgment-hall with this command : ' Strip him naked, cast him out, and throw his clothes after him ;' and so I was cast out." The Second in order then began as follows: "I also supposed that if I were but admitted into heaven, which was over my head, I should there be encom- passed with joys, which I should partake of to eternity. I like- wise wished to be there, and my wish was granted ; but the angels on seeing me fled away, and said one to another, ' What prodigy is this ! how came this bird of night here V On hearing which, I really felt as if I had undergone some change, and was no longer a man : this however was merely imaginary, and arose from my breathing the heavenly atmosphere. Presently, how- ever, there came one running from the judgment-hall, with an order that two servants should lead me out, and conduct me back by the way 1 had ascended, till 1 had reached my own home ; and when I arrived there, 1 again appeared to others and also to myself as a man." The Third said, "I always conceived hea- ven to be some place of blessedness independent of the state of the affections ; wherefore as soon as I came into this world, I felt a most ardent desire to go to heaven. Accordingly I followed some whom 1 saw ascending thither, and was admitted along with tlieni ; but 1 did not proceed far; for when I was desirous to delight my mind (animus) according to my idea of heavenly blessedness, a sudden stupor, occasioned by the light of heaven, which is as white as snow, and whose essence is said to be wis- dom, seized my mind (mens), and darkness my eyes, and I was reduced to a state of insanity : and presently, from the heat of heaven, which corresponds with the brightness of its light, and i u 10 CONJUGIAL LOVE whose essence is said to be love, there arose in my heart a vio- lent palpitation, a general uneasiness seized my whole frame, and 1 was inwardly excruciated to such a degree that I threw myselt flat on the ground. While I was in this situation, one of the attendants came from the judgment-hall with an order to carry me gently to my own light and heat ; and when I came there my spirit and my heart presently returned to me." The Fourth said ; 1 1 1 a t he also had conceived heaven to be some place of blessedness independent of the state of the affections. " As soon therefore," said he, " as I came into the spiritual world, I inquired of cer- tain wise ones whether I might be permitted to ascend into hea- ven, and was informed that this liberty was granted to all, but that there was need of caution how they used it, lest they should be cast down again. I made light of this caution, and ascended in full confidence that all were alike qualified for the reception of heavenly bliss in all its fulness : but alas! I was no sooner within the confines of heaven, than my life seemed to be depart- ing from me, and from the violent pains and anguish which seized my head and body, I threw myself prostrate on the ground, where I writhed about like a snake when it is brought near the fire. In this state I crawled to the brink of a precipice, from which I threw myself down, and being taken up by some people who were standing near the place where I fell, by proper care I was soon brought to myself again." The other Five then gave a wonderful relation of what befell them in their ascents into hea- ven, and compared the changes they experienced as to their states of life, with the state of fish when raised out of water into air, and with that of birds when raised out of air into ether ; and they declared that, after having suffered so much pain, they had no longer any desire to ascend into heaven, and only wished to live a life agreeable to the state of their own affections, among their like in any place whatever. " We are well informed," they added, " that in the world of spirits, where we now are, all per- .siMis undergo a previous preparation, the good for heaven, and the wicked for hell ; and that after such preparation they discover ways open for them to societies of their like, with whom they are to live eternally ; and that they enter such ways with the utmost delight, because they are suitable to their love." When those of the first assembly had heard these relations, they all likewise acknowledged, that they had never entertained any other notion of heaven than as of a place where they should cater upon the fruition of never-ceasing delights. Then the angel who had the trumpet thus addressed them : " You see now that the joys of heaven and eternal happiness arise not from the place, but from the state of the man's life ; and a state of hea- venly life is derived from love and wisdom; and since it is use which contains love and wisdom, and in which they are fixed and subsist, therefore a state of heavenly life is derived from the con- junction of love and wisdom in use. It amounts to the same 20 AND ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS. 10, 11 if we call them charity, faith, and good works ; for charity is love, faith is truth whence wisdom is derived, and good works are uses. Moreover in our spiritual world there are places as in the natural world ; otherwise there could he no hahitations and distinct ahodes ; nevertheless place with us is not place, but an appearance of place according to the state of love and wisdom, or or' charity and faith. Every one who becomes an angel, carries his own heaven within himself, because he carries in himself the love of his own heaven ; for a man from creation is the smallest effigy, image, and type of the great heaven, and the human form is nothing else ; wherefore every one after death comes into that society of heaven of whose general form he is an individual effigy ; consequently, when he enters into that society he enters into a form corresponding to his own ; thus he passes as it were from himself into that form as into another self, and again from that other self into the same form in himself, and enjoys his own life in that of the society, and that of the society in his own ; for every society in heaven may be considered as one common body, and the constituent angels as the similar parts thereof, from which the common body exists. Hence it follows, that those who are in evils, and thence in falses, have formed in themselves an effigy of hell, which suffers torment in heaven from the influx and violent activity of one opposite upon another ; for infernal love is opposite to heavenly love, and consequently the delights of those two loves are in a state of discord and enmity, and whenever they meet they endeavor to destroy each other." 11. After this a voice was heard from heaven, saying to the angel that had the trumpet, " Select ten out of the whole assem- bly, and introduce them to us. We have heard from the Lord that He will prepare them so as to prevent the heat and light, or the love and wisdom, of our heaven, from doing them any injury during the space of three days." Ten were then selected and followed the angel. They ascended by a steep path up a certain hill, and from thence up a mountain, on the summit of which was situated the heaven of those angels, which had before appeared to them at a distance like an expanse in the clouds. The gates were opened for them ; and after they had passed the third gate, the introducing angel hastened to the prince of the society, or of that heaven, and announced their arrival. The prince said, " Take some of my attendants, and carry them word that their arrival is agreeable to me, and introduce them into "my reception-room, and provide for each a separate apartment with a chamber, and appoint some of my attendants and servants to wait upon them and attend to their wishes :" all which was done. On being introduced by the angel, they asked whether they might go and see the prince; and the angel replied, "It is now morning, and it is not allowable before noon ; till that time every one is engaged in his particular duty and employment : but you are invited to dinner, and then you will sit at table with our 21 11—13 CONJPGIAL LOVE prince ; in the meantime I will introduce yon into his palace, and show yon its splendid and magnificent contents." 12. When they were come to the palace, they first viewed it from without. It was large and spacious, built of porphyry, with a foundation of jasper ; and before the gates were six lofty columns of lapis lazuli ; the roof was of plates of gold, the lofty windows, of the most transparent cn'stal, had frames also of gold. After viewing the outside they were introduced within, and were conducted from one apartment to another ; in each of which they saw ornaments of inexpressible elegance and beauty; and beneath the roof were sculptured decorations of inimitable workmanship. Near the walls were set silver tables overlaid with gold, on which were placed various implements made of precious stones, and of entire grems in heavenlv forms, with several other thinars, such as no eye had ever seen on earth, and consequently such as could never be supposed to exist in heaven. While they were struck with astonishment at these magnificent sights, the angel said, " Be not surprised ; the things which yon now behold are not the production and workmanship of any angelic hand, but are framed by the Builderof the universe, and presented as a gift to our prince ; wherefore the architectonic art is here in its essential perfection, aud hence are derived all the rules of that art which are known and practised in the world." The angel further said, " You may pos- sibly conceive that such objects charm our eyes, and infatuate us by their grandeur, so that we consider them as constituting the joys of our heaven : this however is not the case ; for our affections not being set on such things, they are only contributory to the joys of our hearts ; and therefore, so far as we contemplate them as such, and as the workmanship of God, so far we contemplate in them the divine omnipotence and mercy." 13. After this the angel said to them, " It is not yet noon : come with me into our prince's garden, which is near the palace." So they went with him ; and as they were entering, he said, " Behold here the most magnificent of all the gardens in our hea- venly society I" But they replied, " How! there is no garden here. We see only one tree, and on its branches and at its top as it were golden fruit and silver leaves, with their edges adorned with eme- ralds, and beneath the tree little children with their nurses." Here- upon the angel, with an inspired voice said, ''This tree is in the midst of the garden; some of us call it the tree of our heaven, and some, the tree of life. But advance nearer, and your eyes will be opened, and you will see the garden." They did so, and their eyes were opened, and they saw numerous trees bearing an abundance of fine flavored fruit, entwined about with young vines, whose tops with their fruit inclined towards the tree of life in the midst. These trees were planted in a continuous series, which, proceeding from a point, and being continued into endless circles, or gyrations, as of a perpetual spiral, formed a perfect spiral of trees, wherein one species coutinuallvsucceeded another, accord- 22 AND ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS. 13, 14 ing to the worth and excellence of their fruit. The circumgyra- tion began at a considerable distance from the tree in the midst, and the intervening space was radiant with a beam of ligbt, which caused the trees in the circle to shine with a graduated splendor that was continued from the first to the last. The first trees were the most excellent of all, abounding with the choicest fruits, and were called paradisiacal trees, being such as are never seen in any country of the natural world, because none such ever grew or could grow f there. These were succeeded by olive-trees, the olives by vines, these by sw r eet-scented shrubs, and these again by timber trees, whose wood was useful for buildjng. At stated intervals in this spiral or gyre of trees, were interspersed seats, formed of the young shoots of the trees behind, brought forward and entwined in each other, while the fruit of the trees hanging over at the same time enriched and adorned them. At this perpetually winding circleof trees, there were passages which opened into flower-gardens, and from them into shrubberies, laid out into areas and beds. At the sight of all these things the com- panions of the angels exclaimed, "Behold heaven in form! wher- ever we turn our eyes we feel an influx of somewhat celestially- paradisiacal, which is not to be expressed." At this the angel rejoicing said, " All the gardens of our heaven are representative forms or types of heavenly beatitudes in their origins; and be- cause the influx of these beatitudes elevated your minds, there- fore you exclaimed, 'Behold heaven in form !' but those who do not receive that influx, regard these paradisiacal gardens only as common woods or forests. All thoso who are under the influence of the love of use receive the influx ; but those who are under the influence of the love of glory not originating in use, do not re- ceive it." Afterwards he explained to them what every parti- cular thing in the garden represented and signified. 14. While they were thus employed, there came a messenger from the prince, with an invitation to them to dine with him ; and at the same time two attendants brought garments of fine linen, and said, " Put on these ; for no one is admitted to the prince's table unless he be clothed in the garments of heaven." So they put them on, and accompanied their angel, and were shewn into a drawing-room belonging to the palace, where they waited for the prince ; and there the angel introduced them to the company and conversation of the grandees and nobles, who were also waiting for the prince's appearing. And lo! in about an hour the doors were opened, and through one larger than the rest, on the western side, he was seen to enter in stately procession. His inferior counsellors went before him, after them his privy-counsellors, and next the chief officers belonging to the court ; in the middle of these was the prince ; after him followed courtiers of various ranks, and lastly the guards ; in all thej r amounted to a hundred and twenty. Then the angel, advancing oefore the ten strangers, who by their dress now appeared like 23 4—16 CONJUGIAL LOVE inmates of the place, approached with them towards the prince; and reverently introduced them to his notice; and the prince, without stopping the procession, said to them, " Come and dine with me." So they followed him into the dining-hall, where they saw a table magnificently set out, having in the middle a tall golden pyramid with a hundred branches in three rows, each branch having a small dish, or basket, containing a variety of sweetmeats and preserves, with other delicacies made of bread and wine ; and through the middle of the pyramid there issued as it were a bubbling fountain of nectareous wine, the stream of which, falling from the summit of the pyramid separated into different channels and filled the cups. At the sides of this pyra- mid were various heavenly golden forms, on which were dishes and plates covered with all kinds of food. The heavenly forms supporting the dishes and plates were forms of art, derived from wisdom, such as cannot be devised by any human art, or ex- pressed by any human words : the dishes and plates were of silver, on which were engraved forms similar to those that sup- ported them ; the cups were transparent gems. Such was the splendid furniture of the table. 15. As regards the dress of the prince and his ministers, the prince wore a long purple robe, set with silver stars wrought ia needle-work ; under this robe he had a tunic of bright silk of a blue or hyacinthine color; this was open about the breast, where there appeared the forepart of a kind of zone or ribbon, with the ensign of his society ; the badge was an eagle sitting on her young at the top of a tree ; this was wrought in polished gold 6et with diamonds. The counsellors were dressed nearly after the same manner, but without the badge; instead of which they wore sapphires curiously cut, hanging from their necks by a golden chain. The courtiers wore brownish cloaks, wrought with flowers encompassing young eagles; their tunics were of an opal-colored silk, so were also their lower garments; thus were they dressed. 1G. The privy-counsellors, with those of inferior order, and the grandees stood around the table, and by command of the prince folded their hands, and at the same time in a low voice said a prayer of thanksgiving to the Lord ; and after tliis, at a sign from the prince, they reclined on couches at the table. The prince then said to the ten strangers, " Do ye also recline witli me ; behold, there are your couches:" so they reclined ; and the attendants, who were before sent by the prince to wair upon them, stood behind them. Then said the prince to them, " Take each of you a plate from its supporting form, and afterwards a dish from the pyramid ;" and they did so; and lol instantly new plates and dishes appeared in the place of those that were taken away ; and their cups were filled with wine that streamed from the fountain out of the tall pyramid : and they ate and drank. When dinuner was about half ended, the prince addressed the AND ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS. lfi, 17 ten new guests, and said, "I have been informed that you were convened in the country which is immediate])' under this heaven, in order to declare your thoughts respecting the joys of heaven and eternal happiness thence derived, and that you professed different opinions each according to his peculiar ideas of delight originating in the bodily senses. But what are the delights of the bodily senses without those of the soul? The former are animated by the latter. The delights of the soul in themselves are imperceptible beatitudes; but, as they descend into the thoughts of the mind, and thence into the sensations of the body, they become more and more perceptible: in the thoughts of the mind they are perceived as satisfactions, in the sensations of the body as delights, and in the body itself as pleasures. Eternal happiness is derived from the latter and the former taken toge- ther; but from the latter alone there results a happiness not eternal but temporary, which quickly comes to an end and passes away, and in some cases becomes unhappiness. You have now seen that all your joys are also joys of heaven, and that these are far more excellent than you could have conceived ; yetsuch joys do not inwardly affect our minds. There are three things which enter by influx from the Lord as a one into our souls; these three as a one, or this trine, are love, wisdom, and use. Love and wisdom of themselves exist only ideally, being confined to the affections and thoughts of the mind ; but in use they exist really, because they are together in act and bodily employment ; and where they exist really, there they also subsist. And as love and wisdom exist and subsist in use, it is by use we are affected ; and use consists in a faithful, sincere, and diligent discharge of the duties of our calling. The love of use, and a consequent applica- tion to it, preserve the powers of the mind, and prevent their dispersion ; so that the mind is guarded against wandering and dissipation, and the imbibing of false lusts, which with their enchanting delusions flow in from the body and the world through the senses, whereby the truths of religion and morality, with ail that is good in either, become the sport of every wind ; but the application of the mind to use binds and unites those truths, and disposes the mind to become a form receptible of the wisdom thence derived ; and in this case it extirpates the idle sports and pastimes of falsity and vanity, banishing them from its centre towards the circumference. But you will hear more on this subject from the wise ones of our society, when I will send to you in the afternoon. So saying, the prince arose, and the new quests along with him, and bidding them farewell, he charged the conducting angel to lead them back to their private apart* menus and there to show them every token of civility and respect, and also to invite some courteous and agreeable company to enter- tain them with conversation respecting the various joys of this society. 17. The angel executed the prince's charge; and when they IT CONJCGIAL LOVE were turned to their private apartments, the company, invited from the city to inform them respecting the various joys of the society, arrived, and after the usual compliments entered into conversation with them as they walked along in a strain at once entertaining and elegant. But the conducting angel said, "These ten men were invited into this heaven to see its joys, and to receive thereby a new idea concerning eternal happiness. Ac- quaint us therefore with some of its joys which afiect the bodily senses; and afterwards, some wise ones will arrive, who will acquaint us with what rendersthose joys satisfactory and happy." Then the company who were invited from the city related the following particulars: — "1. There are here days of festivity appointed by the prince, that the mind, by due relaxation, may recover from the weariness which an emulative desire may occa- sion in particular cases. On such days we have concerts of music and singing in the public places, and out of the city are exhibited games ami shows: in the public places at such times are raised orchestras surrounded with balusters formed of vines wreathed together, from which hang bunches of ripe grapes ; within these balusters in three rows, one above another, sit the musicians, with their wind and stringed instruments of various tones, both high and low, loud and soft; and near them are singers of both sexes who entertain the citizens with the sweetest music and singing, both in concert and solo, varied at times as to its particular: kind : these concerts continue on those days of festivity from morning till noon, and afterwards till evening. 2. Moreover, every morning from the houses around the public places we hear the sweetest songs of virgins and young girls, which resound though the whole city. It is an affection of spi- ritual love, which is sung every morning ; that is, it is rendered sonorous by modifications of the voice in singing, or by modula- tions. The affection in the song is perceived as the real affection, flowing into the minds of the hearers, and exciting thein to a correspondence with it: such is the nature of heavenly singing. The virgin-singers say, that the sound of their song is as it were Belt-inspired and self animated from within, and exalted with delight according to the reception it meets with from the hearers. When this is ended, the windows of the houses around the pub- lic places, and likewise of those in the streets, are shut, and so also are the doors ; and then the whole city is silent, and no noise heard in any part of it, nor is any person seen loitering in the streets, but all are intent on their work and the duties of their calling, o. At noon, however, the doors are opened, and in the afternoon also the windows in some houses, and boys and girls are seen playing in the streets, while their masters and mis- tresses sit in the porches of their houses, watching over them, and keeping them in order. 4. At the extreme parts of the city there are various sports of boys and young men, as running, hand-ball, tennis, etc.; there are besides trials of skill among the 9.K AND ITS CHASTE DELIQHTS. 17, 18 boys, in order to discover the readiness of their wit in speaking, acting, and perceiving; and such as excel receive some leaves of laurel as a reward ; not to mention other things of a like nature, designed to cull forth and exercise the latent talents of the joung people. 5. Moreover out of the city are exhibited stage-enter- tainments, in which the actors represent the various graces and virtues of moral life, among whom are inferior characters for the pake of relatives." And one of the ten asked, " How for the sake of relatives?" And they replied, " No virtue with its graces and beauties, can be suitably represented except by means of relatives, in which are comprised and represented all its graces and beauties, from the greatest to the least ; and the inferior characters represent the least, even till they become extinct; but it is provided by law, that nothing of the opposite, which is indecorous and dishonorable, should be exhibited, except figura- tively, and as it were remotely. The reason of which provision is. because nothing that is honorable and good in any virtue can by successive progressions pass over to what is dishonorable and evil : it only proceeds to its least, when it perishes ; and when that is the case, the opposite commences ; wherefore heaven, where all things are honorable and good, has nothing in common with hell, where all things are dishonorable and evil." 18. During this conversation, a servant came in and brought word, that the eight wise ones, invited by the prince's order, were arrived, and wished to be admitted ; whereupon the angel went out to receive and introduce them: and presently the wise ones, after the customary ceremonies of introduction, began to con verse with them on the beginnings and increments of wisdom, with which the}' intermixed various remarks respecting its pro- gression, shewing, that with the angels it never ceases or comes to a period, but advances and increases to eternity. Hereupon the attendant angel said to them, "Our prince at table while talking with these strangers respecting the seat or abode of wis- dom, showed that it consists in use: if agreeable to you, be pleased to acquaint them further on the same subject." They therefore said, " Man, at his first creation, was endued with wisdom and its love, not for the sake of himself, but that he in ight communicate it to others from himself. Hence it is a maxim inscribed on the wisdom of the wise, that no one is wise for himself alone, or lives for himself, but for others at the same time: this is the origin of society, which otherwise could not exist. To live for others is to perform uses. Uses are the Donds of society, which are as many in number as there are good uses ; and the number of uses is infinite. There are spi- ritual uses, such as regard love to God and love towards our neighbour ; there are moral and civil uses, such as regard the love of the society and state to which a man belongs, and of his fellow-citizens among whom he lives ; there are natural uses, 27 18-20 CONJUGIAL LOVE which regard the love of the world and its necessities; and there are corporeal uses, such as regard the lore of self-preservation with a view to superior uses. All these uses are inscribed on man, and follow in order one after another ; and when they are together, one is in the other. Those who are in the first uses, which are spiritual, are in all the succeeding ones, and such per- sons are wise; but those who are not in the first, and yet are in the second, and thereby tn the succeeding ones, are not so highly principled in wisdom, but only appear to be so by virtue of an external morality and civility; those who are neither in the first nor second, but only in the third and fourth, have not the least pretensions to wisdom ; for they are satans, loving oidy the world and themselves for the sake of the world ; but those who are only in the fourth, are least wise of all ; for they are devils, because they live to themselves alone, and only to others for the sake of themselves. Moreover, every love has its particular delight; for it is by delight, that love is kept alive ; and the de- light of the love of uses is a heavenly delight, which enters into succeeding delights in their order, and according to the order of succession, exalts them and makes them eternal." After this they enumerated the heavenly delights proceeding from the love of uses, and said, that they are a thousand times ten thousand ; and that all who enter heaven enter into those delights. With further wise conversation on the love of use, they passed the day with them until evening. 19. Towards evening there came a messenger clothed in linen to the ten strangers who attended the angel, and invited them to a marriage-ceremony which was to be celebrated the next day, and the strangers were much rejoiced to think that they were idso to be present at a marriage-ceremony in heaven. After this they were conducted to the house of one of the counsellors, and supped with him ; and after supper they returned to the palace, and each retired to his own chamber, where they slept till morning. When they awoke, they heard the singing of the virgins and young girls from the houses around the public places of resort, which we mentioned above. They sting that morning the affection of conjugial love ; the sweetness of which so affected and moved the hearers, that they perceived sensibly a blessed serenity instilled into their joys, which at the some time exalted and renewed them. At the hour appointed the angel said, w Make yourselves ready, and put on the heavenly garments which our prince sent you ;" and they did so, and lo! the gar- ments were resplendent as with a flaming light; and on their asking the angel, " Whence is this?" he replied, "Because yon are going to a marriage-ceremony ; and when that is the case, our garments always assume a shining appearance, and become marriage garments." 20. After this the angel conducted them to the house where 28 AND ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS. 20, 21 the nuptials were to be celebrated, and the porter opened tho door; and presently being admitted within the house, they were received and welcomed by an angel sent from the bridegroom, and were introduced and shewn to the seats intended for them : and soon after they were invited into an ante-chamber, in the middle of which they saw a table, and on it a magnificent can- dlestick with seven branches and sconces of gold : against the walls there were hung silver lamps, which being lighted made the atmosphere appear of a golden hue: and they observed on each Bide of the candlestick two tables, on which were set loaves in three rows; there were tables also at the four corners of the room, on which were placed crystal cups. While they were viewing these things, lo ! a door opened from a closet near the marriage-chamber, and six virgins came out, and after them the bridegroom and the bride, holding each other by the hand, and ad vancing towards a seat placed opposite to the candlestick, on which they seated themselves, the bridegroom on the left hand, and the bride on the right, while the six virgins stood by the heat near the bride. The bridegroom was dressed in a robe of bright purple, and a tunic of fine shining linen, with an ephod, on which was a golden plate set round with diamonds, and on the plate was engraved a young eagle, the marriage-ensign of that heavenly society ; on his head he wore a mitre: the bride was dressed in a scarlet mantle, under which was a gown, orna- mented with fine needle- work, that reached from her neck to her feet, and beneath her bosom she wore a golden girdle, and on her head a golden crown set with rubies. When they were thus seated, the bridegroom turning himself towards the bride, put a golden ring on her finger ; he then took bracelets and a pearl necklace, and clasped the bracelets about her wrists, and the necklace about her neck, and said, " Accept these pledges /" and as she accepted them he kissed her, and said, " .Now thou art mine;" and he called her his wife. On this all the company cried out, '"May the divine blessing be upon you !" These words were first pronounced by each separately, and afterwards by all together. They were pronounced also in turn by a certain person sent from the prince as his representative ; and at that instant the ante-chamber was filled with an aromatic smoke, which was a token of blessing from heaven. Then the servants in waiting took loaves from the two tables near the candlestick, and cups, now filled with wine, from the tables at the corners of the room, and gave to each of the guests his own loaf and his own enpj and they ate and drank. After this the husband and his wife arose, and the six virgins attended them with the silver lamps, now lighted, in their hands to the threshold; and the married pair entered their chamber ; and the door was shut. 21. Afterwards the conducting angel talked with the guests about, his ten companions, acquainting them how he was com- 21 CON.TUGIAL LOVE missioned to introduce them, and shew tliem the magnificent things contained in the prince's palace, and other wonderful sights ; and how they had dined at table with him, and after- wards had conversed with the wise ones of the society ; and he said, "May I be permitted to introduce them also to you, in order that they may enjoy the pleasure of your conversation ?" So he introduced them, and they entered into discourse together. Then a certain wise personage, one of the marriage-guests, said, "Do you understand the meaning of what you have seen?" They replied, "But little;" and then they asked him, "Why was the bridegroom, who is now a husband, dressed in that par- ticular manner ?" He answered, " Because the bridegroom, now a husband, represented the Lord, and the bride, avIio is now a wife, represented the chin ch ; for marriages in heaven represent the marriage of the Lord with the church. This is the reason why lie wore a mitre on his head, and was dressed in a robe, a tunic, and an ephod, like Aaron ; and why the bride had a crown on her head, and wore a mantle like a queen ; but to-morrow they will be dressed differently, because this representation lasts no longer than to-day." They further asked, "Since he repre- sented the Lord, and she the church, why did she sit at his right hand ?" The wise one replied, " Because there are two things which constitute the marriage of the Lord with the church — love and wisdom ; the Lord is love, and the church is wisdom ; and wisdom is at the right hand of love; for every member of the church is wise as of himself, and in proporlion as he is wise ho receives love from the Lord. The right hand also signifies power; and love has power by means of wisdom ; but, as we have just observed, after the marriage-ceremony the representa- tion is changed ; for then the husband represents wisdom, and the wife the love of his wisdom. This love however is not pri- mary, hut secondary love; being derived from the Lord to the wife through the wisdom of the husband: the love of the Lord, which is the primary love, is the husband's love of being wise; therefore after marriage, both together, the husband and his wife, represent the church." They asked again, " Why did not you men stand by the bridegroom, now the husband, as the six virgins stood by the bride, now the wife?" The wise one an- swered, Because we to-day are numbered among the virgins ; and the number six signifies all and what is complete." But they said, "Explain your meaning." lie replied, "Virgins signify the church ; and the church consists of both sexes : there- fore also we, with respect to the church, are virgins. That this is the case, is evident from these words in the Revelation : ' Tltesc are those who were not defiled with women / for they are viuuixs : and they folio to the Lamb whithersoever he yoelh] chap. xiv. 4. And as virgins signify the church, therefore the Lord likened it to ten vibgixs invited to a marriage, Mat. xxv. 30 AND ITS CHA8TK DELIGHTS. 22, 23 Ami as Israel, Zion, and Jerusalem, signify thecljnrch, therefore mention is so often made in the Word, of the virgin and DAUGHTER OF ISRAEL, OF ZlON, AND OF JERUSALEM. Tile Lord also describes his marriage with the church in these words: • Upon thy eight hand did stand the qckkn in gold of Ophir : her clothing is of wrought gold: she shall be brought unto the king in RAIMENT of needlework : the VIRGINS her companions that follow her shull enter into the king's palace,'' Psalm xlv. 9 — 16." Lastly they asked, ''Is it not expedient that a priest he present and minister at. the marriage-ceremony ?" The wise one answered, "This is expedient on the earth, but not in the heavens, by reason of the representation of the Lord himself and the church. On the earth they are not aware of this; hut even with us a priest ministers in whatever relates to betroth- ings, or marriage contracts, and hears, receives, confirms, and consecrates the consent of the parlies. Consent is the essential of marriage; all succeeding ceremonies are its formalities." 22. Alter this the conducting angel went to the six virgins, and gave them an account of his companions, and requested that they would vouchsafe to join company with them. Accord- ingly they came ; but when they drew near, they suddenly retired, and went, into the ladies' apartment to the virgins their companions. On seeing this, the conducting angel followed them, and asked why they retired so suddenly without, entering into conversation? They replied, "We cannot approach :" and he said, " Why not?" They answered, " We do not know; but we perceived something which repelled us and drove us back again. We hope they will excuse us." The angel then returned to his companions, and told them what the virgins had said, and added, "I conjecture that your love of the sex is not chaste. In heaven we love virgins for their beauty and the elegance of their manners ; and we love ihem intensely, but chastely." Hereupon his companions smiled and said, "You conjecture right: who can behold such beauties near and not feel some excitement?" 23. After much entertaining conversation the marriage-guests departed, and also the ten strangers with their attendant angel ; and the evening being far advanced, they retired to rest. In tiie morning they beard a proclamation, To-day is the Sabbath. They then arose and asked the angel what it meant : he replied, "It is for the worship of God, which returns at stated periods, and is proclaimed by the priests. The worship is performed in our temples and lasts about two hours; wherefore if it, please you, come along with me, and I will introduce you." So they made themselves ready, and attended the angel, and entered the temple. It was a large building capable of containing about three thousand persons, of a semicircular form, with benches or Beatii carried round in a continued sweep according to the figure 3L 23—26 CONJUGIAL LOVE of the temple ; the hinder ones being more elevated than tnose in front. The pulpit in front of the seats was drawn a little from the centre ; the door was behind the pulpit on the left hand. The ten strangers entered with their conducting angel, who pointed out to them the places where they were to sit; tell- ing them, " Every one that enters the temple knows his own place by a kind of innate perception ; nor can he sit in any place but his own : in case he takes another place, he neither hears nor perceives anything, and he also disturbs the order; the con- sequence of which is, that the priest is not inspired." 24. When the congregation had assembled, the priest as- cended the pulpit, and preached a sermon full of the spirit of wisdom. The discourse was concerning the sanctity "of the Iloly Scriptures, and the conjunction of the Lord with both worlds, the spiritual and the natural, by means thereof. In the illus- tration in which he then was, he fully proved, that that holy book was dictated by Jehovah the Lord, and that consequently He is in it, so as to be the wisdom it contains ; but that the wisdom which is Himself therein, lies concealed under the sense of the letter, and is opened only to those who are in the truths of doctrine, and at the same time in goodness of life, and thus who are in the Lord, and the Lord in them. To his discourse he added a votive prayer and descended. As the audience were going out, the angel requested the priest to speak a few words of peace with his ten companions; so he came to them, and they conversed together for about half an hour. He discoursed con- cerning the divine trinity — that it is in Jesus Christ, in whom all the fulness of the Godhead dwells bodily, according to the declaration of the apostle Paul ; and afterwards concerning the union .if charity and faith; but he said, '• the union of charity and truth;" because faith is truth. -d. After expressing their thanks they returned home ; and then tiie angel said to them, "This is the third day since you came into the society of this heaven, and you were prepared by the Lord to stay here three days ; it is time therefore that we separate; put off therefore the garments sent you by the prince, and put on your own.'' When they had done so, they were in- spired with a desire to be gone ; so they departed and descended, the angel attending them to the place of assembly; and there the}' gave thanks to the Lord for vouchsafing to bless them with knowledge, and thereby with intelligence, concerning heavenly joys and eternal happiness. 2(>. "I again solemnly declare, that these things were done and said as they are related; the former in the world of spirits, which is intermediate between heaven and hell, and the latter in the society of heaven to which the angel with the trumpet and the conductor belonged. Who in the Christian world would have known anything concerning heaven, and the jovs and hap* 32 AND ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS. 26 pin ess there experienced, the knowledge of which is the know- ledge of salvation, unless it had pleased the Lord to open to sonic person the sight of his spirit, in order to shew and teach them? That similar things exist in the spiritual world is very manifest from what were seen and heard by the apostle John, as described in the Revelation ; as that he saw the Son of Man in the midst of seven candlesticks; also a tabernacle, temple, ark, and altar in heaven; a book sealed with seven seals; the In Mile opened, and horses going forth thence ; four animals around the throne; twelve thousand chosen out of every tribe; locusts ascending out of the "bottomless pit; a dragon, and his combat with Michael ; a woman bringing forth a male child, and flying into a wilderness on account of the dragon ; two beasts, one ascending out of the sea, the other out of the earth ; a woman sitting upon a scarlet beast; the dragon cast out into a lake of fire and brimstone ; a white horse and a great supper ; a new heaven and a new earth, and the holy Jerusalem descending described as to its gates, wall, and foundation ; also a river of the water of life, and trees of life bearing fruits every month ; besides several other particulars ; all which things were seen by John, while as to his spirit he was in the spiritual world and in heaven : not to mention the things seen by the apostles after the Lord's resurrection ; and what were afterwards seen and heard by Peter, Acts xi. ; also by Paul ; moreover by the prophets ; as by EzEKiEL,'who saw four animals which were cherubs, chap i. and chap x. ; a new temple and a new earth, and an angel measuring them, chap. xl. — xlviii. ; and was led away to Jeru- salem, and saw there abominations : and also into Chaldea into captivity, chap. viii. and chap. xi. The case was similar with ZixiiAKiAH, who saw a man riding among myrtles ; also four horns, chap. i. 8, and following verses; and afterwards a man with a measuring-line in his hand, chap. ii. 1, and following verses ; likewise a candlestick and two olive trees, chap. iv. 2, and following verses ; also a flying roll and an ephah, chap. v. 1,0; also four chariots going forth between two mountains, and horses, chap. vi. 1, and following verses. So likewise with Daniel, who saw four beasts coming up out of the sea, chap. vii. 1, and following verses ; also combats of a ram and he-goat, chap. viii. 1, and following verses ; who also saw the angel Gabriel, and had much discourse with him, chap. ix. : the youth of Elisha saw chariots and horses of lire round about Elisha, and saw them when his eyes were opened, 2 Kings vi. 15, and fol- lowing verses. From these and several other instances in the Word, it is evident, that the things which exist in the spiritual world, appeared to many both before and after the Lord's com- ing: is it any wonder then, that the same things should now also appear when the church is commencing, or when the New Jerusalem is coining down from the Lord out of heaven?" «j MS 27, 28 CONJCOIAL LOVE ON MARRIAGES IN HEAVEN. 27. That there are marriages in heaven cannot be admitted as an article of faith by those who imagine that a man after death is a sonl or spirit, and who conceive of a soul or spirit as of a rarefied ether or vapor ; who imagine also, that a man will not live as a man till after the day of the last judgment; and in general who know nothing respecting the spiritual world, in which angels and spirits dwell, consequently in which there are heavens and hells : and as that world "has been heretofore unknown, and mankind have been in total ignorance that the angels of heaven are men, in a perfect form, and in like manner infernal spirits, but in an imperfect form, therefore it was im- possible for anything to be revealed concerning marriages in that world ; for if it had it would have been objected, "How can a soul be joined with a soul, or a vapor with a vapor, as one mar- ried partner with another here on earth ?" not to mention other similar objections, which, the instant they were made, would take away and dissipate all faith respecting marriages in another life. But now, since several particulars have been revealed con- cerning that world, and a description has also been given of its nature and quality, in the treatise on Heaven and Hell, and also in the Apocalypse Revealed, the assertion, that marriages take place in that world, may bo so far confirmed as even to convince the reason by the following propositions : I. A man (homo) lives a man after death. II. In this case a male is a male, and a female a female. III. Every one's peculiar love remains with him after death. IV. The love of tlie sex espe- cially remains ; and with those xoho go to heaven, which is the case with all who become spiritual here on earth, conjugial love remains. V. These things fully confirmed by ocular demon- stration. VI. Consequently that there are marriages in the heamens. VII. Spiritual nuptials are to be understood by the Lord's loords, where he says, that after the resurrection they arc, not given in marriage. We will now give an explanation of these propositions in their order. 28. I. A man lives a man after death. That a man lives a man after death has been heretofore unknown in the world, for tlie reasons just now mentioned; and, what is surprising, it has been unknown even in the Christian world, where they have the Word, and illustration thence concerning eternal life, and where the Lord himself teaches, That all the dead rise again / and that (rod is not the God of the dead but of the living, Matt. xxii. 31, ;>2. Luke xx. 37, 38. Moreover, a man, as to the affections and thoughts of his mind, is in the midst of angels and spirits, and is so eoiiSQciated with them that were he to be separated from them he would instantly die. It is still more surprising that this AND ITS CHA8TE DELIGHT8. 