Heaven and Hell (Harley) n. 510

Previous Number Next Number Next Translation See Latin 

510. Everyone comes to his own society in which his spirit was in the world; for every man, as regards his spirit, is conjoined to some society, either infernal or heavenly, the evil man to an infernal society and the good man to a heavenly society, and to that society he is brought after death (see fl. 438). The spirit is led to his society gradually, and at length enters it. When an evil spirit is in the state of his interiors he is turned by degrees towards his own society, and at length, before that state is ended, directly to it; and when that state is ended he himself casts himself into the hell where those are who are like himself. This act of casting down appears to the sight like one falling headlong with the head downwards and the feet upwards. The cause of this appearance is that the spirit himself is in an inverted order, having loved infernal things and rejected heavenly things. In this second state some evil spirits enter the hells and come out again by turns; but these do not appear to fall headlong as those do who are fully vastated. Moreover, the society itself in which they were as regards their spirit while in the world is shown to them when they are in the state of their exteriors, that they may thus learn that even while in the life of the body they were in hell, although not in the same state as those who are in hell itself; but in the same state as those who are in the world of spirits. Of this state, as compared with those who are in hell, more will be said in following sections.


This page is part of the Writings of Emanuel Swedenborg

© 2000-2001 The Academy of the New Church