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HHS06 116-140
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116. THE SUN IN HEAVEN.
In heaven neither the sun of the world, nor anything from that sun, is seen, because it is wholly natural. For nature has its beginning from that sun, and whatever is produced by means of it is called natural. But the spiritual, to which heaven belongs, is above nature and wholly distinct from what is natural; and there is no communication between the two except by correspondences. What the distinction between them is may be understood from what has been already said about degrees (see number 38), and what the communication is from what has been said in the two preceding chapters about correspondences.
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117. Although the sun of the world is not seen in heaven, nor anything from that sun, there is nevertheless a sun there, and light and heat, and all things that are in the world, with innumerable others, but not from a like origin; since the things in heaven are spiritual, and those in the world are natural. The sun of heaven is the Lord; the light there is the Divine truth and the heat the Divine good that go forth from the Lord as a sun. From this origin are all things that spring forth and are seen in the heavens. This light and heat and things existing therefrom in heaven will be treated of in the following chapters; in this chapter we will speak only of the sun there. In heaven the Lord is seen as a sun, for the reason that He is Divine love, from which all spiritual things, and by means of the sun of the world all natural things, have their existence. That love is what shines as a sun.
118. That the Lord is actually seen in heaven as a sun I have not only been told by angels, but it has occasionally been granted me to see it; and therefore what I have heard and seen respecting the Lord as a sun I shall be glad to tell in a few words. The Lord is seen as a sun, not in heaven, but high above the heavens; and not directly overhead or in the zenith, but before the faces of the angels at a middle height. He is seen at a considerable distance, in two places, one before the right eye and the other before the left eye. Before the right eye He is seen exactly like a sun, as it were, with a glow and size like that of the sun of the world. But before the left eye He is not seen as a sun, but as a moon, glowing white like the moon of our earth, and of like size, but more brilliant, and surrounded with many little moons, as it were, each of them of similar whiteness and splendor. The Lord is seen so differently in two places because every person sees the Lord in accordance with the quality of his reception of the Lord, thus He is seen in one way by those that receive Him with the good of love, and in another by those that receive Him with the good of faith. Those that receive Him with the good of love see Him as a sun, fiery and flaming, in accordance with their reception of Him; these are in His celestial kingdom; while those that receive Him with the good of faith see Him as a moon, white and brilliant in accordance with their reception of Him, and these are in His spiritual kingdom.[1] This is so because good of love corresponds to fire; therefore in the spiritual sense fire is love; and the good of faith corresponds to light, and in the spiritual sense light is faith.[2] And the Lord appears before the eyes because the interiors, which belong to the mind, see through the eyes, from good of love through the right eye, and from good of faith through the left eye;[3] since with angels and also with men all things at the right correspond to good from which truth is derived, and all at the left to truth that is from good.[4] Good of faith is in its essence truth from good.
[1] The Lord is seen in heaven as a sun, and is the sun of heaven (see numbers 1053, 3636, 3643, 4060).
The Lord is seen as a sun by those who are in His celestial kingdom, where love to Him reigns, and as a moon by those who are in His spiritual kingdom, where charity to the neighbor and faith reign (see numbers 1521, 1529-1531, 1837, 4696).
The Lord is seen as a sun at a middle height before the right eye, and an a moon before the left eye (see numbers 1053, 1521, 1529-1531, 3636, 3643, 4321, 5097, 7078, 7083, 7173, 7270, 8812, 10809).
The Lord is seen as a sun and as a moon (see numbers 1531, 7173).
The Lord’s Divine Itself is far above His Divine in heaven (see numbers 7270, 8760).
[2] “Fire” in the Word signifies love, both in a good sense and in a bad sense (see numbers 934, 4906, 5215).
Holy or heavenly fire signifies the Divine Love (see numbers 934, 6314, 6832).
Infernal fire signifies love of self and of the world and every lust of those loves (see numbers 1861, 5071, 6314, 6832, 7575, 10747).
Love is the fire of life and life itself is really from it (see numbers 4906, 5071, 6032, 6314). “Light” signifies the truth of faith (see numbers 3195, 3485, 3636, 3643, 3993, 4302, 4413, 4415, 9548, 9684).
[3] The sight of the left eye corresponds to truths of faith, and the sight of the right eye to their goods (see numbers 4410, 6923).
[4] The things on man’s right have relation to good from which is truth, and those on his left to truth from good (see numbers 9495, 9604).
119. This is why in the Word the Lord in respect to love is likened to the sun, and in respect to faith to the moon; also that the “sun” signifies love from the Lord to the Lord, and the “moon” signifies faith from the Lord in the Lord, as in the following passages:
The light of the moon shall be as the light of the sun, and the light of the sun shall be sevenfold, as the light of seven days (Isaiah 30 verse 26).
And when I shall extinguish thee I will cover the heavens and make the stars thereof dark; I will cover the sun with a cloud, and the moon shall not make her light to shine. All luminaries of light in the heavens will I make dark over thee, and I will set darkness upon thy land (Ezekiel. 32 verses 7, 8).
I will darken the sun in his going forth, and the moon shall not make her light to shine (Isaiah 13 verse 10)
The sun and the moon shall be darkened, and the stars shall withdraw their shining. The sun shall be turned into darkness and the moon into blood (Joel 2 verses 2, 10, 31; 3 verse 16).
The sun became black as sackcloth and hair, and the moon became as blood, and the stars fell unto the earth (Revelation 6 verses 12, 13).
Immediately after the affliction of those days the sun shall be darkened, and the moon shall not give her light, and the stars shall fall from heaven (Matthew 24 verse 29).
And elsewhere. In these passages the “sun” signifies love, and the “moon” faith, and the “stars” knowledges of good and truth.[1] These are said to be darkened, to lose their light, and to fall from heaven, when they are no more. That the Lord is seen as a sun in heaven is evident also from His appearance when transfigured before Peter, James, and John,
That His face did shine as the sun (Matthew 17 verse 2).
These disciples thus saw the Lord when they were withdrawn from the body, and were in the light of heaven. It was because of this correspondence that the ancient people, with whom was a representative church, turned the face to the sun in the east when they were in Divine worship; and for the same reason they gave to their temples an eastern aspect.
[1] “Stars” and “constellations” in the Word signify knowledges of good and truth (see numbers 2495, 2849, 4697).
120. How great the Divine love is and what it is can be seen by comparison with the sun of the world, that it is most ardent, if you will believe it, much more ardent than that sun. For this reason the Lord as a sun does not flow without mediums into the heavens, but the ardor of His love is gradually tempered on the way. These temperings appear as radiant belts about the sun; furthermore, the angels are veiled with a thin adapting cloud to prevent their being harmed by the influx.[1] For this reason the heavens are more or less near in accordance with reception. As the higher heavens are in good of love they are nearest to the Lord as the sun; and as the lower heavens are in good of faith they are farther away from Him. But those that are in no good, like those in hell, are farthest away, at different distances in accordance with their opposition to good.[2]
[1] What the Lord’s Divine love is, and how great it is, illustrated by comparison with the fire of this world’s sun (see numbers 6834, 6849, 8644).
The Lord’s Divine love is love toward the whole human race to save it (see numbers 1820, 1865, 2253, 6872).
The love that first goes forth from the fire of the Lord’s love does not enter heaven, but is seen as radiant belts about the sun (see number 7270).
The angels are veiled with a corresponding thin cloud, to prevent their being harmed by the glow of burning love (see number 6849).
[2] The Lord’s presence with the angels is in proportion to their reception of good of love and faith from Him (see numbers 904, 4198, 4320, 6280, 6832, 7042, 8819, 9680, 9682, 9683, 10106, 10811).
The Lord appears to each one in accordance with what he is (see numbers 1861, 3235, 4198, 4206).