28, 25 is unknown, when yet every man that has departed this lite since the beginning of creation, after his decease has come and does still come to his own, or, as it is said in the Word, has been gathered and is gathered to his own : besides every one has a common perception, which is the same thing as the influx of heaven into the interiors of his mind, by virtue of which he inwardly perceives truths, and as it were sees them, and espe- cially this truth, that he lives a man after death ; a happy man if he has lived well, and an unhappy one if he has lived ill. For who does not think thus, while he elevates his mind in any degree above the body, and above the thought which is nearest to the senses; as is the case when he is interiorly engaged in divine worship, and when he lies on his death-bed expecting his disso- lution ; also when he hears of those who are deceased, and their lot? I have related a thousand particulars respecting departed spirits, informing certain persons that are now alive concerning the state of their deceased brethren, their married partners, and their friends. I have written also concerning the state of the English, the Dutch, the Papists, the Jews, the Geutiles, and like- wise concerning the state of Luther, Calvin, and Melancthon ; and hitherto I never heard any one object, " How can such be their lot, when they are not yet risen from their tombs, the last judgement not being yet accomplished? Are they not in the meantime mere vaporous and unsubstantial souls residing, iu some place of confinement (in qitodam pu seu iibi)?" Such ob- jections I have never yet heard from any quarter ; whence I have been led to conclude, that every one perceives in himself that he lives a man after death. Who that has loved his married partner and his children when they are dying or are dead, will not say within himself (if his thought be elevated above the sensual prin- ciples of the body) that they are in the hand of God, and that he shall see them again after his own death, and again be joined with them in a life of love and joy \ 29. Who, that is willing, cannot see from reason, that a man after death is not a mere vapor, of which no idea can be formed but as of a breath of wind, or of air and ether, and that such vapor constitutes or contains in it the human soul, which desires and expects conjunction with its body, in order that it may enjoy the bodily senses and their delights, as previously in the world { We cannot see, that if this were the case with a man after death, his state would be more deplorable than that of fishes, birds, and terrestrial animals, whose souls are not alive, and conse- quently are not in such anxiety of desire and expectation ? Sup- posing a man after death to be such a vapor, and thus a breath of wind, he would either fly about in the universe, or according to certain traditions, would be reserved in a place of confine- ment, or in the limbo of the ancient fathers, until the last judgement. Who cannot hence from reason conclude, that those 35 29—31 CONJUGIAL LOVE •who have lived since the beginning of creation, which is com- puted to be abont six thousand years ago, must be still in a similar anxious state, and progressively more anxious, because all expec- tation arising from desire produces anxiety, and being continued from time to time increases it ; consequently, that they must still be either floating about in the universe, or be kept shut up in confinement, and thereby in extreme misery ; and that must be the case with Adam and his wife, with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, and with all who have lived since that time? All this being supposed true, it must needs follow, that nothing would be more deplorable than to be born a man. But the reverse of this is provided by the Lord, who is Jehovah from eternity and the Creator of the universe; for the state of the man that conjoins himself with him by a life according to his precepts, becomes more blessed and happy after death than before it. in the world ; and it is more blessed and happy from this circumstance, that the man then is spiritual, and a spiritual man is sensible of and perceives spiritual delight, which is a thousand times superior to natural delight. 30. That angels and spirits are men, may plainly appear from those seen by Abraham, Gideon, Daniel, and the prophets, and especially by John when he wrote the Revelation, and also by the women in the Lord's sepulchre, yea, from the Lord himself as seen by the disciples after his resurrection. The reason of their being seen was, because the eyes of the spirits of those who saw them were opened ; and when the eyes of the spirit are opened, angels appear in their proper form, which is the human; but when the eyes of the spirit are closed, that is, when they are veiled by the vision of the bodily eyes, which derive all their impressions from the material world, then they do not appear. 31. It is however to be observed, that a man after death is not a natural, but a spiritual man; nevertheless he still appears in all respects like himself ; and so much so, that he knows not but that he is still in the natural world : for he has a similar body, countenance, speech, and senses ; for he has a similar affec- tion and thought, or will and understanding. He is indeed actually not similar, because he is a spiritual, and consequently an interior man ; but the difference does not appear to him, be- cause he cannot compare his spiritual state with his former natural state, having put off the latter, and being in the former ; therefore 1 have often heard such persons say, that they know not but that they are in the former world, with this difference, however, that they no longer see those whom they had left in that world ; but that they see those who had departed out of it, or were deceased. The reason why they now see the latter and not the former, is, because they are no longer natural men, but spiritual or sub- stantial ; and a spiritual or substantial man sees a spiritual or substantial man, as a natural or material man sees a natural or 36 AND ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS. 31, 32 material man, but not vice versa, on account of the difference between what is substantial and what is material, which is like the difference between what is prior and what is posterior; and what is prior, being in itself purer, cannot appear to what is posterior, which in itself is grosser; nor can what is posterior, being grosser, appear to what is prior, which in itself is purer ; consequently an angel cannot appear to a man of this world, nor a man of this world to an angel. The reason why a man after death is a spiritual or substantial man, is, because this spiritual or substantial man lay inwardly concealed in the natural or material man ; which natural or material man was to it as a covering, or as a skin about to be cast off ; and when the cover- ing or skin is cast off, the spiritual or substantial man comes forth, a purer, interior, and more perfect man. That the spi- ritual man is still a perfect man, notwithstanding his being invi- sible to the natural man, is evident from the Lord's being seen by the apostles after his resurrection, when he appeared, and presently he did not appear; and yet he was a man like to him- self both when seen and when not seen : it is also said, that wdien they saw him, their eyes were opened. 32. II. In this case a male is a male, and a female a female. Since a man (homo) lives a man after death, and man is male and female, and there is such a distinction between the male principle and the female principle, that the one cannot be changed into the other, it follows, that after death the male lives a male, and the female a female, each being a spiritual man. It is said that the male principle cannot be changed into the female principle, nor the female into the male, and that there- fore after death the male is a male, and the female a female ; but as it is not known in what the masculine principle essentially consists, and in what the feminine, it may be expedient briefly to explain it. The essential distinction between the two is this : in the masculine principle, love is inmost, and its covering is wis- dom ; or, what is the same, the masculine principle is love covered (or veiled) by wisdom ; whereas in the feminine principle, the wis- dom of the male is inmost, and its covering is love thence derived ; but this latter love is feminine, and is given by the Lord to the wife through the wisdom of the husband ; whereas the former love is masculine, which is the love of growing wise, and is given by the Lord to the husband according to the reception of wisdom. It is from this circumstance, that the male is the wisdom of love, and the female is the love of that wisdom; therefore from crea- tion there is implanted in each a love of conjunction so as to become a one; but on this subject more will be said in the fol- lowing pages. That the female principle is derived from the male, or that the woman was taken out of the man, is evident from these words in Genesis : Jehovah God took out one of the man's ribs, and closed up the flesh in the place thereof '• and he 37 32—34 CONJUGIAL I.OVE buildedthe rib, which he had taken out of the man, into a woman; and he brought her to the man; and the man said, This is bone of my bones, and flesh of my flesh; hence she shall be called Eoe, because she was taken out of man, chap. ii. 21 — 23 : the signifi- cation of a rib and of flesh will be shewn elsewhere. 33. From this primitive formation it follows, that by birth • the character of the male is intellectual, and that the female character partakes more of the will principle; or, what amounts to the same, that the male is born into the affection of knowing, understanding, and growing wise, and the female into the love ot conjoining herself with that affection in the male. And as the interiors form the exteriors to their own likeness, and the mas- culine form is the form of intellect, and the feminine is the form of the love of that intellect, therefore the male and the female differ as to the features of the face, the tone of the voice, and the form of the body ; the male having harder features, a harsher tone of voice, a stronger body, and also a bearded chin, and in general a form less beautiful than that of the female ; they differ also in their gestures and manners ; in a word, they are not exactly similar in a single respect ; but still, in every particular of each, there is a tendency to conjunction; yea, the male prin- ciple in the male, is male in every part of his body, even the most minute, and also in every idea of his thought, and every spark of his affection ; the same is true of the female principle in the female ; and since of consequence the one cannot be changed into the other, it follows, that after death a male is a male, and a female a female. 34. III. Every one's peculiar love remains with him aftek death. Man knows that there is such a thing as love ; but he does not know what love is. He knows that there is such a thing from common discourse ; as when it is said, that such a one loves me, that a king loves his subjects, and subjects love their king; that a husband loves his wife, and a mother her children, and vice versa; also when it is said, that any one loves his country, his fellow citizens, and his neighbour ; in like man- ner of things abstracted from persons; as when it is said that a man loves this or that. But although the term love is thus uni- versally applied in conversation, still there is scarcely any one that knows what love is: even while meditating on the subject, as he is not then able to form any distinct idea concerning it, and thus not to fix it as present in the light of the understand- ing, because of its having relation not to light but to heat, he either denies its reality, or he calls it merely an influent effect arising from the sight, the hearing, and the conversation, and thus accounts for the motions to which it gives birth; not being at all aware, that love is his very life, not only the common life of his whole body and of all his thoughts, but also the life of all their particulars. A wise man may perceive this from the con- 38 AND ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS. 34—37 adoration, that if the affection of love be removed, he is inca- pable both of thinking and acting; for in proportion as that affection grows cold, do not thought, speech, and action grow cold also '( and in proportion as that affection grows warm, do not tliey also grow warm in the same degree? Love therefore is the heat of the life of man {hominis), or his vital heat. The heat of the blood, and also its redness, are from this source alone. The lire of the angelic sun, which is pure love, produces this effect. 35. That every one has his own peculiar love, or a love dis- tinct from that of another ; that is, that no two men have exactly the same love, may appear from the infinite variety of human countenances, the countenance being a type of the love; for it is well known that the countenance is changed and varied accord- ing to the affection of love; a man's desires also, which are of love, and likewise his joys and sorrows, are manifested in the countenance. From this consideration it is evident, that every man is his own peculiar love ; yea, that he is the form of his love. It is however to be observed, that the interior man, which is the same with ins spirit which lives after death, is the form of his love, and not so the exterior man which lives in this world, because the latter has learnt from infancy to conceal the desires of his love; yea, to make a pretence and show of desires which are different from his own. 36. The reason why every one's peculiar love remains with him after death, is, because, as was said just above, n. 34, love is a man's {hominis) life ; and hence it is the man himself. A man also is his own peculiar thought, thus his own peculiar intelli- gence and wisdom ; but these make a one with his love ; for a man thinks from this love and according to it; yea, if he be in freedom, he speaks and acts in like manner ; from which it may appear, that love is the esse or essence of a man's life, and that thought is the existere or existence of his life thence de- rived ; therefore speech and action, which are said to flow from the thought, do not flow from the thought, but from the love through the thought. From much experience I have learned that a man after death is not his own peculiar thought, but that he is his own peculiar affection and derivative thought ; or that he is his own peculiar love and derivative intelligence ; also that a man after death puts off' everything which does not agree with his love ; yea, that he successively puts on the countenance, the tone of voice, the speech, the gestures, and the manners of the love proper to hits life: hence it is, that the whole heaven is arranged in order according to i?ll the varieties of the affections of the love of good, and the whole hell according to all the affec- tions of the love of evil. 37. IV . The love of the sex especiaxly remains ; and WITH THOSE WHO GO TO HEAVEN, WHICH IS THE CASE WITH ALL »VHO BECOME SPIRITUAL HEI'.E ON EARTH, CON^UGIAL LOVE RE- 3'J 37—30 CONJUGIAL LOVE mains. The reason why the love of the sex remains with man {homo) after death, is, because after death a male is a male and a female a female ; and the male principle in the male is male (or masculine) in the whole and in every part thereof; and so is the female principle in the female ; and there is a tendency to conjunction in all their parts, even the most singular; and as this conjunctive tendency was implanted from creation, and thence perpetually influences, it follows, that the one desires and seeks conjunction with the other. Love, considered itself, is a desire and consequent tendency to conjunction ; and conjugial love to conjunction into a one; for the male-man and the female- man were so created, that from two they may become as it were one man, or one flesh ; and when they become a one, then, taken together they are a man {homo) in his fulness ; but without such conjunction, they are two, and each is a divided or half-man. Now as the above conjunctive tendency lies concealed in the in- most of every part of the male, and of every part of the female, and the same is true of the faculty and desire to be conjoined together into a one, it follows, that the mutual and reciprocal love of the sex remains with men {ho?ni?ies) after death. 38. We speak distinctively of the love of the sex and of con- jugial love, because the one differs from the other. The love of the sex exists with the natural man ; conjugial love with the spi- ritual man. The natural man loves and desires only external conjunctions, and the bodily pleasures thence derived ; whereas the spiritual man loves and desires internal conjunctions and the spiritual satisfactions thence derived ; and these satisfactions he perceives are granted with one wife, with whom he can perpetu- ally be more and more joined together into a one : and the more he enters into such conjunction the more he perceives his satis- factions ascending in a similar degree, and enduring to eternity ; but respecting anything like this the natural man lias no idea. This then is the reason why it is said, that after death conjugial love remains with those who go to heaven, which is the case with all those who become spiritual here on earth. 39. V. Thksk things fully confirmed by ocular de- monstration. That a man {homo) lives as a man after death, and that in this case a male is a male, and a female a female ; and that every one's peculiar love remains with him after death, especially the love of the sex and conjugial love, are positions which I have wished hitherto to confirm by such arguments as respect the understanding, and are called rational ; but since man {homo) from his infancy, in consequence of what has been taught him by his parents and masters, and afterwards by the learned and the clergy, has been induced to believe, that he shall not live a man alter death until the day of the last judgement, which has now been ejected for six thousand years; and several have regarded this article of iaith as one which ought to be believed, 40 AND ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS. 39—41 but not intellectually conceived, it was therefore necessary that the above positions should be confirmed also by ocular proofs ; otherwise a man who belives only the evidence of his senses, in consequence of the faith previously implanted, would object thus : "If men lived men after death, I should certainly see and hear them : who has ever descended from heaven, or ascended from hell, and given such information?" In reply to such objections it is to be observed, that it never was possible, nor can it ever be, that any angel of heaven should descend, or any spirit of hell ascend, and speak with any man, except with those who have the interiors of the mind or spirit opened by the Lord ; and this opening of the interiors cannot be fully effected except with those who have been prepared by the Lord to receive the things which are of spiritual wisdom : on which accounts it has pleased the Lord thus to prepare me, that the state of heaven and hell, and of the life of men after death, might not remain unknown, and be laid asleep in ignorance, and at length buried in denial. Ne- vertheless, ocular proofs on the subjects above mentioned, by reason of their copiousness, cannot here be adduced ; but they have been alread}^ adduced in the treatise on Heaven and Hell, and in the Continuation respecting the Spiritual World, and afterwards in the Apocalypse Revealed ; but especially, in regard to the present subject of marriages, in the memorable relations which are annexed to the several paragraphs or chap- ters of this work. 40. VI. Consequently there are marriages in heaven. This position having been confirmed by reason, and at the same time by experience, needs no further demonstration. 41. VII. Spiritual nuptials are to be understood by the Lord's words, " after the resurrection they are not given in marriage." In the Evangelists are these words, Cer- tain of the Sadducees, who say that there is no resurrection, asked Jesus, saying, Master, Moses wrote, If a man die, having no children, his brother shall take his wife, and raise up seed unto his brother. Now there toere with us seven breth ren j and the -first, when he had married a wife, deceased, and having no issue, left his wife unto his brother ; likewise the second also, and, the third unto the seven th / last of all the woman died also j there- fore in the resurrection whose wife shall she be of the seven f But Jesus answering, said unto them,, The sons of this generation marry, and are given in marriage / but those who shall be ac- counted worthy to attain to another generation, andthe rcsurrcc- t ion from the dead, shall neither marry nor be given in marriage, neither can they die any more • for they are like unto the angels, and are the sons of God, being sons of the resurrection. But that the dead rise again, even Moses shewed at the bush, when he called the Lord the God of Abraham, andthe God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob ; for he is not the God of the dead, but of ' *,he 41 41, 42 CONJUGIAL LOVE living • for all live unto him, Luke xx. 27 — 38 , Matt. xxii. 22 —32 ; Mark xii. 18 — 27. By these words the Lord taught two things ; first, that a man {homo) rises again after deatli ; and second]}', that in heaven they are not given in marriage. That a man rises again after death, he taught hy these words, God is not the God of the dead, hut of the living, and when he said that Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, are alive : he taught the same also in the parable concerning the rich man in hell, and Lazarus in heaven, Luke xvi. 22 — 31. Secondly, that in heaven they are not given in marriage, he taught by these words, " Those who shall be accounted worthy to attain to another generation, neither marry nor are given in marriage" That none other than spi- ritual nuptials are here meant, is very evident from the words which immediately follow — "neither can they die any more; because they are like unto the angels, and are the sons of God, being sons of the resurrection.'''' Spiritual nuptials mean conjunc- tion with the Lord, which is effected on earth ; and when it is effected on earth, it is also effected in the heavens; therefore in the heavens there is no repetition of nupt ials, nor are they again given in marriage : this is also meant by these words, " The sons of this generation marry and are given in marriage ; but those who are accounted worthy to attain to another generation, neither marry nor are given in marriage." The latter are also called by the Lord "sons of nuptials," Matt. ix. 15; Mark ii. 19; and in this place, angels, sons of God, and sons of the resur- rection. That to celebrate nuptials, signifies to be joined with the Lord, and that to enter into nuptials is to be received into jieaven by the Lord, is manifest from the following passages : The kingdom of heaven is like unto a man, a king, who made a marriage (nuptials) for his son , and sent out servants and invited to the marriage, Matt. xxii. 2 — 14. The kingdom of heaven is like unto ten virgins, who went forth to meet the bridegroom : of whom Jive being prepared entered into the marriage (nuptials), Matt. xxv. 1, and the following verses. That the Lord here meant himself, is evident from verse 13, where it is said, Watch ye : because ye know not the day and hour in which the Son of Man will come : also from the Revelation, The time of the mai-- riage of the Lamb is come, and his wife hath made herself ready : blessed are those who are called to the marriage supper of the Lamb, xix. 7, 9. That there is a spiritual meaning in every- thing which the Lord spake, has been fully shewn in the Doc- trine of the New Jerusalem concerning the Sacred Scrip- Turk, published at Amsterdam in the year 1763. ***** 42. To the above I shall add two memorable relations respecting the spiritual would. The first is as follows : One morning I was looking upwards into heaven and saw over me three expanses one above another; I saw that the first expanse, 42 AND ITS CHASTE DELIGUT3. 42 which was nearest, opened, and presently the second which was above it, and lastly the third which was highest; and by virtue of illustration thence, I perceived, that above the first expanse were the angels who compose the first or lowest heaven ; above the second expanse were the angels who compose the second or middle heaven ; and above the third expanse were the angels who compose the third or highest heaven. I wondered at first what all this meant: and presently I heard from heaven a voice as of a trumpet, saying, "We have perceived, and now see, that you are meditating on conjugial love; and we are aware that no one on earth as yet knows what true conjugial love is in its origin and in its essence ; and yet it is of importance that it should be known : therefore it has pleased the Lord to open the heavens to you in order that illustrating light and consequent perception may flow into the interiors of your mind. "With us in the heavens, especially in the third heaven, our heavenly delights are principally derived from conjugial love; therefore, in consequence of leave granted us, we will send down to you a conjugial pair for your inspection, and observation ;" and lo ! instantly there appeared a chariot descending from the highest or third heaven, in which I saw one angel ; but as it approached I saw therein two. The chariot at a distance glittered before my eyes like a diamond, and to it were harnessed young horses white as snow; and those who sat in the chariot held in their hands two turtle-doves, and called to me, saying, "Do you wish us to come nearer to you? but in this case take heed, lest the radiance, which is from the heaven whence we have descended, and is of a flaming quality, penetrate too interiorly ; by its influence the superior ideas of your understanding, which are in themselves heavenly, may indeed be illustrated ; but these ideas are ineffable in the world in which you dwell : therefore what you are about to hear, receive rationally, that you may explain it so that it may be understood." I replied, " I will observe your caution; come nearer:" so they came nearer; and lo ! it was a husband and his wife ; who said, "We are a conjugial pair : we have lived happy in heaven from the earliest period, which you call the golden age, and have continued during that time in the same bloom of youth in which you now see us." I viewed each of them attentively, because I perceived they represented conjugial love in its life and in its decoration ; in its life in their faces, and in its decoration in their raiment ; for all the angels are affections of love in a human form. The ruling affection itself shines forth from their faces; and from the affection, and according to it, the kind and quality of their raiment is derived and determined : therefore it is said in heaven, that every one is clothed by his own affection. The husband appeared of a middle age, between manhood and youth : from his eyes darted forth sparkling light derived from the wisdom of love; by virtue of 43 CONJUGIAL LOVE which light his face was radiant from its inmost ground ; and in consequence of such radiance the surface of his skin had a kind of refulgence, whereby his whole face was one resplendent come- liness. He was dressed in an upper robe which reached down to his feet, and underneath it was a vesture of hyacinthine blue, girded about with a golden band, upon which were three precious stones, two sapphires on the sides, and a carbuncle in the middle ; his stockings were of bright shining linen, with threads of silver interwoven, and his shoes were of velvet: such was the representative form of conjugial love with the husband. With the wife it was this ; I saw her face, and I did not see it : I saw it as essential beauty, and I did not see it because this beauty was inexpressible ; for in her face there was a splendor of flaming light, such as the angels in the third heaven enjoy, and this light made my sight dim; so that I was lost in astonish- ment: she observing this addressed me, saying, "What do you see ?" I replied, " I see nothing but conjugial love and the form thereof; but I see, and I do not see." Hereupon she turned herself sideways from her husband ; and then I was enabled to view her more attentively. Her eyes were bright and sparkling from the light of her own heaven, which light, as was said, is of a flaming quality, which it derives from the love of wisdom ; for in that heaven wives love their husbands from their wisdom and in it, and husbands love their wives from that love of wisdom and in it, as directed towards themselves; and thus they are united. This was the origin of her beauty ; which was such that it would be impossible for any painter to imitate and exhibit it in its form, for he ha3 no colors bright and vivid enough to express its lustre ; nor is it in the power of his art to depict duch beauty : her hair was arranged in becoming order so as to correspond with her beauty; and in it were inserted diadems of llowers ; she had a necklace of carbuncles, from which hung a rosary of chrysolites ; and she wore pearl bracelets: her upper robe was scarlet, and underneath it she had a purple stomacher, fastened in front with clasps of rubies ; but what surprised me was, that the colors varied according to her aspect in regard to her husband, being sometimes more glittering, sometimes less; if she were looking towards him, more, if sideways, less. When I had made these observations, they again talked with me ; and when the husband was speaking, he spoke at the same time as from his wife ; and when the wife was speaking, she spoke at the same time as from her husband; such was the union of their minds from whence speech flows; and on this occasion 1 also heard the tone of voice of conjugial love; inwardly it was simultaneous, and it proceeded from the delights of a state of peace and innocence. At length they said, u ^We are recalled; we must depart:" and instantly they again appeared to be con- veyed in a chariot as before. They went bv a paved wav through 44 AND ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS 42—44 flowering shrubberies, from the beds of which arose olive and orange-trees laden with fruit: and when they approached their own heaven, they were met by several virgins, who welcomed and introduced them. 43. After this I saw an angel from that heaven holding in his hand a roll of parchment, which he unfolded, saying, "I see that you are meditating on conjugial love ; in this parchment are contained arcana of wisdom respecting that love, which have never yet been disclosed in the world. They are now to be dis- closed, because it is of importance that they should be : those arcana abound more in our heaven than in the rest, because we are in the marriage of love and wisdom ; but I prophesy that none will appropriate to themselves that love, but those who are received by the Lord into the New Church, which is the New Jerusalem." Having said this, the angel let down the unfolded parchment, which a certain angelic spirit received from him, and laid on a table in a certain closet, which he instantly locked, and holding out the key to me, said, " Write." 44. The second memorable relation. I once saw three' spirits recently deceased, who were wandering about in the world of spirits, examining whatever came in their way, and inquiring concerning it. They were all amazement to find that men lived altogether as before, and that the objects they saw were similar to those they had seen before: for they knew that they were departed out of the former or natural world, and that in that world they believed that they should not live as men until after the day of the last judgement, when they should be again clothed with the flesh and bones that had been laid in the tomb ; therefore, in order to remove all doubt of their being really and truly men, they by turns viewed and touched them- selves and others, and felt the surrounding objects, and by a thousand proofs convinced themselves that they now were men as in the former world ; besides which they saw each other in a brighter light, and the surrounding objects in superior splendor, and thus their vision was more perfect. At that instant two angelic spirits happening to meet them, accosted thein, saying, ''Whence are you?" They replied, "We have departed out of a world, and again we live in a world ; thus we have removed from one world to another ; and this surprises us." Hereupon the three novitiate ^spirits questioned the two angelic spirits con- cerning heaven ; and as two of the three novitiates were youths, and there darted from their eyes as it were a sparkling fire of lust for the sex, the angelic spirit said, " Possibly you have seen some females ;" and they replied in the affirmative ; and as they made inquiry respecting heaven, the angelic spirits gave them the following information : " In heaven there is every variety of magnificent and splendid objects, and such things as the eye had never seen ; there are also virgins and young men ; virgina 45 14 CONJUOIAL LOVE ■ if such beauty that they may be called personifications ofbeauty, and young men of such morality that they may be called per Bonifications of morality ; moreover the beauty of the virgins and the morality of the young men correspond to each other, as forms mutually suited to each other. Hereupon the two novitiates asked, " Are there in heaven human forms altogether similar to those in the natural world ?" And it was replied, "They are altogether similar; nothing is wanting in the male, and nothing in the female ; in a word, the male is a male, and the female a female, in all the perfection of form in which they were created : retire, if you please, and examine if you are deficient in anything, and whether you are not a complete man as before." Again, the novitiates said, " Av~e have been told in the world we have left, that in heaven they are not given in marriage, because they are angels ; — is there then the love of the sex there V And the angelic spirits replied, "In heaven your love of the sex does not exist ; but we have the angelic love of the sex, which is chaste, and devoid all libidinous allurement." Hereupon the novitiates observed, " If there be a love of the sex devoid of all allurement,- what in such cases is the love of the sex ?" And while they were thinking about this love they sighed, and said, " Oh, how dry and insipid is the joy of heaven ! What young man, if this be the case, can possibly wish for heaven ? Is not such love barren and devoid of life ?" To this the angelic spirits replied, with a smile, "The angelic love of the sex, such as exists in heaven, is never- theless full of the inmost delights : it is the most agreeable ex- pansion of all the principles of the mind, and thence of all the parts of the breast, existing inwardly in the breast, and sporting therein as the heart sports with the lungs, giving birth thereby to respiration, tone of voice, and speech ; so that the intercourse between the sexes, or between youths and virgins, is an inter- course of essential celestial sweets, which are pure. All novi- tiates, on ascending into heaven, are examined as to the quality of their chastity, being let into the company of virgins, the beauties of heaven, who from their tone of voice, their speech, their face, their eyes, their gesture, and their exhaling sphere, perceive what is their quality in regard to the love of the sex ; and if their love be unchaste, they instantly quit them, and tell their fellow-angels that they have seen satyrs or priapuses. The new coiners also undergo a change, and in the eyes of the angels appear rough and hairy, and with feet like calves' or leopards', and presently they are cast down again, lest by their lust they should defile the heavenly atmosphere." On receiving this information, the two novitiates again said, "According to this, there is no love of the sex in heaven ; for what is a chaste love of the sex, but a love deprived of the essence of its life? And must not all the intercourse of youths and virgins, in such case, consist of dry insipid jovs ? We are not stocks and stones, 16 AND ITS CIIASTK DELIGHTS. 44 but perceptions and affections of life." To this the angelic spirits indignantly replied, "You arc altogether ignorant what a chaste love of the sex is; because as yet you arc not chaste. This love is the very essential delight of the mind, and thence of the heart ; and not at the same time of the flesh beneath the heart. An- gelic chastity, which is common to each sex, prevents the passage of that love beyond the enclosure of the heart ; but within that and above it, the morality of a youth is delighted with the beauty of a virgin in the delights of the chaste love of the sex: which delights are of too interior a nature, and too abundantly pleasant, to admit, of any description in words. The angels have this love of the sex, because they have conjugial love only ; which love cannot exist together with the unchaste love of the sex. Love truly conjugial is chaste, and has nothing in common with un- chaste love, being confined to one of the sex, and separate from all others ; for it is a love of the spirit and thence of the body, and not a love of the body and thence of the spirit ; that is, it is not a love infesting the spirit." On hearing this, the two young novitiates rejoiced, and said, " There still exists in heaven a love of the sex ; what else is conjugial love?" But the angelic spirits replied, "Think more profoundly, weigh the matter well in your minds, and yon will perceive, that your love of the sex is a love extra-conjngial, and quite different from conjugial love ; the latter being as distinct from the former, as wheat is from chaff, or rather as the human principle is from the bestial. If you should ask the females in heaven, ' "What is love extra- conjngial V I take upon me to say, their reply will be, ' What do you mean ? What do you say ? How can you utter a ques- tion which so wounds our ears ? How can a love that is not created be implanted in any one ?' If you should then ask them, ' What is love truly conjugial V I know they will reply, ' It is not the love of the sex, but the love of one of the sex ; and it has no other ground of existence than this, that when a youth sees a virgin provided by the Lord, and a virgin sees a youth, they are each made sensible of a conjugial principle kindling in their hearts, and perceive that each is the other's, he hers, and she his ; for love meets love and causes them to know each other, and instantly conjoins their souls, and afterwards their minds, and thence enters their bosoms, and after the nuptials penetrates fur- ther, and thus becomes love in its fulness, which grows every day into con junction, till they are no longer two, but as it were one.' I know also that they will be ready to affirm in the most solemn manner, that they are not acquainted with any other love of the sex ; for they say, ' How can there be a love of the sex, unless it.be tending mutually to meet, and reciprocal, so as to seek an eternal union, which consists in two tecoming one flesh?' " To this the angelic spirits added, " In heaven they are in total ignorance what whoredom is ; nor do they know that it exists, 47 CONJUGIAL LOVE or that its existence is even possible. The angels feel a chill all over the body at the idea of unchaste or extra-conjngial love ; and on the other hand, they feel a genial warmth throughout the body arising from chaste or conjugial love. "With the males, all the nerves lose their proper tension at the sight of a harlot, and recover it again at the sight of a wife." The three novitiates, on hearing this, asked, " Does a similar love exist between mar- ried partners in the heavens as in the earths ?" The two angelic spirits replied, that it was altogether similar; and as the) 7 per- ceived in the novitiates an inclination to know, whether in hea- ven there were similar ultimate delights, they said, that the} r were exactly similar, but much more blessed, because angelic perception and sensation is much more excpiisite than human : " and what," added they, " is the life of that love unless derived from a flow of vigor? When this vigor fails, must not the love itself also fail and grow cold ? Is not this vigor the very mea- sure, degree, and basis of that love? It it not its beginning, its support, and its fulfilment ? It is a universal law, that things primary exist, subsist, and persist from things ultimate: this is true also of that love; therefore unless there were ultimate de- lights, there would be no delights of conjugial love." The novi- tiates then asked, whether from the ultimate delights of that love in heaven any offspring were produced ; and if not, to what use did those delights serve? The angelic spirit answered, that natural offspring were not produced, but spiritual offspring: and the novitiates said, "What are spiritual offspring?" They replied, " Two conjugial partners by ultimate delights are more and more united in the marriage of good and truth, which is the marriage of love and wisdom ; % and love and wisdom are the offspring produced therefrom : in heaven the husband is wisdom, and the wife is the love thereof, and both are spiritual ; therefore, no other than spiritual offspring can be there conceived and born : hence it is that the angels, after such delights, do not experience sadness, as some do on earth, but are cheerful ; and this in con- sequence of a continual influx of fresh powers succeeding the former, which serve for their renovation, and at the same time illustration : for all who come into heaven, return into their ver nal youth, and into the vigor of that age, and thus continue to eternity." The three novitiates, on hearing this, said, "Is it not written in the Word, that in heaven they are not given in mar- riage, because they are angels ?" To which the angelic spirits replied, " Look up into heaven and you will receive an answer :" and they asked, " Why are we to look up into heaven ?" They said, " Because thence we receive all interpretations of the Word. The Word is altogether spiritual and the angels being spiritual, will teach the spiritual understanding of it. They did not wait long before heaven was opened over their heads, and two angels appeared in view, and said, " There are nuptials in the heavens, 48 AND ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS. 44, 45 as on earth ; but only with those in the heavens who are in the marriage of good and truth ; nor are any other angels : therefore it is spiritual nuptials, which relate to the marriage of good and truth, that are there understood. These (viz. spiritual nuptials) take place on earth, but not after departure thence, thus not in the heavens ; as it is said of the five foolish virgins, who were also invited to the nuptials, that they could not enter, because they were not in the marriage of good and truth ; for they had no oil, but only lamps. Oil signiiies good, and lamps truth ; and to be given in marriage denotes to enter heaven, where the marriage of good and truth takes place." The three novitiates were made glad by this intelligence; and being filled with a de- sire of heaven, and with the hope of heavenly nuptials, they said, " We will apply ourselves with all diligence to the practice of morality and a becoming conduct of life, that we may enjoy our wishes." ON THE STATE OF MARRIED PARTNERS AFTER DEATH. 45. THAT there are marriages in the heavens, has been ..diewn just above ; it remains now to be considered, whether the marriage-covenant ratified in the world will remain and be in force after death, or not. As this is a question not of judgement but of experience, and as experience herein has been granted me by consociation with angels and spirits, I will here adduce it ; but yet so that reason may assent thereto. To have this question determined, is also an object of the wishes and desires of all married persons ; for husbands who have loved their wives, in case they die, are desirous to know whether it be well with them, and whether they shall ever meet again ; and the same is true of wives in regaid to their husbands. Many married pairs also wish to know beforehand whether they are to be separated after death, or to live together: those who have disagreed in their tempers, wish to know whether they are to be separated ; and those who have agreed, whether they are to live together. In- formation on this subject then being much wished for, we will now proceed to give it in the following order : I. The love of the sex remains with every man (homo) after death, according to its interior quality • that is, such as it had been in his interior will and thought in the world. II. The sameis true of conjugiallove. III. Married partners most commonly meet after death, know each other, again associate and for a time live together : this is the case in the first state, thus while they are in externals as in the world. IV. But successively, as they put of their externals, and enter into their internals, they perceive what had been the quality of their love and inclination for each other, and conse- 4 4y 45—47 CONJUGIAL LOVE quently whether they can live together or not. V. If they can live together, they remain married partners ; but if they cannot they separate y sometimes the husband from the wife, sometimes the wife from the husband, and sometimes each from the other. VI. Li this case there is given to the man a suitable wife, and to the woman a suitable husband. VII. Married partners 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. VIII. This is the case with those who go to heaven ; but it is otherwise toith those who go to hell. We now proceed to an explanation of these proposition?, by which they may he illustrated and confirmed. 46. I. The love of itie sex 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. Every love follows a man after death, because it is the esse of his life; and the ruling love, which is the head of the rest, remains with him to eternity, and together with it the subordinate loves. The reason why they remain, is, because love properly appertains to the spirit of man, and to the body by de- rivation from the spirit ; and a man after death becomes a spirit and thereby carries his love along with him; a* love is the esse of a man's life, it is evident, that such as a man's life has been in the world, such is his lot after death. The love of the eex is the most universal of all loves, being implanted from crea- tion in the very soul of man, from which the essence of the whole man is derived, and this for the sake of the propagation of the human race. The reason why this love chiefly remains, is, because after death a male is a male, and a female a female, and because there is nothing in the soul, the mind, and the body, which is not male (or masculine) in the male, and female (or feminine) in the female ; and these two (the male and female) are so created, that they have a continual tendency to conjunc- tion, yea, to such a conjunction as to become a one. This ten- dency is the love of the sex, which precedes conjugial love. Now, since a conjunctive inclination is inscribed on every part and principle of the male and of the female, it follows, that this inclination cannot be destroyed and die with the body. 47. The reason why the love of the sex remains such as it was interiorly in the world, is, because every man has an internal and an external, which are also called the internal and external man ; and hence there is an internal and an external will and thought. A man when he dies, quits his external, and retains his internal ; for externals properly belong to his body, and in- ternals to his spirit Now since every man is his own love, and love resides in the spirit, it follows, that the love of the sex re- mains with him after death, such as it was interiorly with him ; 5U AND ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS. 47, 48, 47* ns for example, if the love interiorly had been conjugial and chaste, it remains such after death ; but if it had been interiorly adulterous (anti-conjugial), it remains such also after death. It is however to be observed that the love of the sex is not the same with one person as with another ; its differences are infinite: nevertheless, such as it is in any one's spirit, such it remains. 48. II. Conjugial love in like manner remadxs such AS IT HAD BEEN INTERIORLY ; THAT IS, SUCH AS IT HAD BEICM IN THE MAN'S INTERIOR WILL AND THOUHHT IN THE WORLD. As the love of the sex is one thing, and conjugial love another, therefore mention is made of each ; and it is said, that the hitter also remains after death such as it has been internally with a man, during his abode in the world: but as few know the dis- tinction between the love of the sex and conjugial love, therefore, before we proceed further in the subject of this treatise, it may be expedient briefly to point it out. The love of the sex is directed to several, and contracted with several of the sex; but conjugial love is directed to only one, and contracted with one of the sex ; moreover, love directed to and contracted with several is a natural love ; for it is common to man with beasts and birds, which are natural : but conjugial love is a spiritual love, and peculiar and proper to men ; because men were created, and are therefore born to become spiritual ; therefore, so far as a man becomes spiritual, so far he puts off the love of the sex, and puts on conjugial love. In the beginning of marriage the love of the sex appears as if conjoined with conjugial love; but in the progress of marriage they are separated ; and in this case, with such as are spiritual, the love of the sex is removed, and conjugial love is imparted; but with such as are natural, the contrary happens. From these observations it is evident, that the love of the sex, being directed to and contracted with several and being in itself natural, yea, animal, is impure and unchaste, and being vague and indeterminate in its object, is adulterous ; but the case is altogether different with conjugial love. Thar conjugial love is spiritual, and truly human, will manifestly appear from what follows. 47.