156.* That at creation there was implanted in the man and the woman an inclination and also a faculty of conjunction as into a one, and that this inclination and this faculty are still in man and woman, is evident from the book of creation, and at the same time from the Lord's words. In the book of creation, called GENESIS, it is written, "Jehovah God builded the rib, which he had taken from the man, into a woman, and brought her to the man. And the man said, This now is bone of my bones, and flesh of my flesh. She shall be called Woman, because she was taken out of man; for this cause shall a man leave his father and his mother, and shall cleave to his wife: and they shall be one flesh," chap. ii. 22-24. The Lord also says in Matthew, "Have ye not read, that he that made them from the beginning, made them a male and a female, and said, For this cause shall a man leave father and mother, and shall cleave to his wife; and they TWO SHALL BECOME ONE FLESH? WHEREFORE THEY ARE NO LONGER TWO, BUT ONE FLESH," chap. xix. 4-6. From this it is evident, that the woman was created out of the man (vir), and that each has an inclination and faculty to reunite themselves into a one. That such reunion means into one man (homo), is also evident from the book of creation, where both together are called man (homo); for it is written, "In the day that God created man (homo), he created them a male and a female, and called their name Man (homo)," chap. v. 2. It is there written, he called their name Adam; but Adam and man are one expression in the Hebrew tongue: moreover, both together are called man in the same book, chap. i. 27; chap. iii. 22-24. One flesh also signifies one man; as is evident from the passages in the Word where mention is made of all flesh, which signifies every man, as Gen. chap. vi. 12, 13, 17, 19; Isaiah xl. 5, 6; chap. xlix. 26; chap. lxvi. 16, 23, 24; Jer. xxv. 31; chap, xxxii. 27; chap. xlv. 5; Ezek. xx. 48; chap. xxi. 4, 5; and other passages. But what is meant by the man's rib, which was builded into a woman; what by the flesh, which was closed up in the place thereof, and thus what by bone of my bones, and flesh of my flesh; and what by a father and a mother, whom a man (vir) shall leave after marriage; and what by cleaving to a wife, has been shewn in the ARCANA COELESTIA; in which work the two books, Genesis and Exodus, are explained as to the spiritual sense. It is there proved that a rib does not mean a rib, -- nor flesh, flesh, -- nor a bone, a bone, -- nor cleaving to, cleaving to; but that they signify spiritual things, which correspond thereto, and consequently are signified thereby. That spiritual things are understood, which from two make one man (homo), is evident from this consideration, that conjugial love conjoins them, and this love is spiritual. That the love of the man's wisdom is transferred into the wife, has been occasionally observed above, and will be more fully proved in the following sections: at this time it is not allowable to digress from the subject proposed, which is concerning the conjunction of two married partners into one flesh by a union of souls and minds. This union we will elucidate by treating of it in the following order. I. From creation there is implanted in each sex a faculty and inclination, whereby they are able and willing to be conjoined together as it were into a one. II. Conjugial love conjoins two souls, and thence two minds into a one. III. The will of the wife conjoins itself with the understanding of the man, and thence the understanding of the man conjoins itself with the will of the wife. IV. The inclination to unite the man to herself is constant and perpetual with the wife; but is inconstant and alternate with the man. V. Conjunction is inspired into the man from the wife according to her love, and is received by the man according to his wisdom. VI. This conjunction is effected successively from the first days of marriage; and with those who are principled in love truly conjugial, is effected more and more thoroughly to eternity. VII. The conjunction of the wife with the rational wisdom of the husband is effected from within, but with this moral wisdom from without. VIII. For the sake of this conjunction as an end, the wife has a perception of the affections of the husband, and also the utmost prudence in moderating them. IX. Wives conceal this perception with themselves, and hide it from their husbands, for reasons of necessity, in order that conjugial love, friendship, and confidence, and thereby the blessedness of dwelling together, and the happiness of life may he secured. X. This perception is the wisdom of the wife, and is not communicable to the man; neither is the rational wisdom of the man communicable to the wife. XI. The wife, from a principle of love, is continually thinking about the man's inclination to her, with the purpose of joining him to herself: it is otherwise with the man. XII. The wife conjoins herself to the man, by applications to the desires of his will. XIII. The wife is conjoined to her husband by the sphere of her life flowing from the love of him. XIV. The wife is conjoined to the husband by the appropriation of the powers of his virtue; which however is effected according to their mutual spiritual love. XV. Thus the wife receives in herself the image of her husband, and thence perceives, sees, and is sensible of, his affections. XVI. There are duties proper to the husband, and others proper to the wife; and the wife cannot enter into the duties proper to the husband, nor the husband into the duties proper to the wife, so as to perform them aright. XVII. These duties, also, according to mutual aid, conjoin the two into a one, and at the same time constitute one house. XVIII. Married partners, according to these conjunctions, become one man (homo) more and more. XIX. Those who are principled in love truly conjugial, are sensible of their being a united man, and as it were one flesh. XX. Love truly conjugial, considered in itself, is a union of souls, a conjunction of minds, and an endeavor towards conjunction in the bosoms and thence in the body. XXI. The states of this love are innocence, peace, tranquillity, inmost friendship, full confidence, and a mutual desire of mind and heart to do very good to each other; and the states derived from these are blessedness, satisfaction, delight, and pleasure; and from the eternal enjoyment of these is derived heavenly felicity. XXII. These things can only exist in the marriage of one man with one wife. We proceed now to the explanation of these articles.