The hells are at a distance from the heavens because they cannot bear the presence of Divine love from the Lord (see numbers 4299, 7519, 7738, 7989, 8137, 8265, 9327).
For this reason the hells are very far away from the heavens, and this is the “great gulf” (see numbers 9346, 10187).
121. When, however, the Lord appears in heaven, which often occurs, He does not appear encompassed with a sun, but in the form of an angel, yet distinguished from angels by the Divine shining through from His face, since He is not there in person, for in person the Lord is constantly encompassed by the sun, but He is present by look. For it is a common occurrence in heaven for persons to appear to be present in a place where their look is fixed or is terminated, even when this place is far away from where they really are. This presence is called the presence of internal sight, which will be treated of further on. I have also seen the Lord out of the sun in an angelic form, at a height a little below the sun; also near by in a like form, with shining face, and once in the midst of angels as a flame-like radiance.
122. To the angels the sun of the world appears like a dense darkness opposite to the sun of heaven, and the moon like a darkness opposite to the moon of heaven, and this constantly; and for the reason that the world’s fieriness corresponds to the love of self, and the light from it corresponds to what is false from that love; and the love of self is the direct opposite of the Divine love; and what is false from that love is the direct opposite of the Divine truth; and the opposite of the Divine love and the Divine truth is to the angels thick darkness. Therefore, in the Word, to worship the sun and moon of this world and bow down to them, signifies to love self and the falsities that spring from the love of self, and it is said that such would be cut off. (Deuteronomy 4 verse 19; 16 verses 3 to 5; Jer. 8 verses 1, 2; Ezek. 8 verses 15, 16, 18; Apoc. 16 verse 8; Matt. 13 verse 6).[1]
[1] The sun of the world is not seen by the angels, but in its place something dark behind, opposite to the sun of heaven or the Lord (see numbers 7078, 9755).
In the opposite sense the sun signifies the love of self (see number 2441); and in this sense “to worship the sun” signifies to worship what is contrary to heavenly love or to the Lord (see numbers 2441, 10584).
To those in the hells the sun of heaven is thick darkness (see number 2441).
123. As it is from the Divine love that is in and from Him that the Lord appears in heaven like a sun, so all in the heavens are turned constantly to Him those in the celestial kingdom to Him as a sun and those in the spiritual kingdom to Him as a moon. But those that are in hell turn themselves to an opposite darkness and dense darkness, that is, they turn backwards, away from the Lord; and for the reason that all in the hells are in love of self and the world, thus antagonistic to the Lord. Those who turn themselves to the dense darkness that is in the place where this world’s sun is are in the hells behind, and are called genii; while those that turn themselves to the darkness that is in the place of the moon are in the hells more in front, and are called spirits. This is why those in the hells are said to be in darkness, and those in the heavens in light, “darkness” signifying falsity from evil, and “light” truth from good. They so turn themselves because all in the other life look towards what rules in their interiors, thus to their loves; and with angels and spirits the interiors determine the face; and in the spiritual world quarters are not fixed, as in the natural world, but are determined by the face. In respect to his spirit man turns himself in like manner as a spirit does, backwards from the Lord if he is in love of self and the world, and towards the Lord if he is in love to the Lord and the neighbor. But of this man is ignorant, because he is in the natural world where quarters are determined by the rising and setting of the sun. But as this cannot be easily comprehended by men it will be elucidated hereafter when Quarters, Space, and Time in Heaven are treated of.
124. Because the Lord is the sun of heaven and everything that is from Him looks to Him, He is also the common center, the source of all direction and determination.[1] So, too, all things beneath are in His presence and under His auspices, both in the heavens and on the earths.
[1] The Lord is the common center to which all things of heaven turn (see numbers 3633, 3641).
125. From all this what has been said and shown in previous chapters about the Lord may now be seen in clearer light, namely:
That He is the God of heaven (numbers 2-6).
That it is His Divine that makes heaven (numbers 7-12).
That the Lord’s Divine in heaven is love to Him and charity towards the neighbor (numbers 13-19).
That there is a correspondence of all things of the world with heaven, and through heaven with the Lord (numbers 87-115).
Also that the sun and moon of the world are correspondences (see number 105).
126. LIGHT AND HEAT IN HEAVEN.
That there is light in the heavens those who think from nature alone cannot comprehend; and yet such is the light in the heavens that it exceeds by many degrees the noon-day light of the world. That light I have often seen, even during the evening and night. At first I wondered when I heard the angels say that the light of this world is little more than a shadow in comparison with the light of heaven; but having seen it I can testify that it is so. The brightness and splendor of the light of heaven are such as cannot be described. All things that I have seen in the heavens have been seen in that light, thus more clearly and distinctly than things in this world.
127. The light of heaven is not a natural light, like the light of the world, but a spiritual light, because it is from the Lord as a sun, and that sun is the Divine love (as has been shown in the foregoing chapter). That which goes forth from the Lord as a sun is called in the heavens Divine truth, but in its essence it is Divine good united to Divine truth. From this the angels have light and heat, light from Divine truth, and heat from Divine good. As the light of heaven, and the heat also, are from such a source, it is evident that they are spiritual and not natural.[1]
[1] All light in the heavens is from the Lord as a sun (see numbers 1053, 1521, 3195, 3341, 3636, 3643, 4415, 9548, 9684, 10809).
The Divine truth that goes forth from the Lord appears in heaven as light, and furnishes all the light of heaven (see numbers 3195, 3222, 3223, 5400, 8644, 9399, 9548, 9684).
128. The Divine truth is light to the angels because the angels are spiritual and not natural. Spiritual beings see from their sun, and natural beings from theirs. It is from Divine truth that angels have understanding, and their understanding is their inner sight, which flows into and produces their outer sight; therefore in heaven whatever is seen from the Lord as the sun is seen in light.[1] This being the source of light in heaven the light is varied there in accordance with the reception of Divine truth from the Lord; or what is the same, in accordance with the intelligence and wisdom in which the angels are, thus differently in the celestial kingdom and in the spiritual kingdom, and differently in each society. In the celestial kingdom the light appears flaming because the angels there receive light from the Lord as a sun; but in the spiritual kingdom the light is shining white, because the angels there receive light from the Lord as a moon (see above, number 118). So, too, the light differs in different societies, and again in each society, those that are at the center being in greater light and those in the circumference in less light (see number 43). In a word, the angels have light in the same degree in which they are recipients of Divine truth, that is, are in intelligence and wisdom from the Lord;[2] and this is why the angels of heaven are called angels of light.
[1] The light of heaven illumines both the sight and the understanding of angels and spirits (see numbers 2776, 3138).
[2] The light in heaven is in harmony with the intelligence and wisdom of the angels (see numbers 1524, 1529, 1530, 3339).
Differences of light in the heavens are as many as there are angelic societies; and as there are in the heavens endless varieties of good and truth, so are there of wisdom and intelligence (see numbers 684, 690, 3241, 3744, 3745, 4414, 5598, 7236, 7833, 7836).
129. As the Lord in the heavens is Divine truth, and the Divine truth there is light, so in the Word He is called Light, likewise all truth is from Him, as in the following passages:
Jesus said, I am the light of the world; he that followeth Me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life (John 8 verse 12).
As long as I am in the world I am the light of the world (John 9 verse 5).
Jesus said, Yet a little while is the light with you. Walk while ye have the light, lest darkness overtake you. While ye have the light believe in the light, that ye may be sons of light. I have come a light into the world, that whosoever believeth in Me may not abide in darkness (John 12 verses 35, 36, 46).
Light has come into the world, but men have loved the darkness rather than the light (John 3 verse 19).
John says of the Lord:
This is the true light which lighteneth every man (John 1 verse 9).