* III. Married partners most commonly meet after DEATH, KNOW EACH OTHER, AGAIN ASSOCIATE, AND FOR A TIME LIVE TOGETHER : THIS IS THE CASE IN THE FIRST STATE, THUS WHILE THEY ARE IN EXTERNALS AS IN THE WORLD. There are two states in which a man (homo) enters after death, an exter- nal and an internal state. He conies first into his external state, and afterwards into his internal ; and during the external state, married partners meet each other, (supposing they are both deceased.) know each other, and if they have lived together in the world, associate again, and for some time live together; and while they are in this state, they do not know the inclination cf each to the other, this being concealed in the internals of 51 if*, 48* CONJUGIAL LOVE each ; but afterwards, when they come into their internal state, the inclination manifests itself ; and if it be in mutual agree- ment and sympathy, they continue to live together a conjugial life ; but if it be in disagreement and antipathy, their marriage is dissolved. In case a man had had several wives, he succes- sively joins himself with them, while he is in his external state ; but when he entc into his internal state, in which lie perceives the inclinatii is of his love, and of what quality they are, he then either dopts one or leaves them all ; for in the spiritual world, as well as in the natural, it is not allowable for any Christian to have more than one wife, as it infests and profanes religion. The case is the same with a woman that had had several husbands : nevertheless the women in this case do not join themselves to their husbands ; they only present themselves, and the husbands join them to themselves. It is to be observed that husbands rarely know their wives, but that wives well know their husbands, women having an interior perception of love, and men only an exterior. 48.* IV. But successively, as they put off thetb ex- ternals 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. There is no occasion to explain this further, as it follows from what is shewn in the previous section ; suffice it here to shew how a man {homo) after death puts off his ex- ternals and puts on his internals. Every one after death is first introduced into the world which is called the world of spirits, and which is intermediate between heaven and hell ; and in that world he is prepared, for heaven if he is good, and for hell if he is evil. The end or design of this preparation is, that the in- ternal and external may agree together and make a one, and not disagree and make two: in the natural world they frequently make two, and only make a one with those who are sincere in heart. That they make two is evident from the deceitful and the cunning ; especially from hypocrites, flatterers, dissemblers, and liars: but in the spiritual world it is not allow'able thus to have a divided mind ; for whoever has been internally wicked must also be externally wicked ; in like manner, whoever has been good, must be good in each principle : for every man after death becomes of such a quality as he nad been interiorly, and not such as he had been exteriorly. For this end, after his decease, he is let alternately into his external and his internal ; and every one, while he is in his external, is wise, that is, he wishes to appear wise, even though he be wicked ; but a wicked person internally is insane. By those changes he is enabled to see his follies, and to repent of them : but if he had not repented in the world, he cannot afterwards ; for he loves his follies, and wishes to remain in them : therefore he forces his external also 52 AND ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS. 48*— 50 to be equally insane; thus his internal and his external become a one ; and when this is effected, he is prepared for hell. Bat it is otherwise with a good spirit : such - 'one, as in the world he had looked unto God and had repented,' was more wise in his in- ternal than in his external : in his external also, through the allurements and vanities of the wo d, he was sometimes led astray; therefore his external is lik< rise reduced to agreement with his internal, which, as was saio, is wise; and when this is effected he is prepared for heaven, j'rom these considerations it may plainty appear, how the case is in regard to putting off th* external and putting on the internal after death. 49. V. If they can live together, they remain har- med PARTNERS ; BUT IF THEY" CANNOT, THEY SEPARATE ; SOME- TIMES THE HUSBAND FROM THE WIFE, SOMETIMES THE WIFE FROM THE HUSBAND, AND SOMETIMES EACH FROM THE OTHER. The reason why separations take place after death is, because the conjunctions which are made on earth are seldom made from any internal perception of love, but from an external perception, which hides the internal. The external perception of love originates in such things as regard the love of the world and of the body. Wealth and large possessions are peculiarly the objects of worldly love, while dignities and honors are those of the love of the body: besides these objects, there are also various enticing allurements, such as beauty and an external polish of manners, and sometimes even an unchasteness of cha- racter. Moreover, matrimonial engagements are frequently contracted within the particular district, city, or village, in which the parties were born, and where they live; in which case the choice is confined and limited to families that are known, and to such as are in similar circumstances in life : hence matrimonial connections made in the world are for the most part external, and not at the same time internal; when yet it is the internal conjunction, or the conjunction of souls, which con- stitutes a real marriage; and this conjunction is not perceivable until the man puts off the external and puts on the internal; as is the case after death. This then is the reason why separations take place, and afterwards new conjunctions are formed with such as are of a similar nature and disposition ; unless these conjunctions have been provided on earth, as happens with those who from an early age have loved, have desired, and have asked of the Lord an honorable and lovely connection with one of the sex, shunning and abominating the impulses of a loose and wandering lust. 50. VI. In THIS CASE THERE IS GIVEN TO THE MAN A SUIT- ABLE WIFE, AND TO THE WOMAN A SUITABLE HUSBAND. The rea- son of this is, because no married partners can be received into heaven, so as to remain there, but such as have been interiorlv 53 50, 51 CONJUGIAL LOVE united, or as are capable of being so united ; for in heaven two married partners are not called two, but one angel ; this is un- derstood by the Lord's words " They are no longer two, but one flesh." The reason why no other married partners are there re- ceived is, because in heaven no others can live together in one house, and in one chamber and bed ; for all in the heavens are associated according to the affinities and relationships of love, and have their habitations accordingly. In the spiritual world there are not spaces, but the appearance of spaces ; and these appearances are according to the states of life of the inhabitants, which are according to their states of love ; therefore in that world no one can dwell but in his own house, which is provided for him and assigned to him according to the quality of his love : it' he dwells in any other, he is straitened aud pained in his breast and breathing ; and it is impossible for two to dwell to- gether in the same house unless they are likenesses; neither can married partners so dwell together, unless they are mutual incli- nations; if they are external inclinations, and not at the same time internal, the very house or place itself separates, aud rejects and expels them. This is the reason why for those who after preparation are introduced into heaven, there is provided a mar- riage with a consort whose soul inclines to mutual union, with the soul of another, so that they no longer wish to be two lives, but one. This is the reason why after separation there is given to the man a suitable wife and to the woman in like manner a suitable husband. 51. VII. Married pairs enjoy similar communications WITH EACH OTHER AS IN THE WORLD, BUT MORE DELIGHTFUL AND BLESSED, YET WITHOUT PROLIFIC ATTON J IN THE PLACE OF WHICH THEY EXPERIENCE SPIRITUAL PROLDTICATION, WHICH IS that of love and wisdom. The reason why married pairs enjoy similar communications as in the world, is, because after death a male is a male, and a female a female, and there is im- planted in each at creation an inclination to conjunction; and this inclination with man is the inclination of his spirit and thence of his body ; therefore after death, when a man becomes a spirit, the same mutual inclination remains, and this cannot exist with- out similar communications ; for after death a man is a man as before ; neither is there any thing wanting either in the male or in the female : as to form they are like themselves, and also as to affections and thoughts ; and what must be the necessary conse- quence, but that they must enjoy like communications? And as conjugial love is chaste, pure, and holy, therefore their com- munications are ample and complete; but on this subject see what was said in the memorable relation, n. 44. The reason why such communications are more delightful and blessed than in the world, is, because eonjugial love, as it is the love of the 54 AND ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS. 51—5-1 spirit, becomes interior and purer, and thereby more perceiv- able; and every delight increases according to perception, and to such a degree that its blessedness is discernible in its delight. 52. The reason why marriages in the heavens are without proliiication, and that in place thereof there is experienced spi- ritual prolitication, which is that of love and wisdom, is, because with the inhabitants of the spiritual world, the third principle — the natural, is wanting ; and it is this which contains the spirit-' ual principles ; and these without that which contains them have no consistence, like the productions of the natural world : more- over spiritual principles, considered in themselves, have relation to love and wisdom ; therefore love and wisdom are the births produced from marriages in the heavens. These are called births, because conjugial love perfects an angel, uniting him with his consort, in consequence whereof he becomes more and more a man {homo) • for, as was said above, two married partners in heaven are not two but one angel ; wherefore by conjugial unition they fill themselves with the human principle, which consists in desiring to grow wise, and in loving whatever relates to wisdom. 53. VIII. This is the case with those who go to hea- ven ; BUT IT IS otherwise with those who go to hell. That after death a suitable wife is given to a husband, and a suitable husband to a wife, and that they enjoy delightful and blessed communications, but without prolitication, except of a spiritual kind, is to be understood of those who are received into heaven and become angels ; because such are spiritual, and marriages in themselves are spiritual and thence holy : but with respect to those who go to hell, they are all natural ; and mar- riages merely natural are not marriages, but conjunctions which originate in unchaste lust. The nature and quality of such con- junctions will be shewn in the following pages, when we come to treat of the chaste and the unchaste principles, and further when we come to treat of adulterous love. 54. To what has been above related concerning the state of married partners after death, it may be expedient to add the following circumstances. I. That all those married partners who are merely natural, are separated after death ; because with them the love of marriage grows cold, and the love of adultery grows warm : nevertheless after separation, they sometimes asso- ciate as married partners with others ; but after a short time they withdraw from each other : and this in many cases is done repeatedly; till at length the man is made over to some harlot, and the woman to some adulterer; which is effected in an infer- nal prison : concerning which prison, see the Apocalypse Re- vealed, n. 153, § x., where promiscuous whoredom is forbidden each party under certain pains and penalties. II. Married part- ners, of whom one is spiritual and the other natural, are also separated after death ; and to the spiritual is given a suitable U. 55 CONJUGIAL LOVE married partner : whereas the natural one is sent to the resorts of the lascivious among his like. III. But those, who in the world have lived a single life, and have altogether alienated their minds from marriage, in case they be spiritual, remain single ; but if natural, they become whoremongers. It is otherwise with those, who in their single state have desired marriage, and espe- cially if they have solicited it without success ; for such, if they are spiritual, blessed marriages are provided, but not until they come into heaven. IV. Those who in the world have been shut up in monasteries, both men and women, at the conclusion of the monastic life, which continues some time after death, are let loose and discharged, and enjoy the free indulgence of their desires, whether they are disposed to live in a married state or not : if they are disposed to live in a married state, this is granted them ; but if otherwise, they are conveyed to those who live in celibacy on the side of heaven ; such, however, as have indulged the fires of prohibited lust, are cast down. V. The reason why those who live in celibac} r are on the side of heaven, is, because the sphere of perpetual celibacy infests the sphere of conjugial love, which is the very essential sphere of heaven ; and the rea- son why the sphere of conjugial love is the very essential sphere of heaven, is, because it descends from the heavenly marriage of the Lord and the church. ***** 55. To the above, I shall add two memorable relations : the first is this. On a certain time I heard from heaven the sweetest melody, arising from a song that was sung by wives and virgins in heaven. The sweetness of their singing was like the affection of some kind of love flowing forth harmoniously. Heavenly songs are in reality sonorous affections, or affections expressed and modified by sounds ; for as the thoughts are expressed by speech, so the affections are expressed by songs ; and from the measure and flow of the modulation, the angels perceive the object of the affection. On this occasion there were many spirits about me ; and some of them informed me that they heard this delightful melody, and that it was the melody of some lovely affection, the object of which they did not know : they therefore made various conjectures about it, but in vain. Some conjectured that the singing expressed the affection of a bridegroom and bride when they sign the marriage-articles ; some that it expressed the affection of a bridegroom and a bride at the solemnizing of the nuptials; and some that it expressed the pri- mitive love of a husband and a wife. But at that instant there appeared in the midst of them an angel from heaven, who said, that tiny were singing the chaste love of the sex. Hereupon some of the bystanders asked, " What is the chaste love of the sex?" And the angel answered, " It is the love which a man bears towards a beautiful and elegant virgin or wife, free from 56 AND ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS. 58 every lascivious idea, and the same love experienced by a virgin or a wife towards a man." As he said this, he disappeared. The singing continued ; and as the bystanders then knew the subject of the affection which it expressed, they heard it very variously, every one according to the state of his love. Those who looked upon women chastel y, heard it as a song of symphony and sweet- ness ; those who looked upon them unchastely, heard it as a discordant and mournful song ; and those who looked upon them disdainfully, heard it as a song that was harsh and grating. At that instant the place on which they stood was suddenly changed into a theatre, and a voice was heard, saying, " Investigate this love:" and immediately spirits from various societies pre- sented themselves, and in the midst of them some angels in white. The latter then said, " We in this spiritual world have inquired into every species of love, not only into the love which a man has for a man, and a woman for a woman ; and into the reciprocal love of a husband and a wife ; but also into the love which a man has for woman, and which a woman has for men ; and we have been permitted to pass through societies and exa- mine them, and we have never yet found the common love of the sex chaste, except with those who from true conjugial love are in continual potency, and these are in the highest heavens. We have also been permitted to perceive the influx of this love into the affections of t>ur hearts, and have been made sensible that it surpasses in sweetness every other love, except the love of two conjugial partners whose hearts are as one : but we have besought you to investigate this love, because it is new and unknown to you ; and since it is essential pleasantness, we in heaven call it heavenly sweetness." They then began the inves- tigation ; and those spoke first who were unable to think chastely of marriages. They said, "What man when he beholds a beau- tiful and lovely virgin or wife, can so correct or purify the ideas of his thought from concupiscence, as to love the beauty and yet have no inclination to taste it, if it be allowable? Who can convert concupiscence, which is innate in every man, into such chastity, thus into somewhat not itself, and yet love ? Can the love of the sex, when it enters by the eyes into the thoughts, stop at the face of a woman ? Does it not descend instantly into the breast, and beyond it? The angels talk idly in saying that this love is chaste, and yet is the sweetest of all loves, and that it can only exist with husbands who are in true conjugial love, and thence in an extreme degree of potency with their wives. Do such husbands possess any peculiar power more than other men, when they see a beautiful woman, of keeping the ideas of their thought in a state of elevation, and as it were of suspend- ing them, so that they cannot descend and proceed to what con- stitutes that love?" The argument was next taken up by those who were in cold and in heat; in cold towards their wives, and 57 55 CONJUGIAL LOVE in heat towards the sex; and they said, " What is the chaste love of the sex ? Is it not a contradiction in terms to talk of such a love ? If chastity be predicated of the love of the sex, is not this destro)'ing the very thing of which it is predicated? How can the chaste love of the sex he the sweetest of all loves, when chastity deprives it of its sweetness? You all know where the sweetness of that love resides ; when therefore the idea con- nected therewith is banished from the mind, where and whence is the sweetness ?" At that instant certain spirits interrupted them, and said, "We have been in company with the most beautiful females and have had no lust; therefore we know what the chaste love of the sex is." But their companions, who were acquainted with their lasciviousness, replied, " Yon were at those times in a state of loathing towards the sex, arising from im- potence ; and this is not the chaste love of the sex, but the ulti- mate of unchaste love." On hearing what had been said, the angels were indignant and requested those who stood on the right, or to the south, to deliver their sentiments. They said, '•There is a love of one man to another, and also of one woman to another; and there is a love of a man to a woman, and of a woman to a man ; and these three pairs of loves totally differ from each other. The love of one man to another is as the love of understanding and understanding ; for the man was created and consequently born to become understanding : the love of one woman to another is as the love of affection and affection of the understanding of men; for the woman was created and born to become a love of the understanding of a man. These loves, viz., of one man to another, and of one woman to another, do not enter deeply into the bosom, but remain without, and only touch each other; thus they do not inteinorly conjoin the two parties: wherefore also two men, by their mutual reasonings, sometimes engage in combat together like two wrestlers ; and two women, by their mutual concupiscences, are at war with each other like two prize-fighters. But the love of a man and a woman is the love of the understanding and of its affection ; and this love enters deeply and effects conjunction, which is that love; but the conjunction of minds, and not at the same time of bodies, or the endeavour towards that conjunction alone, is spiritual love, and consequently chaste love ; and this love exists only with those who are in true conjugial love, and thence in an eminent degree of potency ; because such, from their chastity, do not admit an influx of love from the body of an)* other woman than of their own wives ; and as they are in an extreme degree of potency, they cannot do otherwise than love the sex, and at the same time hold in aversion whatever is unchaste. Hence they are principled in a chaste love of the sex, which, considered in itself, is interior spiritual friendship, deriving its sweetness from an eminent degree of potency, but still being chaste. This eminent 58 AND ITS CIIASTK DELIGHTS. 55, 56 degree of potency :hey possess in consequence of a total renun- ciation of whoredom ; and as each loves his own wife alone, the potency is chaste. Now, since this love with such partakes not of the ilesh, but only of the spirit, therefore it is chaste ; and as the beauty of the woman, from innate inclination, enters at the same time into the mind, therefore the love is sweet." On hearing this, many of the bystanders put their hands to their ears, saying, "What has been said offends our ears; and what you have spoken is of no account with us." These spirits were unchaste. Then again was heard the singing from heaven, and sweeter now than before; but to the unchaste it was so grating and discordant that they hurried out of the theatre and fled, leaving behind them only the few who from wisdom loved con- jugial chastity. 56. The second memorable relation. As I was con- versing with angels some time ago in the spiritual world, I was inspired witli a desire, attended with a pleasing satisfaction, to see the temple of wisdom, which I had seen once before ; and accordingly I asked them the way to it. They said, " Follow the light and you will find it." I said, "What do you mean by following the light?" They replied, "Our light grows brighter and brighter as we approach that temple ; wherefore, follow the light according to the increase of its brightness : for our light proceeds from the Lord as a sun, and thence considered in itself is wisdom." I immediately directed my course, in company with two angels, according to the increase, of the brightness of the light, and ascending by a steep path to the summit of a hill in the southern quarter. There we found a magnificent gate, which the keeper, on seeing the angels with me, opened ; and lo ! we saw an avenue of palm-trees and laurels, according to which we directed our course. It was a winding avenue, and terminated in a garden, in the middle of which was the temple of wisdom. On arriving there, and looking about me, I saw several small sacred buildings, resembling the temple, inhabited by the wise. We went towards one of them, and coming to the door accosted the person who dwelt there, and told him the occasion and manner of our coming. He said, "You are welcome; enter and be seated, and we will improve our acquaintance by discourses respecting wisdom." I viewed the building within, and observed that it was divided into two, and still was but one ; it was divided into two by a transparent wall; but it appeared as one from its translucence, which was like that of the purest crystal. I inquired the reason of this ? He said, " I am not alone ; my wife is with me, and we are two ; yet still we are not two, but one flesh." But I replied, " I know that you are a wise one ; and what has a wise one or a wisdom to do with a woman?" Hereupon our host, becoming 56 CONJUGIAL LOVE somewhat indignant, changed countenance, and beckoned witll his hand, and lo! instantly other wise ones presented themselves from the neighboring buildings, to whom he said humorously, •'Our stranger here asks, 'What has a wise one or a wisdom to do with a woman V " At this they smiled and said, " "What is a wise one or a wisdom without a woman, or without love, a wife being the love of a wise man's wisdom ?" Our host then said, " Let us now endeavor to improve our acquaintance by some discourse respecting wisdom ; and let it be concerning causes, and at present concerning the cause of beauty in the female sex." Then they spoke in order ; and the first assigned as a cause, that women were created by the Lord's affections of the wisdom of men, and the affection of wisdom is essential beauty. A second 6aid, that the woman was created by the Lord through the wisdom of the man, because from the man ; and that hence she is a form of wisdom inspired with love-affection ; and since love-affection is essential life, a female is the life of wisdom, whereas a male is wisdom ; and the life of wisdom is essential beauty. A third said, that women have a perception of the delights of conjugial love; and as their whole bod}- is an organ of that perception, it must needs be that the habitation of the delights of conjugial love, with its perception, be beauty. A fourth assigned this cause ; that the Lord took away from the man beauty and elegance of life, and transferred it to the woman ; and that hence the man, unless he be re-united witli his beauty and elegance in the woman, is stern, austere, joyless, and unlovely ; so one man is wise only for himself, and another is foolish: whereas, when a man is united with his beauty and elegance of life in a wife, he becomes engaging, pleasant, active, and lovely, and thereby wise. A fifth said, that women were created beauties, not for the sake of themselves, but for the sake of the men ; that men, who of themselves are hard, might be made soft: that their minds, of themselves grave and severe, might become gentle and cheerful ; and that their hearts, of themselves cold, might be made warm ; which effects take place when they become one flesh with their wives. A sixth assigned as a cause, that the universe was created by the Lord a most yerfect work ; but that nothing was created in it more perfect than a beautiful and elegant woman, in order that man may give thanks to the Lord for his bounty herein, and may repay it by the reception of wisdom from him. These and many other similar observations having been made, the wife of our host, appeared beyond the crystal wall, and said to her husband, " Speak if you please ;" and then when he spoke, the life of wisdom from the wife was perceived in his discourse; for in the tone of his speech was her love: thus experience testified to the truth. After this we took a view of the temple of wisdom, and 60 AND ITS CHASTK DELIGHT8. 56, 57 also of the paradisiacal scenes which encompassed it, and being thereby tilled with joy, we departed, and passed through the avenue to the gate, and descended by the way we had ascended. ON LOVE TRULY CONJUGIAL. 57. There are infinite varieties of conjugial love, it being in no two persons exactly similar. It appears indeed as if it were similar with mauy ; but this appearance arises from corpo- real judgement, which, being gross and dull, is little qualified to discern aright respecting it. By corporeal judgement we mean the judgement of the mind from the evidence of the external senses; but to those whose eyes are opened to see from the judgment of the spirit, the differences are manifest; and more distinctly to those who are enabled to elevate the sight arising from 'such judgement to a higher degree, which is effected by withdrawing it from the senses, and exalting it into a superior light ; these can at length confirm themselves in their understand- ing, and thereby see that conjugial love is never exactly similar in any two persons. Nevertheless no one can see the infinite varieties of tin's love in any light of the understanding however elevated, unless he first know what is the nature and quality of that love in its very essence and integrity, thus what was its nature and quality when, together with life, it was implanted in man from God. Unless tins its state, which was most perfect, be known, it is in vain to attempt the discovery of its differences by any investigation ; for there is no other fixed point, from which as a first principle those differences may be deduced, and to which as the focus of their direction they may be referred, and thus may appear truly and without fallacy. This is the reason why we here undertake to describe that love in its essence ; and as it was in this essence when, together with life from God, it was infused into man, we undertake to describe it such as it was in its primeval state ; and as in this state it was truly conjugial, therefore we have entitled this section, On love tkuly conjugial. The description of it shall be given in the following order: I. 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. II. This love originates in the marriage v f good and truth. III. There is a correspondence of this love with the marriage of the Lord and the church. IV. 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. V. It <•> also the foundation love of all celestial and spiritual loves, and 61 57—59 CONJUGIAL LOVE thence of all natural loves. VI. Into this love are collected all joys and delights from first to last. VII. None however come into this love, and can be in it, but those who approach the Lord, and love the truths of the church and practise its goods. VIII. This love was the love of loves with the ancients, who lived in the golden, silver, and copper ages ; but afterwards it successively departed. We now proceed to the explanation of each article. 58. I. There exists a love truly conjugial, which at THIS DAY IS SO RARE THAT IS NOT KNOWN WHAT IS ITS quality, and scarcely that it exists. That there exists such conjugial love as is described in the following pages, may indeed be acknowledged from the first state of that love, when it insinuates itself, and enters into the hearts of a youth and a virgin ; thus from its influence on those who begin to love one alone of the sex, and to desire to be joined therewith in marriage ; and still mure at the time of courtship and the interval which precedes the marriage-ceremony ; and lastly during the marriage- ceremony and some days after it. At such times who does not acknowledge and consent to the following positions ; that this love is the foundation of all loves, and also that into it are col- lected all joys and delights from first to last ? And who does not know that, after this season of pleasure, the satisfactions thereof successively pass away and depart, till at length they are scarcely sensible? In the latter case, if it be said as before, that this love is the foundation of all loves, and that into it are collected all joys and delights, the positions are neither agreed to nor acknowledged, and possibly it is asserted that they are non- sense or incomprehensible mysteries. From these considerations it is evident, that primitive marriage love bears a resemblance to love truly conjugial, and presents it to view in a certain image. The reason of which is, because then the love of the sex, which is unchaste, is put away, and in its place the love of one of the sex, which is truly conjugial and chaste, remains implanted: in this case, who does not regard other women with indifference, and the one to whom he is united with love aud affection '( 59. The reason why love truly conjugial is notwithstanding so rare, that its quality is not known, and scarcely its existence, is, because the state of pleasurable gratifications before and at the time of marriage, is afterwards changed into a state of indif- ference arising from an insensibility to such gratifications. Hie causes of this change of state are too numerous to be here ad- duced; but they shall be adduced in a future part of this work, when we come to explain in their order the causes of coldnesses, separations, and divorces; from which it will be seen, that with the generality at this day this image of conjugial love is so far abolished, and with the image the knowledge thereof, that its ijnality and even its existence are scarcely known. It is well 62 AND ITS CIIA9TIC DELIGHT?, 59, 6C known, that every man by birth is merely corporeal, and that from corporeal he becomes natural more and more interiorly, and thus rational, and at length spiritual. The reason why this is effected progressively is, because the corporeal principle is like ground, wherein things natural, rational, and spiritual are im- planted in their order ; thus a man becomes more and more a man. The case is nearly similar when he enters into marriage ; on this occasion a man becomes a more complete man, because he is joined with a consort, with whom he acts as one man : but this, in the first state spoken of above, is effected only in a sort of image : in like manner he then commences from what is cor- poreal, and proceeds to what is natural as to conjugial life, and thereby to a conjunction into a one. Those who, in this case, love corporeal natural things, and rational things only as grounded therein, cannot be conjoined to a consort as into a one, except as to those externals : and when those externals fail, cold takes possession of the internals ; in consequence whereof the delights of that love are dispersed and driven away, as from the mind so from the body, and afterwards as from the body so from the mind ; and this until there is nothing left of the remembrance of the primeval state of their marriage, consequently no knowledge respecting it. Now since this is the case with the generality of J persons at this day, it is evident that love truly conjugial is not mown as to its quality, and scarcely as to its existence. It is otherwise with those who are spiritual. With them the first state is an initiation into lasting satisfactions, which advance in degree, in proportion as the spiritual rational principle of the mind, and thence the natural sensual principle of the body, in each party, conjoin and unite themselves with the same prin- ciples in the other party ; but such instances are rare. 60. II. This love originates in the marriage of good and truth. That all things in the universe have relation to good and truth, is acknowledged by every intelligent man, be- cause it is a universal truth; that likewise in every thing in the universe good is conjoined with truth, and truth with good, can- not but be acknowledged, because this also is a universal truth, which agrees with the former. The reason why all things in the universe have relation to good and truth, and why good is con- joined with truth, and truth with good, is, because each proceeds from the Lord, and they proceed from him as a one. The two things which proceed from the Lord, are love and wisdom, be- cause these are himself, thus from himself; and all things relating to love are called good, or goods, and all things relating to wis- dom are called true, or truths; and as these two proceed from him as the creator, it follows that they are in the things created. This may be illustrated by heat and light which proceed from the gun : from them all things appertaining to the earth are derived, which germinate according to their presence and conjunction; 63 60—63 CONJUGIAL LOVE and natural heat corresponds to spiritual heat, which is love, a9 natural light corresponds to spiritual light, which is wisdom. 61. That conjugial love proceeds from the marriage of good and truth, will be shewn in the following section or paragraph : it is mentioned here only with a view of shewing that this love is celestial, spiritual, and holy, because it is from a celestial, spi- ritual, and holy origin. In order to see that the origin of conjugial love is from the marriage of good and truth, it may be expedient in this place briefly to premise somewhat on the subject. It was said just above, that in every created thing there exists a conjunction of good and truth ; and there is no conjunction unless it be reciprocal ; for conjunction on one part, and not on the other in its turn, is dissolved of itself. Now as there is a conjunction of good and truth, and this is reciprocal, it follows that there is a truth of good, or truth grounded in good, and that there is a good of truth, or good grounded in truth; that the truth of good, or truth grounded in good, is in the male, and that it is the very essential male (or masculine) principle, and that the good of truth, or good grounded in truth, is in the female, and that it is the very essential female (or femi- nine) principle; also that there is a conjugial union between those two, will be seen in the following section : it is here only men- tioned in order to give some preliminary idea on the subject. 62. III. There is a correspondence of this love with THE MARRIAGE OF THE LORD AND THE CHURCH ; that is, that a9 the Lord loves the church, and is desirous that the church should love him, so a husband and a wife mutually love each other. That there is a correspondence herein, is well known in the Christian world : but the nature of that correspondence as yet i3 nor known ; therefore we will explain it presently in a particular paragraph. It is here mentioned in order to shew that conjugial love is celestial, spiritual, and holy, because it corresponds to the celestial, spiritual, and holy marriage of the Lord and the church. This correspondence also follows as a consequence of conjugial love's originating in the marriage of good and truth, spoken of in the preceding article ; because the marriage of good and truth constitutes the church with man: for the marriage of good and truth is the same as the marriage of charity and faith ; since good relates to charity, and truth to faith. That this marriage constitutes the church must at once be acknowledged, because it is a universal truth ; and every universal truth is acknowledged as soon as it is heard, in consequence of the Lord's influx and at the same time of the confirmation of heaven. Now since the church is the Lord's, because it is from him, and since conju- gial love corresponds to the marriage of the Lord and the church, it follows that this love is from the Lord. 63. But in what manner the church from the Lord is formed with two married partners, and how conjugial love is formed 64 AND ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS. 63—65 thereby, shall be illustrated in the paragraph spoken of above : we will at present only observe, that the church from the Lord is formed in the husband, and through the husband in the wife ; and that when it is formed in each, it is a full church ; for in this case is effected a full conjunction of good and truth ; and the conjunction of good and truth constitutes the church. That the uniting inclination, which is conjugial love, is in a similar degree with the conjunction of good and truth, which is the church, will be proved by convincing arguments in what follows in the series. 64. IV. 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 tiie churcii. That such is the nature and quality of conjugial love from its origin, which is the marriage of good and truth, was briefly shewn above; but the subject was then barely touched upon : in like manner that such is the nature and quality of that love, from its correspondence with the marriage of the Lord and the church. These two marriages, from which conjugial love, as a slip or shoot, descends, are essen- tially holy , therefore if it be received from its author, the Lord, holiness from him follows of consequence, which continually cleanses and purifies it. : in this case, if there be in the man's will a desire and tendency to it, this love becomes daily and con- tinually cleaner and purer. Conjugial love is called celestial and spiritual because it is with the angels of heaven ; celestial, as with the angels of the highest heaven, these being called celes- tial angels; and spiritual, as with the angels beneath that hea- ven, these being called spiritual angels. Those angels are so called, because the celestial are loves, and thence wisdoms, and the spiritual are wisdoms and thence loves ; similar thereto is their conjugial principle. Now as conjugial love is with the angels of both the superior and the inferior heavens, as was also shewn in the first paragraph concerning marriages in heaven, it is manifest that it is holy and pure. The reason why this love in its essence, considered in regard to its origin, is holy and pure above every other love with angels and men, is, because it is as it were the head of the other loves : concerning its excellence something shall be said in the following article. 65. V. It is also the foundation love of all celestial AND SPIRITUAL LOVES, AND THENCE OF ALL NATURAL LOVES. The reason why conjugial love considered in its essence is the founda- tion love of all the loves of heaven and the church, is, because it originates in the marriage of good and truth, and from this mar- riage proceed all the loves which constitute heaven and the church with man : the good of this marriage constitutes love, and its truth constitutes wisdom; and when love draws near to wis- dom, or joins itself therewith, then love becomes love ; and when 5 65 65—67 CONJUGIAL LOVE wisdom in its turn draws near to love, and joins itself therewith, then wisdom becomes wisdom. Love truly conjugial is the con- junction of love and wisdom. Two married partners, between or in whom this love suhsists, are an image and form af it : all like- wise in the heavens, where faces are the genuine types of the affections of every one's love, are likenesses of it; for, as was shewn above, it pervades them in the whole and in every part. .Now as two married partners are an image and form of this love, it follows that every love which proceeds from the form of essen- tial love itself, is a resemblance thereof; therefore if conjugial 'Jove be celestial and spiritual, the loves proceeding from it are also celestial and spiritual. Conjugial love therefore is as a parent, and all other loves are as the offspring. Hence it is, that from the marriages of the angels in the heavens are pro- duced spiritual offspring, which are those of love and wisdom, or of good and truth ; concerning which production, see above, n. 51, 52. 66. The same is evident from man's having been created for this love, and from his formation afterwards by means of it. The male was created to become wisdom grounded in the love of growing wise, and the female was created to become the love of the male grounded in his wisdom, and consequently was formed according thereto; from which consideration it is manifest, that two married partners are the very forms and images of the marriage of love and wisdom, or of good and truth. It is well to be observed, that there is not any good or truth which is not, in a substance as in its subject : there are no abstract goods and truths ; for, having no abode or habitation, they no where exist, neither can they appear as airy unfixed principles ; therefore in such case they are mere entities, concerning which reason seems to itself to think abstractedly ; but still it cannot conceive of them except as annexed to subjects : for every human idea, how- ever elevated, is substantial, that is, affixed to substances. It is moreover to be observed, that there is no substance without a form ; an unformed substance not being any thing, because nothing can be predicated of it ; and a subject without predicates is also an entity which has no existence in reason. These philo- sophical considerations are adduced in order to shew still more clearly, that two married partners who are principled in love truly conjugial, are actually forms of the marriage of good and truth, or of love and wisdom. 67. Since natural loves flow from spiritual, and spiritual from celestial, therefore it is said that conjugial love is the foun- dation love of all celestial and spiritual loves, and thence of all natural loves. Natural loves relate to the loves of self and of the world ; spiritual loves to love towards the neighbour; and celestial loves to love to the Lord ; and such as are the relations of the 66 AND ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS 6T— 69 loves, it is evident in what order they follow and are present with man. When they are in this order, then the Natural loves live from the spiritual, and the spiritual from the celestial, and all in this order from the Lord, in whom they originate. 68. VI. Into this love are collected all jots and delights from FIRST to last. All delights whatever, of which a man (Jwmd) has any perception, are delights of his love ; the love manifesting itself, yea, existing and living thereby. It is well known that the delights are exalted in proportion as the love is exalted, and also in proportion as the incident affections touch the ruling love more nearly. Now as conjugial love is the foun- dation love of all good loves, and as it is inscribed on all the parts and principles of man, even the most particular, as was shewn above, it follows that its delights exceed the delights of all other loves, and also that it gives delight to the other loves, according to its presence and conjunction with them ; for it. expands the inmost principles of the mind, and at the same time the inmost principles of the body, as the delicious current of its fountain flows through and opens them. The reason why all delights from first to last are collected into this love, is on account of the superior excellence of its use, which is the pro- pagation of the human race, and thence of the angelic heaven ; and as this use was the chief end of creation, it follows that all the beatitudes, satisfactions, delights, pleasantnesses, and plea- sures, which the Lord the Creator could possibly confer upon man, are collected into this his love. That delights follow use, and are also communicated toman according to the love thereof, is manifest from the delights of the five senses, seeing, hearing, smelling, taste, and touch: each of these has its delights witli variations according to the specific uses of each ; what then must be the delight annexed to the sense of conjugial love, the use of which comprehends all other uses ? 69. I am aware that few will acknowledge that all joys and delights from first to last are collected into conjugial love; because love truly conjugial, into which they are collected, is at. this day so rare that its quality is not known, and scarcely its existence, agreeably to what was explained and confirmed above, n. 58, 59; for such joys and delights exist only in genuine con- iugial love ; and as this is so rare on earth, it is impossible to describe its super-eminent felicities any otherwise than from the mouth of angels, because they are principled in it. They have declared, that the inmost delights of this love, which are delights of the soul, into which the conjugial principle of love and wis- dom, or of good and truth from the Lord, first flows, are im- perceptible and thence ineffable, because they are the delights of peace and innocence conjointly ; but that in their descent they become more and more perceptible; in the superior principles of the mind as beatitudes, in the inferior as satisfactions, in the 69— 71 CONJUGIAL LOVE Veast as delights thence derived; and that from the breast they diffuse themselves into every part of the body, and at length unite themselves in ultimates and become the delight of delights. Moreover the angels have related wonderful things respecting tliese delights ; adding farther, that their varieties in the souls of conjugial pairs, and from their souls in their minds, and from their minds in their breasts, are infinite and also eternal ; that they are exalted according to the prevalence of wisdom with the husband ; and this, because they live to eternity in the bloom of their age, and because they know no greater blessed- ness than to grow wiser and wiser. But a fuller account of these delights, as given by the angels, may be seen in the memorable relations, especially .in those added to some of the following chapters. TO. VII. !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. The rea- ..oii why none come into that love but those who approach the Lord, is, because monogamical marriages, which are of one hus- band with one wife, correspond to the marriage of the Lord and tlie church, and because such marriages originate in the mar- riage of good and truth ; on which subject, see above, n. 60 and 62. That from this origin and correspondence it follows, that love truly conjugial is from the Lord, and exists only with those who come directly to him, cannot be fully confirmed unless these two arcana be specifically treated of, as shall be done in the chapters which immediately follow; one of which will treat on the origin of conjugial love as derived from the marriage of good and truth, and the other on the marriage of the Lord and the church, and on its correspondence. That it hence follows, that conjugial love with man (homo) is according to the state of the church with him, will also be seen in those chapters. 