157. I. FROM CREATION THERE IS IMPLANTED IN EACH SEX A FACULTY AND INCLINATION, WHEREBY THEY ARE ABLE AND WILLING TO BE JOINED TOGETHER, AS IT WERE INTO A ONE. That the woman was taken out of the man, was shewn just above from the book of creation; hence it follows, that there is in each sex a faculty and inclination to join themselves together into a one; for that which is taken out of anything, derives and retains its constituent principle, from the principle proper to the thing whence it was taken; and as this derived principle is of a similar nature with that from which it was derived, it seeks after a reunion; and when it is reunited, it is as in itself when it is in that from whence it came, and vice versa. That there is a faculty of conjunction of the one sex with the other, or that they are capable of being united, is universally allowed; and also that there is an inclination to join themselves the one with the other; for experience supplies sufficient confirmation in both cases.

158. II. CONJUGIAL LOVE CONJOINS TWO SOULS, AND THENCE TWO MINDS, INTO A ONE. Every man consists of a soul, a mind, and a body. The soul is his inmost, the mind his middle, and the body his ultimate constituent. As the soul is a man's inmost principle, it is, from its origin, celestial; as the mind is his middle principle, it is, from its origin, spiritual; and as the body is his ultimate principle, it is, from its origin, natural. Those things, which, from their origin, are celestial and spiritual, are not in space, but in the appearance of space. This also is well known in the word; therefore it is said, that neither extension nor place can be predicated of spiritual things. Since therefore spaces are appearances, distances also and presences are appearances. That the appearances of distances and presences in the spiritual world are according to proximities, relationships, and affinities of love, has been frequently pointed out and confirmed in small treatises respecting that world. These observations are made, in order that it may be known that the souls and minds of men are not in space like their bodies; because the former, as was said above, from their origin, are celestial and spiritual; and as they are not in space, they may be joined together as into a one, although their bodies at the same time are not so joined. This is the case especially with married partners, who love each other intimately: but as the woman is from the man, and this conjunction is a species of reunion, it may be seen from reason, that it is not a conjunction into a one, but an adjunction, close and near according to the love, and approaching to contact with those who are principled in love truly conjugial. This adjunction may be called spiritual dwelling together; which takes place with married partners who love each other tenderly, however distant their bodies may be from each other. Many experimental proofs exist, even in the natural world, in confirmation of these observations. Hence it is evident, that conjugial love conjoins two souls and minds into a one.