The people that sit in darkness have seen a great light, and to them that were sitting in the shadow of death light is sprung up (Matt. 4 verse 16).
I will give thee for a covenant of the people, for a light of the Gentiles (Isa. 13 verse 6).
I have established Thee for a light of the Gentiles that Thou mayest be My salvation unto the end of the earth (Isa. 19 verse 6).
The nations of them that are saved shall walk in His light (Apoc. 21 verse 24).
Send out Thy light and Thy truth; let them lead me (Psalm 43 verse 3).
In these and other passages the Lord is called light from Divine truth, which is from Him; and the truth itself is likewise called light. As light in the heavens is from the Lord as a sun, so when He was transfigured before Peter, James, and John:
His face did shine as the sun, and His raiment was white as the light (Matt. 17 verse 2).
And His garments became shining, exceeding white as snow, so as no fuller on earth can whiten them (Mark 9 verse 3; Matt. 17 verse 2).
The Lord’s garments had this appearance because they represented Divine truth which is from Him in the heavens, “garments” also in the Word signifying truths,[1] consequently it is said in David:
O Jehovah, Thou coverest Thyself with light as with a garment (Psalm 104 verse 2).
[1] In the Word “garments” signify truths, because truths clothe good (see numbers 1073, 2576, 5248, 5319, 5954, 9216, 9952, 10536).
The Lord’s garments when He was transfigured signified Divine truth going forth from His Divine love (see numbers 9212, 9216).
130. That light in the heavens is spiritual and that this light is Divine truth may be inferred also from the fact that men as well as angels have spiritual light, and have enlightenment from that light so far as they are in intelligence and wisdom from Divine truth. Man’s spiritual light is the light of his understanding, and the objects of that light are truths, which he arranges analytically into groups, forms into reason, and from them draws conclusions in series.[1] The natural man does not know that the light from which the understanding sees such things is a real light, for he neither sees it with his eyes nor perceives it by thought. And yet there are many who recognize this light, and distinguish it from the natural light in which those are who think naturally and not spiritually. Those think naturally who take account of the world only, and attribute all things to nature; while those think spiritually who take account of heaven and attribute all things to the Divine. It has often been granted me to perceive and also to see that there is a true light that enlightens the mind, wholly distinct from the light that is called natural light [lumen]. I have been raised up interiorly into that light by degrees; and as I was raised up my understanding became so enlightened as to enable me to perceive what I did not perceive before, and finally such things as I could not even comprehend by thought from natural light. Sometimes I felt indignant that I could not comprehend these things when they were so clearly and plainly perceived in the light of heaven.[2] Because there is a light that belongs to the understanding, the same things are said of it as of the eye, as that it sees and is in light when it perceives, and is in obscurity and shade when it does not perceive, and so on.
[1] Man is rational because his understanding is illumined by the light of heaven (see numbers 1524, 3138, 3167, 4408, 6608, 8707, 9128, 9399, 10569).
The understanding is enlightened because it is a recipient of truth (see numbers 6222, 6608, 10659).
The understanding is enlightened to the extent that man receives truth in good from the lord (see number 3619).
The understanding is such as are the truths from good by which it is formed (see number 10064).
The understanding has light from heaven, as the sight has light from the world (see numbers 1524, 5114, 6608, 9128).
The light of heaven from the Lord is always present with man, but it flows in only in the degree that man is in truth from good (see numbers 4060, 4214).
[2] When man is raised up from the sensual he comes into a milder light, and at length into heavenly light (see numbers 6313, 6315, 9407).
When man is raised up into intelligence there is an actual elevation into the light of heaven (see number 3190).
How great a light was perceived when I was withdrawn from worldly ideas (see numbers 1526, 6608).
131. As the light of heaven is Divine truth, that light is also Divine wisdom and intelligence; therefore to be raised up into the light of heaven means the same as to be raised up into intelligence and wisdom and enlightened. For this reason the angels have light in just the same degree as they have intelligence and wisdom. Because the light of heaven is Divine wisdom, in that light the character of everyone is recognized. The interiors of everyone lie open to view in his face just as they are, with not the least thing hidden. And interior angels love to have all things that pertain to them lying open, since they will nothing but good. It is otherwise with those beneath heaven, who do not will what is good, and for that reason fear greatly to be seen in the light of heaven. And wonderful to tell, while those in hell appear to one another as men, in the light of heaven they appear as monsters, with a horrid face and body, the exact form of their own evil.[1] In respect to his spirit man appears, when seen by angels, in a like way; if good as a man, beautiful in accord with his good; if evil as a monster, ugly in accord with his evil. From this it is clear that in the light of heaven all things are made manifest, and for the reason that the light of heaven is Divine truth.
[1] Those in the hells, in their own light, which is like the light from burning coals, appear to themselves as men but in the light of heaven they appear as monsters (see numbers 4531, 4533, 4674, 5057, 5058, 6605, 6626).
132. As Divine truth is light in the heavens, so all truths wherever they are, whether within an angel or outside of him, or whether within the heavens or outside of them, emit light. Nevertheless, truths outside of the heavens do not shine as truths within the heavens do. Truths outside of the heavens shine coldly, like something snowy, without heat, because they do not draw their essence from good, as truths within the heavens do; therefore that cold light vanishes as soon as the light of heaven falls on it, and if there is evil underneath it it is turned into darkness. This I have occasionally seen, with many other noteworthy things about the shining of truth, which must be omitted here.
133. Something shall now be said about the heat of heaven. That heat in its essence is love. It goes forth from the Lord as a sun, which is Divine love in the Lord and from the Lord, as has been shown in the preceding chapter. It is evident, therefore, that the heat of heaven, like the light of heaven, is spiritual, because from the same source.[1] There are two things that go forth from the Lord as a sun, Divine truth and Divine good; Divine truth is manifested in the heavens as light, and Divine good as heat; and yet Divine truth and Divine good are so united that they are not two, but one. Nevertheless, with angels they are separate, for there are angels that receive more of Divine good than of Divine truth, and there are those that receive more of Divine truth than of Divine good. Those who receive more of Divine good are in the Lord’s celestial kingdom, and those who receive more of Divine truth are in His spiritual kingdom. Those that receive both in a like degree are the most perfect angels.
[1] There are two sources of heat and also two sources of light, the sun of the world and the sun of heaven (see numbers 3338, 5215, 7324).
Heat from the Lord as a sun is affection of love (see numbers 3636, 3643).
Therefore spiritual heat in its essence is love (see numbers 2146, 3338, 3339, 6314).
134. The heat of heaven, like the light of heaven, is everywhere different. It is different in the celestial kingdom from what it is in the spiritual kingdom, and it is different in each society therein. It differs both in degree and in quality. It is more intense and more pure in the Lord’s celestial kingdom, because the angels there receive more of Divine good; and it is less intense and pure in His spiritual kingdom, because the angels there receive more of Divine truth. Also in each society the heat differs in accordance with reception. There is heat in the hells, but it is unclean heat.[1] The heat in heaven is what is meant by holy and heavenly fire, and the heat of hell by profane and infernal fire. Both mean love – heavenly fire meaning love to the Lord and love to the neighbor and every affection of those loves, and infernal fire meaning love of self and love of the world and every lust of those loves. That love is heat from a spiritual source is shown from one’s growing warm with love; for in accordance with the strength and nature of his love a man is inflamed and grows warm; and the heat of his love is made manifest when it is opposed. From this also it is customary to speak of being inflamed, growing hot, burning, boiling, being on fire, both in regard to the affections of the love of good and the lusts of the love of evil.
[1] There is heat in the hells, but it is unclean (see numbers 1773, 2757, 3340).