71. The reason why none can be principled in love truly con- jugial but those who receive it from the Lord, that is, who come directly to him, and by derivation from him live the life of the church, is, because this love, considered in its origin and corre- spondence, is celestial, spiritual, holy, pure, and clean, above every love implanted in the angels of heaven and the men of the church ; as was shewn above, n. 64 ; and these its distinguishing characters and qualities cannot possibly exist, except with those who are conjoined to the Lord, and by him are consociated with the angels of heaven ; for these shun extra-conjugial loves, which are conjunctions with others than their own conjugial partner, as Tliey would shun the loss of the soul and the lakes of hell ; and in proportion as married partners shun such conjunctions, even as to the libidinous desires of the will and the intentions thence derived, so far love truly conjugial is purified with them, and becomes successively spiritual, first during their abode on earth. 68 AND ITS CHASTE DELHI UTS. 71-73 and afterwards in heaven. It is not however possible that any love should become perfectly pure either with men or with angels; consequently neither can this love : nevertheless, since the inten- tion of the will is what the Lord principally regards, therefore so far as any one is in this intention, and perseveres in it, so far he is initiated into its purity and sanctity, and successively advances therein. The reason why none can be principled in spiritual con- jugial love, but those who are of the above description by virtue of conjunction with the Lord, is, because heaven is in this love ; and the natural man, whose conjugial love derives its pleasure only from the flesh, cannot approach to heaven nor to any angel, no, nor to any man principled in this love, it being the foundation of all celestial and spiritual loves ; which may be seen above, n. 65 — 67. That this is the case, has been confirmed to me by experience. I have seen genii in the spiritual world, who were in a state of preparation for hell, approaching to an angel while he was being entertained by his consort; and at a distance, as they approached, they became like furies, and sought out caverns and ditches as asylums, into which they cast them- selves. That wicked spirits love what is similar to their affection, however unclean it is, and hold in aversion the spirits of heaven, as what is dissimilar, because it is pure, may be concluded from what was said in the preliminary memorable relation, n. 10. 72. The reason why those who love the truths of the church and practise its goods, come into this love and are capable of remaining in it, is, because no others are received by the Lord ; for these are in conjunction with him, and thereby are capable of being kept in that love by influence from him. The two constituents of the church and heaven in man {homo) are the truth of faith and the good of life; the truth of faith con- stitutes the Lord's presence, and the good of life according to the truths of faith constitutes conjunction witli him, and thereby the church and heaven. The reason why the truth of faith con- stitutes the Lord's presence, is, because it relates to light, spi- ritual light being nothing else ; and the reason why the good of life constitutes conjunction, is, because it relates to heat ; and spiritual heat is nothing but the good of life, for it is love ; and the good of life originates in love ; and it is well known, that all light, even that of winter, causes presence, atid that heat united to light causes conjunction; for gardens and shrubberies appear in all degrees of light, but they do not bear flowers and fruits unless when heat joins itself to light. From these considera- tions the conclusion is obvious, that those are not gifted by the Lord with love truly conjugial, who merely know the truths ot {lie church, but those who know them and practise their good. 73. VIII. This love was the love of loves with the ancients, who lived in the golden, silver, and copper ages. That conjugial love was the love of loves with the most 65) 73—75 CONJUGIAL LOVE ancient and tne ancient people, who lived in the ages thus named, cannot be known from historical records, because their -writings are not extant ; and there is no account given of them except by writers in succeeding ages, who mention them, and describe the purity and integrity of their lives, and also the suc- cessive decrease of such purity and integrity, resembling the debasement of gold to iron : but an account of the last or iron age, which commenced from the time of those writers, may in some measure be gathered from the historical records of the lives of some of their kings, judges, and wise men, who were called sophi, in Greece and other countries. That this age however should not endure, as iron endures in itself, but that it should be like iron mixed with clay, which do not cohere, is foretold by Daniel, chap. ii. 43. Now as the golden, silver, and copper ages passed away before the time when writing came into use, and thus it is impossible on earth to acquire any knowledge con- cerning their marriages, it has pleased the Lord to unfold to me such knowledge by a spiritual way, by conducting me to the heavens inhabited by those most ancient people, that I might learn from their own mouths the nature and quality of their marriages during their abode here on earth in their several ages : lor all, who from the beginning of creation have departed by death out of the natural world, are in the spiritual world, and as to their loves resemble what they were when alive in the natural world, and continue such to eternity. As the particulars of this knowledge are worthy to be known and related, and tend to con- firm the sanctity of marriages, I am desirous to make them public as they were shown me in the spirit when awake, and were afterwards recalled to my remembrance by an angel, and thus described. And as they are from the spiritual world, like the other accounts annexed to each chapter, I am desirous to arrange them so as to form six memorable relations according to the progressions of the several periods of time. ******* 74. These six memorable relations from the spiritual world, concerning conjugial love, discover the nature and quality o,f that love in the earliest times and afterwards, and also at the present clay ; whence it appears that that love has successively fallen away from its sanctity and purity, until it became adul- terous ; but that nevertheless there is a hope of its being brough back again to its primeval or ancient sanctity." 75. The first memorable relation. On a time, while 1 was meditating on conjugial love, my mind was seized with a de aire of knowing what had been the nature and quality of that love among those who lived in the golden age, and afterwards among those who lived in the following ages, which have their names lVoiu silver, copper, and iron : and as I knew that all who lived well in those ages are in the heavens, I prayed to the Lord that 70 AND ITS 0 HASTE DELIGHTS. 7.1 I might be allowed to converse with them and he informed : and lo ! an angel presented himself and said, " I am sent by the Lord to be your guide and companion: I will first lead and atten-d you to those who lived in the first age or period of time, which is called golden :" and he said, " The way to them is dif- ficult ; it lies through a shady forest, which none can pass unless he receive a guide from the Lord." I was in the spirit, and prepared myself for the journey ; and we turned our faces towards the east; and as we advanced I saw a mountain, whose height extended beyond the region of the clouds. We passed a great wilderness, and came to the forest planted with various kinds of trees and rendered shady by their thickness, of which the angel had advertised me. The forest was divided by several narrow paths ; and the angel said, that according to the number of those paths are the windings and intricacies of error: and that unless his eyes were opened by the Lord, .so as to see olives entwined with vine tendrils, and his steps were directed from olive to olive, the traveller would miss his way, and fall into the abodes of Tartarus, which are round about at the sides. This forest is of such a nature, to the end that the passage may be guarded ; for none but a primeval nation dwells upon that mountain. After we had entered the forest, our eyes were opened, and we saw here and there olives entwined with vines, from which hung bunches of grapes of a blue or azure color, and the olives were ranged in continual wreaths ; we therefore made various circuits as they presented themselves to our view ; and at length we saw a grove of tall cedars and some eagles perched on their branches ; on seeing which the angel said, " We are now on the mountain not far from its summit:" so we went forward, and lo! behind the grove was a circular plain, where there were feeding he and 6he-lambs, which were representative forms of the state of inno- cence and peace of the inhabitants of the mountain. We passed over this plain, and lo ! we saw tabernacles, to the number of several thousands in front on each side in every direction as far as the eye could reach. And the angel said, " We are now in the camp, where are the armies of the Lord Jehovah ; for so they call themselves and their habitations. These most ancient people, while they were in the world, dwelt in tabernacles ; there- lore now also they dwell in the same. But let us bend our way to the south, where the wiser of them live, that we may meet some one to converse with." In £oin<£ along I saw at adistanco three boys and three girls sitting at a door of a certain tent; but as we approached, the boys and girls appeared like men and women of a middle stature. The angel then said, " All the inhabitants of this mountain appear at a distance like infants, because they are in a state of innocence ; and infancy is the appearance of innocence." The men on seeing us hastened to- wards us and said, " Whence are vou; and how came you here 71 75 CONMUGIAL LOVE your faces .are not like those of our mountain." But the angel in reply told them how, by permission, we had had access through the forest, and what was the cause of our coming. On Hearing this, one of the three men invited and introduced us into his tabernacle. The man was dressed in a blue robe and a tunic of white wool : and his wife had on a purple gown, with a stomacher under it of fine linen wrought in needle-work. And as my thought was influenced by a desire of knowing the state of marriages among the most ancient people, I looked by turns on the husband and the wife, and observed as it were a unity of their souls in their faces ; and I said, " You are one :" and the man answered, "We are one; her life is in me, and mine in her ; we are two bodies, but one soul : the union between us is like that of the two viscera in the breast, which are called the heart and the lungs ; she is my heart and I am her lungs ; but as by the heart we here mean love, and by the lungs wisdom, she is the love of my wisdom, and I am the wisdom of her love ; therefore her love from without veils my wisdom, and my wis- dom from within enters into her love : hence, as you said, there is an appearance of the unity of our souls in our faces." I then asked, " If such a union exists, is it possible for you to look at any other woman than your own ?" He replied, " It is possible but as my wife is united to my soul, we both look together, and in this case nothing of lust can enter ; for while I behold the wives of others, I behold them by my own wife, whom alone I love: and as my own wife has a perception of all my inclina tions, she, as an intermediate, directs my thoughts and removes every thing discordant, and therewith impresses cold and horroi at every thing unchaste ; therefore it is as impossible for us tc look unchastely at the wife of any other of our society, as it is t< look from the shades of Tartarus to the light of our heaven therefore neither have we any idea of thought, and still less any expression of speech, to denote the allurements of libidinous love." He could not pronounce the word whoredom, because the chastity of their heaven forbade it. Hereupon my conduct- ing angel said to me, "You hear now that the speech of the angels of this heaven is the speech of wisdom, because they speak from causes." After this, as I looked around, I saw their taber- nacle as it were overlaid with gold; and I asked, "Whence is this?" lie replied, "It is in consequence of a flaming light, which, like gold, glitters, irradiates, and glances on the curtains of our tabernacle while we are conversing about conjngial love; for the heat from our sun, which in its essence is love, on such occasions bares itself, and tinges the light, which in its essence is wisdom, with its golden color; and this happens because conjugial love in its origin is the sport of wisdom and love; for the man was born to be wisdom, and the woman to be the love of the man's wisdom : hence spring the delights of that sport, in and 72 AND ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS. 75, 76 derived from conjugial love between us and our wives. We have seen clearly for thousands of years in our heaven, that those de- lights, as to quantity, degree, and intensity, are excellent and eminent according to our worship of the Lord Jehovah, from whom flows that heavenly union or marriage, which is the union and marriage of love and wisdom." As he said this, I saw a great light upon the hill in the middle of the tabernacles; and I inquired, "Whence is that light?" And he said, "It is from the sanctuary of the tabernacle of our worship." I asked whe- ther I might approach it ; to which he assented. I approached therefore, and saw the tabernacle without and within, answering exactly to the description of the tabernacle which was built for the sons of Israel in the wilderness ; the form of which was shewed to Moses on Mount Sinai, Exod. xxv. 40 ; chap. xxvi. 30. I then asked, " What is within in that sanctuary, from which so great a light proceeds?" He replied, "It is a tablet with this inscription, The Covenant between Jehovah and the heavens :" he said no more. And as by this time we were ready to depart, I asked, " Did any of you, during your abode in the natural world, live with more than one wife ? He replied, "I know not one ; for we could not think of more. We have been told by those who had thought of more, that instantly the heavenly blessedness of their souls withdrew from their inmost principles to the extreme parts of their bodies, even to the nails, and together therewith the honorable badges of manhood ; when this was perceived they were banished the land." On saying this, the man ran to his tabernacle, and returned with a pome- granate, in which there was abundance of seeds of gold : and he fave it me, and I brought it away with me, as a sign that we ad been with those who had lived in the golden age. And then, after a salutation of peace, we took our leave, and returned home. 76. The second memorable relation. The next day the same angel came to me, and said, " Do you wish me to lead and attend you to the people who lived in the silver age or period, that we may hear from them concerning the marriages of their time ?" And he added, " Access to these also can only be obtained by the Lord's favor and protection." I was in the spirit as before, and accompanied my conductor. We first came to a hill on the confines between the east and the south; and while we were ascending it, he shewed me a great extent of country: we saw at a distance an eminence like a mountain, be- tween which and the hill on which we stood was a valley, and behind the valley a plain, and from the plain a rising ground of easy ascent. We descended the hill intending to pass through the valley, and we saw here and there on each side pieces of wood and stone, carved into the figures of men, and of various oeasts, birds, and fishes ; and I asked the angel what they meant., 73 76 CONJCGIAL LOVE and whether they were idols ? He replied, ' By no means : they are representative forms of various moral virtues and spiritual truths. The people of that age were acquainted with the science of correspondences ; and as every man, beast, bird, and fish, cor- responds to some quality, therefore each particular carved figure represents partially some virtue or truth, and several together represent virtue itself, or truth, in a common extended form. These are what in Egypt were called hieroglyphics. We pro- ceeded through the valley, and as we entered the plain, lo ! we saw horses and chariots ; horses variously harnessed and capa- risoned, and chariots of different forms ; some carved in the shape of eagles, some like whales, and some like stags with horns, and like unicorns ; and likewise beyond them some carts, and stables round about at the sides ; and as we approached, both horses and chariots disappeared, and instead thereof we saw men (homines), in pairs, walking, talking, and reasoning. And the angel said to me, "The different species of horses, chariots, and stables, seen at a distance, are appearances of the rational intel- ligence of the men of that period ; for a horse, by correspondence, signifies the understanding of truth, a chariot, its doctrine, and stables, instructions : you know that in this world all things appear according to correspondences." But we passed by these things, and ascended by a long acclivity, and at length saw a city, which we entered; and in walking through the streets and places of public resort, we viewed the houses: they were so many palaces built of marble, having steps of alabaster in front, and at the sides of the steps pillars of jasper : we saw also tem- ples of precious stone of a sapphire and lazure color. And the angel said to me, "Their houses are of stone, because stones signify natural truths, and precious stones spiritual truths; and all those who lived in the silver age had intelligence grounded in spiritual truths, and thence in natural truths : silver also has a similar signification." In taking a view of the city, we saw here and there consorts in pairs: and as they were husbands and wives, we expected that some of them would invite us to their houses; and while we were in this expectation, as we were pass- ing by, we were invited by two into their house, and we as- cended the steps and entered ; and the angel, taking upon him the part of speaker, explained to them the occasion of our com- ing to this heaven ; informing them that it was for the sake of instruction concerning marriages among the ancients, "of whom," says he, " you in this heaven are a part." They said, " We were from a people in Asia; and the chief pursuit of our age was the truths whereby we had intelligence. This was the occu- pation of our souls and minds; but our bodily senses wero engaged in representations of truths in form ; and the science of correspondences conjoined the sensual things of our bodies with the perceptions of our minds, and procured us intelligence." 74 AND ITS CHASTE DKLIGHfS. 76 On hearing this, the angel asked them to give some account of their marriages : and the husband said, " There is a corre- spondence between spiritual marriage, which is that of truth with good, and natural marriage, which is that of a man with one wife ; and as we have studied correspondences, we have seen that the church, with its truths and goods, cannot at all exist but with those who live in love truly conjugial with one wife : for the marriage of good and truth constitutes the church with man: therefore all we in this heaven say, that the husband is truth, and the wife the good thereof; and that good cannot love any truth but its own, neither can truth in return love any good but its own : if any other were loved, internal marriage, which constitutes the church, would perish, and there would remain only external marriage, to which idolatry, and not the church, corresponds; therefore marriage with one wife we call sacri- mony ; but if it should have place with more than one among us, we should call it sacrilege." As he said this, we were intro- duced into an ante-chamber, where there were several devices on the walls, and little images as it were of molten silver ; and I inquired, '"What are these?" They said, "They are pictures and forms representative of several qualities, characters, and de- lights, relating to conjugial love. These represent unity of souls, these conjunction of minds, these harmony of bosoms, these the delights thence arising." While we were viewing these things, we saw as it were a rainbow on the wall, consisting of three colors, purple (or red), blue and white ; and we observed how the purple passed the blue, and tinged the white with an azure color, and that the latter color flowed back through the blue into the purple, and elevated the purple into a kind of flaming lustre : and the husband said to me, "Do you understand all this?" I replied, "Instruct me :" and he said, "The purple color, from its correspondence, signifies the conjugial love of the wife, the white the intelligence of the husband, the blue the beginning 1 of conjugial love in the husband's perception from the wife, and the azure, with which the white was tinged, signifies conjugial love in this case in the husband ; and this latter color flowing back through the blue into the purple, and elevating the purple into a kind of flaming lustre, signifies the conjugial love of the husband flowing back to the wife. Such things are represented on these walls, while from meditating on conjugial love, its mutual, suc- cessive, and simultaneous union, we view with eager attention the rainbows which are there painted." Hereupon I observed, "These things are more than mystical at this day ; for they are appearances representative of the arcana of the conjugial love of one man with one wife." He replied, " They are so ; yet to us in our heaven they are not arcana, and consequently neither are they mystical." As he said this, there appeared at a distance a chariot drawn by small white horses ; on seeing which the angel 75 76, 77 CONJUGIAL LOVE said, " That chariot is a sign for us to take our leave ;" and then, as we were descending the steps, our host gave us a bunch of white grapes hanging to the vine leaves: and lo ! the leaves be- came silver ; and we brought them down with us for a sign that we had conversed with the people of the silver age. 77. The third memorable relation. The next day, my conducting -and attendant angel came to me and said, "Make ready, and let us go to the heavenly inhabitants in the west, who are from the men that lived in the third period, or it: the copper age. Their dwellings are from the south by the west towards the north ; but they do not reach into the north." Having made myself ready, I attended him, and we entered their heaven on the southern quarter. There was a magnificent grove of palm trees and laurels. We passed through this, and im- mediately on the confines of the west we saw giants, double the size of ordinary men. They asked us, " Who let you in through the grove?" The angel said, " The God of heaven." They replied, " We are guards to the ancient western heaven ; but pass on." We passed on, and from a rising ground we saw a mountain rising to the clouds, and between us and the mountain a number of villages, with gardens, groves, and plains inter- mixed. We passed through the villages and came to the moun- tain, which we ascended ; and lo ! its summit was not a point but a plain, on which was a spacious and extensive city. All the houses of the city were built of the wood of the pine-tree, and their roofs consisted of joists or rafters ; and I asked, " Why are the houses here built of wood ?" The angel replied, " Because wood signifies natural good ; and the men of the third age of the earth were principled in this good ; and as copper also signifies natural good, therefore the age in which they lived the ancients named from copper. Here are also sacred build- ings 'constructed of the wood of the olive, and in the middle of them is the sanctuary, where is deposited in an ark the Word that was given to the inhabitants of Asia before the Israelitish Word ; the historical books of which are called the Wars of Jehovah, and the prophetic books, Enunciations ; both mentioned by Moses, Numb. xxi. verses 11, 15, and 27 — 30. This Word at this day is lost in the kingdoms of Asia, and is only preserved in Great Tartary." Then the angel led me to one of the sacred buildings, which we looked into, and saw in the middle of it the sanctuary, the whole in the brightest light; and the angel said, "This light is from that ancient Asiatic Word : for all divine truth in the heavens gives forth light." As we were leaving the sacred building, we were informed that it had been reported in the city that two strangers had arrived there; and that they were to he examined as to whence they came, and what was their business ; and immediately one of the public officers came running towards us, and took us for examination 76 AND ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS. 77 before the judges: and on being asked whence we came, and what was our business, we replied, " We have passed the grove of palm-trees, and also the abodes of the giants, the guards i>t" your heaven, and afterwards the region of villages ; from which circumstances you may conclude, that we have not come here of ourselves, but by direction of the God of heaven. The business on which we are come is, to be instructed concerning your marriages, whether they are monogamical or polygamical." and they said, " What are polygamical marriages ? Are not they adulterous ?" And immediately the bench of judges deputed an intelligent person to instruct us in his own house on this point : and when we were come to his house, he set his wife by his side, and spoke as follows : " We are in possession of precepts con- cerning marriages, which have been handed down to us from the primeval or most ancient people, who were principled m love truly conjugial, and thereby excelled all others in the virtue and potency of that love while they were in the world, and who are now in a most blessed state in their heaven, which is in the east. We are their posterity, and they, as fathers, have given us, their sons, rules of life, among which is the following concerning marriages : ' Sons, if you are desirous to love God and your neighbour, and to become wise and happy to eternity, we counsel you to live married to one wife ; if you depart from this pre- cept, all heavenly love will depart, from you, and therewith internal wisdom ; and you will be banished.' This precept of our Fathers we have obeyed as sons, and have perceived its truth, which is, that so far as any one loves his conjugial partner alone, so far he becomes celestial and internal, and that so far as any one does not love his married partner alone, so far he becomes natural and external ; and in this case he loves only himself and the images of his own mind, and is doating and foolish. From these considerations, all of us in this heaven live married to one wife ; and this being the case, all the borders of our heaven are guarded against polygamists, adulterers, and whoremongers; if polygamists invade us, they are cast out into the darkness of the north; if adulterers, they are cast out into tires of the west; and if whoremongers, they are cast out into the delusive lights of the south." On hearing this, I asked, " What he meant by the darkness of the north,- the tires of the west, and the delusive lights of the south V He answered, "The darkness of the north is dulness of mind and ignorance of truths ; the fires of the west, are the loves of evil ; and the delusive lights of the south are the falsifications of truth, which are spiritual whoredoms." After this, he said, " Follow me to our repository of curiosities :" so we followed him, and he shewed us the writings of the most ancient people, which were on the tables of wood and stone, and afterwards on smooth blocks of wood ; the writings of the second age were on sheets of parchment ; of these he brought me a 77 77, 78 CONJUGIAL LOVE sheet, on which were copied the rules of the people of the first, Age from their tahles of stone, among which also was the precept concerning marriages. Having seen these and other ancient curiosities, the angel said, "It is now time for us to take our leave; and immediately our host went into the garden, and plucked some twigs oft' a tree, and bound them into a little bunch, and gave them to us, saying, "These twigs are from a tree, which is native of or peculiar to our heaven, and whose juice has a balsamic fragrance." We brought the bunch down with us, and descended by the eastern way, which wa9 not guarded ; and lo ! the twigs were changed into shining brass, and the upper ends of them into gold, as a sign that we had been with the people of the third age, which is named from copper or brass. 78. The fourth memorable relation. After two days the angel again addressed me, saying, " Let us complete the period of the ages ; the last still remains, which is named from iron. The people of this age dwell in the north on the side of the west, in the inner parts or breadth-ways : they are all from the old inhabitants of Asia, who were in possession of the ancient Word, and thence derived their worship ; consequently they were before the time of our Lord's coming into the world. This is evident from the writings of the ancients, in which those times are so named. These same periods are meant by the statue seen by Nebuchad- nezzar, whose head was of gold, the breast and arms of silver, the belly and thighs of brass, the legs of iron, and the feet of iron and of clay, Dan. ii. 32, 33." These particulars the angel related to me in the way, which was contracted and anticipated by changes of state induced in our minds according to the genius or disposition of the inhabitants whom we passed ; for spaces and consequent distances in the spiritual world are appearances according to the state of their minds. When we raised our oyes, lo ! we were in a forest consisting of beeches, chestnut- trees and oaks ; and on looking around us, there appeared bears to the left, and leopards to the right : and when 1 wondered at this, the angel said, " They are neither bears nor leopards, but men, who guard these inhabitants of the north ; by their nostrils they have a scent of the sphere of life of those who pass by, and they rush violently on all who are spiritual, because the inhabi- tants are natural. Those who only read the Word, and imbibe thence nothing of doctrine, appear at a distance like bears ; and those who confirm false principles thence derived, appear like leopards." On seeing us, they turned away, and we proceeded. Beyond the forest there appeared thickets, and afterwards fields of grass divided into areas, bordered with box : this was suc- ceeded by a declivity which led to a valley, whereiD were several cities. We passed some of them, and entered into one of a considerable size : its streets were irregular, and so were the 78 AMD ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS. 78 houses, which were built of brick, with beams between, and plastered. In the places of public resort were consecrated build- ings of hewn lime-stone ; the under-structure of which was below the ground, and the super-structure above. We went down into one of them by three steps, and saw on the walls idols of various forms, and a crowd on their knees paying adoration to them : in the middle of the building was a company, above whom might be seen the head of the tutelary god of that city. As we went out, the angel said to me, "Those idols, with the ancients who lived in the silver age, as above described, were images represen- tative of spiritual truths .and moral virtues ; and when the science of correspondence was forgotten and extinct, they first became objects or worship, and afterwards were adored as deities : hence came idolatry." When we were come out of the consecrated building, we made our observations on the men and their dress. Their faces were like steel, of a grayish color, and they were dressed like comedians, with napkins about their loins hanging from a tunic buttoned close at the breast; and on their heads they wore curled caps like sailors. But the angel said, " Enough of this ; let us seek some instruction concerning the marriages of the people of this age." We then entered into the house of one of the grandees, who wore on his head a high cap. He received us kindly, and said, "Come in and let us converse together." We entered into the vestibule, and there seated ourselves; and I asked him about the marriages of his city and country. He said, ''We do not here live with one wife, but some with two or three, and some with more, because we are delighted with variety, obedience, and honor, as marks of dignity ; and these we receive from our wives according to their number. With one wife there would be no delight arising from variety ; but disgust from sameness : neither would there be any flattering courteousness arising from obedience, but. a troublesome dis- quietude from equality ; neither would there be any satisfaction arising from dominion and the honor thence derived, but vexa- tion from wrangling about superiority. And what is a woman ? Is she not born subject to man's will; to serve, and not to domineer? Wherefore in this place every husband in his own house enjoys as it were royal dignity ; and as this is suited to our love, it. constitutes also the blessedness of our life." But I asked, "In such case, what becomes of conjugial love, which from two souls makes one, and joins minds together, and renders a man {homo) blessed ? This love cannot be divided ; for if it be it becomes a heat which effervesces and passes away." To this he replied, "I do not understand what you say; what else rcndeis a man {homo) blessed, but the emulation of wives contending for the honor of the first place in the husband's favor?" As he said this, a man entered into the women's apartment and opened the two doors ; whence there issued a 79 78, 79 CONJUGIAL LOVE libidlnoiis effluvium, which had a stench like mire; this arose from polvgamical love, which is connubial, and at the same time adulterous ; so I rose and shut the doors. Afterwards 1 said, "How can yon subsist upon this earth, when you are void of any love truly conjugial, and also when you worship idols?" He replied, "As to connubial love, we are so jealous of oui wives, that we do not suffer any one to enter further within our houses than the vestibule ; and where there is jealousy, there must also be love. In respect to idols, we do not worship them ; but we are not able to think of the God of the universe, except by means of such forms presented to our eyes ; for we cannot elevate our thoughts above the sensual' things of the body, nor think of God above the objects of bodily vision." I then asked him again, "Are not your idols of different forms? How then can they excite the idea of one God?" He replied, "This is a mystery to us ; somewhat of the worship of God lies concealed in each form." I then said, " Tou are merely sensual corporeal spirits; you have neither the love of God nor the love of a married partner grounded in any spiritual principle ; and these loves together form a man (homo), and from sensual make him celestial." As I said this, there appeared through the gate as it were lightning: and on my asking what it meant, he said, " Such lightning is a sign to us that there will come the ancient one from the east, who teaches us concerning God, that He is one, the alone omnipotent, who is the first and the last; he also admonishes us not to worship idols, but only to look at them as images representative of the virtues proceeding from the one God, which also together form his worship. This ancient one is our angel, whom we revere and obey. He comes to us, and raises us, when we are falling into obscure worship of God from mere fancies respecting images." On hearing this, we left the house and went out of the city; and in the way, from what we had seen in the heavens, we drew some conclusions respecting the circuit and the progression of conjugial love; of the circuit that it had passed from the east to the south, from the south to the west, and from the west to the north ; and of the progression, that it had decreased according to its circulation, namely, that in the east it was celestial, in the south spiritual, in the west natural, and in the north sensual ; and also that it had decreased in a similar degree with the love and the worship of God : from which considerations we further concluded, that this love in the first age was like gold, in the second like silver, in the third like brass, and in the fourth like iron, and that at length it ceased. On this occasion the angel, my guide and companion, said, " Nevertheless I entertain a hope that this love will be revived by the God of heaven, who is the Lord, because it is capable ot being so revived." 79. The fifth memorable relation. The angel that had 80 Als'D ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS. 79 been my guide and companion to the ancients who had lived in the four ages, the golden, the silver, the copper, and the iron, again presented himself to me, and said, "Are you desirous of seeing the age which succeeded those ancient ones, and to know what its quality formerly was, and still is ? Follow me, and 3-011 shall see. They are those concerning whom Daniel thus pro- phesied : ' A kingdom shall arise after those four in which iron shall be mixed with miry clay : they shall mingle themselves to- gether by the seed of man : but they shall not cohere one with the other, as iron is not mixed with clay, Dan. ii. 41 — iS :' " and lie said, " By the seed of man, whereby iron shall be mixed with clay, and still they shall not cohere, is meant the truth of the Word falsified." After he had said this, I followed him, and in the way, he related to me these particulars. " They dwell in the borders between the south and the west, but at a great distance beyond those who lived in the four former ages, and also at a greater depth." We then proceeded through the south to the region bordering on the west, and passed though a formidable forest ; for in it there were lakes, out of which crocodiles raised their heads, and opened at us their wide jaws beset with teeth ; and between the lakes were terrible dogs, some of which were three-headed like Cerberus, some two-headed, all looking at us as we passed with a horrible hungry snarl and fierce eyes. We entered the western tract of this region, and saw dragons and leopards, such as are described in the Revelation, chap. xii. 3 ; chap. xiii. 2. Then the angel said to me, "All these wild beasts which you have seen, are not wild beasts but correspondences, and thereby representative forms of the lusts of the inhabitants whom we shall visit. The lusts themselves are represented by those horrible dogs; their deceit and cunning by crocodiles ; their falsities and depraved inclinations to the things which relate to worship, by dragons and leopards : nevertheless the inhabi- tants represented do not live close behind the forest, but behind a great wilderness which lies intermediate, that they may be fully withheld and separated from the inhabitants of the fore- going ages, being of an entirely different genius and quality from them : they have indeed heads above their breasts, and breasts above their loins, and loins above their feet, like the primeval men ; but in their heads there is not any thing of gold, nor in their breasts any thing of silver, nor in their loins any thing of brass, no, nor in their feet any thing of pure iron ; but in their heads is iron mixed with clay, in their breasts is each mixed with brass, in their loins is also each mixed with silver, and in their feet is each mixed with gold : by this inver- sion they are changed from men (homines) into graven images of men, in which inwardly nothing coheres ; for what was highest, is made lowest, thus what was the head is become the heel, and « 81 79 CONJUGIAL LOVE vice versa. They appear to us from heaven like stage-players, who lie upon their elbows with the body inverted, and put themselves in a walking motion ; or like beasts, which lie on their backs, and lift the feet upwards, and from the head, which they plunge in the earth, look towards heaven." We passed through the forest, and entered the wilderness, which was not less terrible : it consisted of heaps of stones, and ditches between them, out of which crept hydras and vipers, and there flew forth venomous flying serpents. This whole wilderness was on a con- tinual declivity: we descended by a long steep descent, and at length came into the valley inhabited by the people of that region and a°re. There were here and there cottages, which appeared at length to meet, and to be joined together in the form of a city : this we entered, and lo ! the houses were built of the scorched branches of trees, cemented together with mud, and covered with black slates. The streets were irregular ; all of them at the entrance narrow, but wider as they extended, and at the end spacious, where there were places of public resort : hence there were as man)' places of public resort as there were streets. As we entered the city, it became dark, because the sky did not appear ; we therefore looked up and light was given us, and we saw : and then I asked those we met, " Are you able to see, because the sky does not appear above yon ?" They replied, " What a question is this ! we see clearly ; we walk in full light." On hearing this, the angel said to me, " Darkness to them is light, and light darkness, as is the case with birds of night; for they look downwards and not upwards." We entered into some of the cottages, and saw in each a man with his woman, and we asked them, " Do all live here in their respective houses with one wife only!" And they replied with a hissing, ''What do you mean by one wife only? Why do not you ask, whether we live with one harlot? What is a wife but a harlot? By our laws it is not allowable to commit fornication with more than one woman ; but still we do not hold it dishonorable or unbecoming to do so with more; yet out of our own houses we glory in this one among another: thus we rejoice in the license we take, and the pleasure attending it, more than polygamists. Why is a plurality of wives denied us, when yet it has been granted, and at this day is granted in the whole world about us? What is life with one woman only, but captivity and imprisonment! We. however in this place have broken the bolt of this prison, and have rescued ourselves from slavery, and made ourselves free ; and who is angry with a prisoner for, asserting his freedom when it. is in his power?" to this we replied, "You speak, friend, as if without any sense of religion. What rational person does not know that adulteries are profane and infernal, and that marriages are holy and heavenly. Do not adulteries take place with devils 82 AND ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS. 79 in hell, and marriages with angels in heaven ? Did you never read the sixth* commandment of the decalogue ? and in Paul, that adulterers can by no means enter heaven ?" Hereupon our host laughed heartily, and regarded me as a simpleton, and almost as out of my senses. But just then there came running a messenger from the chief of the city, and said, " Bring the two strangers into the town-hall ; and if they refuse to come, drag them there : we have seen them in a shade of light ; they have entered privately ; they are spies." Hereupon the angel said to me, " The reason why we were seen in a shade, is, be- cause the light of heaven in which we have been, is to them a shade, and the shade of hell is to them light; and this is because they regard nothing as sin, not even adulter}' : hence they see what is false altogether as what is true ; and what is false is lucid in hell before satans, and what is true darkens their eyes like the shade of night." We said to the messenger, "We will not be pressed, still less will we be dragged into the town-hall ; but we will go with you of our own accord." So we went: and lo! there was a great crowd assembled, out of which came some lawyers, and whispered to us, saying, "Take heed to yourselves how you speak any thing against religion, the form of our govern- ment, and good manners :" and we replied, " We will not speak against them, but for them and from them." Then we asked, " What are your religious notions respecting marriages?" At this the crowd murmured, and said, " What have you to do here with marriages? Marriages are marriages." Again we asked, " What are your religious notions respecting whoredoms ?" At this also they murmured, saj'ing, " What have you to do here with whoredoms? Whoredoms are whoredoms : let him that is guiltless cast the first stone." And we asked thirdly, "Does your religion teach that marriages are holy and heavenly, and that adulteries are profane and infernal?" Hereupon several in the crowd laughed aloud, jested, and bantered, saying, " Inquire of our priests, and not of us, as to what concerns religion. We acquiesce entirely in what they declare ; because no point of religion is an object of decision in the understand- ing. Have you never heard that the understanding is without any sense or discernment in mysteries, which constitute the whole of religion ? And what have actions to do with religion ? Is not the soul made blessed by the muttering of words from a devout heart concerning expiation, satisfaction, and imputation, and not by works?" But at this instant there came some of the wise ones of the city, so called, and said, "Retire hence;" the crowd grows angry; a storm is gathering: let us talk in private on this subject ; there is a retired walk behind the town- hall ; come with us there." We followed them ; and they asked * According (o Ike division of the commandments adopted by th« Church of El giand.it is th« scv &it/t that is here referred *o. 83 79 CONJUGIAL LOVE tis whence we came, and what was our business there V And we said, li to be instructed concerning marriages, whether they are holy with you, as they were with the ancients who lived in the golden, silver, and copper ages ; or whether they are not holy." And they replied, "What do you mean by holiness? Are not marriages works of the flesh and of the night?" And we answered, " Are they not also works of the spirit? and what rise flesh does from the spirit, is not that spiritual ? and all that the spirit does, it does from the marriage of good and truth. Is not this marriage spiritual, which enters the natural marriage of husband and wife ?" To this the wise ones, so called, made answer, " There is too much subtlety and sublimity in what you say on this subject ; you ascend far above rational principles to spiritual : and who, beginning at such an elevation, can descend thence, and thus form any decision ?" To this they added with a smile of ridicule, " Perhaps you have the wings of an eagle, and can fly in the highest region of heaven, and make these dis- coveries: this we cannot do." We then asked them to tell us, from the altitude or region in which the winded ideas of their minds fly, whether they knew, or were able to know, that the love of one man with one wife is conjugial love, into which are collected all the beatitudes, satisfactions, delights, pleasantnesses, and pleasures of heaven; and that this love is from the Lord according to the reception of good and truth from him; thus according to the state of the church?" On hearing this, they turned away, and said, " These men are out of their senses ; they enter the ether with their judgement, and scatter about vain con- jectures like nuts and almonds." After this they turned to us, saying, " We will give a direct answer to your windy conjectures and dreams ;" and they said, " What has conjugial love in com- mon with religion and inspiration from God I Is not this love with every one according to the state of his potency? Is it not the same with those who are out of the church as with those who are in it, with Gentiles as with Christians, yea, with the impious as with the pious? Has not every one the strength of this love either hereditarily, or from bodily health, or from temperance of lite, or from warmth of climate ? By medicines also it may be strengthened and stimulated. Is not the case similar with the hrute creation, especially with birds which unite in pairs ? More- over, is not this love carnal? and what has a carnal principle in common with the spiritual state of the church? Does this love, as to its ultimate effect with a wife, differ at all from love as to its effect with a harlot? Is not the lust similar, and the delight similar? Wherefore it is injurious to deduce the origin of con- jugal love from the holy things of the church." On hearing this, we said to them, '* You reason from the stimulus of las- civiousness, and not from conjugial love; you are altogether ignorant what conjugial love is, because it is cold with you ; from S-4 AND ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS. 79, SO what you have said we are convinced that you are of the age which has its name from and consists of iron and clay, which do not cohere, according to the prophecy in Daniel, chap. ii. 43 ; for you make conjugial love and adulterous love the same thing ; and do these two cohere any more than iron and clay ? You are be- lieved and called wise, and yet you have not the smallest preten- sions to that character." On hearing this, they were inflamed with rage and made a loud cry, and called the crowd together to cast us out; but at that instant, by virtue of power given us by the Lord, we stretched out our hands, and lo ! the flying serpents, vipers, and hydras, and also the dragons from the wilderness, presented themselves, and entered and filled the city ; at which the inhabitants being terrified fled away. The angel then said to me, " Into this region new comers from the earth daily enter, and the former inhabitants are by turns separated and cast down into the gulphs of the west, which appear at a distance like lakes of fire aud brimstone. All in those gulphs are spiritual and natural adulterers. 