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Share Our thoughts and feelings are what need attending to as these illustrate the quality of the vessel of mind that is receiving in the state that is active (10 mins)
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Our thoughts and feelings are what need attending to as these illustrate the quality of the vessel of mind that is receiving in the state that is active (10 mins)
Arcana Coelestia 7408. [2] That forms or substances are recipient of life can be seen from every single thing that appears in living creatures; and also that recipient forms or substances are arranged in the way most suitable for the influx of life. Without the reception of life in substances, which are forms, there would be no living thing in the natural world, nor in the spiritual world. Series of the purest filaments, like bundles, constitute these forms. It is the same with those things therein which are highly modified; for modifications receive their form from the forms which are the substances in which they are, and from which they flow, because the substances or forms are the determining subjects. The reason why the learned have regarded the things belonging to man’s life, that is, to his thought and will, as being devoid of recipient substances or forms, has been that they believed life or the soul to be something either flamy or ethereal, thus such as after death would be dissipated; hence comes the insane notion of many, that there is no life after death. From all this it is evident how it is to be understood that the reasoning falsities were arranged in groups in the natural.
Divine Love and Wisdom 41. But because this is contrary to appearance, it may seem not to merit belief unless it be proved; and since it can be proved only by such things as man can perceive from his bodily senses, it will be proved by these. Man has five external senses which are called touch, taste, smell, hearing and sight.
The subject of touch is the skin by which man is enveloped. The very substance and form of the skin cause it to feel the things applied to it. The sense of touch is not in the things applied, but in the substance and form of the skin which are the subject. That sense is only an affecting of it by the things applied.
It is the same with taste. This sense is only an affecting of the substance and form which belong to the tongue; the tongue is the subject.
It is the same with smell. It is well known that odour affects the nostrils, and that it is in the nostrils, and smell is an affecting of them by the odoriferous things touching them.
It is the same with hearing. It appears as if the hearing were in the place where the sound originates, but the hearing is in the ear, and is an affecting of its substance and form.
That the hearing is at a distance from the ear is an appearance. It is the same with sight. When a man sees objects at a distance, the seeing appears to be there, but yet the seeing is in the eye which is the subject and is likewise an affecting of it. Distance is solely from the judgment inferring about space from intermediate things or from the diminution and the consequent indistinctness of the object, an image of which is produced interiorly in the eye according to the angle of incidence.
From this it is evident that sight does not go out from the eye to the object, but that the image of the object enters the eye and affects its substance and form. Thus it is just the same with sight as it is with hearing. Hearing does not go out from the ear to catch the sound, but the sound enters the ear and affects it.
From these considerations it can be established that the affecting of substance and form which causes the sense is not a something separate from the subject, but only causes a change in it, the subject remaining the subject as before and afterwards. Hence it follows that sight, hearing, smell, taste and touch are not a something volatile flowing out of their organs, but that they are the organs themselves, considered in their substance and form, and that when the organs are affected, sensation results.
DLW 363. (i) Love and wisdom, and the will and the understanding therefrom, make the very life of man. Hardly anyone knows what life is. When one thinks about it, it seems as if it were a volatile something, of which no idea is possible. It seems so, because it is not known that God alone is Life, and that His Life is Divine Love and Wisdom; hence it is plain that in man life is nothing else, and that life is in man in the degree in which he receives this love and wisdom. It is known that light and heat go forth from the sun, and that all things in the universe are recipients, and become warm and bright in the degree in which they receive these. So also do heat and light go forth from the Sun where the Lord is; the heat going forth therefrom is Love, and the light going forth is Wisdom, as was shown in Part II. Life, therefore, comes from these two, which go forth from the Lord as the Sun. That love and wisdom from the Lord is life can be established also from this, that man grows listless as love recedes from him, and stupid as wisdom leaves him, and, if they were to recede altogether, he would be deprived of life. There are many things pertaining to love, which have had other names assigned to them because they are derivatives-as affections, desires, appetites, and their pleasures and enjoyments; and there are many things pertaining to wisdom-as perception, reflection, recollection, thought and intention towards a thing; and there are many things pertaining to both love and wisdom-as consent, conclusion and determination to action, besides others. All these, in fact, pertain to both, but are named from the more important and characteristic of the two.
Finally from these two are derived sensations; they are sight, hearing, smell, taste and touch, with their enjoyments and pleasures. It is according to appearance that the eye sees, but in fact the understanding sees through the eye; on which account seeing is attributed also to the understanding. The appearance is that the ear hears, but in fact the understanding hears through the ear; therefore hearing is predicated of attention and listening which are of the understanding. The appearance is that the nose smells, and that the tongue tastes; but it is the understanding that by its perception smells and also tastes; for this reason, smelling and tasting are attributed also to perception. And so in other cases. The sources of all of these are love and wisdom; from which it can be established that these two make the life of man.
For more on the sense of self being a byproduct of consciousness you might like to read/listen to Protection Of The Self
Third Round posts are short audio clips taken from Round 3 comments offered in the online Logopraxis Life Group meetings. The aim is to keep the focus on understanding the Text in terms of its application to the inner life along with reinforcing any key LP principles that have been highlighted in the exchanges.