The odor from it is like the odor from dung and excrement in the world and in the worst hells like the odor of dead bodies (see numbers 814, 815, 817, 819, 820, 943, 944, 5394).
135. Love going forth from the Lord as a sun is felt in heaven as heat, because the interiors of the angels are in a state of love from the Divine good that is from the Lord; and in consequence their exteriors which grow warm therefrom are in a state of heat. For this reason heat and love so correspond to each other in heaven that everyone there is in heat such as his love is, according to what has been said just above. This world’s heat does not enter heaven at all, because it is too gross, and is natural, and not spiritual; but with men it is otherwise, because they are in both the spiritual world and the natural world. As to their spirits they grow warm in exact accordance with their loves; but as to the body they grow warm both from the heat of their spirit and from the heat of the world. The former flows into the latter, because they correspond. The nature of the correspondence of the two kinds of heat can be seen from animal life, in that the love of animals-the chief of which is the love of propagating offspring of their kind-bursts forth and becomes active in accordance with the presence and influence of heat from the sun of the world, which is the heat of the spring and the summer seasons. Those who believe that the world’s heat flows in and excites these loves are greatly mistaken, for there can be no influx from the natural into the spiritual, but only from the spiritual into the natural. This influx is of Divine order, but the other would be contrary to Divine order.[1]
[1] There is spiritual influx, but not physical, that is, there is influx from the spiritual world into the natural, but not from the natural world into the spiritual (see numbers 3219, 5119, 5259, 5427, 5428, 5477, 6322, 9109, 9110, 9111).
136. Angels, like men, have understanding and will. The light of heaven constitutes the life of their understanding, because that light is Divine truth and Divine wisdom therefrom; and the heat of heaven constitutes the life of their will, because that heat is Divine good and Divine love therefrom. The veriest life of the angels is from heat, and from light only so far as heat is in it. That life is from heat is shown by the fact that when heat is taken away life perishes. The same is true of faith without love or of truth without good; since the truth that is called truth of faith is light, and the good that is called good of love is heat. [1] This is more clearly shown by the heat and light of the world, to which the heat and light of heaven correspond. By the world’s heat when conjoined with light, as in spring and summer, all things on the earth are quickened and grow, but by light separate from heat nothing is quickened or grows, but everything lies torpid and dies. They are not conjoined in winter, when heat is absent though light remains. From this correspondence heaven is called paradise, since truth is there joined with good, or faith with love, as light is with heat in springtime on the earth. All this makes more clear the truth set forth in its own chapter (numbers 13-19), that the Divine of the Lord in Heaven is love to Him and charity towards the neighbor.
[1] Truths apart from good are not in themselves truths because they have no life; for truths have all their life from good (see number 9603).
Thus truths apart from good are like a body without a soul (see numbers 3180, 9154).
Truths apart from good are not accepted by the Lord (see number 4368).
What truth apart from good, that is, what faith apart from love is, and what truth from good or faith from love is (numbers 1949-1951, 1964, 5830, 5951).
It amounts to the same thing whether you say truth or faith, or whether you say good or love, since truth is of faith and good is of love (see numbers 2839, 4352, 4353, 4997, 7178, 7623, 7624, 10367).
137. It is said in John:
In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and God was the Word. All things were made through Him, and without Him was not any thing made that hath been made. In Him was life, and the life was the light of men. He was in the world, and the world was made through Him. And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory (1 verses 1 to 14).
Evidently the Lord is here meant by “the Word,” for it is said that “the Word became flesh.” But what is specifically meant by “the Word” is not known and shall therefore be explained. Here “the Word” means the Divine truth which is in the Lord and from the Lord;1 and this is why it is also called “the Light,” which is the Divine truth, as has been already shown in this chapter. That it was by means of Divine truth that all things were created and made shall now be explained. [2] In heaven Divine truth has all power, and apart from it there is no power whatever.[2] From the Divine truth angels are called powers, and are powers to the extent that they are recipients or receptacles of it. By means of it they prevail over the hells and over all that oppose them. A thousand enemies there cannot stand against a single ray of the light of heaven, which is Divine truth. As angels are angels by their reception of Divine truth it follows that the entire heaven is from no other source, since heaven consists of angels. [3] That there is such power in Divine truth those cannot believe that have no other idea of truth than that it is thought or speech, which has in it no power except as others do it from obedience. But Divine truth has power in itself, and such power that by means of it heaven was created and the world with all things therein. That there is such power in Divine truth may be shown by two comparisons-by the power of truth and good in man, and by the power of light and heat from the sun in the world. By the power of good and truth in man, in that everything that a man does he does from his understanding and will-from his will by means of good and from his understanding by means of truth; for all things in the will have relation to good and all things in the understanding have relation to truth.[3] Therefore it is from good and truth that man moves his whole body, and a thousand things therein rush with one accord to do their will and pleasure. This makes clear that the whole body is formed for subservience to good and truth, consequently is formed by good and truth. [4] By the power of heat and light from the sun in the world, in that all things that grow in the world, as trees, cereals, flowers, grasses, fruits, and seeds, come into existence wholly by means of the heat and light of the sun; which shows what power of producing there is in them. What, then, must be the power in Divine light, which is Divine truth, and in Divine heat, which is Divine good? Because heaven has its existence from these, so does the world have its existence therefrom, since the world has its existence by means of heaven, as has been already shown. From all this the meaning of these words can be seen that “all things were made through the Word, and without the Word was not anything made that has been made;” also that “the world was made through Him,” that is, through Divine truth from the Lord.[4] For the same reason, in the Book of Creation, light is first spoken of, and then the things that are from light (Genesis 1 verses 3, 4). For this reason also all things in the universe, both in heaven and in the world, have relation to good and truth and to their conjunction, in order to be any thing.
[1] In the Sacred Scripture word signifies various things, namely, speech, thought of the mind, any thing that really exists, also something, and in the highest sense Divine truth, and the Lord (see number 9987).
“Word” signifies Divine truth (see numbers 2803, 2894, 4692, 5075, 5272, 9383, 9987).
“Word” signifies the Lord (see numbers 2533, 2859).
[2] Divine truth going forth from the Lord has all power (see numbers 6948, 8200).
Truth from good has all power in heaven (see numbers 3091, 3563, 6344, 6423, 8304, 9643, 10019, 10182).
Angels are called powers, and are powers by the reception of Divine truth from the Lord (see number 9639).
Angels are recipients of Divine truth from the Lord and therefore in the Word are sometimes called gods (see numbers 4295, 4402, 7873, 8192, 8301).
[3] The understanding is a recipient of truth, and the will a recipient of good (see numbers 3623, 6125, 7503, 9300, 9930).
Therefore all things in the understanding have relation to truths, whether they are really truths or are believed by man to be truths, and all things in the will in like manner have relation to goods (see numbers 803, 10122).
[4] Divine truth going forth from the Lord is the only real thing (see numbers 6880, 7004, 8200).
By means of Divine truth all things were created and made (see numbers 2803, 2884, 5272, 7678).
139. It must be understood that the Divine good and the Divine truth that are from the Lord as a sun in the heavens are not in the Lord, but are from the Lord. In the Lord there is only Divine love, which is the Being [Esse] from which the Divine good and the Divine truth spring. Outgo [existere] from being [esse] is meant by going forth [procedere]. This, too, can be made clear by comparison with the world’s sun. The heat and light that are in the world are not in the sun, but are from the sun. In the sun there is fire only, and it is from this that heat and light spring and go forth.
140. Since the Lord as a sun is Divine love, and Divine love is Divine good itself, the Divine that goes forth from the Lord, which is His Divine in heaven, is called, for the sake of distinction, Divine truth, although it is in fact Divine good united to Divine truth. This Divine truth is what is called the Holy that goes forth from Him.