80. The sixth memorable relation. As the angel said this, I looked to the western boundary, and lo ! there appeared as it were lakes of tire and brimstone; and I asked him, why the hells in that quarter had such an appearance ? He replied, " They appear as lakes in consequence of the falsifications of truth; because water in the spiritual sense signifies truth; and there is an appearance as it were of fire round about them, and in them, inconsequence of the love of evil, and as it were of brimstone in consequence of the love of what is false. Those three things, the lake, the fire, and the brimstone, are appearances, because they are correspondences of the evil loves of the inhabitants. All in that quarter are shut up in eternal work-houses, where they labor for food, for clothing, and for a bed to lie on ; and when they do evil, they are grievously and miserably punished." I further- asked the angel, why he said that in that quarter are spiritual and natural adulterers, and why he had not rather said, that they were evil doers and impious? He replied, "Because all those who make light of adulteries, that is, who commit them from a confirmed persuasion that they are not sins, and thus are in the purpose of committing them from a belief of their being harmless, are in their hearts evil doers and impious ; for the conjugial human principle ever goes hand in hand with reli- gion ; and every step and movement made under the influence of religion, and leading to it, is also a step and movement made under the influence of the conjugial principle, and leading to it, which is peculiar and proper to the Christian." On asking what that conjugial principle was, he said, " It is the desire of living with one wife; and every Christian has this desire according to his religion." I was afterwards grieved in spirit to think that marriages, which in the most ancient times had been mostholv, 85 80, SI CONJUGIAL LOVE were so wretchedly changed into adulteries. The angel said, •• The case is the same at this day with religion ; for the Lord says, ' In the consummation of the age there will be the abomina- tion of desolation foretold by Daniel. And there will be great affliction, such as there has not been from the beginning of the world. Matt. xxiv. 15, 21. The abomination of desolation sig- nifies the falsification and deprivation of all truth ; affliction sig- nifies the state of the church infested by evils and falses; and the consummation of the age, concerning which those things are spoken, signifies the last time or end of the church. The end is now, because there does not remain a truth which is not falsified ; and the falsification of truth is spiritual whore- dom, which acts in unity with natural whoredom, because they cohere/' 81. As we were conversing and lamenting together on this occasion, there suddenly appeared a beam of light, which, dart- ing powerfully upon my eyes, caused me to look up : and lo! the whole heaven above us appeared luminous ; and from the east to the west in an extended series we heard a glorification : and the angel said to me, " That is a glorification of the Lord on account of his coming, and is made by the angels of the eastern and western heavens. From the northern and southern heave ns nothing was heard but a soft and pleasing murmur. As the angel understood everything, he told me first, that glorifications and celebrations of the Lord are made from the Word, because then they are made from the Lord ; for the Lord is the Word, that is, i lie essential divine truth therein ; aud he said, " Now in particular they glorify and celebrate the Lord by these words, which were spoken by Daniel the prophet, ' Thou sawest iron mixed with miry clay I they shall mingle themselves together by the seed of man j but they shall not cohere. Nevertheless in those day* the God of the heavens shall cause a kingdom to arise, which skull not perish for ages. It shall bruise and consume those king- dom* ; but itself shall stand for ages,'' Dan. ii. 43, 44." After this, 1 heard as it were the voice of singing, and further in the east 1 saw a glittering of light more resplendent than the former ; and 1 asked the angel what was the suhject of their glorification 2 He said, "These words in Daniel; '•I saw in the visionsofthe night, and lo ! with the clouds of heaven there came as it were the Son of Man: and to him was given dominion and a kingdom j and all people and nations shall worship him. His dominion is the do- minion of an age, which shall notpass away ; and his kingdom that which shall not perish," Dan. vii. 13, 14. They are further celebrating the Lord from these words in the Revelation: 4 To J ksus (Jurist be glory and strength : behold he cometh with clouds. He is alpha and omega, the beginning and the end, the Jirst atul the last ; who is, who was, and who is to come, the almighty. I, John, he ied this from the Son ot Man, out of tlie midst of tlie seven 80 AND ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS. 81, 82 candlesticks,' Rev. i. 5—7,10—13; chap. xxii. 13; Matt. xxiv. 30, 31." I looked again into the eastern heaven : it was en- lightened on the right side, and the light entered the southern expanse. I heard a sweet sound ; and I asked the angel, what was the subject of their glorification in that quarter respecting the Lord? He said, "These words in the Revelation: ' I saw a new heaven and a new earth; and I saw the holy city, New Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven, prepared as a bride for her husband: and the angel spake with me, and said, Come, I will shew thee the bride, the lamb's wd?e : and he carried me away in the spirit to a great and high mountain, and shelved me the holy city, Jerusalem] Rev. xxi. 1, 2, 9, 10: also these words, 'I Jesus am the bright and morning star; and the spirit and the bride say, Come ; and he said, Even I come quickly ; Amen : even come, Lord Jesus," Rev. xxii. 10, 17, 20.' After these and several other subjects of glorification, there was heard a common glorification from the east to the west of hea- ven, and also from the south to the north ; and I asked the angel, "What now is the subject?" He said, "These words from the prophets ; 1 Let all flesh know that I, Jehovah, am thy Saviour and thy Redeemer,' Isaiah xlix. 26. ' Thus saith Jehovah, the King of Israel, and his Redeemer, Jehovah Zebaoth, I am the first and the last, and beside me there is no God,' Isaiah xliv. 6. ' It shall be said in that day, Lo ! this is our God, whom we have expected to deliver us ; this is Je- hovah whom we have expected.' Isaiah xxv. 9. ' The voice of him that crieth in the wilderness, Prepare a way for Jehovah. Behold the Lord Jehovah cometh in strength. lie shall feed his flock like a shepherd,' Isaiah xl. 3, 10, 11. ' Unto us a child is bom ; unto us a son is given y whose name is Wonderful, Coun- sellor, God, Hero, Father of Eternity, Prince of Peace? Isaiah ix. 6. ' Behold the days will come, and I will raise up to David a righteous branch, who shall reign a King : and this is his name, Jehovah our Righteousness,' Jeremiah xxiii. 5, 6 ; chap, xxxiii. 15, 16. 'Jehovah Zebaoth is his name, and thy Redeemer the holy one of Israel : the God of the whole earth shall he be called,' Isaiah liv. 5. 'In that day there shall be one Jp;hovah, and his name one,' Zech. xiv. 9." On hearing and understanding these words, my heart exulted, and I went home with joy ; and there I returned out of a state of the spirit into a state of the body ; in which latter state I committed to writing what I had seen and heard : to which I now add the following particular. That conjugial love, such as it was with the ancients, will be revived again by the Lord after his coming ; because this love is from the Lord alone, and is the portion of those who from him, by means of the Word, are made spiritual. 82. After this, a man from the northern quarter came run- 87 m CONJUGIAL LOVE ning in great haste, and looked at me with a threatening coun- tenance, and addressing me in a passionate tone of voice, said, " Are you the man that wishes to seduce the world, under the notion of re-establishing a new church, which you understand by the New Jerusalem coming down out of heaven from God ; and teaching, that the Lord will endow with love truly conjngial those who embrace the doctrines of that church ; the delights and felicity of which love you exalt to the very heaven ? Is not this a mere fiction ? and do yon not hold it forth as a bait and entice- ment to accede to your new opinions ? But tell me briefly, what are the doctrinals of the New Church, and I will see whether they agree or disagree." I replied, "The doctrines of the church, which is meant by the New Jerusalem, are as follow: I. That there is one God, in whom there is a divine trinity ; and that he is the Lord Jesus Christ. II. That a saving faith is to believe on him. III. That evils are to be shunned, because they are of the devil and from the devil. IV. That goods are to be done, because they are of God and from God. V. That these are to be done by a man as from himself; but that it ought to be believed, that they are done from the Lord with him and by him." On hearing these doctrines, his fury for some moments abated ; but after some deliberation he again looked at me sternly, and said, " Are these five precepts the doctrines of faith and charity of the New Church?" I replied, "They are." He then asked sharply, " How can you demonstrate the first, ' that there is one God in whom there is a divine trinity ; and that he is the Lord Jesus Christ?" I said, "I demon- strate it thus: Is not God one and individual? Is not there a trinity? If God be one and individual, is not he one person ? If he be one person, is not the trinity in that person? That this God is the Lord Jesus Christ, is evident from these con- siderations, that he was conceived from God the Father, Luke i. 34, 35 : and thus tha' as to Ins soul he is God ; and hence, as he himself saitli, that the Father and himself are one, John x. 30: that he is in the Father, and the Father in him, John xix. 10, 11 ; that lie that seeth him and knoweth him, seeth and knoweth the Father, John xiv. 7, 9; that no one seeth and knoweth the Father, except he that is in the bosom of the Fa- ther, John i. 18; that all things of the Father are his, John iii. 35 ; chap. xvi. 15; that he is the Way, the Truth, and the Life ; and that no one Cometh to the Father but by him, John xiv. 6 ; thus of or from him, because the Father is in him ; and, accord- ing to Paul, that all the fulness of the Godhead dwelleth bodily inlriin, Coloss. ii. 9 ; and moreover, that he hath power over all flesh, John xvii. 2 ; and that he hath all power in heaven and in earth, Matt, xxviii. 18: from which declarations it follows, that he is God of heaven and earth." He afterwards asked how I proved the second, " that a saving faith is to beliere on hini?" 88 AND ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS. 82, S3 1 said, " By these words of the Lord, " This is the will of the Fa- ther, that every one that bklieveth on the Son should have eternal life, John vi. 40.' ' God so loved the world, that he gave his only-begotten Son, that every one that believeth on Him should not perish, but should have eternal life,' John iii. 15, 16. He that believeth on the Son, hath eternal life ; but he that believeth not the Son will not see life ; but the wrath of God abideth on him,' John iii. 36." He afterwards said, " Demon- strate also the third, and the next two doctrines:" I replied, " "What need is there to demonstrate ' that evils ought to be shunned, because they are of the devil and from the devil ; and that goods ought to be done, because they are of God and from God ;' also ' that the latter are to be done by a man as from him- self; but that he ought to believe that they are from the Lord with him and by him?" That these three doctrines are true, is confirmed by the whole Sacred Scripture from beginning to end ; for what else is therein principally insisted on, but to shun evils and do goods, and believe on the Lord God? Moreover, with- out these three doctrines there can be no religion : for does not religion relate to life? and what is life but to shun evils and do goods ? and how can a man do the latter and shun the former but as from himself? Therefore if you remove these doctrines from the church, you remove from it the Sacred Scripture, and also religion ; and these being removed, the church is no longer a church." The man on hearing this retired, and mused on what he had heard ; but still he departed in indignation. ON THE ORIGIN OF CONJUGIAL LOVE AS GROUNDED IN THE MARRIAGE O GOOD AND TRUTH. 83. Theke are both internal and external origins of conjugial love, and several of each ; nevertheless there is but one inmost or universal origin of all. That this origin is the marriage of good and truth, shall be demonstrated in what now follows. The reason why no one heretofore has deduced the origin of that love from this ground, is, because it has never yet been discovered that there is any union between good and truth ; and the reason why this discovery has not been made, is, because good does not appear in the light of the understanding, as truth does, and hence the knowledge of it conceals itself and evades every inquiry : and as from this circumstance good is as it were unknown, it was impossible for any one to conjecture that any marriage subsisted between it and truth : yea, before the rational natural sight, good appears so different from truth, that no conjunction between them can be supposed. That this is the case, may be seen from 85) 83, 84 CONJUGIAL LOVE common discourse whenever they are mentioned ; as when it is said, "This is good," truth is not at all thought of; and when it is said, " This is true," neither is good at all thought of; therefore at this day it is believed by many, that truth is one tiling and good another ; and by many also, that a man is intel- ligent and wise, and thereby a man (homo), according to the truths which he thinks, speaks, writes, and believes, and not at the same time according to goods. That nevertheless there is no good without truth, nor any truth without good, consequently that there is an eternal marriage between them ; also that this marriage is the origin of conjngial love, shall now be shewn and explained in the following order : I. Good and truth are the universale of creation, and thence are in all created things; hut they are in created subjects according to the form, of each. II. There is neither solitary good nor solitary truth, but in all cases they are conjoined. III. There is the truth ef 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. IV. 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 femi- nine). V. From the influx of the marriage qf good and truth from the Lor el, the love of the sex anel conjugial love are derived. VI. The love ef the sex belongs to the external or natural man, and hence it is common to every animal. VII. But conjugial love belongs to the internal or spiritual man, ; and hence this love isjieculiar to man. VIII. With man conjugial love is in the love of the sex, as a gem in its matrix. IX. The love of the sex with man is not the origin of conjugial love, but its first rudiment; thus it is like an external natural principle, in which aninternal spiritual principle is implanted. X. During the implantation of conjugial love, the love of the sex inverts itself and becomes the chaste love of the sex. XI. The male and the female were created to be the essential form of the marriage of good and truth. XII. They are that form in their i?imost principles, and thence in what is deriveel from those principles, in proportion as the in- teriors of their minds are opened. We will now proceed to the explanation. 84. I. Good and truth are the universals of creation, AND THENCE ARE IN ALL CREATED THINGS J BUT THEY ARE IN CREATED SUBJECTS ACCORDING TO THE FORM OF EACH. The rea- son why good and truth are the universals of creation, is, because these two are in the Lord God the Creator; yea, they are him- self; for he is essential divine good and essential divine truth. But this enters more clearly into the perception of the under- standing, and thereby into the ideas of thought, if instead of good we say love, and instead of truth we say wisdom ; conse* 90 AND ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS. 84— SG quently that in the Lord God the Creator there are divine love and divine wisdom, and that they arc himself; that is, that he is essential love and essential wisdom ; for those two are the same as good and truth. The reason of this is, because good has rela- tion to love, and truth to wisdom ; for love consists of goods, and wisdom truths. As the two latter and the two former are one and the same, in the following pages we shall sometimes speak of the latter and sometimes of the former, while by both the same is understood. This preliminary observation is here made, lest different meanings should be attached to the expressions when they occur in the followiug pages. 85. Since therefore the Lord God the Creator is essential love and essential wisdom, and from him was created the uni- verse, which thence is as a work proceeding from him, it must needs be, that in all created things there is somewhat of good and of truth from him ; for whatever is done and proceeds from any one, derives from him a curtain similarity to him. That this is the case, reason also may see from the order in which all things in the universe were created ; which order is, that one exists for the sake of another, and that thence one depends upon another, like the links of a chain: for all things are for the sake of the human race, that from it the angelic heaveu may exist, through which creation returns to the Creator himself, in whom it ori- ginated : hence there is a conjunction of the created universe w r ith its Creator, and by conjunction everlasting conservation, llence it is that good and truth are called the universals of crea- tion. That this is the case, is manifested to every one who takes a rational view of the subject : he sees in every created thing some- thing which relates to good, and something which relates to truth. 86. The reason why good and truth in created subjects are according to the form of each, is, because every subject receives influx according to its form. The conservation of the whole con- sists in the perpetual influx of divine good and divine truth into forms created from those principles ; for thereby subsistence or conservation is perpetual existence or creation. That every sub- ject receives influx according to its form, may be illustrated vari- ously ; as by the influx of heat and light from the sun into vege- tables of every kind ; each of which receives influx according to its form ; thus every tree and shrub according to its form, every herb and every blade of grass according to its form : the influx is alike into all ; but the reception, which is according to the form, causes every species to continue a peculiar species. The same thing may also be illustrated by the influx into animals of every kind according to the form of each. That the influx is according to the form of every particular thing, may also be seen by the most unlettered person, if he attends to the various instru- ments of sound, as pipes, flutes, trumpets, horns, aud organs 91 86, 87 CONJUGIAL LOVE which give forth a sound from being blown alike, or from a like influx of air, according to their respective forms. 87. II. Theke is neither solitary good nor solitary TRUTH, BUT IN ALL CASES THEY ARE CONJOINED. Whoever is desirous from any of the senses to acquire an idea respecting good, cannot possibly find it without the addition of something which exhibits and manifests it: good without this is a nameless entity ; and this something, by which it is exhibited and mani- fested, has relation to truth. Pronounce the term good only, and say nothing at the same time of this or that tbing with which it is conjoined; or define it abstractedly, or without the addition of anything connected with it; and you will see that it is a mere nothing, and that it becomes something with its addition ; and if you examine the subject with discernment, you will perceive that good, without some addition, is a term of no predication, and thence of no relation, of no affection, and of no state ; in a word, of no quality. The case is similar in regard to truth, if it be pronounced and heard without what it is joined with : that what it is joined with relates to good, may be seen by refined reason. But since goods are innumerable, and each ascends to its greatest, and descends to its least, as by the steps of a ladder, and also, according to its progression and quality, varies its name, it is difficult for any but the wise to see the relation of good and truth to their objects, and their conjunction in them. That neverthe- less there is not any good without truth, nor any truth without good, is manifest from common perception, provided it be first acknowledged that every thing in the universe has relation to good and truth ; as was shewn in the foregoing article, n. 84, That there is neither solitary good nor solitary truth, may bo illustrated and at the same time confirmed by various considera- tions; as by the following: that there is no essence without a form, nor any form without an essence ; for good is an essence or esse / and truth is that by which the essence is formed and the esse exists. Again in a man (homo) there are the will and the understanding. Good is of the will, and truth is of the understanding ; and the will alone does nothing but by the understanding ; nor does the understanding alone do anything but from the will. Again, in a man there are two fountains of bodily life, the heart and the lungs. The heart cannot produce any sensitive and moving life without the respiring lungs ; neither can the lungs without the heart. The heart has relation to good, and the respiration of the lungs to truth: there is also a corre- spondence between them. The case is similar in all the things of the mind and of the body belonging to him ; but we have not leisure to produce further confirmations in this place ; therefore the reader is referred to the Angelic Wisdom concerning the Divine Providence, n. 3—16, where this subject is more fully confirmed and explained in the following order: I. That tlu AND ITS CHASTE DKUGHT3. 87, Sfi universe, with all its created subjects, is from the divine love by the divine wisdom; or, what is the same thing, from the divine good by the divine truth. II. That the divine good and the divine truth proceed as a one from the Lord. III. That this one, in a certain image, is in every created thing. V. That good is not good, only so far as it is united with truth ; and that truth is not truth, only so far as it is united with good. VII. That the Lord does not suffer that anything should be divided; where- fore a man must either be in good and at the same time in truth, or in evil and at the same time in falsehood: not to mention Beveral other considerations. 88. There is the truth of good, and from this the good of truth ; or truth grounded in good, and good grounded in that truth j and in those two principles is implanted from creation an inclination to join themselves together into a one. It is necessary that some distinct idea be acquired concerning these principles; because on such idea depends all knowledge respecting the essential origin of conjuginl love : for, as will be seen presently, the truth of good, or truth grounded on good, is male (or masculine), and the good of truth., or good grounded in that truth, is female (or feminine) : but this may be comprehended more distinctly, if instead of good we speak of love, and instead of truth we speak of wisdom ; which are one and the same, as ma}' be seen above, n. 84. Wisdom cannot exist with a man but by means of the love of growing wise; if this love be taken away, it is altogether impossible for him to become wise. Wisdom derived from this love is meant by the truth of good, or by truth grounded in good: but when a man has procured to himself wisdom from that love, and loves it in himself, or himself for its sake, he then forms a love which is the love of wisdom, and is meant by the good of truth, or by good grounded in that truth. There are therefore two loves belonging to a man, whereof one, which is prior, is the love of growing wise ; and the other, which is posterior, is the love of wisdom : but this latter love if it remains with man, is an evil love, and is called self-conceit, or the love of his own intelligence. That it was provided from creation, that this love should be taken out of the man, lest it should destroy him, and should be transferred to the woman, for the effecting of conjugial love, which restores man to integrity, will be confirmed in the following pages. Something respecting those two loves, and the transfer of the latter to the woman, may be seen above, n. 32, 33, and in the preliminary memora- ble relation, n. 20. If therefore instead of love is understood good, and instead of wisdom truth, it is evident, from what has been already said, that there exists the truth of good, or truth grounded in good, and from this the good of truth, or good grounded in that truth. 93 89, 90 CONJUG1AL LOVE 89. The reason why in these two principles there is implanted from creation an inclination to join themselves together into a one, is because the one was formed from the other; wisdom being formed from the love of growing wise, or truth being formed from good ; and the love of wisdom being formed from that wisdom, or the good of truth from that truth ; from which formation it may be seen, that there is a mutual inclination to re-unite themselves, and to join themselves together into a one. This effect takes place with men who are in genuine wisdom, and with women who are in the love of that wisdom in the hus- band ; thus with those who are in love truly conjugial. But con- cerning the wisdom which ought to exist with the man, and which should be loved by the wife, more will be said in what follows. 90. IV. In the subject 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). That from the Lord, the Creator and Supporter of the universe, there flows a perpetual union of love and wisdom, or a marriage of good and truth, and that created subjects receive the influx, each according to its form, was shewn above, n. 84 — 86 : but that the male from this marriage, or from that union, receives the truth of wisdom, and that the good of love from the Lord is conjoined thereto according to reception, and that this reception takes place in the intellect, and that hence the male is born to become intellectual, reason, by its own light, may discover from various particulars respecting him, especially from his affection, applica- tion, manners, and form. It is discoverable from his affection, which is the affection of knowing, of understanding, and of growing wise; the affection of knowing takes place in childhood, the affection of understanding in youth and in the entrance Upon manhood, and the affection of growing wise takes place from the entrance upon manhood even to old age ; from which it is evi- dent, that his nature or peculiar temper is inclinable to form the intellect; consequently that lie is born to become intellectual: but as this cannot be effected except, by means of love, therefore the Lord adjoins love to him according to his reception; that is, according to his intention in desiring to grow wise. The same is discoverable from his application, which is to such things as respect the intellect, or in which the intellect is predominant; several of which relate to public offices and regard the public good. The same is discoverable too from his manners, which are all grounded in the intellect as a ruling principle; in conse- quence whereof the actions of his life, which are meant by manners, are rational; and if not, still he is desirous they should appear so; masculine rationality is also discernible in every one of his virtues. Lastly, the same is discoverable from his form, which is different and totally distinct from the female form; 94 AND ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS. 90—92 on which subject see also what was said above, n. 33. Add to this, that the principle of prolification is in him, which is de- rived from the intellect alone ; for it is from truth grounded in good in the intellect : that the principle of prolification is from this source may be seen in the following pages. 91. But that the female is born to be a subject of the will (ut sit voluntaria), yet a subject of the will as grounded in the intellectual principle of the man, or what is the same, to be the love of the man's wisdom, because she was formed through his wisdom, (on which subject see above, n. 88, 89,) may also appear from the female's affection, application, manners, and form. From her affection, which is the affection of loving knowledge, intelligence, and wisdom ; nevertheless not in herselt but in the man ; and thus of loving the man : for the man (vir) cannot be loved merely on account of his form, in that he ap- pears as a man (homo), but on account of the talent with which he is gifted, which causes him to be a man. From her applica- tion ; in that it is to such manual works as knitting, needle- work, and the like, serving for ornament, both to decorate herself and to exalt her beauty : and moreover from her applica- tion to various domestic duties, which connect themselves with the duties of men, which, as was said, relate to public offices. They are led to these duties from an inclination to marriage, that they ma}- become wives, and thereby one with their husbands. That the same is also discoverable from their manners and form, needs no explanation. 92. V. From the influx of the marriage of good and TRUTH FROM THE LoRD, THE LOVE OF THE SEX AND CONJUGIAL love are derived. That good and truth are the universals of creation, and thence are in all created subjects ; and that they are in created subjects according to the form of each ; and that good and truth proceed from the Lord not as two but as one, was shewn above, n. 84—87 : from these considerations it follows, that the universal conjugial sphere proceeds from the Lord, and pervades the universe from its primaries to its ultimates ; thus from angels even to worms. The reason why such a sphere of the marriage of good and truth proceeds from the Lord, is, because it is also the sphere of propagation, that is, of prolifica- tion and fructification ; and this sphere is the same with the divine providence relating to the preservation of the universe by successive generations. JS r ow since this universal sphere, which is that of the marriage of good and truth, flows into its subjects according to the form of each, see n. 86, it follows that the male receives it according to his form, thug in the intellect, because he is in an intellectual form ; and that the female receives it according to her form, thus in the will, because she is a form of the will grounded in the intellect of the man ; and since that 95 92-96 CONJUGIAL LOVE sphere is also the sphere of prolification, it follows that hence is the love of the sex. 93. The reason why conjugial love also is from this same source, is, because that sphere flows into the form of wisdom with men, and also with angels ; for a man may increase in wisdom to the end of his life in the world, and afterwards to eternity in heaven ; and in proportion as he increases in wisdom, his form is perfected ; and this form receives not the love of the sex, but the love of one of the sex ; for with one of the sex it may be united to the inmost principles in which heaven with its felicities consists, and this union is conjugial love. 94. VI. The love of the sex belongs to the external OR NATURAL MAN, AND HENCE IT IS COMMON TO EVERY ANIMAL. Every man is born corporeal, and becomes more and more in- teriorly natural, and in proportion as he loves intelligence, he becomes rational, and afterwards, if he loves wisdom, he becomes spiritual. What the wisdom is by which a man becomes spiritual, will be shewn in the following pages, n. 130. Now as a man. advances from knowledge into intelligence, and from intelligence into wisdom, so also his mind changes its form; for it is opened more and more, and conjoins itself more nearly with heaven, and by heaven with the Lord ; hence it becomes more enamored of truth, and more desirous of the good of life. If therefore he halts at the threshold in the progression to wisdom, the form of hia natural mind remains; and this receives the influx of the universal sphere, which is that of the marriage of good and truth, in the same manner as it is received by the inferior subjects of the animal kingdom — beasts and birds ; and as these are merely natural, the man in.such case becomes like them, and thereby loves the sex just as they do. This is what is meant by the as- sertion, — the love of the sex belongs to the external or natural man, and hence it is common to every animal. 95. VII. But conjugial love belongs to the internal OR SPIRITUAL MAN ; AND HENCE THIS LOVE IS PECULIAR TO MAN. The reason why conjugial love belongs to the internal or spiritual man is, because in proportion as a man becomes more intelligent and wise, in the same proportion he becomes more internal and spiritual, and in the same proportion the form of his mind is more perfected ; and this form receives conjugial love : for there- in it perceives and is sensible of a spiritual delight, which is inwardly blessed, and a natural delight thence arising, which derives its soul, life, and essence from the spiritual delight. 96. The reason why conjugial love is peculiar to man, is because he only can become spiritual, he being capable of elevat- ing his intellect above his natural loves, and from that state of elevation of seeing them beneath him, and of judging of their quality, and also of amending, correcting, and removing tbem 96 AND ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS. 96—03 No other animal can do this ; for the loves of other animals are altogether united with their inborn knowledge; on which ac count this knowledge cannot be elevated into intelligence, and still less into wisdom ; inconsequence of which every other ani- mal is led by the love implanted in his knowledge, as a blind person is led through the streets by a dog. This is the reason why conjugial love is peculiar to man ; it may also be called native and near akia to him ; because man has the faculty of growing wise, with which faculty this love is united. 97. VIII. With man conjugtal love is in the love of the sex as a gem in its matkix. As this however is merely a com- parison, we will explain it in the article which immediately fol- lows : tins comparison also illustrates what was shewn just above, n. 94, 95, — that the love of the sex belongs to the external or natural man, and conjugial love to the internal or spiritual man. 98. IX. The love of the sex 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 SPI- RITUAL principle is implanted. The subject here treated of is love truly conjugial, and not ordinary love, which also is called conjugial, and which with some is merely the limited love of the sex. Love truly conjugial exists only with those who desire wisdom, and who consequently advance more and more into wisdom. These the Lord foresees, and provides for them con- jugial love ; which love indeed commences with them from the love of the sex, or rather by it ; but still it does not originate in it; for it originates in proportion to the advancement in wisdom and the dawning of the light thereof in man ; for wisdom and that love are inseparable companions. The reason why conjugial love commences by the love of the sex is, because before a suit- able consort is found, the sex in general is loved and regarded with a fond eye, and is treated with civility from a moral ground : for a young man has to make his choice; and while this is determining, from an innate inclination to marriage with one, which lies concealed in the interiors of his mind, his exter- nal receives a gentle warmth. A further reason is, because de- terminations to marriage are delayed from various causes even to riper years, and in the meantime the beginning of that love is as lust ; which with some actually goes astray into the love of the sex; yet with them it is indulged no further than may be con- ducive to health. This, however, is to be understood as spoken of the male sex, because it has enticements which actually inflame it; but not of the female sex. From these considerations it is evident that the love of the sex is not the origin of love truly conjugial ; but that it is its first rudiment in respect to time, yet not in respect to end ; for what is first in respect to end, is first in the mind and its intention, because it is regarded as primary ; 7 87 98—101 CONJUGIAL LOVE but to this first there is no approaching unless successively through mediums, and these are not first in themselves, but only conducive to what is first in itself. 99. X. During the implantation of conjugial love, THE LOVE OF THE SEX INVERTS ITSELF AND BECOMES THE chaste love of the sex. It is said that in this case the love of the sex inverts itself ; because while conjugial love is coming to its origin, which is in the interiors of the mind, it sees the love of the sex not before itself but behind, or not above itself but beneath, and thus as somewhat which it passes by and leaves. The case herein is similar to that of a person climbing from one office to another through a great variety, till he reaches one which exceeds the rest in dignity ; when he looks back upon the offices through which he- had passed, as behind or beneath him ; or as when a person intends a journey to the palace of some king, after his arrival at his journey's end, he inverts his view in regard to the objects which he had seen in the way. That in this case the love of the sex remains and becomes chaste, and yet, to those who are principled in love truly conjugial, is sweeter than it was before, may be seen from the description given of it by those in the spiritual world, in the two memorable relations, n. 44, and 55. 100. XI. The male and the female were created to BE THE ESSENTIAL FORM OF THE MARRIAGE OF GOOD AND TRUTH. The reason of this is, because the male was created to be the understanding of truth, thus truth in form ; and the female was created to be the will of good, thus good in form ; and there is implanted in each, from their inmost principles, an inclination to conjunction into a one, as may be seen above, n. 8S ; thus the two make one form, which emulates the conjugial form of good and truth. It is said to emulate it, because it is not the same, but is like it; for the good which joins itself with the truth belonging to the man, is from the Lord immediately ; whereas the good of the wife, which joins itself with the truth belonging to the man, is from the Lord mediately through the wife ; there- fore there are two goods, the one internal, the other external, which join themselves with the truth belonging to the husband, and cause him to be constantly in the understanding of truth, and thence in wisdom, by love truly conjugial : hut on this sub- ject more will he said in the following pages. 101. XII. MaRRIKD PARTNKRS ARK THAT FORM IN THEIR 5NMOST PB1NCHPLE8, AND THENCE IN WHAT IS DERIVED FROM 1IIOSK PRINCIPLES, IN PROPORTION AS THE INTERIORS OF THEIR /.iinds ark OPKNED, There are three things of which every man consists, and which follow in an orderly connection, — the soul, the mind, and the body : his inmost is the soul, his middle is the mind, and his ultimate is the body. Every thing which flows from the Lord into a man, flows into his inmost principle. 98 AND ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS. 101—103 which is the soul, and descends thence' into his middle principle, which is the mind, and through this into his ultimate principle, which is the body. Suoh is the nature of the influx of "the mar- riage of good and truth from the Lord with man : it flows imme- diately into his soul, and thence proceeds to the principles next succeeding, and through these to the extreme or outermost : and thus conjointly all the principles constitute conjugial love. From an idea of this influx it is manifest, that two married partners are the form of conjugial love in their inmost principles, and thence in those derived from the inmost. 102. But the reason why married partners become that form in proportion as the interiors of their minds are opened, is, be- cause the mind is successively opened from infancy even to extreme old age: for a man is born corporeal: and in proportion as the mind is opened proximately above the body, he becomes rational ; and in proportion as his rational principle is purified, and as it were drained of the fallacies which flow in from the bodily senses, and of the concupiscences which flow in from the allurements of the flesh, in the same proportion it is opened ; and this is affected solely by wisdom : and when the interiors of the rational mind are open, the man becomes a form of wisdom ; and this form is the receptacle of love truly conjugial. "The wisdom which constitutes this form, and receives this love, is rational, and at, the same time moral, wisdom: rational wisdom regards the truths and goods which appear inwardly in man, not, as its own, but as flowing in from the Lord; and moral wisdom shuns evils and falses as leprosies, especially the evils of lascivi- onsness, which contaminate its conjugial love." * # * # * * v 103. To the above I shall add two memorable relations : the first is this. One morning before sun-rise I was looking towards the east in the spiritual world, and I saw four horsemen as it were issuing from a cloud refulgent with the flame of the dawing day. On their heads they had crested helmets, on their arms as it were wings, and around their bodies light orange-colored tunics; thus clad as for expedition, they rose in their seats, and gave their horses the reins, which thus ran as if they had had wings to their feet. I kept my eye fixed on their course or flight, desiring to know where they were going ; and lo ! three of the horsemen took their direction towards three different quarters, the south, the west, and the north ; and the fourth in a short space of time halted in the east. Wondering at all this, I looked up into heaven, and inquired where those horsemen were going? 1 received for answer, ''To the wise men in the kingdoms of Europe, who with clear reasoning and acute discernment discuss the subjects of their investigation, and are distinguished above the rest for their genius, that they may assemble together and explain the secret RK8PKcnyo the origin 103, 104 CONJUGIAL LOVE OF CONJUGIAL LOVE, AND' RESPECTING ITS VIRTUE OR POTENCY." It was then said from heaven, "Wait awhile, and you will see twenty -seven chariots; three, in which, are Spaniards; three, in which are Frenchmen ; three, in which are Italians; three, in which are Germans ; three, in which are Dutchmen or Holland- ers ; three, in which are Englishmen ; three, in which are Swedes ; three, in which are Danes; and three, in which are Poles." In about two hours I saw the chariots, drawn by horses of a pale- red color, with remarkable trappings : they passed rapidly along towards a spacious house in the confines of the east and south, around which all alighted from their several chariots, and entered in with much confidence. Then it was said to me, " Go, and do you also enter, and you will hear." I went and entered : and on examining the house within, I saw that it was square, the sides looking to the four quarters : in each side there were three high windows of crystalline glass, the frames of which were of olive- wood ; on each side of the frames were projections from the walls, like chambers vaulted above, in which there were tables. The walls of these chambers were of cedar, the roof of the noble almug wood, and the floor of poplar boards. Near the eastern wall, where no windows were seen, there was set a table overlaid with gold, on which was placed a turban set with precious stones, which was to be given as a prize or reward to him who should by investigation discover the secret about to be proposed. While my attention was directed to the chamber projections like closets near the windows, I saw five men in each from every kingdom of Europe, who were prepared and waiting to know the object for the exercise of their judgements. An angel then pre- sented himself in the middle of the palace, and said, "The object tor the exercise of your judgements shall be respecting the ORIGIN OF CONJUGIAL LOVE, AND RESPECTING ITS VIRTUE OR potency. Investigate this and decide upon it ; and write your decision on a piece of paper, and put it into the silver urn which you see placed near the golden table, and subscribe the initial letter of the kingdom from which you come ; as F for French, li for Batavians or Hollanders, I for Italians, E for English, ? for Poles, G for German, H for Spaniards (ITispani), D for Danes, S for Swedes." As he said this, the angel departed, saying, " I will return." Then the live men, natives of the same country, in each closet near the windows, took into consideration the proposed subject, examined it attentively, and came to a de- cision according to their respective talents and powers of judge- ment, which they wrote on a piece of paper, and placed it in the silver urn, having first subscribed the initial letter of their king- dom. This business being accomplished in about three hours, the angel returned and drew the papers in order from the urn, and read them before the assembly. 104. From the first paper which he happened to lay hold 100 AND ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS. 104r-106 of, he read as follows ; " We five, natives of the same country, in our closet have decreed that the origin of conjugial love is from the most ancient people in the golden age, and that it was de- rived to them from the creation of Adam and his wife : hence ia the origin of marriages, and with marriages the origin of con- jugial love. The virtue or potency of conjugial love we derive from no other source than climate or situation in regard to the sun, and the consequent heat of the country ; and we are con- firmed in this sentiment, not by vain conjectures of reason, but by evident proofs of experience, as by the case of the people who live under the line, or the equinoctial, where the heat of the day is intense, and by the case of those who live nearer to the line, or more distant from it ; and also from the co-operation of the sun's heat with the vital heat in the living creatures of the earth and the fowls of heaven, in the time of spring during prolifica- tion. Moreover, what is conjugial love but heat, which becomes virtue or potency, if the heat supplied from the sun be added to it?" To this decision was subscribed the letter H, the initial of the kingdom from which they were. 105. After this he put his hand into the urn a second time, and took out a paper from which he read as follows : " We, natives of the same country, in our lodge have agreed that the origin of conjugial love is the same with the origin of marriages, which were sanctioned by laws in order to restrain man's innate concupiscences prompting him to adultery, which ruins the soul, defiles the reason, pollutes the morals, and infects the body with disease : for adultery is not human but bestial, not rational bnt brutish, and thus not in any respect Christian but barbarous : with a view to the condemnation of such adultery, marriages originated, and at the same time conjugial love. The case is the same with the virtue or potency of this love ; for it depends on chastity, which consists in abstaining from the rovings of whoredom: the reason is, because virtue or potency, with him who loves his married partner alone, is confined to one, and is thus collected and as it were concentrated ; and then it becomes refined like a quintessence from which all defilement is sepa- rated, which would otherwise be dispersed and cast away in every direction. One of us five, who is a priest, has also added predestination as a cause of that virtue or potency, saying, ' Are not marriages predestinated? and this being the case, are not the progeny thence issuing and the means conducive thereto, predestinated also?' He insisted on adding this cause be- cause he had sworn to it." To this decision -was subscribed the letter B. On hearing it, a certain spirit observed with u smile, "How fair an apology is predestination for weakness or impotence !" 