Angelic Wisdom Concerning the Divine Love and the Divine Wisdom

by Emanuel Swedenborg

137. Since the interiors of the mind make one with the interiors of the body, it follows that when the interiors of the mind turn themselves to the Lord as a sun, those of the body turn themselves in like manner; and because the exteriors of both, of mind as well as body, depend upon their interiors, they also do the same. For what the external does, it does from internals, the general deriving all it has from the particulars from which it is. From this it is evident that as an angel turns his face and body to the Lord as a sun, all the interiors of his mind and body are turned in the same direction. It is the same with man, if he has the Lord constantly before his eyes, which is the case if he is in love and wisdom. He then looks to the Lord not only with eyes and face, but also with all the mind and all the heart, that is, with all things of the will and understanding, together with all things of the body.

138. This turning to the Lord is an actual turning, a kind of elevation; for there is an uplifting into the heat and light of heaven, which takes place by the opening of the interiors; when these are opened, love and wisdom flow into the interiors of the mind, and the heat and light of heaven into the interiors of the body. From this comes the uplifting, like a rising out of a cloud into clear air, or out of air into ether. Moreover, love and wisdom, with their heat and light, are the Lord with man; and He, as was said before, turns man to Himself. It is the reverse with those who are not in love and wisdom, and still more with those who are opposed to love and wisdom. Their interiors, both of mind and body, are closed; and when closed, the exteriors re-act against the Lord, for such is their inherent nature. Consequently, such persons turn themselves backward from the Lord; and turning oneself backward is turning to hell.

139. This actual turning to the Lord is from love together with Wisdom; not from love alone, nor from wisdom alone; for love alone is like esse [being] without its existere [taking form] since love has its form in wisdom; and wisdom without love is like existere without its esse, since wisdom has its form from love. Love is indeed possible without wisdom; but such love is man's, and not the Lord's. Wisdom alone is possible without love; but such wisdom, although from the Lord, has not the Lord in it; for it is like the light of winter, which is from the sun; still the sun's essence, which is heat, is not in it.

140. EVERY SPIRIT, WHATEVER HIS QUALITY, TURNS IN LIKE MANNER TO HIS RULING LOVE.

It shall first be explained what a spirit is, and what an angel is. Every man after death comes, in the first place, into the world of spirits, which is midway between heaven and hell, and there passes through his own times, that is, his own states, and becomes prepared, according to his life, either for heaven or for hell. So long as one stays in that world he is called a spirit. He who has been raised out of that world into heaven is called an angel; but he who has been cast down into hell is called either a satan or a devil. So long as these continue in the world of spirits, he who is preparing for heaven is called an angelic spirit; and he who is preparing for hell, an infernal spirit; meanwhile the angelic spirit is conjoined with heaven, and the infernal spirit with hell. All spirits in the world of spirits are adjoined to men; because men, in respect to the interiors of their minds, are in like manner between heaven and hell, and through these spirits they communicate with heaven or with hell according to their life. It is to be observed that the world of spirits is one thing, and the spiritual world another; the world of spirits is that which has just been spoken of; but the spiritual world includes that world, and heaven and hell.

141. Since the subject now under consideration is the turning of angels and spirits to their own loves by reason of these loves, something shall be said also about loves. The whole heaven is divided into societies according to all the differences of loves; in like manner hell, and in like manner the world of spirits. But heaven is divided into societies according to the differences of heavenly loves; hell into societies according to the differences of infernal loves; and the world of spirits, according to the differences of loves both heavenly and infernal. There are two loves which are the heads of all the rest, that is, to which all other loves are referable; the love which is the head of all heavenly loves, or to which they all relate, is love to the Lord; and the love which is the head of all infernal loves, or to which they all relate, is the love of rule springing from the love of self. These two loves are diametrically opposed to each other.

142. Since these two loves, love to the Lord and love of rule springing from love of self, are wholly opposed to each other, and since all who are in love to the Lord turn to the Lord as a sun (as was shown in the preceding article), it can be seen that all who are in the love of rule springing from love of self, turn their backs to the Lord. They thus face in opposite directions, because those who are in love to the Lord love nothing more than to be led by the Lord, and will that the Lord alone shall rule; while those who are in the love of rule springing from love of self, love nothing more than to be led by themselves, and will that themselves alone may rule. This is called a love of rule springing from love of self, because there is a love of rule springing from a love of performing uses, which is a spiritual love, because it makes one with love towards the neighbor. Still this cannot be called a love of rule, but a love of performing duties.

143. Every spirit, of whatever quality, turns to his own ruling love, because love is the life of every one (as was shown in Part I., n. 1-3); and life turns its receptacles, called members, organs, and viscera, thus the whole man, to that society which is in a love similar to itself, thus where its own love is.

144. Since the love of rule springing from love of self is wholly opposed to love to the Lord, the spirits who are in that love of rule turn the face backwards from the Lord, and therefore look with their eyes to the western quarters of the spiritual world; and being thus bodily in a reversed position, they have the east behind them, the north at their right, and the south at their left. They have the east behind them because they hate the Lord; they have the north at their right, because they love fallacies and falsities therefrom; and they have the south at their left, because they despise the light of wisdom. They may turn themselves round and round, and yet all things which they see about them appear similar to their love. All such are sensual-natural; and some are of such a nature as to imagine that they alone live, looking upon others as images. They believe themselves to be wise above all others, though in truth they are insane.

145. In the spiritual world ways are seen, laid out like ways in the natural world; some leading to heaven, and some to hell; but the ways leading to hell are not visible to those going to heaven, nor are the ways leading to heaven visible to those going to hell. There are countless ways of this kind; for there are ways which lead to every society of heaven and to every society of hell. Each spirit enters the way which leads to the society of his own love, nor does he see the ways leading in other directions. Thus it is that each spirit, as he turns himself to his ruling love, goes forward in it.