159. III. THE WILL OF THE WIFE CONJOINS ITSELF WITH THE UNDERSTANDING OF THE MAN, AND THENCE THE UNDERSTANDING OF THE MAN WITH THE WILL OF THE WIFE. The reason of this is, because the male is born to become understanding, and the female to become will, loving the understanding of the male; from which consideration it follows, that conjugial conjunction is that of the will of the wife with the understanding of the man, and the reciprocal conjunction of the understanding of the man with the will of the wife. Every one sees that the conjunction of the understanding and the will is of the most intimate kind; and that it is such, that the one faculty can enter into the other, and be delighted from and in the conjunction.

160. IV. THE INCLINATION TO UNITE THE MAN TO HERSELF IS CONSTANT AND PERPETUAL WITH THE WIFE, BUT INCONSTANT AND ALTERNATE WITH THE MAN. The reason of this is, because love cannot do otherwise than love and unite itself, in order that it may be loved in return, this being its very essence and life; and women are born loves; whereas men, with whom they unite themselves in order that they may be loved in return, are receptions. Moreover love is continually efficient; being like heat, flame, and fire, which perish if their efficiency is checked. Hence the inclination to unite the man to herself is constant and perpetual with the wife: but a similar inclination does not operate with the man towards the wife, because the man is not love, but only a recipient of love; and as a state of reception is absent or present according to intruding cares, and to the varying presence or absence of heat in the mind, as derived from various causes, and also according to the increase and decrease of the bodily powers, which do not return regularly and at stated periods, it follows, that the inclination to conjunction is inconstant and alternate with men.

161. V. CONJUNCTION IS INSPIRED INTO THE MAN FROM THE WIFE ACCORDING TO HER LOVE, AND IS RECEIVED BY THE MAN ACCORDING TO HIS WISDOM. That love and consequent conjunction is inspired into the man by the wife, is at this day concealed from the men; yea, it is universally denied by them; because wives insinuate that the men alone love, and that they themselves receive; or that the men are loves, and themselves obediences: they rejoice also in heart when the men believe it to be so. There are several reasons why they endeavour to persuade the men of this, which are all grounded in their prudence and circumspection; respecting which, something shall be said in a future part of this work, particularly in the chapter ON THE CAUSES OF COLDNESS, SEPARATIONS, AND DIVORCES BETWEEN MARRIED PARTNERS. The reason why men receive from their wives the inspiration or insinuation of love, is, because nothing of conjugial love, or even of the love of the sex, is with the men, but only with wives and females. That this is the case, has been clearly shewn me in the spiritual world. I was once engaged in conversation there on this subject; and the men, in consequence of a persuasion infused from their wives, insisted that they loved and not the wives; but that the wives received love from them. In order to settle the dispute respecting this arcanum, all the females, married and unmarried, were withdrawn from the men, and at the same time the sphere of the love of the sex was removed with them. On the removal of this sphere, the men were reduced to a very unusual state, such as they had never before perceived, at which they greatly complained. Then, while they were in this state, the females were brought to them, and the wives to the husbands; and both the wives and the other females addressed them in the tenderest and most engaging manner; but they were cold to their tenderness, and turned away, and said one to another, "What is all this? what is a female?" And when some of the women said that they were their wives, they replied, "What is a wife? we do not know you." But when the wives began to be grieved at this absolutely cold indifference of the men, and some of them to shed tears, the sphere of the love of the female sex, and the conjugial sphere, which had for a time been withdrawn from the men, was restored; and then the men instantly returned into their former state, the lovers of marriage into their state, and the lovers of the sex into theirs. Thus the men were convinced, that nothing of conjugial love, or even of the love of the sex, resides with them, but only with the wives and females. Nevertheless, the wives afterwards from their prudence induced the men to believe, that love resides with the men, and that some small spark of it may pass from them into the wives. This experimental evidence is here adduced, in order that it may be known, that wives are loves and men recipients. That men are recipients according to their wisdom, especially according to this wisdom grounded in religion, that the wife only is to be loved, is evident from this consideration, that so long as the wife only is loved, the love is concentrated; and because it is also ennobled, it remains in its strength, and is fixed and permanent; and that in any other case it would be as when wheat from the granary is cast to the dogs, whereby there is scarcity at home.