106. Presently he drew from the urn a third paper, from which he read as follows : " We, natives of the same country, 101 106—108 CONJUGIAL LOVE in our department have deliberated concerning the causes of the origin of conjugial love, and have seen this to be the principal, that it is the same with the origin of marriage, because con- jugial love had no existence before marriage ; and the ground of its existence is, that when any one is desperately in love with a virgin, he desires in heart and soul to possess her as being lovely above all things ; and as soon as she betroths herself to him he regards her as another self. That this is the origin of conjugial love, is clearly manifest from the fury of every man against his rivals, and from the jealous}- which takes place in case of viola- tion. "We afterwards considered the origin of the virtue or potency of this love ; and the sentiments of three prevailed against the other two, viz., that virtue or potency with a married partner arises from some degree of licentiousness with the sex. They affirmed that they knew from experience that the potency of the love of the sex is greater than the potency of conjugial love." To this decision was subscribed the letter I. On hear- ing it, there was a cry from the table, "Remove this paper and take another out of the urn." 107. And instantly he drew out a fotjkth, from which he read as follows : " We, natives of the same country, under our window have come to this conclusion, that the origin of conjugial love and of the love of the sex is the same, the former being de- rived from the latter ; only that the love of the sex is unlimited, indeterminate, loose, promiscuous, and roving; whereas conjugial love is limited, determinate, fixed, regular, and constant; and that this love therefore has been sanctioned and established by the prudence of humau wisdom as necessary to the existence of every empire, kingdom, commonwealth, and even society; for without it men would wander like droves of cattle in fields and forests, with harlots and ravished females, and would fly from one habitation to another to avoid the bloody murders, violations, and depredations, whereby the whole human race would be in danger of being extirpated. This is our opinion concerning the origin of conjugial love. But the virtue or potency of conjugial love we deduce from an uninterrupted state of bodily health con- tinuing from infancy to old age ; for the man who always retains a sound constitution and enjoys a continual freedom from sick- ness, feels his vigor unabated, while his fibres, nerves, muscles, and sinews, are neither torpid, relaxed, nor feeble, but retain the full strength of their powers : farewell." To this decision was subscribed the letter E. 108. Fifthly, he drew a paper out of the urn, from which he read as follows : " We, natives of the same country, at our table, from the rationality of our minds, have examined into the origin of conjugial love and of its virtue or potency ; and from all the considerations which have presented themselves, we have seen and concluded upon no other origin of conjugial love than 102 AND ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS. 108, 109 this; that every man, from incentives and consequent incitements which are concealed in the interiors of his mind and hody, after indulging in various desires of his eyes, at length fixes his mind and inclination on one of the female sex, until his passion is deter- mined entirely to her : from this moment his warmth is enkindled more and more, until at length it becomes a flame ; in this state the inordinate love of the 6ex is banished, and conjugial love takes its place. A youthful bridegroom under the influence of this flame, knows no other than that the virtue or potency of this love will never cease ; for he wants experience and therefore knowledge respecting a state of the failure of his powers, and of the coldness of love which then succeeds to delights : conjugial love therefore has its origin in this first ardor before the nuptial ceremony, and from the same source it derives its virtue or potency ; but this virtue or potency changes its aspect after the nuptial ceremony, and decreases and increases ; yet still it con- tinues with regular changes, or with decrease and increase, even to old age, by means of prudent moderation, and by restraining the libidinous desires which burst forth from the lurking places of the mind not yet thoroughly purified : for libidinous desire precedes wisdom. This is our judgement concerning the origin and continuance of conjugial virtue or potency." To this deci- sion was subscribed the letter P. 109. Sixthly, he drew out a paper, from which he read as follows: "We, natives of the same country, from the fellowship subsisting among us, have attentively considered the causes of the origin of conjugial love, and have agreed in assigning two; one of which is the right education of children, and the other the distinct possession of inheritances. We have assigned these two, because they aim at and regard the same end, which is the public good : and this end is obtained, because infants conceived and born from conjugial love become proper and true children; and these in consequence of the natural love of the parents, exalted by the consideration of their offspring being legitimate, are educated to be heirs of all their parents' possessions both spiritual and natural. That the public good is founded on a light education of children and on a distinct possession of inheritances, is obvious to reason. Of the love of the sex and conjugial love, the latter appears as if it were one with ihu former, but it is distinctly different ; neither is the one love near to the other, but within it; and what is within is more excellent than what is without : and we have seen that conjugial love from creation is within, and lies hid in the love of the sex, just as an almond does in its shell ; therefore when conjugial love comes out of its shell, which is the love of the sex, it glitters before the angels like a gem, a beryl, and astroites. The reason of this is, because on conjugial love is inscribed the safety of the whole human race, which we conceive to be understood by the 103 109—111 CONJUGIAL LOVE public good. This is our judgement respecting the origin of this love. With respect to the origin of its virtue or potency, from a consideration of its causes, we have concluded it to be the deve- lopment and separation of conjugial love from the love of the sex, which is effected by wisdom on the man's part, and by the love of the man's wisdom on the part of the wife : for the love of the sex is common to man and beast ; whereas conjugial love is peculiar to men : therefore so far as conjugial love is developed and separated from the love of the sex, so far a man is a man and not a beast ; and a man acquires virtue or potency from his love, as a beast does from his." To this decision was subscribed the letter G. 110. Seventhly, he drew out a paper from which he read as follows : " We, natives of the same country, in the chamber under the light, of our window, have found our thoughts and thence our judgements exhilarated by meditating on conjugial love ; for who is not exhilarated by this love, which, while, it prevails in the mind, prevails also through the whole body? We judge of the origin of this love from its delights ; for who in any case knows or has known the trace of any love except from its delight and pleasurableness ? The delights of conjugial love in their origins are felt as beatitudes, satisfactions, and happinesses, in their derivations as pleasantnesses and pleasures, and in th*ir ultimates as superlative delights. The love of the sex therefore originates when the interiors of the mind, and thence the interiors of the body, are opened for the influx of those delights ; but conjugial love originated at the time when, from entering into marriage engagements, the primitive sphere of that love ideally promoted those delights. The virtue or potency of this love arises from its passing, with its inmost principles, from the mind into the body; for the mind, by derivation from the head, is in the body, while it feels and acts, especially when it is delighted from this love : hence we judge of the degrees of its potency and the regularity ot its alterations. Moreover we also deduce the virtue of potency from the stock whence a man is descended: if this be noble on the father's side, it becomes also by transmission noble witli his offspring. That such nobility is generated, inherited and de- scends by transmission, is agreeable to the dictates of reason supported by experience." To this decision was subscribed the letter F. 111. From the paper which came forth the eighth in order, he read as follows: "We, natives of the same country, in our place of assembly have not discovered the real origin of conjugial love, because it lies deeply concealed in the sacred repositories of the mind. The most consummate vision cannot, by any intel- lectual effort, reach that love in its origin. We have made many conjectures ; hut after the vain exertion of subtle inquiry, we have been in doubt whether our conjectures might not be called 101 AND ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS. Ill, 112 rather trifling than judicious ; therefore whoever is desirous to extract the origin of that love from the sacred repositories of his mind, and to exhibit it clearly before his eyes, let him go to Velphos. We have contemplated that love beneath its origin, and have seen that in the mind it is spiritual, and as a fountain from which a sweet stream flows, whence it descends into the breast, where it becomes delightful, and is called bosom love, which in itself is full of friendship and confidence, from a full inclination to reciprocality ; and that when it has passed the breast, it becomes genial love. These and similar considerations, which a young man revolves in his mind while he is determining his choice to one of the sex, kindle in his heart the fire of conju- gial love ; which fiie, as it is the primitive of that love is its origin. In respect to the origin of its virtue or potency, we acknowledge no other than that love itself, they being inseparable companions, yet still they are such that sometimes the one precedes and some- times the other. When the love precedes and the virtue or potency follows it, each is noble because in this case potency is the virtue of conjugiallove; but if the potency precedes and the love follows, each is then ignoble; because in this case the love is subordinate to carnal potency ; we therefore judge of the quality of each from the order in which the love descends or ascends, and thus pro- ceeds from its origin to its proposed end." To this decision was subscribed the letter D. 112. Lastly, or ninthly, he took up a paper, from which he read as follows: "We, natives of the same country, in our council- chamber have exercised our judgement on the two points pro- posed, viz., the origin of conjugial love, and the origin of its virtue or potency. In the subtleties of inquiry respecting the origin of conjugial love, in order to avoid obscurity in our rea- sonings, we have distinguished between the love of the sex as being spiritual, natural, and carnal ; and by the spiritual love of the sex we have understood love truly conjugial, because this is spiritual ; and by the natural love of the sex we have under- stood polygamical love, because this is natural ; and by the merely carnal love of the sex we have understood adulterous love because this is merely carnal. In exercising our judgements to examine into love truly conjugial, we have clearly seen that this love exists only between one male and one female, and that from creation it is celestial and inmost, the soul and father of all good loves, being inspired into the first parents, and capable of being inspired into Christians; it is also of such a conjunctive nature that by it two minds may become one mind, and two men {homines) as it were one man (homo); which is meant by becom- ing one flesh. Tha this love was inspired at creation, is plain from these words in the book of creation, '•'■And a man shall leave -father and mother, and shall cleave to his wife; and they shall be one flesh,'' Gen. ii. 24. That it can be inspired into Christians, 103 112-115 C0X.7UGIAL LOVK is evident from these words, ' Jesus said, Have ye not read, thai he who made them f rom the beginning, made them male and female, and said, For this cause shall a man leave father and mother, and shall cleave to his wife ; and they two shall be one flesh ? Wherefore they are no longer two but one flesh] Matt. xix. 4 — 6. So far in regard to the origin of conjugial love: but as to the origin of the virtue or potency of love truly conjugial, we conceive it to proceed from a similitude of minds and una- nimity ; for when two minds are conjugially united, their thoughts spiritually kiss each other, and these inspire into the body their virtue or potency." To this decision was subscribed the letter S. 113. There were standing behind an oblong stage in the palace, erected before the doors, some strangers from Africa, who cried out to the natives of Europe, "Permit one of us to deliver his sentiments respecting the origin of conjugial love, and respect- ing its virtue or potency." And immediately all the tables gave signs of assent with their hands. Then one of them entered and stood at the table on which the turban was placed, and said, " You Christians deduce the origin of conjugial love from love itself; but we Africans deduce it from the God of heaven and earth. Is not conjugial love a chaste, pure, and holy love ? Are not the angels of heaven principled therein ? Is not the whole human race, and thence the whole angelic heaven, the seed of that love? And can such super-eminent principle derive its existence from any other source than from God himself, the Creator and Preserver of the universe? You Christians deduce conjugial virtue or potency from various causes rational and natural ; but we Africans deduce it from the state of man's con- junction with the God of the universe. This state we call a state of religion ; but you call it a state of the church : for when the love is derived from that state, and is fixed and permanent, it must needs produce its own virtue, which resembles it, and thus also is fixed and permanent. Love truly conjugial is known only to those few who live near to God ; consequently the potency of that love is known to none else. This potency is described by the angels in the heavens as the delight of a perpetual spring." 114. As he said these word, the whole assembly arose, and lo ! behind the golden table on which lay the turban, there ap- peared a window that had not before been seen ; and through it was heard a voice, saying, " The African is to have the turban." The angel then gave it into his hand, but did not place it upon his head ; and he went home with it. The inha- bitants of the kingdoms of Europe then left the assembly and entered their chariots, in which they returned to their respec- tive societies. 115. The second memorable relation. Awaking from sleep at midnight, I saw at some elevation towards the east ac 106 AND ITS CHASTE DELIGHT'S. 115 angel holding in his right hand a paper, which appeared extremely bright, being illuminated by the light flowing from the sun. In the middle of the paper there was written in golden letters, the marriage of good and tkl'th. From the writing there darted forth a splendor which formed a wide circle about the paper. This circle or encompassing splendor appeared like the early dawn in spring. After this I saw the angel descending with the paper in his hand ; and as he descended the paper be- came less and less lucid, and the writing, which was the mar- riage of good and truth, changed from a golden into a silver color, afterwards into a copper color, next into an iron color, and at length into the color of iron and copper rust: finally, I saw the angel enter an obscure mist, and through the mist descend upon the ground ; and here I did not see the paper, although he still held it in his hand. This happened in the world of spirits, in which all men first assemble alter their decease. The angel then said to me, " Ask those who come hither whether they see me, or anything in my hand." There came a great number ; one company from the east, another from the south, another from the west, and another from the north ; and I asked those who came from the east and from the south, who in the world had applied themselves to literary pursuits, " Do you see any one here with me, and anything in his hand?" They all said, u No." I then put the same question to those who came from the west and from the north, who in the world had believed in the words of the learned ; and these gave the same answer : nevertheless the last of them, who in the world had been prin- cipled in simple faith grounded in charity, or in some degree of truth grounded in good, when the rest were gone away, said, that they saw a man with a paper, the man in a graceful dress, and the paper with letters written upon it : and when they applied their eyes nearer to it, they said that they could read these words, The marriage of good and truth y and they addressed the angel, intreating him to explain to them the meaning of the writing. He said, ,k All things in the whole heaven and in the whole world, are a marriage of good and truth; for all things whatever, both those which live and communicate life and those which do not live and do not communicate life, were created from and into the marriage of good and truth. There does not exist anything which was created into truth alone, or any tiling which was created into good alone: solitary good or solitary truth is not any thing ; but by marriage they exist and become something, which derives its nature and quality from that of the marriage. In the Lord the Creator are divine good and divine truth in their very substance: the esse of his substance is divine good, and its existere is divine truth : in him also they are in their very essential union ; for in him they infinitely make a one : and since these two in the Creator himself are a one, therefore 107 115 CONJUGIAL LOVE also tbey are a one in all things created froir. him ; hereby also the Creator is conjoined in an eternal covenant as of marriage with all things created from himself." The angel further said, that the Sacred Scripture, which proceeded immediately from the Lord, is in general and in particular a marriage of good and truth ; and since the church, which is formed by the truth of doctrine, and religion, which is formed by the good of life agreeable to the truth of doctrine, are with Christians derived solely from the Sacred Scripture, therefore it may manifestly appear, that the church in general and in particular is a mar- riage of good and truth ; (that, this is the case, may be seen in the Apocalypse Revealed, n. 373, 483.) "What has just been said concerning the marriage of good and truth, is applicable also to the markiage of charity and faith; for good relates to charity, and truth to faith. Some of the spirits above-mentioned who did not see the angel and the writing, being still near, and hearing these things, said in an under tone, " Yes, we also com- prehend what has been spoken;" but the angel then said to them, "Turn aside a little from me and speak in like manner." They turned aside, and then said aloud, " It is not so." After this the angel spoke concerning the marriage of good and troth with married pairs, saying, that if their minds were in that marriage, the husband being truth, and the wife the good thereof, they would both be in the delights of the blessedness and innocence, and thence in the happiness which the angels of heaven enjoy ; and in this state the prolific principle of the husband would be in a continual spring, and thereby in the endeavour and vigor of propagating its truth, and the wife would be in a continual re- ception thereof from a principle of love. The wisdom which husbands derive from the Lord, is sensible of no greater delight than to propagate its truths ; and the love of wisdom which wives have from the Lord is sensible of no higher gratification than to receive those truths as it were in the womb, and thus to conceive them, to carry them in the womb, and to bring them forth. Spiritual prolifications with the angels of heaven are of this sort ; and if you are disposed to believe it, natural prolifications are also from the same origin. The angel, after a salutation of peace, raised himself from the ground, and passing through tho mist ascended into heaven ; and then the paper shone as before according to the degrees of ascent ; and behold 1 the circle, which before appeared as the dawn of day, descended and dispelled the mist which caused darkness on the ground, and a bright sunshine succeeded. 108 AND ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS. 116 ON THE MARRIAGE OF THE LORD AND THE CHURCH, AND ITS CORRESPONDENCE. 116. The reason why the marriage of the Lord and the church, together with its correspondence, is here also treated of, is, because without knowledge and intelligence on this subject, scarcely any one can know, that conjugial love in its origin is holy, spiritual, and celestial, and that it is from the Lord. It is said indeed by some in the church, that marriages have relation to the marriage of the Lord with the church ; but the nature and quality of this relationship is unknown , in order therefore that this relationship may be exhibited to the understanding so as to be seen in some degree of light, it is necessary to treat par- ticularly of that holy marriage which has place with and in those who are the Lord's church. These also, and no others, are principled in love truly conjugial. But for the better elu- cidation of this arcanum, it may be expedient to consider the subject distinctly, as arranged under the following articles : I. The Lord in the Word is called the Bridegroom and Husband, and the church the bride and wife ; and the con- junction of the Lord with the church, and the reciprocal conjunc- tion of the church with the Lord, is called a marriage. II. The Lord is also called a Father, and the church, a mother. III. 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 bg sons and daughters, brothers and sisters, sons-in-law and daughters- in-law, and by other names of relations. IV. The spiritual off- spring, which are born from the Lord's marriage with the church are truths and goods ; truths, from which are derived understand- ing, perception, and all thought • and goods, from which are derived love, charity, and all affection. V. From the marriage of good and truth, which proceeds from the Lord in the way of influx, man (homo) receives truth, and the Lord conjoins good thereto ; and thus the church is formed by the Lord with man. VI. The husband does not represent the Lord and the wife the church i because both together, the husband and the wife, consti tute the church. VII. 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. VIII. But there is a correspondence with conjugial love, semina- tion, prolification, the love of infants, and similar things which, exist in marriages, and ' are derived from them. IX. The Word is the medium of con junction, because it is from the Lord, and therefore is the Lord. X. The church is from the Lord, and exists with those who come to him, and live according to his precepts. XI. Conjugial love is according to the state of the church, because 109 116—118 CONJUGIAL LOVE it is according to tlte state of wisdom with man (homo). XII. And as the church is from the Lord, conjugial love is also from him. We proceed to the explanation of each article. 117. I. The Lord in the Word is called the bride- groom 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. That the Lord in the Word is called the Bridegroom and Husband, and the church the bride and wife, may appear from the following passages : " He that hath the bride is the bridegroom ; out the friend of the bridegroom, who standeth and heareth him, rejoiceth with joy because of the bridegroom's voice," John iii. 29: this was spoken by John the Baptist concerning the Lord. " -Testis said, Solong as thamiDK- groom is with them, the songs of the nuptials cannot fast : the days will come tohcn the bridegroom will be taken away from them, and then will they fast," Matt. ix. 15 ; Mark ii. 19, 20 ; Luke v. 34, 35. " I saw the holy city, New Jerusalem, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband," Rev. xxi. 2. The New Jerusalem signifies the New Church of the Lord, as may be seen in the Apocalypse Revealed, n. 880, S81. " The angel said to John, Come, and I to ill shew thee the bride, the lamb's wife: and he sheioed him the holy city, JVeio Jerusalem" Rev. xxi. 9, 10. " The time of the marriage of the lamb is come, and his wife hath made herself ready. Blessed are those who are called^ tit the supper of the marriage of the lamb," Rev. xix. 7, 9. The bridegroom, whom the live prepared virgins went forth to meet, and with WHOM they entered in to the marriage, Matt, xxv. 1 — 10, denotes the Lord ; as is evident from, verse 13, where it is said, " Watch, therefore ; because ye know neither the da}' nor the hour in which the Son of Man will come :" not to mention many passages in the prophets. 118. II. Thb Lord is also called a father, and the church, a mother. The Lord is called a Father, as ap- pears from the following passages : " Unto us a child is bom ; unto us a son is given • and his name shall be called, Wonderful, Counsellor, God, the Father of Eternity, the Prince of Peace," Isaiah ix. 6. " Thou, Jehovah, art our Father, our Redeemer ; thy name is from an age," Isaiah lxiii. 16. Again, " Jesus said, lie that seeth me, seeth the Father that sent me," John xii. 45. " If ye have known me, ye have known my Father also ; and henceforth ye have known him, and have seen him." John xiv. 7. "Philip said, Sheto US the Father: Jesus said unto him, He that seeth me, seeth the Father ; how sayest thou then, Shew us the Father?" John xiv. 8, 9. "Jesus said, The Father and I are 07ie," John X. 30. "All things that the Father hath are mine," John xvi. 15 ; chap. xvii. 10. " The Father is in me, and I in the Father," John x. 38 ; chap. xiv. 110 AND ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS. 118—120 10, 11, 20. That the Lord and his Father f.re one, as the soul and the hody are one, and that God the Father descended from heaven, and assumed the human (nature or principle), to redeem and save men, and that his human nature is what is called the Son, and is said to be sent into the world, has been fully shewn in the Apocalypse Revealed. 119. The church is called a mother, as appears from the following passages: u Jehovah said, Contend with tour mother : she is not my wife, and I am not her husband," Ilosea ii. 2, 5. " Thou art thy mother's daughter, that loatheth her husband," Ezek. xvi. 45. " Where is the bill of thy mother's divorcement, whom I have put away ?" Isaiah 1.1. " Thy mother was like a vine planted by the waters, bearing fruit" Ezek. xix. 10 ; speak- ing of the Jewish church. " Jesus stretching out his hand to the disciples, said, My mother and my brethren are those who hear the Word of God, and do it," Luke viii. 21 ; Matt. xii. 49, 50 ; Mark iii. 33 — 35 : the Lord's disciples means the church. " There was standing at the cross of Jesus his mother : and Jesus seeing his mother and the disciple lohom he loved, standing by, he saith unto his mother, Woman, behold thy son • and he saith to the dis- ciple, Behold thy mother : wherefore from that hour the disciple took her unto his own" John xix. 25 — 27. This implies, that the Lord did not acknowledge Mary as a mother, but the church ; therefore he calls her Woman, and the disciple's mother. The reason why the Lord called her the mother of this disciple, 05 ot John, was, because John represented the church as to the goods of charity, which are the church in real effect; therefore it is said, He took her unto his own. Peter represented truth and faith, James charity, and John the works of charity, as may be seen in the Apocalypse Revealed, n. 5, 6, 790, 798, 879 ; and the twelve disciples together represented the church as to all its constituent principles, as may be seen, n. 233, 790, 903, 915. 120. III. 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. That no other than spiritual off- spring are born of the Lord by the church, is a proposition which wants no demonstration, because reason sees it to be self- evident ; for it is the Lord from whom every good and truth proceeds, and it is the church which receives them and brings them into effect; and all the spiritual things of heaven and the church relate to good and truth. Hence it is that sons and daughters in the Word, in its spiritual sense, signify truths and goods; sons, truths conceived in the spiritual man, and born in the natural; and daughters, goods in like manner: therefore those wdio are regenerated by the Lord, are called in the Word 111 120—122 CONJUGIAL LOVE sons of God, sons of the kingdom, born of him ; and the Lord called the disciples sons : the male child, that the woman brought forth, and that was caught np to God, Rev. xii. 5, has a similar signification ; sec Apocalypse Revealed, n. 543. Since daugh- ters signify goods of the church, therefore in the Word mention is so frequently made of the daughter of Zion, the daughter of Jerusalem, the daughter of Israel, and the daughter of Judah ; by whom is signified not any daughter, but the affection of good, which is an affection of the church ; see also Apocalypse Revealed, n. 612. The Lord also calls those who are of his church, brethren and sisters ; see Matt. xii. 49, 50 ; chap. xxv. 40; chap, xxviii. 10; Mark iii. 35; Luke viii. 21. 121. IV. The spiRrruAL offspring, which are born from the Lord's marriage with the church, are truths and goods ; truths, from which are derived understand- ing, perception, and all thought j and goods, from which ARE DERIVED LOVE, CHARITY, AND ALL AFFECTION. The reason why truths and goods are the spiritual offspring, which are born of the Lord by the church, is, because the Lord is essential good and essential truth, and these in him are not two but one ; also, because nothing can proceed from the Lord but what is in him, and what he is. That the marriage of truth and good pro- ceeds from the Lord, and flows in with men, and is received according to the state of the mind and life of those who are of the church, was shewn in the foregoing section on the marriage of good and truth. The reason why by means of truths a man has understanding, perception, and all thought, and by means of goods has love, charity, and all affection, is, because all tilings of man relate to truth and good ; and there are two con- stituents of man — the will and the understanding ; the will being the receptacle of good, and the understanding of truth. That love, charity and affection, belong to the will, and that perception and thought belong to the understanding, may appear without the aid of light arising from demonstration; for there is a light derived from the understanding itself by which these proposi- tions are seen to be self-evident. 122. V. From the marriage of good and truth, which PROCEEDS FROM THE LORD IN THE WAY OF INFLUX, MAN (h.07no) RECEIVES TRUTH, AND THE LORD CONJOINS GOOD THERETO \ AND THUS THE CHURCH IS FORMED BY THE LORD WITH MAN. TllO reason why a man receives truth by virtue of the good and truth which proceed as a one from the Lord, is, because he receives this as his own, and appropriates it to himself as his own ; for he thinks what is true as from himself, and in like manner speaks from what is true ; and this takes place because truth is in the light of the understanding, and hence he sees it: and whatever he sees in himself, or in his mind, he knows not whence it is ; for he does not see the influx, as he sees thoso 112 AWT) ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS. 122 — 125 objects which strike upon the bodily vision ; hence he supposes that it is himself. That it should appear thus, is granted by the Lord to him, in order that he may be a man (homo), and that he may have a reciprocal principle of conjunction : add to this, that every man is born a faculty of knowing, understanding, and growing wise ; and this faculty receives truths, whereb}' it lias knowledges, intelligence, and wisdom. And since the female was created through the truth of the male, and is formed into the love thereof more and more after marriage, it, follows, that she also receives the husband's truth in herself, and conjoins it with her own good. 123. The Lord adjoins and conjoins good to the truths which a man receives, because he cannot take good as of himself, it being no object of his sight, as it does not relate to light, but to heat, which is felt and not seen ; therefore when a man sees truth in his thought, he seldom reflects upon the good which flows into it from the love of the will, and which gives it life : neither does a wife reflect upon the good belonging to her, but upon the husband's inclination towards her, which is according to the assent of his understanding to wisdom : the good which belongs to her from the Lord, she applies, without the husband's knowing any thing respecting such application. From these considerations then it plainly appears, that a man receives truth from the Lord, and that the Lord adjoins good to that truth, according to the application of truth to use ; consequently as the man is desirous to think, and thence to live, wisely. 124. The church is thus formed with a man by the Lord, because in such case he is in conjunction with the Lord, in good from Him, and in truth as from himself; thus he is in the Lord, and the Lord in him, according to the Lord's words in John xv. 4, 5. The case is the same, if instead of good we say charity, and instead of truth faith; because good is of charity, and truth is of faith. 125. VI. The husband does not represent the Lord, AND THE WIFE THE CHURCH ; BECAUSE BOTH TOGETHER, THE HUS- BAND AND THE WIFE, CONSTITUTE THE CHURCH. It is a COmmOIl saying in the church, that as the Lord is the Head of the church, so the husband is the head of the wife ; whence it should follow, that the husband represents the Lord, and the wife the church : but the Lord is the Head of the church ; and man {homo), the man (vir) and the woman, are the church; and still more the husband and wife together. With these the church is first im- planted in the man, and through him in the wife ; because the man with his understanding receives the truth of the church, and the wife from the man ; butif it be vice versa, it is not according to order : sometimes, however, this is the case ; but then it \i with men, who either are not lovers of wisdom, and consequently are not of the church, or who are in a servile dependence on the 8 113 • 125—127 CON JUG I AL LOVE will of their wives. Something on this subject may he seen in the preliminary relations, n. 21. 126. VII. Therefore there is not a correspondence OF THE HUSBAND WITH THE LORD AND OF THE WD7E WITH THE CHURCH, IN THE MARRIAGES OF THE ANGELS IN THE HEAVENS and of men on earth. Tliis follows as a consequence from what lias just heen said ; to which, nevertheless, it may he ex- pedient to add, that it appears as if truth was the primary con- stituent of the church, because it is first in respect to time: from this appearance, the prelates of the church have exalted faith, which is of truth, above charity, whch is of good ; in like manner the learned have exalted thought, which is of the understanding, above affection, which is of the will; therefore the knowledge of what the good of charity and the affection of the will are, lies deeply buried as in a tomb, while some even cast earth upon them, as upon the dead, to prevent their rising again. That the .good of charity, notwithstanding, is the primary constituent of the church, may be plainly seen by those who have not closed the way from heaven to their understandings, by confirmations in favor of faith, as the sole constituent of the church, and in favor of thought, as the sole constituent, of man. Now as the good of charity is from the Lord, and the truth of faith is with a man as from himself, and these two principles cause con- junction of the Lord with man, and of man with the Lord, such as is understood by the Lord's words, that He is in them, and they in Him, John xv. 4, 5, it is evident that this conjunction constitutes the church. 127. VIII. But there is a correspondence with conju- OIAL LOVE, SEMINATION, PROLIFICATION, THE LOVE OF INFANTS, AND SIMILAR THINGS WHICH EXIST IN MARRIAGES AND ARE DERIVED i 'rom them. These, however, are arcana of too deep a nature to (inter the understanding with any degree of light, unless preceded by knowledge concerning correspondence ; nor is it possible, if this knowledge be wanting, so to explain them as to make them comprehensible. But what correspondence is, and that it exists between natural things and spiritual, is abundantly shown in the Apocalypsk Revealed, also in the Arcana Coslestia, and spe- cifically in the Doctrine of the New Jerusalem concekning the Sacred Scripture, and particularly in a memorable kkl.viton respecting it in the following pages. Before some knowledge on this subject isacquired, we will only present to the intellectual view, as in a shade, these few particulars : conjugial love corresponds to the affection of genuine truth, its chastit}', purity, and sanctity; semination corresponds to the potency of truth;; prolification corresponds to the propagation of truth ; and the love. of infants corresponds to the defence of truth and good. Now as truth with a man (homo) appears as his own, and good is adjoined thereto from the Lord, it is evident that these corre- 114 AND ITS CHASTE DELIGIIT6. 127—120 spondences are those of the natural or external man with the spi- ritual or internal man : but some degree of light will be reflected on thisjteubject from the memorable relations which follow 128. IX. The Word is the medium of conjunction, BECAUSE IT IS FROM THE LoRD, AND THEREFORE 18 THE LoRD. The "Word is the medium of conjunction of the Lord with man (homo), and of man with the Lord, because in its essence it is divine truth united to divine good, and divine good united to divine truth : that this union exists in eveiy part of the Word in its celestial and spiritual sense, may be seen in the Apocalypse Revealed, n. 373, 483, 6S9, 881 ; whence it follows, that the Word is the perfect marriage of good and truth ; and as it is from the Lord, and what is from him is also himself, it follows, that while a man reads the Word, and collects truths out of it, the Lord adjoins good. For a man does not see the goods which affect him in reading ; because he reads the Word from the un- derstanding, and the understanding acquires thence only such things as are of its own nature, that is, truths. That good is adjoined thereto from the Lord, is made sensible to the under- standing from the delight which flows in during a state of i 1 1 us- tration ; but this takes place interiorly with those only who read the Word to the end that they may become wise ; and such per- sons are desirous of learning the genuine truths contained in the Word, and thereby of forming the church in themselves ; whereas those who read the Word only with a view to gain the reputation of learning, and those also who read it from an opinion that the mere reading or hearing it inspires faith and conduces to salva- tion, do not receive any good from the Lord; for the end pro- posed by the latter is to save themselves by the mere expressions contained in the Word, in which there is nothing of truth ; and the end proposed by the former is to be distinguished for their learning; which end has no conjunction with any spiritual good, but only with the natural delight arising from worldly glory. As the Word is the medium of conjunction, it is there- fore called the old and the new Covenant : a covenant signifies conjunction. 129. X. The church is from the Lord, and exists WITH THOSE WHO COME TO HIM AND LIVE ACCORDING TO HIS precepts. It is not denied at this day that the church is the Lord's, and consequently that it is from the Lord. The reason why it exists with those who come to him, is, because his church in that part of the globe which is called Christian, is derived from the Word; and the Word is from him, and in such a man- ner from him, that it is himself, the divine truth being therein united to the divine good, and this also is the Lord. This is meant by the Word. " which was with God, and which was God, from which men have life and light, and which was made flesh? John i. 1 — 14. Moreover, the reason whv the church exists with lis 129, 130 CONJUGIAL LOVE those who come to him, is, because it exists with those who believe in him ; and to believe that he is God the Saviour and Redeemer, that he is Jehovah our justice, that he is the'tloor by which we are to enter into the sheepfold, that is, into the church, that he is the way, the truth, and the life, and that no one comes to the Father but by him, that the Father and he are one, besides many other particulars which he himself teaches ; to believe these things, I say, is impossible for any one, except by influence from him; and the reason why this is impossible unless he be ap- proached, is, because he is the God of heaven and earth, as he also teaches. "Who else is to be approached, and who else can be ? The reason why the church exists with those who live ac- cording to his precepts, is, because there is conjunction with none else ; for he says, " He that hath my precepts, and doeth them, he it is that loveth me; and I will love him, and will make my abode xoith him : but he that doth not love me, doth not keep my pre- cepts,'''' John xiv. 21 — 24. Love is conjunction; and conjunc- tion with the Lord is the church. 130. XI. CONJUGIAL LOVE IS ACCORDING TO THE STATE OF THE CHURCH, BECAUSE IT IS ACCORDING TO THE STATE OF WIS- DOM with man (homo). That conjugial love is according to the sitate of wisdom with man, has been often said above, and will be often repeated in the following pages : at present therefore we will shew what wisdom is, and that it makes one with the church. •'There are belonging to man knowledge, intelligence, and wis- dom. Knowledge relates to information ; intelligence, to reason ; and wisdom to life. "Wisdom considered in its fulness relates at the same time to information, to reason, and to life : information precedes, reason is formed by it, and wisdom by both ; as is the case when a man lives rationally according to the truths which he knows. Wisdom therefore relates to both reason and life at once ; and it becomes (or is making) wisdom while it is a prin- ciple of reason and thence of life ; but it is wisdom when it is made a principle of life and thence of reason. The most ancient people in this world acknowledged no other wisdom than the wisdom of life; which was the wisdom of those who were formerly called bophi : but the ancient people, who succeeded the most ancient, acknowledged the wisdom of reason as wisdom; and these were called philosophers. At this day, however, many call even knowledge, wisdom ; for the learned, the erudite, and the mere sciolists, are called wise; thus wisdom has declined from ita mountain-top to its valley. But it may be expedient briefly to shew what wisdom is in its rise, in its progress, and thence in its full state. The things relating to the church, which are called spiritual, reside in the inmost principles with man ; those relating to the public weal, which are called things of a civil nature, hold a place below these ; and those relating to science, to experience, and to art, which are called natural things, constitute their seat il<5 AND ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS. 130, l&l or basis. The reason why the things relating to the church, which are called spiritual, reside in the inmost principles with man, is, because they conjoin themselves with heaven, and by heaven with the Lord ; for no other things enter from, the Lord through heaven with man. The reason why the things relating to the public weal, which are called things of a civil nature, hold a place beneath spiritual things, is, because they.have relation to the world, and conjoin themselves with it ; for statutes, laws, and rules, are what bind men, so that a civil society and state may be composed of them in a well-connected order. The reason why the tl :iings relating to science, to experience, and to art, which are called natural, constitute their seat or basis, is, because they con- join themselves closely with the five bodily senses : and these senses are the ultimates on which the interior principles of the mind and the inmost principles of the soul, as it were sit or rest. Now as the things relating to the church, which are called spi- ritual, reside in the inmost principles, and as the things residing in the inmost principles constitute the head, and the succeeding things beneath them, which are called things of a civil nature, constitute the body, and the ultimate things, which are called natural, constitute the feet ; it is evident, that while these three kinds of things follow in their order, a man is a perfect man ; for in such case there is an influx like that of the things of the head into those of the body, and through the body into the feet ; thus spiritual things flow into things of a civil nature, and through them into natural things. Now as spiritual things are in the light of heaven, it is evident that by their light they illustrate the things which succeed in order, and by their heat, which is love, animate them ; and when this is the case the man has wisdom. As wisdom is a principle of life, and thence of reason, as was said above, it may be asked, What is wisdom as a principle of life? In a summary view, it is to shun evils, because they are hurtful to the soul, to the public weal, and to the body ; and it is to do goods, because they are profitable to the soul, to the public weal, and to the body. This is the wisdom which is meant by the, wisdom to which conjugial love binds itself; for it binds itself thereto by shunning the evil of adultery as the pest of the soul, of the public weal, and of the body : and as this wisdom origi- nates in spiritual things relating to the church, it follows, that conjugial love is according to the state of the church ; because it is according to the state of wisdom with men. Hereby also is understood what has been frequently said above, that so far as a man becomes spiritual, so far he is principled in love truly conju- gial ; for a man becomes spiritual by means of the spiritual tilings of the church." More observations respecting the wisdom with which conjugial love conjoins itself, may be seen below, n. 163—165. 