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116. THE SUN IN HEAVEN.
In heaven neither the sun of the world, nor anything from that sun, is seen, because it is wholly natural. For nature has its beginning from that sun, and whatever is produced by means of it is called natural. But the spiritual, to which heaven belongs, is above nature and wholly distinct from what is natural; and there is no communication between the two except by correspondences. What the distinction between them is may be understood from what has been already said about degrees (see number 38), and what the communication is from what has been said in the two preceding chapters about correspondences.
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117. Although the sun of the world is not seen in heaven, nor anything from that sun, there is nevertheless a sun there, and light and heat, and all things that are in the world, with innumerable others, but not from a like origin; since the things in heaven are spiritual, and those in the world are natural. The sun of heaven is the Lord; the light there is the Divine truth and the heat the Divine good that go forth from the Lord as a sun. From this origin are all things that spring forth and are seen in the heavens. This light and heat and things existing therefrom in heaven will be treated of in the following chapters; in this chapter we will speak only of the sun there. In heaven the Lord is seen as a sun, for the reason that He is Divine love, from which all spiritual things, and by means of the sun of the world all natural things, have their existence. That love is what shines as a sun.
118. That the Lord is actually seen in heaven as a sun I have not only been told by angels, but it has occasionally been granted me to see it; and therefore what I have heard and seen respecting the Lord as a sun I shall be glad to tell in a few words. The Lord is seen as a sun, not in heaven, but high above the heavens; and not directly overhead or in the zenith, but before the faces of the angels at a middle height. He is seen at a considerable distance, in two places, one before the right eye and the other before the left eye. Before the right eye He is seen exactly like a sun, as it were, with a glow and size like that of the sun of the world. But before the left eye He is not seen as a sun, but as a moon, glowing white like the moon of our earth, and of like size, but more brilliant, and surrounded with many little moons, as it were, each of them of similar whiteness and splendor. The Lord is seen so differently in two places because every person sees the Lord in accordance with the quality of his reception of the Lord, thus He is seen in one way by those that receive Him with the good of love, and in another by those that receive Him with the good of faith. Those that receive Him with the good of love see Him as a sun, fiery and flaming, in accordance with their reception of Him; these are in His celestial kingdom; while those that receive Him with the good of faith see Him as a moon, white and brilliant in accordance with their reception of Him, and these are in His spiritual kingdom.[1] This is so because good of love corresponds to fire; therefore in the spiritual sense fire is love; and the good of faith corresponds to light, and in the spiritual sense light is faith.[2] And the Lord appears before the eyes because the interiors, which belong to the mind, see through the eyes, from good of love through the right eye, and from good of faith through the left eye;[3] since with angels and also with men all things at the right correspond to good from which truth is derived, and all at the left to truth that is from good.[4] Good of faith is in its essence truth from good.
[1] The Lord is seen in heaven as a sun, and is the sun of heaven (see numbers 1053, 3636, 3643, 4060).
The Lord is seen as a sun by those who are in His celestial kingdom, where love to Him reigns, and as a moon by those who are in His spiritual kingdom, where charity to the neighbor and faith reign (see numbers 1521, 1529-1531, 1837, 4696).
The Lord is seen as a sun at a middle height before the right eye, and an a moon before the left eye (see numbers 1053, 1521, 1529-1531, 3636, 3643, 4321, 5097, 7078, 7083, 7173, 7270, 8812, 10809).
The Lord is seen as a sun and as a moon (see numbers 1531, 7173).
The Lord’s Divine Itself is far above His Divine in heaven (see numbers 7270, 8760).
[2] “Fire” in the Word signifies love, both in a good sense and in a bad sense (see numbers 934, 4906, 5215).
Holy or heavenly fire signifies the Divine Love (see numbers 934, 6314, 6832).
Infernal fire signifies love of self and of the world and every lust of those loves (see numbers 1861, 5071, 6314, 6832, 7575, 10747).
Love is the fire of life and life itself is really from it (see numbers 4906, 5071, 6032, 6314). “Light” signifies the truth of faith (see numbers 3195, 3485, 3636, 3643, 3993, 4302, 4413, 4415, 9548, 9684).
[3] The sight of the left eye corresponds to truths of faith, and the sight of the right eye to their goods (see numbers 4410, 6923).
[4] The things on man’s right have relation to good from which is truth, and those on his left to truth from good (see numbers 9495, 9604).
119. This is why in the Word the Lord in respect to love is likened to the sun, and in respect to faith to the moon; also that the “sun” signifies love from the Lord to the Lord, and the “moon” signifies faith from the Lord in the Lord, as in the following passages:
The light of the moon shall be as the light of the sun, and the light of the sun shall be sevenfold, as the light of seven days (Isaiah 30 verse 26).
And when I shall extinguish thee I will cover the heavens and make the stars thereof dark; I will cover the sun with a cloud, and the moon shall not make her light to shine. All luminaries of light in the heavens will I make dark over thee, and I will set darkness upon thy land (Ezekiel. 32 verses 7, 8).
I will darken the sun in his going forth, and the moon shall not make her light to shine (Isaiah 13 verse 10)
The sun and the moon shall be darkened, and the stars shall withdraw their shining. The sun shall be turned into darkness and the moon into blood (Joel 2 verses 2, 10, 31; 3 verse 16).
The sun became black as sackcloth and hair, and the moon became as blood, and the stars fell unto the earth (Revelation 6 verses 12, 13).
Immediately after the affliction of those days the sun shall be darkened, and the moon shall not give her light, and the stars shall fall from heaven (Matthew 24 verse 29).
And elsewhere. In these passages the “sun” signifies love, and the “moon” faith, and the “stars” knowledges of good and truth.[1] These are said to be darkened, to lose their light, and to fall from heaven, when they are no more. That the Lord is seen as a sun in heaven is evident also from His appearance when transfigured before Peter, James, and John,
That His face did shine as the sun (Matthew 17 verse 2).
These disciples thus saw the Lord when they were withdrawn from the body, and were in the light of heaven. It was because of this correspondence that the ancient people, with whom was a representative church, turned the face to the sun in the east when they were in Divine worship; and for the same reason they gave to their temples an eastern aspect.
[1] “Stars” and “constellations” in the Word signify knowledges of good and truth (see numbers 2495, 2849, 4697).
120. How great the Divine love is and what it is can be seen by comparison with the sun of the world, that it is most ardent, if you will believe it, much more ardent than that sun. For this reason the Lord as a sun does not flow without mediums into the heavens, but the ardor of His love is gradually tempered on the way. These temperings appear as radiant belts about the sun; furthermore, the angels are veiled with a thin adapting cloud to prevent their being harmed by the influx.[1] For this reason the heavens are more or less near in accordance with reception. As the higher heavens are in good of love they are nearest to the Lord as the sun; and as the lower heavens are in good of faith they are farther away from Him. But those that are in no good, like those in hell, are farthest away, at different distances in accordance with their opposition to good.[2]
[1] What the Lord’s Divine love is, and how great it is, illustrated by comparison with the fire of this world’s sun (see numbers 6834, 6849, 8644).
The Lord’s Divine love is love toward the whole human race to save it (see numbers 1820, 1865, 2253, 6872).
The love that first goes forth from the fire of the Lord’s love does not enter heaven, but is seen as radiant belts about the sun (see number 7270).
The angels are veiled with a corresponding thin cloud, to prevent their being harmed by the glow of burning love (see number 6849).
[2] The Lord’s presence with the angels is in proportion to their reception of good of love and faith from Him (see numbers 904, 4198, 4320, 6280, 6832, 7042, 8819, 9680, 9682, 9683, 10106, 10811).
The Lord appears to each one in accordance with what he is (see numbers 1861, 3235, 4198, 4206).
