Arcana Coelestia (Potts) n. 9109

Previous Number Next Number Next Translation See Latin 

9109. Those standing by perceived from this what is the quality of the external or natural man separated from the internal, when he comes into a spiritual sphere, which is the sphere of life of the internal man; namely, that he is insane (for there encompasses everyone a sphere which flows forth from the life of his love, see n. 1048, 1053, 1316, 1504-1512, 4464, 5179, 6206, 7454). The reason is that the natural man when separated from the spiritual has wisdom only from the world, and not at all from heaven; and he who is wise only from the world, believes nothing but what the senses apprehend, and what he believes, he believes from the fallacies of the senses, consequently from falsities. From this it is that spiritual things are not anything to him, insomuch that he scarcely endures to hear mention made of the spiritual. From this also it is that he does not apprehend what the internal man is, and consequently does not believe that there is an internal man. Wherefore such are insane when kept in a spiritual sphere. It is otherwise while they are living in the world. They then either think naturally about spiritual things; or turn away the ear, that is, hear and do not attend. (That such have pain and blindness when they are taken up into a spiritual sphere, see n. 8797.)


This page is part of the Writings of Emanuel Swedenborg

© 2000-2001 The Academy of the New Church