131. XII. And as the church is from the Lord, con- 117 131, 132 CONJUGIAL LOVE JtJOIAL LOVE 16 ALSO FROM HIM. As this follows as a COUSO- quence from wliat has been said above, it is needless to dwell upon the confirmation of it. Moreover, that love truly conjugial is from the Lord, all the angels of heaven testify ; and also that this love is according to their state of wisdom, and that their state of wisdom is according to the state of the church with them. That the angels of heaven thus testify, is evident from the memorable relations annexed to the chapters, containing an account of what was seen and heard in the spiritual world. ******** 132. To the above I shall add two memorable relations. First. I was conversing on a time with two angels, one from the eastern heaven and the other from the southern ; who perceiving me engaged in meditation on the arcana of wisdom relating to conjugial love, said, " Are you at all acquainted with the schools of wisdom in our world ?" I replied, " Not as yet." And they said, " There are several ; and those who love truths from spi- ritual affection, or because they are truths, and because they are the means of attaining wisdom, meet together on a given signal, and investigate and decide upon such questions as require deeper consideration than common." They then took me by the hand, saying, "Follow us ; and yon shall see and hear: to-day the sig- nal for meeting is given." I was led across a plain to a hill ; and lo! at the foot of the hill was an avenue of palms continued even to its summit, which we entered and ascended : on the sum- mit or top of the hill was a grove, the trees of which, on an elevated plot of ground, formed as it were a theatre, within which was a court paved with various colored stones : around it in a square form were placed seats, on which the lovers of wisdom were seated ; and in the middle of the theatre was a table, on which was laid a sealed paper. Those who sat on the seats in- vited us to sit down where there was room : and I replied, " I was led here by two angels to see and hear, and not to sit down." Then those two angels went into the middle of the court to the table, and broke the seal of the paper, and read in the presence of those who were seated the arcana of wisdom written on the paper, which were now to be investigated and explained. They were written by angels of the third heaven, and let down upon the table. There were three arcana, First, What is the image of God, and what the likeness of God, into which man (homo) was created ? Second, Why is not a man born into the know- ledge of any love, when yet beasts and birds, from the highest to the lowest, are born into the knowledge of all their loves? Tiuud, What is signified by the tree of life, and what by the tree of tlie knowledge of good and evil, and what by eating thereof? Underneath was written, Collect your opinions on these three questions into one decision, and write it on a new piece of paper, and lay it on this table, and we shall see it: if the decision, on US AND ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS. 132 examination, appear just and reasonable, each of you shall receive a prize of wisdom. Having read the contents of the paper, the two angels withdrew, and were carried up into their respective heavens. Then those who sat on the seats began to investigate and explain the arcana proposed to them, and delivered their senti ments in order; first those who sat on the north, next those on the west, afterwards those on the south, and lastly those on the east. They began with the first subject of inquiry, AVhat ia • THE IMAGE OF GoD, AND WHAT THE LIKENESS OF GoD, INTO which man was created ? But before they proceeded, these words were read in the presence of them all out of the book of creation, " God said, Let us make man into our image, according to our likeness : and God created man into his image; into the image of God created he him" Gen. i. 26, 27. " In the day that God created man, into the likeness of God made he him" Gen. v. 1. Those v/ho sat on the north spoke first, saying, "'The image of God and the likeness of God are the two lives breathed into man by God, which are the life of the understanding; for it is written, '■Jehovah God breathed into Adam's nostril the soul of lives ; and man became a living soul,' Gen. ii. 7 ; into the nostrils denotes into the perception, that the will of good and the understanding of truth, and thereby the soul of lives, was in him ; and since life from God was breathed into him, the image and likeness of God signify integrity de- rived from wisdom and love, and from justice and judgment in him." These sentiments were favored by those who sat to the west ; only they added, that the state of integrity then breathed in from God is continually breathed into every man since ; but that it is a man as in a receptacle; and a man, as he is a receptacle, is an image and likeness of God. After this, the third in order, who were those who were seated on the south, delivered their sentiments as follows : " An image of God and a likeness of God are two distinct things ; but in man they are united from creation ; and we see, as from an interior light, that the image of God maybe destroyed by man, but not the likenes-t of God. This appears as clear as the day from this considera- tion, that Adam retained the likeness of God after that he had ].>st the image of God ; for it is written after the curse, ' Behold the man is as one of us, knowing good and evil,'' Gen. iii. 22 ; and afterwards he is called a likeness of God, and not an image of God, Gen. v. 1. But we will leave to our associates who sit on the east, and are thence in superior light, to say what is properly meant by an image of God, and what by a likeness of God." And then, after silence was obtained, those who sat on the east arose from their seats, and looked up to the Lord, and afterwards sat down again, and thus began : ' ; An image of God is a re- ceptacle of God ; and since God is love itself and wisdom itself, 119 132, 133 CONJUGIAL LOVE an image of God is a receptacle of love and wisdom from God in it; but a likeness of God is a perfect likeness and full appearance, as if love and wisdom are in a man, and thence altogether as his ; for a man has no other sensation than that he loves and is wise from himself, or that lie wills good and understands truth from himself; when nevertheless nothing of all this is' from himself, but from God. God alone loves from himself and is wise from himself; because God is love itself and wisdom itself. The like- ness or appearance that love and wisdom, or good and truth, are in a man as his, causes a man to be a man, and makes him • capable of being conjoined to God, and thereby of living to eternity : from which consideration it follows, that a man is a man from this circumstance, that he can will good and under- stand truth altogether as from himself, and yet know and believe that it is from God ; for as he knows and believes this, God places his image in him, which could not be if he believed it was from himself and not from God." As they said this, being over- powered with zeal derived from the love of truth, they thus continued : " How can a man receive any thing of love and wisdom, and retain it, and reproduce it, unless he feel it as his own ? And how can there be conjunction with God by love and wisdom, unless a man have some reciprocity of conjunction? For without such a reciprocity conjunction is impossible; and the reciprocity of conjunction is, that a man should love God, and enjoy the things which are of God, as from himself, and yet believe that it is from God. Also, how can a man live eternally, unless he be conjoined to an eternal God ? Consequently how can a man be a man without such a likeness of God in him?" These words met with the approbation of the whole assembly ; and they said, Let this conclusive decision be made from them, " A man is a recipient of God, and a recipient of God is an image of God ; and since God is love itself and wisdom itself, a man is a recipient of those principles ; and a recipient becomes an image of God in proportion to reception ; and a man is a like- ness of God from this circumstance, that he feels in himself that the tilings which are of God are in him as his own ; but still from that likeness he is only so far an image of God, as he ac- knowledges that love and wisdom, or good and truth, are not his own in him, and consequently are not from him, but are only in God, and consequently from God." 133. After this, they entered upon the next subject of dis- cussion, "Why is not a man born into the knowledge of ANT LOVE, WHEN TET BEASTS AND BIRDS, FROM THE HIGHKST TO THK LOWEST, ARE BORN INTO THE KNOWLEDGE OF ALL THEIR lovks? They first continued the truth of the proposition by various considerations ; as in regard to a man, that lie is horn into no knowledge, not even into the knowledge of conjugial love; and they inquired, and were informed by attentive ex- 120 AND ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS. 133, 134 aminers, that an infant from connate knowledge cannot even move itself to the mother's breast, but must be moved thereto by the mother or nurse; and that it knows only how to suck, and this in consequence of habit acquired by continual suction in the womb ; and that afterwards it does not know how to walk, or to articulate any human expression ; no, nor even to express by its tone of voice the affection of its love, as the beasts do : and further, that it does not know what is salutary for it in the way of food, as all the beasts do, but catches at whatever falls in its way, whether it be clean or unclean, and puts it into its mouth. The examiners further declared, that a man without instruction is an utter stranger to every thing relating to the sexes and their connection; and that neither virgins nor young men have any knowledge thereof without instruction from others, notwith- standing their hems; educated in various sciences : in a word, a man is born corporeal as a worm ; and he remains such, unless he learns to know, to understand, and to be wise, from others. After this, they gave abundant proofs that beasts, from the highest to the lowest, as the animals of the earth, the fowls of the air, reptiles, fishes, the small creatures culled insects, are born into all the knowledges of the loves of their life, as into the knowledge of all things relating to nourishment, to habitation, to the love of the sex and prolification, and to the rearing of their young. This they confirmed by many wonderful things •which they recollected to have seen, heard, and read, in the natural world, (so they called our world, in which they had formerly lived), in which not representative but real beasts exist. When the truth of the proposition was thus fully proved they applied all the powers of their minds to search out and discover the ends and causes which might serve to unfold and explain this arcanum ; and they all said, that the divine wisdom must needs have ordained these things, to the end that a man may be a man, and a beast a beast ; and thus, that the imper- fection of a man at his birth becomes his perfection, and the perfection of a beast at his birth is his imperfection. 134. Those on the north then began - to declare their senti- ments, and said, " A man is born without knowledges, to the end that he may receive them all ; whereas supposing him to be born into knowledges, he could not rec.eive any but those into which he was born, and in this case neither could he appropriate any to himself; which they illustrated by this comparison : a man at his first birth is like ground in which no seeds are im- planted, but which nevertheless is capable of receiving all seeds, and of bringing them forth and fructifying them ; whereas a beast is like ground already sown, and tilled with grasses and herbs, which receives no other seeds than what are sown in it, or if it received any it would choke them. Hence it is, that a man requires many years to bring him to maturity of growth ; during 121 134 CONJCGIAL LOVE which time he is capable of being cultivated like ground, and of bringing forth as it were grain, flowers, and trees of every kind ; whereas a beast arrives at maturity in a few years, during which no cultivation can produce any thing in him but what is born with him." Afterwards, those on the west delivered their senti- ments, and said, " A man is not born knowledge, as a beast is ; but he is born faculty and inclination ; faculty to know, and in clination to love ; and he is born faculty not only to know but also to understand and be wise ; he is likewise born the most perfect inclination to love not only the things relating to self and the world, but also those relating to God and heaven ; con- sequently a man, by birth from his parents, is an organ which lives merely by the external senses, and at first by no internal senses, to the end that he may successively become a man, first natural, afterwards rational, and lastly spiritual ; which could not be the case if he was born into knowledges and loves, as the beasts are : for connate knowledges and affections set bounds to that progression ; whereas connate faculty and inclination set no such bounds: therefore a man is capable of being perfected in knowledge, intelligence, and wisdom to eternity." Those on the south next took up the debate, and expressed their sentiments as follows : ,k It is impossible for a man to take any knowledge from himself, since he has no connate knowledge; but he may take it from othe s ; and as he cannot take any knowledge from himself, so neither can he take any love ; for where there is no knowledge there is no love ; knowledge and love being undivided companions, and no more capable of separation than will and understanding, or affection and thought; yea, no more than essence and form : therefore in proportion as a man takes know- ledge from others, so love joins itself thereto as its companion. The universal love which joins itself is the love of knowing, of understanding, and of growing wise ; this love is peculiar to man alone, and not to any beast, and flows in from God. We agree with our companions from the west, that a man is not born into any love, and consequently not into any knowledge; but that lie is only born into an inclination to love, and thence into a faculty to receive knowledges, not from himself but from others, that is, by others: we say, by others, because neither have these received any thing of knowledge from themselves, but from God. We agree also with our companions to the north, that a man is first born as ground, in which no seeds are sown, but which is capable of receiving all seeds, both useful and hurtful. To these con- siderations we add, that beasts are born into natural loves, and thereby into knowledges corresponding to them ; and that still they do not know, think, understand, and enjoy any knowledges, but are led through them by their loves, almost as blind persons) are led through the streets by dogs, for as to understanding they are blind; or rather like people walking in their sleep, who act 122 AND ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS. 134, 135 from the impulse of blind knowledge, the understanding being asleep." Lastly, those on the east declared their sentiments, and said, " We agree with our brethren in the opinions they have delivered, that a man knows nothing from himself, but from and by others, to the end that he may know and acknowledge that all knowledge, understanding, and wisdom, is from God ; and that a man cannot otherwise be conceived, born, and gene- rated of the Lord, and become an image and likeness of him; for he becomes an image of the Lord by acknowledgingand believ- ing, that he has received and does receive from the Lord all the good of love and charity, and all the truth of wisdom and faith, and not the least portion thereof from himself; and he becomes a likeness of the Lord by his being sensible of those principles in himself, as if they were from himself. This he is sensible of, because he is not born into knowledges, but receives them ; and what he receives, appears to him as if it was from himself. This sensation is given him by the Lord, to the end that, he may be a man and not a beast ; since by willing, thinking, loving, know- ing, understanding, and growing wise, as from himself, he re- ceives knowledges, and exalts them into intelligence, and by the use thereof into wisdom ; thus the Lord conjoins man to himself, and man conjoins himself to the Lord. This could not have been the case, unless it had been provided by the Lord, that man should be born in total ignorance." When they had finished speaking, it was the desire of all present, that a conclusion should be formed from the sentiments which had been expressed ; and they agreed upon the following: ''That a man is born into no knowledge, to the end that he may come into all knowledge, and may advance into intelligence, and thereby into wisdom, and that he is born into no love, to the inteut that he may come into all love, by application of the knowledges from intelligence, and into love to the Lord by love towards his neighbour, and may thereby be conjoined to the Lord, and by such conjunction be made a man, and live for ever." 135. After this they took the paper, and read the third sub- ject of investigation, which was, What is signified by the TREE OF LIFE, WHAT BY THE TKEE OF THE KNOWLEDGE OF GOOD AND EVIL, AND WHAT BY EATING THEREOF % and all the Others ntreated as a favor, that those who were from the east would unfold this arcanum, because it required a more than ordinary depth of understanding, and because those who were from the east are in flaming light, that is, in the wisdom of love, this wisdom being understood by the garden of Eden, in which those two trees were placed. They said, " We will declare our senti- ments ; but as man does not take any thing from himself, but from the Lord, therefore we will speak from him ; but yet from ourselves as of ourselves :" and then they continued, " A tree signifies a man, and the fruit thereof the good of life ; hence 123 135, 136 C0NJUG1AL LOVE the tree of life signifies a man living from God, or God living in man ; and since love and wisdom, and charity and faith, or good and truth, constitute the life of God in man, therefore these are signified by the tree of life, and hence man has eternal life : the like is signified by the tree of life, of which it will be given to eat, Rev. ii. 7 ; chap xxii. 2, 14. The tree of the knowledge of good and evil signifies a man believing that he lives from himself and not from God ; thus that in man love and wisdom, charity and faith, that is, good and truth, are his and not God's ; believing this, because he thinks and wills, and speaks and acts to all appearance, as from himself: and as a man from this faith persuades himself, that God has implanted himself, or infused his divine into him, therefore the serpent said, " God doth know, in the day that ye eat of the fruit of that tree, your eyes will be opened, andyewillbe as God, knowing good and evil," Gen. iii. 5. Eating of those trees signifies reception and appropriation ; eating of the tree of life, the reception of life eternal, and eating of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, the reception of damna- tion ; therefore also both Adam and his wife, together with the serpent, were cursed : the serpent means the devil as to self-love and the conceit of his own intelligence. This love is the pos- sessor of that tree ; and the men who are in conceit, grounded in that love, are those trees. Those persons, therefore, are griev- ously mistaken who believe that Adam was wise and did good from himself, and that this was his state of integrity ; when yet Adam himself was cursed by reason of that belief; for this is signified by eating of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil; therefore he then fell from the state of integrity in which he had been, in Consequence of believing that he was wise and did good from God and not at all from himself; for this is meant by eating of the tree of life. The Lord alone, when he was in the world, was wise and did good from himself; because the essen- tial divine from birth was in him and was his; therefore also from his own ability he was made the Redeemer and Saviour." From all these considerations they came to this conclusion, " That by the tree of life, and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, and eating thereof, is signified that life for man is God in him, and that in this case he lias heaven and eternal life; but that death for man is the persuasion and belief, that life for him is not God but self; whence he has hell and eternal death, which is condemnation." 136. After this they looked into the paper left by the angels upon the table, and saw written underneath, Collect your OPINIONS ON THESE THREE QUESTIONS INTO ONE DECISION. Then they collected them, and saw that they cohered in one series, and that the series or decision was this, "That man is created to receive love and wisdom from God, and yet to all appearance as from himself; and this for the sake of reception 121 AND IT8 CHASTE DELIGHTS. 136, 137 anil conjunction : and that therefore a man is not born into any love, or into any knowledge, and also not into any ability of lov- ing and growing wise from himself; therefore if he ascribes all the good of love and truth of wisdom to God, he becomes a living man; but if he ascribes them to himself, he becomes a dead man." These words they wrote on a new piece of paper, and placed it on the table : and lo ! on a sudden the angels ap- peared in bright light, and carried the paper away into heaven ; and after it was read there, those who sat on the seats heard these words from thence, " Well, well ;" and instantly there appeared a single angel as it were flying from heaven, with two wings about his feet, and two about his temples, having in his hand prizes, consisting of robes, caps, and wreaths of laurel ; and he alighted on the ground, and gave those who sat on the north robes of an opaline color; those who sat on the west robes of scarlet color ; those who sat on the south caps whose borders were ornamented with bindings of gold and pearls, and which on the left side upwards were set with diamonds cut in the form of flowers; but to those who sat to the east he gave wreaths of laurel, intermixed with rubies and sapphires. Then all of them, adorned with their respective prizes, went home from the school of wisdom ; and when they shewed themselves to their wives, their wives came to meet them, being distinguished also with ornaments presented to them from heaven ; at which the husbands wondered. 137. The second memorable relation. On a time when I was meditating on conjugial love, lo ! there appeared at a dis- tance two naked infants with baskets in their hands, and turtle- doves flying around them ; and on a nearer view, they seemed as if they were naked, handsomely ornamented with garlands ; chaplets of flowers decorated their heads, and wreaths of liles and roses of a hyacinthine blue, hanging obliquely from the shoulders to the loins, adorned their bosoms ; and round about both of them there was as it were a common band woven of small leaves interspersed with olives. But when they came nearer, they did not appear as infants, or naked, but as two persons in the prime of their age, wearing cloaks and tunics of shining silk, embroidered with the most beautiful flowers : and when they were near me, there breathed forth from heaven through them a vernal warmth, attended with an odoriferous fragrance, like what arises from gardens and fields in the time of spring. They were two married partners from heaven, and they accosted me; and because I was musing on what I had just seen, they in- quired, "What did you see?" And when 1 told them that at tifst they appeared to me as naked infants, afterwards as infants decorated with garlands, and lastly as grown up persons in em- broidered garments, and that instantly I experienced a vernal wa-mth with its delights, they smiled pleasantly, and said, "In 125 13T CONJUGIAL LOVE the way we did not seem to ourselves as infants, or naked, or adorned with garlands, but constantly in the same appearance which we now have : thus at a distance was represented our con- jugial love ; its state of innocence by our seeming like naked infants, its delights by garlands, and the same delights now by our cloaks and tunics being embroidered with flowers ; and as you said that, as we approached, a vernal warmth breathed on you, attended with its pleasant fragrance as from a garden, we will explain to you the reason of all this." They said, "We have now been married partners for ages, and constantly in the prime of our age in which you now see us : our first state Was like the first state of a virgin and a youth, when they enter into consoci- ation by marriage ; and we then believed, that this state was the very essential blessedness of our life; but we were informed by others in our heaven, and have since perceived ourselves, that this was a state of heat not tempered by light ; and that it is successively tempered, in proportion as the husband is perfected in wisdom, and the wife loves that wisdom in the husband ; and that this is effected by and according to the uses which each, by mutual aid, affords to society; also that delights succeed accord- ing to the temperature of heat and light. ; or of wisdom and its love. The reason why on our approach there breathed on you as it were a vernal warmth, is, because conjugial love and that warmth in our heaven act in unity; for warmth with us is love; and the light, wherewith warmth is united, is wisdom; and use is as it were the atmosphere which contains each in its bosom. What are heat and light without that which contains them ? In like manner, what are love and wisdom without their use ? In such case there is nothing conjugial in them, because the subject is wanting in which they should exist to produce it. In heaven where there is vernal warmth, there is love truly conjugial ; because the vernal principle exists only where warmth is equally united to light, or where warmth and light are in equal propor- tions; and it is our opinion, that as warmth is delighted with light, and vice versa, so love is delighted with wisdom, and wis- dom in its turn with love." He further added, "with us in heaven there is perpetual light, and on no occasion do the shades of evening prevail, still less is there darkness; because our sun does not set and rise like yours, but remains constantly in a middle altitude between the zenith and the horizon, which, as you express it, is at an elevation of 45 degrees. Hence, the heat and light proceeding from our sun cause perpetual spring, and a perpetual vernal warmth inspires those with whom love is united with wisdom in just proportion ; and our Lord, by the eternal union of heat and light, breathes nothing but uses: hence also come the germinations of your earth, and the connubial associa- tions of your birds and animals in the spring; for the vernal warmth opens their interiors even to the inmost, which are called AND ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS. 137, 138 their souls, and affects them, and communicates to them its con- jugal principle, and causes their principle of prolification to come into its delights, in consequence of a continual tendency to pro- duce fruits of use, which use is the propagation of their kind. But with men {homines) there is a perpetual influx of vernal warmth from the Lord ; wherefore they are capahle of enjoying marriage delights at all times, even in the midst of winter ; for the males of the human race were created to be recipients of light, that is, of wisdom from the Lord, and the females to be recipients of heat, that is, of the love of the wisdom of the male from the Lord. Hence then it is, that, as we approached, there breathed on you a vernal warmth attended with an odoriferous fragrance, like what arises from gardens and fields in the spring/' As he said this, he gave me his right hand, and conducted me to houses inhabited by married'partners in a like prime of their age with himself and his partner; and said, "These wives, who now seem like young virgins, were in the world infirm old women ; and their husbands, who now seem in the spring of youth, were in the world decrepit old men ; and all of them were restored by the Lord to this prime of their age, because they mutually loved each other, and from religious motives shunned adulteries as enormous sins:" and he added, "No one knows the blessed delights of conjugial love, unless he rejects thehorrid delights of adultery ; and no one can reject these delights, unless he is under the influence of wisdom from the Lord ; and no one is under the influence of wisdom from the Lord, unless he performs uses from the love of uses." I also saw on this occasion their house uten- sils, which were all in celestial forms, and glittered with gold, which had a flaming appearance from the rubies with which it was studded. ON THE CHASTE PRINCIPLE AND THE NON-CHASTE. 138. As we are yet only at the entrance of our subject re- specting conjugial love specifically considered, and as conjugial love cannot be known specifically, except, in a very indistinct and obscure manner, unless its opposite, which is the unchaste prin- ciple, also in some measure appear ; and as this unchaste prin- ciple appears in some measure, or in a shade, when the chaste principle is described together with the non-chaste, non-chastity being only a removal of what is unchaste from what is chaste ; therefore we will now proceed to treat of the chaste principle and the non-chaste. But the unchaste principle, which is altogether opposite to the chaste, is treated of in the latter part of thi9 127 138—140 COKJUGIAL LOVE work, entitled Adulterous Love and its Sinful Pleasures, where it is fully described with all its varieties. But what the unchaste principle is, and what the non-chaste, and with what persons each of them prevails, shall be illustrated in the follow- ing order: I. The chaste principle and the non-chaste are predi- cated only of marriages and of srich things as relate to marriages. II. The chaste principle is pred icated only of monogamical mar- riages, or of the marriage of one man with one wvfe. III. The Christian conjugial principle alone is chaste. IV. Love truly conjugial is essential chastity. V. All the delights of love truly conjugial, even, the ultimate, are chaste. VI. With those who are made spiritual by the Lord, conjugial love is mo're and morepuri- Jied and rendered chaste. V1I.« The chastity of marriage exists by a total renunciation of xoJwredoms from a principle of religion. VIII. Chastity cannot be predicated of infants, or of boys and girls, or of young men and virgins before they feel in themselves the love of the sex. IX. Chastity cannot bepredicated of eunuchs so born, or of eunuchs so made. X. Chastity cannot be predica ted- of those who do not believe adulteries to be evils in regard to re- ligion • and still less of those who do not believe them to be hurt- ful to society. XI. Chastity cannot be predicated of those who abstain from adulteries only for various external reasons. XII. Chastity can not be predicated of those who believe marriages to be unchaste. XIII. Chastity cannot be predicated of those who have renounced marriage by voids of perpetual celibacy, unless there be and remain in them the love of a life truly conjugial. XIV. A state of marriage is to be preferred to a state of celibacy. We will now proceed to an explanation of each article. 139. I. The chaste principle and the non-chaste auk PREDICATED ONLY OF MARRIAGES AND OF SUCH THINGS AS RE- LATE to marriages. The reason of this is, because, as will be shewn presently, love truly conjugial is essential chastity ; and the love opposite to it, which is called adulterous, is essential unchastity ; so far therefore as any one is purified from the latter love, so far he is chaste; for so far the opposite, which is des- tructive of chastity, is taken away ; whence it is evident that the purity of conjugial love is what is called chastity. Nevertheless there is a conjugial love which is not chaste, and yet it is not un- chastity ; as is the case with married partners, who, for various external reasons, abstain from the effects of lasciviousness so as not to think about them ; howbeit, if that love is not purified in their spirits, it is still not chaste ; its form is chaste, but it lias not in it a chaste essence. L40. The reason why the chaste principle and the non-chaste are predicated of such things as relate to marriages, is, because the conjugial principle is inscribed on both sexes from inmost principles to ultimates; and a man's quality as to his thoughts and affections, and consequentlv as to his bodily actions and 128 AND ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS. 140— 1432 behaviour, is according thereto. That this is the case, appears more evidently from such as are unchaste. The unchaste prin- ciple abiding in their minds is heard from the tone of their voice in conversation, and from their applying whatever is said, even though it be chaste, to wanton and loose ends ; (the tone of the voice in conversation is grounded in the will-affection, and the conversation itself is grounded in the thought of the understand- ing ;) which is a proof that the will and the understanding, witli everything belonging to them, consequently the whole mind, and thence everything belonging to the body, from inmost principles to ultimates, abound with what is unchaste. I have been in- formed by the angels, that, with the greatest hypocrites, the unchaste principle is perceivable from hearing their conversa- tion, however chastely they may talk, and also is made sensible from the sphere that issues from them ; which is a further proof that unchastity resides in the inmost principles of their minds, and thence in the inmost principles of their bodies, and that the latter principles are exteriorly covered like a shell painted witli figures of various colors. That a sphere of lasciviousness issues forth from the unchaste, is manifest from the statutes prescribed to the sons of Israel, ordaining that every thing should be unclean that was touched even by the hand of those who were defiled by such unchaste persons. From these considerations it may be concluded that the case is similar in regard to the chaste, viz., that with them everything is chaste from inmost principles to ultimates, and that this is an effect of the chastity of conjugial love. Hence it is, that in the Avorld it is said, "To the pure all things are pure, and to the defiled all things are defiled." 141. The chaste principle is predicated only of mono- gamical marriages, or of the marriage of one man with one wife. The reason of this is, because with them conjugial love does not reside in the natural man, but enters into the spi- ritual man, and successively opens to itself a way to the essential spiritual marriage, or the marriage of good and truth, which is its origin, and conjoins itself therewith; for that love enters according to the increc^e of wisdom, which is according to the implantation of the church from the Lord, as has been abundantly shewn above. This cannot be effected with polyga- mies ; for they divide conjugial love ; and this love when divided, is not unlike the love of the sex, which in itself is natural ; but on this subject something worthy of attention may be seen in the section on Polygamy. 142. HI. The Christian conjugial principle alone is chaste. This is, because love truly conjugial keeps pace with the state of the church in man (ho?/io), and because the state of the church is from the Lord, as has been shewn in the foregoing section, n. 130, 131, and elsewhere; also because the church in its genuine truths is in the AVord, and the Lord is there present 9 l*i» U2-144 CONJUGIAL LOVE in those truths. From these considerations it follows, that the chaste conjugial principle exists nowhere but in the Christian world, and still that there is a possibility of its existing elsewhere. By the Christian conjugial principle we mean the marriage of one man with one wife. That this conjugial principle is capable of being ingrafted into Christians, and of being transplanted heredi- tarily into the offspring from parents who are principled in love truly conjugial, and that hence both the faculty and the inclina- tion to grow wise in the things of the church and of heaven may become connate, will be seen in its proper place. Christians, if they marry more wives than one, commit not only natural but also spiritual adultery : this will be shewn in the section on POLYGAMY. 143. IV. Love truly conjugial is essential chastity. The reasons for this are, 1. Because it is from the Lord, and corresponds to the marriage of the Lord and the church. 2. Because it descends from the marriage of good and truth. 3. Because it is spiritual, in proportion as the church exists with man {homo). 4. Because it is the foundation and head of all celestial and spiritual loves. 5. Because it is the orderly seminary of the human race, and thereby of the angelic heaven. 6. Because on this account it also exists with the angels of hea- ven, and gives birth with them to spiritual offspring, which are love and wisdom. 7. And because its uses are thus more excellent than the other uses of creation. From these conside- rations it follows, that love truly conjugial, viewed from its origin and in its essence, is pure and holy, so that it may be called purity and holiness, consequent]/ essential chastity: but that nevertheless it is not altogether pure, either with men or angels, may be seen below in article VI., n. 146. 144. V. All the delights of lovk truly conjugial, EVEN THE ULTIMATE, ARE CHASTE. This follows from what has been above explained, that love truly conjugial is essential chastity, and from the considerations that delights constitute its life. That the delights of this love ascend and enter heaven, and in the way pass through the delights of the heavenly loves, in which the angels of heaven are principled ; also, that they conjoin themselves with the delights of the conjugial love of the angels, has been mentioned above. Moreover, I have heard it, declared by the angels, that they perceive those delights with themselves to be exalted and filled, while they ascend from chaste marriages on the earths: and when some by-standers, who were unchaste, inquired concerning the ultimate delights whether they were chaste, they assented and said, "How should it be otherwise! Arc not these the delights of true conjugial love in their fulness?" The origin, nature, and quality of the delights of this love, may be seen above, n. (>9 : and also in the memo- KARLE DELATIONS. ('Specially tllOSC which follOW. 130 AND ITS CHASTV: DELIGHTS. 145, 146 145. VI. With those who are made spiritual by the Lord, con.tugial love is more and more purified and rendered ciiaste. The reasons for this are, 1. Because the first love, hy which is meant the love previous to the nuptials and immediately after them, partakes somewhat of the love of the sex, and thus of the ardor belonging to the body not as yet moderated by the love of the spirit. 2. Because a man {homo) from natural is successively mac 3 spiritual ; for he becomes spi- ritual in proportion as his rational principle, which is the medium between heaven and the world, begins to drive a soul from influx out of heaven, which is the case so far as it is affected and de- lighted with wisdom; concerning which wisdom see above, n. 130 ; and in proportion as this is effected, in the same propor- tion his mind is elevated into a superior aura, which is the con- tinent of celestial light and heat, or, what is the same, of the wisdom and love in which the angels are principled ; for hea- venly light acts in unity with wisdom, and heavenly heat with love ; and in proportion as wisdom and the love thereof increase with married pairs, in the same proportion conjugial love is puri- fied with them ; and as this is effected successively, it follows that conjugial love is rendered more and more chaste. This spiritual purification may be compared with the purification of natural spirits, which is effected by the chemists, and is called defecation, rectification, castigation, acution, decanta- tion, and sublimation; and wisdom purified may be compared with alcohol, which is a highly rectified spirit. 3. Now as spi- ritual wisdom in itself is of such a nature that it becomes more and more warmed with the love of growing wise, and by virtue of this love increases to eternity ; and as this is effected in pro- portion as it is perfected by a kind of defecation, castigation, rectification, acution, decantation, and sublimation, and this by elevating and abstracting the intellect from the fallacies of the senses, and the will from the allurements of the body ; it is evident that conjugial love, whose parent is wisdom, is in like manner rendered successively more and more pure, and thereby chaste. That the first state of love between married partners is a state of heat not yet tempered by light; but that it is successively tempered in proportion as the husband is per- fected in wisdom, and the wife loves it in her husband, may be seen in the memorable relation, n. 137. 146. It is however to be observed, that there is no conjugial love altogether chaste or pure either with men {homines) or with angels; there is still somewhat not chaste or not pure which adjoins or subjoins itself thereto ; but this has a different origin from that which gives birth to what is unchaste: for with the angels the chaste principle is above and the non-chaste beneath ( and there is as it were a door with a hinge interposed by the Lord, which is opened by determination, and is carefully pre- 131 146—149 COXJL'GIAL LOVE vented from standing open, lest the one principle should pass into the other, and they should mix together : for the natural principle of man from his birth is defiled and fraught with evils ; whereas his spiritual principle is not so, because its birth is from the Lord, for it is regeneration; and regeneration is a successive separation from the evils to which a man is naturally inclined. That no love with either men or angels is altogether pure, or can be pure ; but that the end, purpose, or intention of the will, is principally regarded by the Lord : and that therefore so far as a man is principled in a good end, purpose, or intention, and perseveres therein, so far he is initiated into purity, and so far he advances and approaches towards purity, may he seen above, n. 71. 147. VII. The chastity of marriage exists by a total RENUNCIATION OF WHOREDOMS FROM A PRINCIPLE OF RELIGION. The reason of this is, because chastity is the removal of unchas- tity ; it being a universal law, that so far as any one removes evil, so far a capacity is given for good to succeed in its place ; and further, so far as evil is hated, so far good is loved; and also vice versa; consequently, so far as whoredom is renounced, so far the chastity of marriage enters. That conjugial love is purified and rectified according to the renunciation of whore- doms, every one sees from common perception as soon as it is mentioned and heard ; thus before confirmation ; but as all have not common perception, it is of importance that the subject should also be illustrated in the way of proof by such conside- rations as may tend to confirm it. These considerations are, that conjugial love grows cold as soon as it is divided, and this coldness causes it to perish ; for the heat of unchaste love ex- tinguishes it, as two opposite heats cannot exist together, but one must needs reject the other and deprive it of its potency. Whenever therefore the heat of conjugial love begins to acquire a pleasant warmth, and from a sensation of its delights to bud and flourish, like an orchard and garden in spring; the latter from the vernal temperament of light and heat from the sun of the natural world, but the former from the vernal temperament of light and heat from the sun of the spiritual world. 148. There is implanted in every man {homo) from creation, and consequently from his birth, an internal and an external conjugial principle; the internal is spiritual, and the external natural : a man comes first into the latter, and as he becomes spiritual, he comes into the former. If therefore he remains in the external or natural conjugial principle, the internal or spiritual conjugial principle is veiled or covered, until he knows nothing respecting it ; yea, until he calls it an ideal shadow without a substance : but if a man becomes spiritual, he then begins to know something respecting it, and afterwards to per- 132 AND ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS. 148— ISO fteive something of its quality, and successively to be made sensible of its pleasantness, agreeableness, and delights ; and in proportion as this is the case, the veil or covering between the external and internal, spoken of above, begins to be at- tenuated, and afterwards as it were to melt, and lastly to be dissolved and dissipated. When this effect takes place, the ex- ternal conjugial principle remains indeed ; but it is continually purged and purified from its dregs by the internal ; and this until the external becomes as it were the face of the internal, and derives its delight from the blessedness which is in the internal, and at the same time its life, and the delights of its potency. Such is the renunciation of whoredoms, by which the chastity of marriage exists. It may be imagined, that the external conjugial principle, which remains after the in- ternal has separated itself from it, or it from itself, resembles the external principle not separated : but L have heard from the angels that they are altogether unlike ; for that the external principle in conjunction with the internal, which they called the' external of the internal, was void of all lasciviousness, because the internal cannot be lascivious, but only be delighted chastely ; and that it imparts the same disposition to its external, wherein it is made sensible of its own delights: the case is altogether otherwise with the external separated from the internal ; this they said, was lascivious in the whole and in every part. They compared the external conjugial principle derived from the internal to excellent fruit, whose pleasant taste and flavor insinuate themselves into its outward rind, and form this into correspondence with themselves ; they compared it also to a granary, whose store is never diminished, but is continually re- cruited according to its consumption ; whereas they compared the external principle, separate from the internal, to wheat in a winnowing machine, when it is put in motion about its axis; in which case the chaff only remains, which is dispersed by the wind; so it is with the conjugial principle, unless the adulterous principle be renounced. 149. The reason why the chastity of marriage does not exist by the renunciation of whoredoms, unless it be made from a principle of religion, is, because a man {homo) without religion is not spiritual, but remains natural ; and if the natural man renounces whoredoms, still his spirit does not renounce them ; and thus, although it seems to himself that he is chaste by such renunciation,' yet nevertheless unchastity lies inwardly concealed like corrupt matter in a wound only outwardly healed. That conjugial love is according to the state of the church with man, may be seen above n. 130. More on this subject may be seen in the exposition of article XI. 150. VIII. Chastity cannot be predicated of in- fants, OR OF BOYS AND GIRLS, OR OF YOUNG MEN AND VIB- 133 150—125 CONJUGIAL LOVE OINS BEFORE THEY FEEL IN THEMSELVES THE LOVE OF THH sex. This is because the chaste principle and the unchaste are predicated only of marriages, and of such things as relate to mar- riages, as may be seen above, n. 139 ; and of those who know nothing of the things relating to marriage, chastity is not pre- dictable; for it is as it were nothing relating to them; and no- thing cannot be an object either of affection or thought : but after tli is nothing there arises something, when the first motion to- wards marriage is felt, which is the love of the sex. That virgins and young men, before they feel in themselves the love of the sex, are commonly called chaste, is owing to ignorance of what chas- tity is. 151. XI. Chastity cannot be predicated of eunuchs bo born, or of eunuchs so made. Eunuchs so born are those more especially with whom the ultimate of love is wanting from birth ; and as in such case the first and middle principles are without a foundation on which to stand, they have therefore no existence ; and if they exist, the persons in whom they exist have no concern to distinguish between the chaste principle and the unchaste, each being indifferent to them ; but of these persons there are several distinctions. The case is nearly the same with eunuchs so made as with some eunuchs so born ; but eunuchs so made, as they are both men and women, cannot possibly regard conjugial love any otherwise than as a phantasy, and the delights thereof as idle stories. If they have any incli- nation, it is rendered mute, which is neither chaste nor unchaste: and what is neither chaste nor unchaste, derives no quality from either the one or the other. 