The hells are at a distance from the heavens because they cannot bear the presence of Divine love from the Lord (see numbers 4299, 7519, 7738, 7989, 8137, 8265, 9327).
For this reason the hells are very far away from the heavens, and this is the “great gulf” (see numbers 9346, 10187).
121. When, however, the Lord appears in heaven, which often occurs, He does not appear encompassed with a sun, but in the form of an angel, yet distinguished from angels by the Divine shining through from His face, since He is not there in person, for in person the Lord is constantly encompassed by the sun, but He is present by look. For it is a common occurrence in heaven for persons to appear to be present in a place where their look is fixed or is terminated, even when this place is far away from where they really are. This presence is called the presence of internal sight, which will be treated of further on. I have also seen the Lord out of the sun in an angelic form, at a height a little below the sun; also near by in a like form, with shining face, and once in the midst of angels as a flame-like radiance.
122. To the angels the sun of the world appears like a dense darkness opposite to the sun of heaven, and the moon like a darkness opposite to the moon of heaven, and this constantly; and for the reason that the world’s fieriness corresponds to the love of self, and the light from it corresponds to what is false from that love; and the love of self is the direct opposite of the Divine love; and what is false from that love is the direct opposite of the Divine truth; and the opposite of the Divine love and the Divine truth is to the angels thick darkness. Therefore, in the Word, to worship the sun and moon of this world and bow down to them, signifies to love self and the falsities that spring from the love of self, and it is said that such would be cut off. (Deuteronomy 4 verse 19; 16 verses 3 to 5; Jer. 8 verses 1, 2; Ezek. 8 verses 15, 16, 18; Apoc. 16 verse 8; Matt. 13 verse 6).[1]
[1] The sun of the world is not seen by the angels, but in its place something dark behind, opposite to the sun of heaven or the Lord (see numbers 7078, 9755).
In the opposite sense the sun signifies the love of self (see number 2441); and in this sense “to worship the sun” signifies to worship what is contrary to heavenly love or to the Lord (see numbers 2441, 10584).
To those in the hells the sun of heaven is thick darkness (see number 2441).
123. As it is from the Divine love that is in and from Him that the Lord appears in heaven like a sun, so all in the heavens are turned constantly to Him those in the celestial kingdom to Him as a sun and those in the spiritual kingdom to Him as a moon. But those that are in hell turn themselves to an opposite darkness and dense darkness, that is, they turn backwards, away from the Lord; and for the reason that all in the hells are in love of self and the world, thus antagonistic to the Lord. Those who turn themselves to the dense darkness that is in the place where this world’s sun is are in the hells behind, and are called genii; while those that turn themselves to the darkness that is in the place of the moon are in the hells more in front, and are called spirits. This is why those in the hells are said to be in darkness, and those in the heavens in light, “darkness” signifying falsity from evil, and “light” truth from good. They so turn themselves because all in the other life look towards what rules in their interiors, thus to their loves; and with angels and spirits the interiors determine the face; and in the spiritual world quarters are not fixed, as in the natural world, but are determined by the face. In respect to his spirit man turns himself in like manner as a spirit does, backwards from the Lord if he is in love of self and the world, and towards the Lord if he is in love to the Lord and the neighbor. But of this man is ignorant, because he is in the natural world where quarters are determined by the rising and setting of the sun. But as this cannot be easily comprehended by men it will be elucidated hereafter when Quarters, Space, and Time in Heaven are treated of.
124. Because the Lord is the sun of heaven and everything that is from Him looks to Him, He is also the common center, the source of all direction and determination.[1] So, too, all things beneath are in His presence and under His auspices, both in the heavens and on the earths.
[1] The Lord is the common center to which all things of heaven turn (see numbers 3633, 3641).
125. From all this what has been said and shown in previous chapters about the Lord may now be seen in clearer light, namely:
That He is the God of heaven (numbers 2-6).
That it is His Divine that makes heaven (numbers 7-12).
That the Lord’s Divine in heaven is love to Him and charity towards the neighbor (numbers 13-19).
That there is a correspondence of all things of the world with heaven, and through heaven with the Lord (numbers 87-115).
Also that the sun and moon of the world are correspondences (see number 105).
126. LIGHT AND HEAT IN HEAVEN.
That there is light in the heavens those who think from nature alone cannot comprehend; and yet such is the light in the heavens that it exceeds by many degrees the noon-day light of the world. That light I have often seen, even during the evening and night. At first I wondered when I heard the angels say that the light of this world is little more than a shadow in comparison with the light of heaven; but having seen it I can testify that it is so. The brightness and splendor of the light of heaven are such as cannot be described. All things that I have seen in the heavens have been seen in that light, thus more clearly and distinctly than things in this world.
127. The light of heaven is not a natural light, like the light of the world, but a spiritual light, because it is from the Lord as a sun, and that sun is the Divine love (as has been shown in the foregoing chapter). That which goes forth from the Lord as a sun is called in the heavens Divine truth, but in its essence it is Divine good united to Divine truth. From this the angels have light and heat, light from Divine truth, and heat from Divine good. As the light of heaven, and the heat also, are from such a source, it is evident that they are spiritual and not natural.[1]
[1] All light in the heavens is from the Lord as a sun (see numbers 1053, 1521, 3195, 3341, 3636, 3643, 4415, 9548, 9684, 10809).
The Divine truth that goes forth from the Lord appears in heaven as light, and furnishes all the light of heaven (see numbers 3195, 3222, 3223, 5400, 8644, 9399, 9548, 9684).
128. The Divine truth is light to the angels because the angels are spiritual and not natural. Spiritual beings see from their sun, and natural beings from theirs. It is from Divine truth that angels have understanding, and their understanding is their inner sight, which flows into and produces their outer sight; therefore in heaven whatever is seen from the Lord as the sun is seen in light.[1] This being the source of light in heaven the light is varied there in accordance with the reception of Divine truth from the Lord; or what is the same, in accordance with the intelligence and wisdom in which the angels are, thus differently in the celestial kingdom and in the spiritual kingdom, and differently in each society. In the celestial kingdom the light appears flaming because the angels there receive light from the Lord as a sun; but in the spiritual kingdom the light is shining white, because the angels there receive light from the Lord as a moon (see above, number 118). So, too, the light differs in different societies, and again in each society, those that are at the center being in greater light and those in the circumference in less light (see number 43). In a word, the angels have light in the same degree in which they are recipients of Divine truth, that is, are in intelligence and wisdom from the Lord;[2] and this is why the angels of heaven are called angels of light.
[1] The light of heaven illumines both the sight and the understanding of angels and spirits (see numbers 2776, 3138).
[2] The light in heaven is in harmony with the intelligence and wisdom of the angels (see numbers 1524, 1529, 1530, 3339).
Differences of light in the heavens are as many as there are angelic societies; and as there are in the heavens endless varieties of good and truth, so are there of wisdom and intelligence (see numbers 684, 690, 3241, 3744, 3745, 4414, 5598, 7236, 7833, 7836).
129. As the Lord in the heavens is Divine truth, and the Divine truth there is light, so in the Word He is called Light, likewise all truth is from Him, as in the following passages:
Jesus said, I am the light of the world; he that followeth Me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life (John 8 verse 12).
As long as I am in the world I am the light of the world (John 9 verse 5).
Jesus said, Yet a little while is the light with you. Walk while ye have the light, lest darkness overtake you. While ye have the light believe in the light, that ye may be sons of light. I have come a light into the world, that whosoever believeth in Me may not abide in darkness (John 12 verses 35, 36, 46).
Light has come into the world, but men have loved the darkness rather than the light (John 3 verse 19).
John says of the Lord:
This is the true light which lighteneth every man (John 1 verse 9).