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Arcana Coelestia 7408. [2] That forms or substances are recipient of life can be seen from every single thing that appears in living creatures; and also that recipient forms or substances are arranged in the way most suitable for the influx of life. Without the reception of life in substances, which are forms, there would be no living thing in the natural world, nor in the spiritual world. Series of the purest filaments, like bundles, constitute these forms. It is the same with those things therein which are highly modified; for modifications receive their form from the forms which are the substances in which they are, and from which they flow, because the substances or forms are the determining subjects. The reason why the learned have regarded the things belonging to man’s life, that is, to his thought and will, as being devoid of recipient substances or forms, has been that they believed life or the soul to be something either flamy or ethereal, thus such as after death would be dissipated; hence comes the insane notion of many, that there is no life after death. From all this it is evident how it is to be understood that the reasoning falsities were arranged in groups in the natural.
Divine Love and Wisdom 41. But because this is contrary to appearance, it may seem not to merit belief unless it be proved; and since it can be proved only by such things as man can perceive from his bodily senses, it will be proved by these. Man has five external senses which are called touch, taste, smell, hearing and sight.
The subject of touch is the skin by which man is enveloped. The very substance and form of the skin cause it to feel the things applied to it. The sense of touch is not in the things applied, but in the substance and form of the skin which are the subject. That sense is only an affecting of it by the things applied.
It is the same with taste. This sense is only an affecting of the substance and form which belong to the tongue; the tongue is the subject.
It is the same with smell. It is well known that odour affects the nostrils, and that it is in the nostrils, and smell is an affecting of them by the odoriferous things touching them.
It is the same with hearing. It appears as if the hearing were in the place where the sound originates, but the hearing is in the ear, and is an affecting of its substance and form.
That the hearing is at a distance from the ear is an appearance. It is the same with sight. When a man sees objects at a distance, the seeing appears to be there, but yet the seeing is in the eye which is the subject and is likewise an affecting of it. Distance is solely from the judgment inferring about space from intermediate things or from the diminution and the consequent indistinctness of the object, an image of which is produced interiorly in the eye according to the angle of incidence.
From this it is evident that sight does not go out from the eye to the object, but that the image of the object enters the eye and affects its substance and form. Thus it is just the same with sight as it is with hearing. Hearing does not go out from the ear to catch the sound, but the sound enters the ear and affects it.
From these considerations it can be established that the affecting of substance and form which causes the sense is not a something separate from the subject, but only causes a change in it, the subject remaining the subject as before and afterwards. Hence it follows that sight, hearing, smell, taste and touch are not a something volatile flowing out of their organs, but that they are the organs themselves, considered in their substance and form, and that when the organs are affected, sensation results.
DLW 363. (i) Love and wisdom, and the will and the understanding therefrom, make the very life of man. Hardly anyone knows what life is. When one thinks about it, it seems as if it were a volatile something, of which no idea is possible. It seems so, because it is not known that God alone is Life, and that His Life is Divine Love and Wisdom; hence it is plain that in man life is nothing else, and that life is in man in the degree in which he receives this love and wisdom. It is known that light and heat go forth from the sun, and that all things in the universe are recipients, and become warm and bright in the degree in which they receive these. So also do heat and light go forth from the Sun where the Lord is; the heat going forth therefrom is Love, and the light going forth is Wisdom, as was shown in Part II. Life, therefore, comes from these two, which go forth from the Lord as the Sun. That love and wisdom from the Lord is life can be established also from this, that man grows listless as love recedes from him, and stupid as wisdom leaves him, and, if they were to recede altogether, he would be deprived of life. There are many things pertaining to love, which have had other names assigned to them because they are derivatives-as affections, desires, appetites, and their pleasures and enjoyments; and there are many things pertaining to wisdom-as perception, reflection, recollection, thought and intention towards a thing; and there are many things pertaining to both love and wisdom-as consent, conclusion and determination to action, besides others. All these, in fact, pertain to both, but are named from the more important and characteristic of the two.
Finally from these two are derived sensations; they are sight, hearing, smell, taste and touch, with their enjoyments and pleasures. It is according to appearance that the eye sees, but in fact the understanding sees through the eye; on which account seeing is attributed also to the understanding. The appearance is that the ear hears, but in fact the understanding hears through the ear; therefore hearing is predicated of attention and listening which are of the understanding. The appearance is that the nose smells, and that the tongue tastes; but it is the understanding that by its perception smells and also tastes; for this reason, smelling and tasting are attributed also to perception. And so in other cases. The sources of all of these are love and wisdom; from which it can be established that these two make the life of man.
For more on the sense of self being a byproduct of consciousness you might like to read/listen to Protection Of The Self
Third Round posts are short audio clips taken from Round 3 comments offered in the online Logopraxis Life Group meetings. The aim is to keep the focus on understanding the Text in terms of its application to the inner life along with reinforcing any key LP principles that have been highlighted in the exchanges.