152. X. Chastity cannot be predicated of those who do not believe adulteries to be evils in reoard to reli- qion ; and still less of those who do not believe them to be hurtful to society. The reason why chastity cannot be predicated of such is, because they neither know what chastity is nor even that it exists; for chastity relates to marriage, as was shewn in the first article of this section. Those who do not believe adulteries be evil in regard to religion, regard even marriages as unchaste ; whereas religion with married pairs con- stitutes their chastity; thus such persons have nothing chaste in them, and therefore it is in vain to talk to them of chastity ; these are confirmed adulterers : but those who do not believe adulteries to be hurtful to society, know still less than the others, either what chastity is or even that it exists ; for they are adul- terers from a determined purpose : if they say that marriages arc less unchaste than adulteries, they say so merely with the mouth, but not with the heart, because marriages with them are cold, and those who speak from such cold concerning chaste heat, cannot have an idea of chaste heat in regard to conjugial love. The nature and quality of such persons, and of the ideas of their thought, and hence of the interior principles of their conversation, AND ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS. 152—151 will be seen in (lie second part of this work, — Adulterous Love and its Sinful Pleasures. 153. XL Chastity cannot be predicated of those who abstain from adulteries only for various external rea- sons. Many believe that the mere abstaining from adulteries ill the body is chastity ; yet this is not chastity, unless at the same time there is an abstaining in spirit. The spirit of man {homo), by which is here meant his mind as to aft'ections and thoughts, constitutes the chaste principle and the unchaste, for hence it flows into the body, the body being in all cases such as the mind or spirit is. Hence it follows, that those who abstain from adul- teries in the body, without being influenced from the spirit are not chaste ; neither are those chaste who abstain from them in spirit as influenced from the body. There are many assignable causes which make a man desist from adulteries in the body, and also in the spirit as influenced from the body ; but still, he that does not desist from them in the body as influenced from the spirit, is unchaste; for the Lord says, "That whosoever looketh upon another 's woman, so as to lust after her, hath already com- mitted adulter;/ with her in his heart" Matt. v. 28. It is im- possible to enumerate all the causes of abstinence from adulteries in the body only, they being various according to states of mar- riage, and also according to states of the body; for there are some persons who abstain from them from fear of the civil law and its penalties ; some from fear of the loss of reputation and thereby of honor; some from fear of diseases which may be thereby contracted ; some from fear of domestic quarrels on the part of the wife, whereby the quiet of their lives may be dis- turbed ; some from fear of revenge on the part of the husband or relations; some from fear of chastisement from the servants of the family ; some also abstain from motives of poverty, avarice, or imbecility, arising either from disease, from abuse, from age, or from impotence. Of these there are some also, who, because they cannot or dare not commit adultery in the body, condemn adulteries in the spirit; and thus they speak morally against adulteries, ana in favor of marriages ; but such person, unless in spirit they call adulteries accursed, and this from a religious principle in the spirit, are still adulterers; for although they do not commit them in the body, yet they do in the spirit; where- fore after death, when they become spirits, they speak openly in favor of them. From these considerations it is manifest, that even a wicked person may shun adulteries as hurtful ; but that none but a Christian can shun them as sins. Hence then the truth of the proposition is evident, that chastity cannot be pre- dicated of those who abstain from adulteries merely for various external reasons. 154. XII. Chastity cannot be predicated of those who believe marriages to be unchaste. These, like the persona 135 154, 155 CONJUGIAL LOVE spoken of just above, n. 152, do not know either what chastitj is. or even that it exists ; and in this respect they are like those who make chastity to consist merely in celibacy, of whom we shalj speak presently. 155. XIII. Chastity cannot be predicated of those who HAVE RENOUNCED MARRIAGE BY VOWS OF PERPETUAL CELD3ACY, UNLESS THERE BE AND REMAIN IN THEM THE LOVE OF A LIFE truly conjugial. The reason why chastity cannot be pre- dicated of these, is, because after a vow of perpetual celibacy, conjugial love is renounced ; and yet it is of this love alone that chastity can be predicated : nevertheless there still remains an inclination to the sex implanted from creation, and conse- quently innate by birth ; and when this inclination is restrained and subdued, it must needs pass away into heat, and in some cases into a violent burning, which, in rising from the body into the spirit, infests it, and with some persons defiles it ; and there may be instances where the spirit thus defiled may defile also the principles of religion, casting them down from their internal abode, where they are in holiness, into things external, where they become mere matters of talk and gesture ; therefore it was provided by the Lord, that celibacy should have place only with those who are in external worship, as is the case with all who do not address themselves to the Lord, or read the Word. With such, eternal life is not so much endangered by vows of celibacy attended with engagements to chastity, as it is with those who are principled in internal worship: moreover, in many instances that state of life is not entered upon from any freedom of the will, many being engaged therein before they attain to freedom grounded in reason, and some in consequence of alluring worldly motives. Of those who adopt that state with a view to have their minds disengaged from the world, that they may be more at leisure to apply themselves to divine things, those only are chaste with whom the love of a life truly con- jugial either preceded that state or followed it, and with whom it remains; for the love of a life truly conjugial is that alone of which chastity is predicated. Wherefore also, after death, all who have lived in monasteries are at length freed from their vows and set at liberty, that, according to the interior vows and desires of their love, they may be led to choose a life either con- jugial or extra-conjugial : if in such case they enter into con- jugial life, those who have loved also the spiritual things of divine worship are given in marriage in heaven; but those who enter into extra-conjugial life are sent to their like, who dwell on the confines of heaven. I have inquired of the angels, whether those who have devoted themselves to works of piety, and given themselves up entirely to divine worship, and who thus have withdrawn themselves from the snares of the world and the concupiscences of the flesh, and with this view have vowed per- 130 AND ITS CHASTK DELIGHTS. 155—151* petual virginity, are received into heaven, and there admitted among the blessed to enjoy an especial portion of happiness according to their faith. To this the angels replied, that such are indeed received into heaven ; but when they are made sensible of the sphere of conjugial love there, they become sad and fretful, and then, some of their own accord, some by asking leave, and some from being commanded, depart and are dis- missed, and when they are out of that heaven, a way is opened for them to their consociates, who had been in a similar state of life in the world ; and then from being fretful they become cheerful, and rejoice together. 156. XIV. A STATE OF MARRIAGE IS TO BE PREFERRED TO A state of celibacy. This is evident from what has been said above respecting marriage and celibacy. A state of marriage is to be preferred because it is a state ordained from creation ; because it originates in the marriage of good and truth ; because it corresponds with the marriage of the Lord and the church ; because the church and conjugial love are constant companions ; because its use is more excellent than all the other uses of the things of creation, for thence according to order is derived the increase of the human race, and also of the angelic heaven, which is formed from the human race : moreover, marriage con- stitutes the completeness of a man (homo) ; for by it he becomes a complete man, as will be shewn in the following chapter. All these things are wanting in celibacy. But if the proposition be taken for granted, that a state of celibacy is preferable to a state of marriage, and if this proposition be left to the mind's ex- amination, to be assented to and established by confirming proofs, then the conclusion must be, that marriages are not holy, neither can they be chaste ; yea, that chastity in the female sex belongs only to those, who abstain from marriage and vow per- petual virginity : and moreover, that those who have vowed per- petual celibacy are understood by the eunuchs who make them- selves eunuchs for the kingdom of heaven's sake, Matt. xix. 12 ; not to mention other conclusions of a like nature ; which, being grounded in a proposition that is not true, are also not true. The eunuchs who make themselves eunuchs for the kingdom of heaven's sake, are spiritual eunuchs, who are such as in mar- riages abstain from the evils of whoredoms : that Italian eunuchs are not meant, is evident. ****** 151.* To the above I shall add two memorable relations. First. As I was going home from the school of wisdom (con- cerning which, see above, n. 132), I saw in the way an angel dressed in blue. He joined me and walked by my side, and said, " I see that you are come from the school of wisdom, and are made glad by what you heard there ; and as I perceive that you are not a full inhabitant of this world, because you are at the 137 151* CON.JUGIA.L LOVE same time in the natural world, and therefore know nothing of our Olympic gymnasia, where the ancient sqphi meet together, and by the information they collect from every new comer, learn what changes and successions wisdom has undergone and is still undergoing in your world; if you are willing I will conduct you to the place where several of those ancient aophi and their sons, that is, their disciples, dwell." So he led me to the confines between the north and east ; and while I was looking that way from a rising ground, lo! I saw a city, and on one side of it two small hills; that which was nearer to the city being lower than the other. " That city," said he, is called Athens, the lower hill Parnassus, and the higher Helicon. They are so called, because in the city and around it dwell the wise men who for- merly lived in Greece, as Pythagoras, Socrates, Aristippus, Xenophon, with their disciples and scholars." On my asking him concerning Plato and Aristotle, he said, "They and their followers dwell in another region, because they taught principles of rationality which relate to the understanding; whereas the former taught morality which relates to the life." He further informed me, that it was customary at times to depute from the city of Athens some of the students to learn from the literati of the Christians, what sentiments they entertain at this day re- specting God, the creation of the universe, the immortality of the soul, the relative state of men and beasts, and other subjects of interior wisdom : and he added, that a herald had that day an- nounced an assembly, which was a token that the emissaries had met with some strangers newly arrived from the earth, who had communicated some curious information. We then saw several persons going from the city and its suburbs, some having their heads decked with wreaths of laurel, some holding palms in their hands, some with books under their arms, and some with pens under the hair of the left temple. We mixed with the company, and ascended the hill with them; and lo! on the top was an octagonal palace, which they called the Palladium, into which we entered : within there were eight hexangular recesses, in each of which was a book-case and a table: at these recesses were seated the laureled sojj/ii, and in the Palladium itself there were seats cut out of the rock, on which the rest were seated. A door on the left was then opened, through which the two strangers newly arrived from the earth were introduced ; and after the compli- ments of salutation were paid, one of the laureled sophi asked them, ''What news from the earth?" They replied, "This is news, that in forests there have been found men like beasts, or beasts like men : from their face and body they were known to have been born men, and to have been lost or left in the forests when they were two or three years old ; they were not able to give utterance to any thought, nor could they learn to articulate the voice into any distinct expression ; neither did they know the 13S AND ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS. 151*, 152* food suitable for them as the beasts do, but put greedily into their mouths whatever they found in the forest, whether it was clean or unclean ; besides many other particulars of a like nature : from which some of the learned among us have formed several conjectures and conclusions concerning the relative state of men and beasts." On hearing this account, some of the ancient snphi asked, " What were the conjectures and conclusions formed from the circumstances you have related?" The two strangers re- plied, " There were several : but they may all be comprised under the following: 1. That a man by nature, and also by birth, is more stupid and consequently viler than any beast; and that he remains so, unless he is instructed. 2. That he is capable of being instructed, because he has learnt to frame articulate sounds, and thence to speak, and thereby has begun to express his thoughts, and this successively more and more perfectly until he has been able to express the laws of civil society ; several of which are nevertheless impressed on beasts from their birth. 3. That beasts have rationality like men. 4. Therefore, that if beasts could speak, they would reason on any subject as acutely as men ; a proof of which is, that they think from reason and prudence just as men do. 5. That the understanding is only a modification of light from the sun ; the heat co-operating by means of ether, so that it is only an activity of interior nature ; and that this activity may be so exalted as to appear like wisdom. 6. That therefore it is ridiculous to believe that a man lives after death any more than a beast : unless perchance, for some days after his decease, in consequence of an exhalation of the life of the body, he may appear as a mist under the form of a spectre, before he is dissipated into nature ; just as a shrub raised up from its ashes, appears in the likeness of its own form. 7. Consequently that religion, which teaches a life after death, is a mere device, in order to keep the simple inwardly in bonds by its laws, as they are kept outwardly in bonds by the laws of the state." To this they added, that " people of mere ingenuity reason in this manner, but not so the intelligent :" and they were asked, " How do the intelligent reason ?" They said they had not been informed ; but they supposed that they must rea- son differently. 152.* On hearing this relation, all those who were sitting at the tables exclaimed, " Alas ! what times are come on the earth ! What changes has wisdom undergone ? How is she transformed into a false and infatuated ingenuity ! The sun is set, and in his station beneath the earth is in direct opposition to his meridian altitude. From the case here adduced respecting such as have been left and found in forests, who cannot see that an unin- stnicted man is such as here represented ? For is not the nature of his life determined by the nature of the instruction he receives? Is he not born in a state of greater ignorance than the beasts? 152* 153* CONJTJGIAL LOVE Must he not learn to walk and to speak? Supposing he nevei learnt to walk, would he ever stand upright? And if he never learnt to speak, would he ever be able to express his thoughts ? Is not every man such as instruction makes him, — insane from false principles, or wise from truths? and is not he that is insane from false principles, entirely possessed with an imagination that he is wiser than he that is wise from truths ? Are there not instances of men who are so wild and foolish, that they are no more like men than those who have been found in forests? Is not this the case with such as have been deprived of memory ? From all these considerations we conclude, that a man without instruction is neither a man nor a beast ; but that he is a form, which is capable of receiving in itself that which constitutes a man ; and thus that he is not born a man, but that he is made a man ; and that a man is born such a form as to be an organ receptive of life from God, to the end that he may be a subject into which God may introduce all good, and, by union with him- self, may make him eternally blessed. "We have perceived from your con versation, that wisdom at this day is so far extinguished or infatuated, that nothing at all is known concerning the relative state of the life of men and of beasts ; and hence it is that the state of the life of man after death is not known : but those who are capable of knowing this, and yet are not willing, and in con- sequence deny it, as many Christians do, may fitly be compared to such as are found in forests: not that they are rendered so stupid from a want of instruction, but that they have rendered themselves so by the fallacies of the senses, which are the dark- ness of truths." 153.* At that instant a certain person standing in the middle of the Palladium, and holding in his hand a palm, said, ; ' Explain, J pray, this arcanum, How a man, created a form of God, could be changed into a form of the devil." I know that the angels of heaven are forms of God and that the angels of hell are forms of the devil, and that the two forms are opposite to each other, the latter being insanities, the former wisdoms. Tell me, therefore, how a man, created a form of God, could pass from day into such night, as to be capable of denying God and life eternal." To this the several teachers replied in order ; first the Pythagoreans, next the Socratics, and afterwards the rest : but among them there was a certain Platonist, who spoke last ; and his opinion prevailed, which was to this effect; That the men of the satur- nine or golden age knew and acknowledged that they were forms receptive of life from God ; and that on this account wisdom was inscribed on their souls and hearts, and hence they saw truth from the light of truth, and by truths perceived good from the delight of the love thereof: but as mankind in the following ages receded from the acknowledgement that all the truth of wisdom 3 ,nd the consequent good of love belonging to them, continually 140 AND ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS. 153*— 155* flowed in from God, they ceased to be habitations of God ; and then also discourse with God, and consociation with angel* ceased : for the interiors of their minds were bent from their direction, which had been elevated upwards to God from God, into a direction more and more oblique, outwardly into the world, and thereby to God from God through the world, and at length inverted into an opposite direction, which is downwards to self ; and as God cannot be looked at by a man interiorly inverted, and thereby averted, men separated themselves from God, and were made forms of hell or devils. From these considerations it follows, that in the first ages they acknowledged in heart and soul, that all the good of love and the consequent true wisdom, were derived to them from God, and also that they were God's in them : and thus that they were mere recipients of life from God, and hence were called images of God, sons of God, and born of God: but that in succeeding ages they did not acknow- ledge this in heart and soul, but by a certain persuasive faith, next by an historical faith, and lastly only with the mouth; and this last kind of acknowledgement is no acknowledgement at all ; yea, it is in fact a denial at heart. From these considerations it may be seen what is the quality of the wisdom which prevails at this day on the earth among Christians, while they do not know the distinction between a man and a beast, notwithstanding then being inpossession of a written revelation, wherebj r they may be inspired by God: and hence many believe, that in case a man lives after death, a beast must live also; or because a beast is not to live after death, neither will a man. Is not our spiritual light, which enlightens the sight of the mind, become thick darkness with them ? and is not their natural light, which only enlightens the bodily sight, become brightness to them? 154:.* After this they all turned towards the two strangers, and thanked them for their visit, and for the relation they had given, and entreated them to go and communicate to their breth- ren what they had heard. The strangers replied that they would endeavor to confirm their brethren in this truth, that so far as they ascribe all the good of charity and the truth of faith to the Lord, and not to themselves, so far they are men, and so far they become angels of heaven. 155.* The second memorable relation. One morning I was awoke by some delightful singing which I heard at a height above me, and in consequence, during the first watch, which is internal, pacific, and sweet, more than the succeeding part of the day, I was in a capacity of being kept for some time in the spirit as it were out of the body, and of attending carefully to the affection which was sung. The singing of heaven is an affection of the mind, sent forth through the mouth as a tune : for the tone of the voice in speaking, separate from the discourse of the speaking, and grounded in the affection of love, is what gives life 141 155* CONJUGIAL LOVF to the speech. In that state I perceived that it was the affection of the delights of conjugial love, which was made musical by wives in heaven : that this was the case, I observed from the sound of the song, in which those delights were varied in a wonderful manner. After this I arose, and looked into the spiritual world ; and lo! in the east, beneath the sun, there appeared as it were a goi.dkn shower. It was the morning dew descending in great abundance, which, catching the sun's rays, exhibited to my eyes the appearance of a golden shower. In consequence of this I became fully awake, and went forth in the spirit, and asked an angel who then happened to meet mo, whether he saw a golden shower descending from the sun ? He replied, that be saw one whenever he was meditating on conjugial love ; and at the same time turning his eyes towards the sun, he added, "That shower falls over a hall, in which are three hus- bands with their wives, who dwell in the midst of an eastern paradise. Such a shower is seen falling from the sun over that hall, because with those husbands and wives there resides wisdom respecting conjugial love and its delights; with the husbands respecting conjugial love, and with the wives respecting its delights. But I perceive that yon are engaged in meditating on the delights of conjugial love: I will therefore conduct you there, and introduce you to them." He led me through paradisiacal scenery to houses built of olive wood, having two cedar columns before the gate, and introduced me to the husbands, and asked their permission for me to converse with them in the presence of the wives. They consented, and called their wives. These looked into my eyes most shrewdly ; upon which I asked them, " Why do you do so ?" They said, " We can thereby discover exqui- sitely what is yourinclination and consequent affection, and your thought grounded in affection, respecting the love of the sex ; and we see that you are meditating intensely, but still chastely, concerning it." And they added, "What do you wish us to tell you on the subject?" I replied, "Tell me, I pray, something respecting the delights of conjugial love." The husbands as- sented, saying, " If you are so disposed, give them some infor- mation in regard to those delights: their ears are chaste." They asked me, " Who taught you to question us respecting the delights of that love ? Why did you not question our husbands?" I replied, " This angel, who accompanies me, informed me, that wives are the recipients and sensories of those delights, because they are born hives; and all delights are of love." To this they replied with a smile, " Be prudent, and declare nothing of this sort except ambiguously ; because it is a wisdom deeply heated in the hearts of our sex, and is not discovered to any hus- band, unless lie be principled in love truly conjugial. There are t-cvorid reasons for this, which we keep entirely to ourselves." Then the husbands said, " Our wives know all the states of our 1 W AND ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS. 155* minds, none of which are hid from them : they see, perceive, and are sensible of whatever proceeds from our will. We, on the other hand, know nothing of what passes with our wives. This faculty is given to wives, because they are most tender loves, and as it were burning zeals for the preservation of friendship and conjugial confidence, and thereby of all the happiness of life, which they carefully attend to, both in regard to their husbands and themselves, by virtue of a wisdom implanted in their love, which is so full of prudence, that they are unwilling to say, and consequently cannot say, that they love, but that they are loved." I asked the wives, "Why are you unwilling, and consequently cannot say so?" They replied, "If the least hint of the kind were to escape from the mouth of a wife, the husband would be seized with coolness, which would entirely separate him from all communication with his wife, so that he could not even bear to look upon her ; but this is the case only with those husbands who do not hold marriages to be holy, and therefore do not love their wives from spiritual love : it is otherwise with those who do. In the minds of the latter this love is spiritual, and by derivation thence in the body is natural. We in this hall are principled in the latter love by derivation from the former ; therefore we trust our husbands with our secrets respecting our delights of conjugial love." Then I courteously asked them to disclose to me some of those secrets : they then looked towards a window on the southern quarter, and lo ! there appeared a white dove, whose wings shone as if they were of silver, and its head was crested with a crown as of gold : it stood upon a bough, from which there went forth an olive; and while it was in the attempt to spread out its wings, the wives said, " We will communicate something: the appearing of that dove is a token that we may. "Every man (vir)," they continued, "has five senses, seeing, hearing, smelling, taste, and touch; but we have likewise a sixth, which is the sense of all the delights of the conjugial love of the husband ; and this sense we have in the palms of our hands, while we touch the breasts, arms, hands, or cheeks, of our husbands, especially their breasts; and also while we are touched by them. All the gladness and pleasantness of the thoughts of their minds (mentium), all the joys and delights of their minds {unimorum), and ail the festive and cheerful principles of their bosoms, pass from them to us, and become perceptible, sensible, and tangible: we discern them as exquisitely and distinctly as the ear does the tune of a song, and the tongue the taste of dainties ; in a word, the spiritual delights of our husbands put on with us a kind of natural embodiment ; therefore they call us the sensory organs of chaste conjugial love, and thence its de- lights. But this sixth sense of ours exists, subsists, persists, and is exalted in the degree in which our husbands love us from wis- dom and judgement, and in which we in our turn love them from 143 155,* 156* CONJUGIAL LOVE the same principles in them. This sense in our sex is called in the heavens the sport of wisdom with its love, and of love with its wisdom." From this information I became desirous of asking further questions concerning the variety of their delights. They said, " It is infinite ; but we are unwilling and therefore unable to say more ; for the dove at our window, with the olive branch under his feet, is flown away." I waited for its return, but in vain. In the meantime I asked the husbands, "Have you a like sense of conjugial love?" They replied, "We have a like sense in general, but not in particular. We enjoy a general blessedness, delight, and pleasantness, arising from the particu- lars of our wives; and this general principle, which we derive from them, is serenely peaceful." As they said this, lo! through the window there appeared a swan standing on a branch of a fig- tree, which spread out his wings and flew away. On seeing this, the husbands said, "This is a sign for us to be silent respecting conjugial love: come again some other time, and perhaps you may hear more." They then withdrew, and we took our leave. OS" THE CONJUNCTION OF SOULS AND MINDS BY MARRIAGE, WHICH IS MEANT BY THE LORD'S WORDS— THEY ARE NO LONGER TWO, BUT ONE FLESH. 156.* That at creation there was implanted in the man and the woman an inclination and also a faculty of conjunction as into a one, and that this inclination and this faculty are still in man and woman, is evident from the book of creation, and at the same time from the Lord's words. In the book of creation, called Genesis, it is written, '■'■Jehovah God builded the rib, which he had taken from the man, into a looman, and brought her to the man . And the man said, This now is bone of my bones, and flesh of my flesh. She shall be called Woman, because she was taken out of man ; for this cause shall a man leave his father and his mother, and shall cleave to his wife : and they shall be one flesh" chap. ii. 22 — 24. The Lord also says in Matthew, " Have ye not read, that he that made them from the beginning, made them a male and a female, and said, J^or this cause shall a man leave father and mother, and shall cleave to his wife f and they two shall become one flesh? Wherefore they are no longer two, but one flesh," chap. xix. 4 — 6. From this it is evident, that the woman was created out of the man {vir), and that each has an inclination and faculty to reunite them- selves into a one. That such reunion means into one man 144 AND ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS. {homo), is also evident from the book of creation, where both together are called man (hotno) ; for it is written, " In the day that God created man (homo), he created them a male and a female, and called their name Man (homo)," chap. v. 2. It id there written, he called their name Adam; but Adam and man are one expression in the Hebrew tongue : moreover, both toge- ther are called man in the same book, chap. i. 27; chap. iii. 22 — 24. One flesh also signifies one man ; as is evident from the passages in the Word where mention is made of all flesh, which signifies every man, as Gen. chap. vi. 12, 13, 17, 19 ; Isaiah xl. 5, 6 ; chap. xlix. 26; chap. Ixvi. 16, 23, 24; Jer. xxv. 31 ; chap, xxxii. 27 ; chap. xlv. 5 ; Ezek. xx. 48 ; chap. xxi. 4, 5 ; and other pas- sages. But what is meant by the man's rib, which was builded into a woman ; what by the flesh, which was closed up in the place thereof, and thus what by bone of my bones, and flesh of my flesh; and what by a father and a mother, whom a man (vir) shall leave after marriage ; and what by cleaving to a wife, has been shewn in the Akcana Ccelestia; in which work the two books, Genesis .and Exodus, are explained as to the spiritual sense. It is there proved that a rib does not mean a rib, — nor flesh, flesh, — nor a bone, a bone, — nor cleaving to, cleaving to; but that they signify spiritual things, which correspond thereto, and consequently are signified thereby. That spiritual things are understood, which from two make one man (homo), is evident from this consideration, that conjngial love conjoins them, and this love is spiritual. That the love of the man's wis- dom is transferred into the wife, has been occasionally observed above, and will be more fully proved in the following sections: at this time it is not allowable to digress from the subject pro- posed, which is concerning the conjunction of two married part- ners into one flesh by a union of souls and minds. This union we will elucidate by treating of it in the following order. I. From creation there is implanted in each sex a faculty and incli- nation, whereby they are able and willing to be conjoined together as it' were into a one. II. Conjugial love conjoins two souls, and thence two minds into a one. III. The to ill of the wife conjoins itself with the understanding of the man, and thence the under- standing of the man con joins itself vjith the will of the wife. IV. The inclination to unite the man to herself is constant and per- petual with the wife,' but is inconstant and alternate with the man. V. Conjunction is inspired into the man from the wife according to her love, and is recei ved by the man according to his wisdom.. VI. This conjunction is effected successively from the frst days qf 'marriage / and with those who are principled in love truly conjugial, is effected more and more thoroughly to eternity. VII. The conjunction of the wife with the rational wisdom of the husband is effected from within, but with this moral wisdom from •without. VIII. For the sake of this conjunction as an end, the 10 145 156* 157 CONJUGIAL LOVE wife has a perception of the affections of the husband, and also the utmost prudence in moderating them. IX. Wives conceal this percept ion with themselves, and hide it from their husbands, for reasons of necessity, in order that conjugial love, friendship, and confidence, and thereby the blessedness of d -celling together, and the happiness of life may be secured. X. This perceptionis the wisdom of the toife, and is not communicable to the man • neither is the rational wisdom of the man communicable to the wife. XL The wife, from a principle of love, is continually think- ing about the man's inclination to her, with the purpose of joining him to herself : it is otherwise with the man. XII. The wife conjoins herself to the man, by applications to the desires of his will. XIII. The wife is conjoined to her husband by the sphere of her life flowing from the love ofh im. XIV. The wife ts con- joined to the husband by the appropriation of the powers of his virtue J wh ich however is effected according to their mutual spi- ritual love. XV. Thus the wife receives in herself the image of her husband, and thence perceives, sees, and is sensible of his affections. XVI. 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 pro- per to the wife, so as to perform them aright. XVII. These duties, also, according to mutual aid, conjoin the two into a one, and at the same time constitute one house. XVIII. Married partners, according to these conj unctions, become one man. (homo) more and more. XIX. Those who are principled in love tndy conjugial, arc sensible of their being a united man, and asitwere one flesh. XX. Love truly conjugial, considered in itself is a union of souls, a conjunction of minds, and an endeavor towards conjunction in the bosoms and thence in the body. XXI. The statesofthis love are innocence, peace, tranquillity, inmostfriend- ih ip,full confidence, and a mutual desire ofm ind and heart to do • very 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. XXII. These things can only exist in the marriage of one man with one wife. We proceed now to the explanation of these articles. 157. I. From crixytion thkkic is implantkd in kach sex A FACULTY AND INCLINATION, WHEREBY THEY AUK ABLE AND WILLING TO BE JOINED TOGKTIIKK, AS IT WERE INTO A ONK. That the woman was taken out of the man, was shewn just, above from the hook of creation ; hence it follows, that there is in each sex a faculty and inclination to join themselves together into a one; for that which is taken out of anything, derives and retains its constituent principle, from the principle proper to the thing whence it was taken ; and as this derived principle is of a similar nature with that from which it was derived, it seeks after a reunion ; and when it is reunited, it is as in itself when it 146 AND ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS. 157—159 is in that from whence it came, and vice versa. That there is a f'acultv of conjunction of the one sex with the other, or that they are capable of being united, is universally allowed ; and also that there is an inclination to join themselves the one with the other ; for experience supplies sufficient confirmation in both cases. 158. II. CONJUGIAL LOVE CONJOINS TWO SOULS, AND THKNOK two minds, into a onk. Every man consists of a soul, a mind, and a body. The soul is his inmost, the mind his middle, and the body nis ultimate constituent. As the soul is a man's inmost principle, it is, from its origin, celestial ; as the mind is his mid- dle principle, it is, from its origin, spiritual ; and as the body is his ultimate principle, it is, from its origin, natural. Those things, which, from their origin, are celestial and spiritual, are not in space, but in the appearance of space. This also is well known in the word; therefore it is said, that neither extension nor place can be predicated of spiritual things. Since therefore spaces are appearances, distances also and presences are appear- ances. That the appearances of distances and presences in the spiritual world are according to proximities, relationships, and affinities of love, has been frequently pointed out and confirmed in small treatises respecting that world. These observations are made, in order that it may be known that the souls and minds of men are not in space like their bodies ; because the former, as was said above, from their origin, are celestial and spiritual ; and as they are not in space, they may be joined together as into a one, although their bodies at the same time are not so joined. This is the case especially with married partners, who love each other intimately: but as the woman is from the man, and this conjunction is a species of reunion, it may be seen from reason, that it is not a conjunction into a one, but an adjunction, close and near according to the love, and approaching to contact with those wdio are principled in love truly conjugial. This adjunc- tion may be called spiritual dwelling together ; which takes place with married partners who love each other tenderly, however distant their bodies may be from each other. Many experimental proofs exist, even in the natural world, in confirmation of these observations. Hence it is evident, that conjugial love conjoins two souls and minds into a one. 150. III. The will of the wife conjoins itself win; the understanding of the man, and thence the under- standing of the man with the will of the wife. The reason of this is, because the male is born to become under- standing, and the female to become will, loving the understand- ing of the male; from which consideration it follows, that conjugial conjunction is that, of the will of the wife with the understanding of the man, and the reciprocal conjunction of the understanding of the man with the will of the wife. Every one sees that the conjunction of the understanding and the will ia 147 J 59 — 161 CONJUGIAL LOVE of the most intimate kind ; and that it is such, that the one faculty can enter into the other, and be delighted from and in the conjunction. 160. IV. The inclination to unite the man to HER- kRLF IS CONSTANT AND PERPETUAL WITH THE 'WIFE, BUT IN- CONSTANT AND ALTERNATE WITH THE MAN. The reason of this is, because love cannot do otherwise than love and unite itself, in order that it may be loved in return, this being its very essence and life ; and women are born loves ; whereas men, with whom the} - unite themselves in order that they may be loved in return, are receptions. Moreover love is continually efficient ; being like heat, flame, and fire, which perish if their efficiency is checked. Hence the inclination to unite the man to herself is constant, and perpetual with the wife : but a similar inclination does not ope- rate with the man towards the wife, because the man is not love, but only a recipient of love; and as a state of reception is absent or present according to intruding cares, and to the varying presence or absence of heat in the mind, as derived from various causes, and also according to the increase and decrease of the bodily powers, which do not return regularly and at stated periods, it. follows, that the inclination to conjunction is incon- stant and alternate with men. 161. V. Conjunction is inspired into the man from THE WIFE ACCORDING TO HER LOVE, AND IS RECEIVED BY THE man according to his wisdom. That love and consequent conjunction is inspired into the man by the wife, is at this day concealed from the men ; yea, it is universally denied by them j because wives insinuate that' the men alone love, and that they themselves receive; or that ihe men are loves, and themselves obediences: they rejoice also in heart when the men believe it to be so. There are several reasons why they endeavour to per- suade the men of this, which are all grounded in their prudence und circumspection ; respecting which, something shall be said in a future part of this work, particularly in the chapter on the CAUSES OF COLDNESS, SEPARATIONS, AND DIVORCES BETWEEN married partners. The reason why men receive from their wives the inspiration or insinuation of love, is, because nothing of conjugial love, or even of the love of the sex, is with the men, but only with wives and females. That this is the case, has been clearly shewn me in the spiritual world. I was once engaged in conversation there on this subject ; and the men, in consequence of a persuasion infused from their wives, insisted that they loved and not the wives; but that the wives received love from them. In order to settle the dispute respecting this arcanum, all the females, married and unmarried, were withdrawn from the men, and at the same time the sphere of the love of the sex was removed with them. On the removal of this sphere, the men "were reduced to a very unusual state, such as they had never 148 AND IT8 CHASTE DELIGHTS. 161—103 before perceived, at which they greatly complained. Then, while they were in this state, the females were brought to them, and the wives to the husbands; and both the wives and the other females addressed them in the tenderest and most engaging manner ; but they were cold to their tenderness, and turned away, and said one to another, " What is all this ? what is a female V And when some of the women said that they were their wives, they replied, "What is a wife? we do not know you." But when the wives began to be grieved at this absolutely cold indifference of the men, and some of them to shed tears, the sphere of the love of the female sex, and the conjugial sphere, which had for a time been withdrawn from the men, was re- stored ; and then the men instantly returned into their former state, the lovers of marriage into their state, and the lovers of the sex into theirs. Thus the men were convinced, that nothing of conjugial love, or even of the love of the sex, resides with them, but only with the wives and females. Nevertheless, the wives afterwards from their prudence induced the men to believe, that love resides with the men, and that some small spark of it may pass from them into the wives. This experimental evidence is here adduced, in order that it may be known, that wives are loves and men recipients. That men are recipients according to their wisdom, especially according to this wisdom grounded in religion, that the wife only is to be loved, is evident from this consideration, that so long as the wife only is loved, the love is concentrated ; and because it is also ennobled, it remains in its strength, and is fixed and permanent ; and that in any other case it would be as when wheat from the granary is cast to the dogs, whereby there is scarcity at home. 162. VI. 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. The first heat of mar- riage does not conjoin; for it partakes of the love of the sex, which is the love of the body and thence of the spirit ; and what is in the spirit, as derived from the body, does not long continue ; but the love which is in the body, and is derived from the spirit, does continue. The love of the spirit, and of the body from the spirit, is insinuated into the souls and minds of married partners, together with friendship and confidence. When these two [friendship and confidence] conjoin themselves with the first love of marriage, there is effected conjugial love, which opens the bosoms, and inspires the sweets of that love ; and this more and more thoroughly, in proportion as those two principles adjoin themselves to the primitive love, and that love enters into them, and vice versa. 163. VII. The conjunction of the wife with the ra TIONAL WISDCM OF THE HUSBAND IS EFFECTED FROM WITHIN, 149 163—165 CONJUG-IAL LOVE BUT WITH HIS MORAL WISDOM FKOM WITHOUT. That wisdom with men is two-fold, rational and moral, and that their rational wisdom is of the understanding alone, and their moral wisdom is <>f the understanding and the life together, may he concluded and seen from mere intuition and examination. But in order that it may be known what we mean by the rational wisdom of men, and what by their moral wisdom, we will enumerate some of the specific distinctions. The principles constituent of their rational wisdom are called by various names ; in general they are called knowledge, intelligence, and wisdom ; but in particular they are called rationality, judgement, capacity, erudition, and sagacity ; but as every one has knowledge peculiar to his office, therefore they are multifarious ; for the clergy, magistrates, public officers, judges, physicians and chemists, soldiers and sailors, artificers and laborers, husbandmen, &c, have each their peculiar knowledge. To rational wisdom also appertain all the knowledge into which young men are initiated in the schools, and by which they are afterwards initiated into intelligence, which also are called by various names, as philosophy, physics, geometry, mechanics, chemistry, astronomy, jurisprudence, politics, ethics, history, and several others, by which, as by doors, an entrance is made into things rational, which are the ground of rational wisdom. 164. But the constituents of moral wisdom with men are all the moral virtues, which have respect to life, and enter into it, and also all the spiritual virtues, which flow from love to God and love towards our neighbour, and centre in those loves. The virtues which appertain to the moral wisdom of men are also of various kinds, and are called temperance, sobriety, probity, bene- volence, friendship, modesty, sincerity, courtesy, civility, also carefulness, industry, quickness of wit, alacrity, munificence, liberality, generosity, activity, intrepidity, prudence and many others. Spiritual virtues with men are the love of religion, charity, truth, conscience, innocence, and many more. The hitter virtues and also the former, may in general be referred to love and zeal for religion, for the public good, for a man's country, for his fellow-citizens, for his parents, for his married partner, and for his children. In all these, justice and judge- ment have dominion ; justice having relation to moral, and judgement to rational wisdom. 165. The reason why the conjunction of the wife with the man's rational wisdom is from within, is, because this wisdom belongs to the man's understanding, and ascends into the light in which women are not. and this is the reason why women do not speak from that wisdom ; but, when the conversation of the men turns on subjects proper thereto, they remain silent and listen. That nevertheless such subjects have place with the wives front within, is evident from their listening thereto, and from their inwardlv recollecting what had been said, and favoring 150 AND ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS. 165-167 those tilings which they had heard from their husbands. But the reason why the conjunction of the wife with the moral wis- dom of the man is from without, is, because the virtues of that wisdom for the most part are akin to similar virtues with the women, and partake of the man's intellectual will, with which the will of the wife unites and constitutes a marriage; and since the wife knows those virtues appertaining to the man more than the man himself does, it is said that the conjunction of the wife with those virtues is from without. 166. VIII. For the sake of this conjunction as an END, THE WIFE HAS A PERCEPTION OF THE AFFECTIONS OF THE HUSBAND, AND ALSO THE UTMOST PRUDENCE IN MODERATING them. That wives know the affections of their husbands, and prudently moderate them, is among the arcana of conjugial love which lie concealed with wives. They know those affections by three senses, the sight, the hearing, and the touch, and moderate them while their husbands are not at all aware of it. Now a