The people that sit in darkness have seen a great light, and to them that were sitting in the shadow of death light is sprung up (Matt. 4 verse 16).
I will give thee for a covenant of the people, for a light of the Gentiles (Isa. 13 verse 6).
I have established Thee for a light of the Gentiles that Thou mayest be My salvation unto the end of the earth (Isa. 19 verse 6).
The nations of them that are saved shall walk in His light (Apoc. 21 verse 24).
Send out Thy light and Thy truth; let them lead me (Psalm 43 verse 3).
In these and other passages the Lord is called light from Divine truth, which is from Him; and the truth itself is likewise called light. As light in the heavens is from the Lord as a sun, so when He was transfigured before Peter, James, and John:
His face did shine as the sun, and His raiment was white as the light (Matt. 17 verse 2).
And His garments became shining, exceeding white as snow, so as no fuller on earth can whiten them (Mark 9 verse 3; Matt. 17 verse 2).
The Lord’s garments had this appearance because they represented Divine truth which is from Him in the heavens, “garments” also in the Word signifying truths,[1] consequently it is said in David:
O Jehovah, Thou coverest Thyself with light as with a garment (Psalm 104 verse 2).
[1] In the Word “garments” signify truths, because truths clothe good (see numbers 1073, 2576, 5248, 5319, 5954, 9216, 9952, 10536).
The Lord’s garments when He was transfigured signified Divine truth going forth from His Divine love (see numbers 9212, 9216).
130. That light in the heavens is spiritual and that this light is Divine truth may be inferred also from the fact that men as well as angels have spiritual light, and have enlightenment from that light so far as they are in intelligence and wisdom from Divine truth. Man’s spiritual light is the light of his understanding, and the objects of that light are truths, which he arranges analytically into groups, forms into reason, and from them draws conclusions in series.[1] The natural man does not know that the light from which the understanding sees such things is a real light, for he neither sees it with his eyes nor perceives it by thought. And yet there are many who recognize this light, and distinguish it from the natural light in which those are who think naturally and not spiritually. Those think naturally who take account of the world only, and attribute all things to nature; while those think spiritually who take account of heaven and attribute all things to the Divine. It has often been granted me to perceive and also to see that there is a true light that enlightens the mind, wholly distinct from the light that is called natural light [lumen]. I have been raised up interiorly into that light by degrees; and as I was raised up my understanding became so enlightened as to enable me to perceive what I did not perceive before, and finally such things as I could not even comprehend by thought from natural light. Sometimes I felt indignant that I could not comprehend these things when they were so clearly and plainly perceived in the light of heaven.[2] Because there is a light that belongs to the understanding, the same things are said of it as of the eye, as that it sees and is in light when it perceives, and is in obscurity and shade when it does not perceive, and so on.
[1] Man is rational because his understanding is illumined by the light of heaven (see numbers 1524, 3138, 3167, 4408, 6608, 8707, 9128, 9399, 10569).
The understanding is enlightened because it is a recipient of truth (see numbers 6222, 6608, 10659).
The understanding is enlightened to the extent that man receives truth in good from the lord (see number 3619).
The understanding is such as are the truths from good by which it is formed (see number 10064).
The understanding has light from heaven, as the sight has light from the world (see numbers 1524, 5114, 6608, 9128).
The light of heaven from the Lord is always present with man, but it flows in only in the degree that man is in truth from good (see numbers 4060, 4214).
[2] When man is raised up from the sensual he comes into a milder light, and at length into heavenly light (see numbers 6313, 6315, 9407).
When man is raised up into intelligence there is an actual elevation into the light of heaven (see number 3190).
How great a light was perceived when I was withdrawn from worldly ideas (see numbers 1526, 6608).
131. As the light of heaven is Divine truth, that light is also Divine wisdom and intelligence; therefore to be raised up into the light of heaven means the same as to be raised up into intelligence and wisdom and enlightened. For this reason the angels have light in just the same degree as they have intelligence and wisdom. Because the light of heaven is Divine wisdom, in that light the character of everyone is recognized. The interiors of everyone lie open to view in his face just as they are, with not the least thing hidden. And interior angels love to have all things that pertain to them lying open, since they will nothing but good. It is otherwise with those beneath heaven, who do not will what is good, and for that reason fear greatly to be seen in the light of heaven. And wonderful to tell, while those in hell appear to one another as men, in the light of heaven they appear as monsters, with a horrid face and body, the exact form of their own evil.[1] In respect to his spirit man appears, when seen by angels, in a like way; if good as a man, beautiful in accord with his good; if evil as a monster, ugly in accord with his evil. From this it is clear that in the light of heaven all things are made manifest, and for the reason that the light of heaven is Divine truth.
[1] Those in the hells, in their own light, which is like the light from burning coals, appear to themselves as men but in the light of heaven they appear as monsters (see numbers 4531, 4533, 4674, 5057, 5058, 6605, 6626).
132. As Divine truth is light in the heavens, so all truths wherever they are, whether within an angel or outside of him, or whether within the heavens or outside of them, emit light. Nevertheless, truths outside of the heavens do not shine as truths within the heavens do. Truths outside of the heavens shine coldly, like something snowy, without heat, because they do not draw their essence from good, as truths within the heavens do; therefore that cold light vanishes as soon as the light of heaven falls on it, and if there is evil underneath it it is turned into darkness. This I have occasionally seen, with many other noteworthy things about the shining of truth, which must be omitted here.
133. Something shall now be said about the heat of heaven. That heat in its essence is love. It goes forth from the Lord as a sun, which is Divine love in the Lord and from the Lord, as has been shown in the preceding chapter. It is evident, therefore, that the heat of heaven, like the light of heaven, is spiritual, because from the same source.[1] There are two things that go forth from the Lord as a sun, Divine truth and Divine good; Divine truth is manifested in the heavens as light, and Divine good as heat; and yet Divine truth and Divine good are so united that they are not two, but one. Nevertheless, with angels they are separate, for there are angels that receive more of Divine good than of Divine truth, and there are those that receive more of Divine truth than of Divine good. Those who receive more of Divine good are in the Lord’s celestial kingdom, and those who receive more of Divine truth are in His spiritual kingdom. Those that receive both in a like degree are the most perfect angels.
[1] There are two sources of heat and also two sources of light, the sun of the world and the sun of heaven (see numbers 3338, 5215, 7324).
Heat from the Lord as a sun is affection of love (see numbers 3636, 3643).
Therefore spiritual heat in its essence is love (see numbers 2146, 3338, 3339, 6314).
134. The heat of heaven, like the light of heaven, is everywhere different. It is different in the celestial kingdom from what it is in the spiritual kingdom, and it is different in each society therein. It differs both in degree and in quality. It is more intense and more pure in the Lord’s celestial kingdom, because the angels there receive more of Divine good; and it is less intense and pure in His spiritual kingdom, because the angels there receive more of Divine truth. Also in each society the heat differs in accordance with reception. There is heat in the hells, but it is unclean heat.[1] The heat in heaven is what is meant by holy and heavenly fire, and the heat of hell by profane and infernal fire. Both mean love – heavenly fire meaning love to the Lord and love to the neighbor and every affection of those loves, and infernal fire meaning love of self and love of the world and every lust of those loves. That love is heat from a spiritual source is shown from one’s growing warm with love; for in accordance with the strength and nature of his love a man is inflamed and grows warm; and the heat of his love is made manifest when it is opposed. From this also it is customary to speak of being inflamed, growing hot, burning, boiling, being on fire, both in regard to the affections of the love of good and the lusts of the love of evil.
[1] There is heat in the hells, but it is unclean (see numbers 1773, 2757, 3340).
The odor from it is like the odor from dung and excrement in the world and in the worst hells like the odor of dead bodies (see numbers 814, 815, 817, 819, 820, 943, 944, 5394).
135. Love going forth from the Lord as a sun is felt in heaven as heat, because the interiors of the angels are in a state of love from the Divine good that is from the Lord; and in consequence their exteriors which grow warm therefrom are in a state of heat. For this reason heat and love so correspond to each other in heaven that everyone there is in heat such as his love is, according to what has been said just above. This world’s heat does not enter heaven at all, because it is too gross, and is natural, and not spiritual; but with men it is otherwise, because they are in both the spiritual world and the natural world. As to their spirits they grow warm in exact accordance with their loves; but as to the body they grow warm both from the heat of their spirit and from the heat of the world. The former flows into the latter, because they correspond. The nature of the correspondence of the two kinds of heat can be seen from animal life, in that the love of animals-the chief of which is the love of propagating offspring of their kind-bursts forth and becomes active in accordance with the presence and influence of heat from the sun of the world, which is the heat of the spring and the summer seasons. Those who believe that the world’s heat flows in and excites these loves are greatly mistaken, for there can be no influx from the natural into the spiritual, but only from the spiritual into the natural. This influx is of Divine order, but the other would be contrary to Divine order.[1]
[1] There is spiritual influx, but not physical, that is, there is influx from the spiritual world into the natural, but not from the natural world into the spiritual (see numbers 3219, 5119, 5259, 5427, 5428, 5477, 6322, 9109, 9110, 9111).
136. Angels, like men, have understanding and will. The light of heaven constitutes the life of their understanding, because that light is Divine truth and Divine wisdom therefrom; and the heat of heaven constitutes the life of their will, because that heat is Divine good and Divine love therefrom. The veriest life of the angels is from heat, and from light only so far as heat is in it. That life is from heat is shown by the fact that when heat is taken away life perishes. The same is true of faith without love or of truth without good; since the truth that is called truth of faith is light, and the good that is called good of love is heat. [1] This is more clearly shown by the heat and light of the world, to which the heat and light of heaven correspond. By the world’s heat when conjoined with light, as in spring and summer, all things on the earth are quickened and grow, but by light separate from heat nothing is quickened or grows, but everything lies torpid and dies. They are not conjoined in winter, when heat is absent though light remains. From this correspondence heaven is called paradise, since truth is there joined with good, or faith with love, as light is with heat in springtime on the earth. All this makes more clear the truth set forth in its own chapter (numbers 13-19), that the Divine of the Lord in Heaven is love to Him and charity towards the neighbor.
[1] Truths apart from good are not in themselves truths because they have no life; for truths have all their life from good (see number 9603).
Thus truths apart from good are like a body without a soul (see numbers 3180, 9154).
Truths apart from good are not accepted by the Lord (see number 4368).
What truth apart from good, that is, what faith apart from love is, and what truth from good or faith from love is (numbers 1949-1951, 1964, 5830, 5951).
It amounts to the same thing whether you say truth or faith, or whether you say good or love, since truth is of faith and good is of love (see numbers 2839, 4352, 4353, 4997, 7178, 7623, 7624, 10367).
137. It is said in John:
In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and God was the Word. All things were made through Him, and without Him was not any thing made that hath been made. In Him was life, and the life was the light of men. He was in the world, and the world was made through Him. And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory (1 verses 1 to 14).
Evidently the Lord is here meant by “the Word,” for it is said that “the Word became flesh.” But what is specifically meant by “the Word” is not known and shall therefore be explained. Here “the Word” means the Divine truth which is in the Lord and from the Lord;1 and this is why it is also called “the Light,” which is the Divine truth, as has been already shown in this chapter. That it was by means of Divine truth that all things were created and made shall now be explained. [2] In heaven Divine truth has all power, and apart from it there is no power whatever.[2] From the Divine truth angels are called powers, and are powers to the extent that they are recipients or receptacles of it. By means of it they prevail over the hells and over all that oppose them. A thousand enemies there cannot stand against a single ray of the light of heaven, which is Divine truth. As angels are angels by their reception of Divine truth it follows that the entire heaven is from no other source, since heaven consists of angels. [3] That there is such power in Divine truth those cannot believe that have no other idea of truth than that it is thought or speech, which has in it no power except as others do it from obedience. But Divine truth has power in itself, and such power that by means of it heaven was created and the world with all things therein. That there is such power in Divine truth may be shown by two comparisons-by the power of truth and good in man, and by the power of light and heat from the sun in the world. By the power of good and truth in man, in that everything that a man does he does from his understanding and will-from his will by means of good and from his understanding by means of truth; for all things in the will have relation to good and all things in the understanding have relation to truth.[3] Therefore it is from good and truth that man moves his whole body, and a thousand things therein rush with one accord to do their will and pleasure. This makes clear that the whole body is formed for subservience to good and truth, consequently is formed by good and truth. [4] By the power of heat and light from the sun in the world, in that all things that grow in the world, as trees, cereals, flowers, grasses, fruits, and seeds, come into existence wholly by means of the heat and light of the sun; which shows what power of producing there is in them. What, then, must be the power in Divine light, which is Divine truth, and in Divine heat, which is Divine good? Because heaven has its existence from these, so does the world have its existence therefrom, since the world has its existence by means of heaven, as has been already shown. From all this the meaning of these words can be seen that “all things were made through the Word, and without the Word was not anything made that has been made;” also that “the world was made through Him,” that is, through Divine truth from the Lord.[4] For the same reason, in the Book of Creation, light is first spoken of, and then the things that are from light (Genesis 1 verses 3, 4). For this reason also all things in the universe, both in heaven and in the world, have relation to good and truth and to their conjunction, in order to be any thing.
[1] In the Sacred Scripture word signifies various things, namely, speech, thought of the mind, any thing that really exists, also something, and in the highest sense Divine truth, and the Lord (see number 9987).
“Word” signifies Divine truth (see numbers 2803, 2894, 4692, 5075, 5272, 9383, 9987).
“Word” signifies the Lord (see numbers 2533, 2859).
[2] Divine truth going forth from the Lord has all power (see numbers 6948, 8200).
Truth from good has all power in heaven (see numbers 3091, 3563, 6344, 6423, 8304, 9643, 10019, 10182).
Angels are called powers, and are powers by the reception of Divine truth from the Lord (see number 9639).
Angels are recipients of Divine truth from the Lord and therefore in the Word are sometimes called gods (see numbers 4295, 4402, 7873, 8192, 8301).
[3] The understanding is a recipient of truth, and the will a recipient of good (see numbers 3623, 6125, 7503, 9300, 9930).
Therefore all things in the understanding have relation to truths, whether they are really truths or are believed by man to be truths, and all things in the will in like manner have relation to goods (see numbers 803, 10122).
[4] Divine truth going forth from the Lord is the only real thing (see numbers 6880, 7004, 8200).
By means of Divine truth all things were created and made (see numbers 2803, 2884, 5272, 7678).
139. It must be understood that the Divine good and the Divine truth that are from the Lord as a sun in the heavens are not in the Lord, but are from the Lord. In the Lord there is only Divine love, which is the Being [Esse] from which the Divine good and the Divine truth spring. Outgo [existere] from being [esse] is meant by going forth [procedere]. This, too, can be made clear by comparison with the world’s sun. The heat and light that are in the world are not in the sun, but are from the sun. In the sun there is fire only, and it is from this that heat and light spring and go forth.
140. Since the Lord as a sun is Divine love, and Divine love is Divine good itself, the Divine that goes forth from the Lord, which is His Divine in heaven, is called, for the sake of distinction, Divine truth, although it is in fact Divine good united to Divine truth. This Divine truth is what is called the Holy that goes forth from Him.
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