162. VI. THIS CONJUNCTION IS EFFECTED SUCCESSIVELY FROM THE FIRST DAYS OF MARRIAGE; AND WITH THOSE WHO ARE PRINCIPLED IN LOVE TRULY CONJUGIAL, IT IS EFFECTED MORE AND MORE THOROUGHLY TO ETERNITY. The first heat of marriage does not conjoin; for it partakes of the love of the sex, which is the love of the body and thence of the spirit; and what is in the spirit, as derived from the body, does not long continue; but the love which is in the body, and is derived from the spirit, does continue. The love of the spirit, and of the body from the spirit, is insinuated into the souls and minds of married partners, together with friendship and confidence. When these two (friendship and confidence) conjoin themselves with the first love of marriage, there is effected conjugial love, which opens the bosoms, and inspires the sweets of that love; and this more and more thoroughly, in proportion as those two principles adjoin themselves to the primitive love, and that love enters into them, and vice versa.

163. VII. THE CONJUNCTION OF THE WIFE WITH THE RATIONAL WISDOM OF THE HUSBAND IS EFFECTED FROM WITHIN, BUT WITH HIS MORAL WISDOM FROM WITHOUT. That wisdom with men is two-fold, rational and moral, and that their rational wisdom is of the understanding alone, and their moral wisdom is of the understanding and the life together, may be concluded and seen from mere intuition and examination. But in order that it may be known what we mean by the rational wisdom of men, and what by their moral wisdom, we will enumerate some of the specific distinctions. The principles constituent of their rational wisdom are called by various names; in general they are called knowledge, intelligence, and wisdom; but in particular they are called rationality, judgement, capacity, erudition, and sagacity; but as every one has knowledge peculiar to his office, therefore they are multifarious; for the clergy, magistrates, public officers, judges, physicians and chemists, soldiers and sailors, artificers and laborers, husbandmen, &c., have each their peculiar knowledge. To rational wisdom also appertain all the knowledge into which young men are initiated in the schools, and by which they are afterwards initiated into intelligence, which also are called by various names, as philosophy, physics, geometry, mechanics, chemistry, astronomy, jurisprudence, politics, ethics, history, and several others, by which, as by doors, an entrance is made into things rational, which are the ground of rational wisdom.

164. But the constituents of moral wisdom with men are all the moral virtues, which have respect to life, and enter into it, and also all the spiritual virtues, which flow from love to God and love towards our neighbour, and centre in those loves. The virtues which appertain to the moral wisdom of men are also of various kinds, and are called temperance, sobriety, probity, benevolence, friendship, modesty, sincerity, courtesy, civility, also carefulness, industry, quickness of wit, alacrity, munificence, liberality, generosity, activity, intrepidity, prudence and many others. Spiritual virtues with men are the love of religion, charity, truth, conscience, innocence, and many more. The latter virtues and also the former, may in general be referred to love and zeal for religion, for the public good, for a man's country, for his fellow-citizens, for his parents, for his married partner, and for his children. In all these, justice and judgement have dominion; justice having relation to moral, and judgement to rational wisdom.

165. The reason why the conjunction of the wife with the man's rational wisdom is from within, is, because this wisdom belongs to the man's understanding, and ascends into the light in which women are not and this is the reason why women do not speak from that wisdom; but, when the conversation of the men turns on subjects proper thereto, they remain silent and listen. That nevertheless such subjects have place with the wives from within, is evident from their listening thereto, and from their inwardly recollecting what had been said, and favoring those things which they had heard from their husbands. But the reason why the conjunction of the wife with the moral wisdom of the man is from without, is, because the virtues of that wisdom for the most part are akin to similar virtues with the women, and partake of the man's intellectual will, with which the will of the wife unites and constitutes a marriage; and since the wife knows those virtues appertaining to the man more than the man himself does, it is said that the conjunction of the wife with those virtues is from without.

166. VIII. FOR THE SAKE OF THIS CONJUNCTION AS AN END, THE WIFE HAS A PERCEPTION OF THE AFFECTIONS OF THE HUSBAND, AND ALSO THE UTMOST PRUDENCE IN MODERATING THEM. That wives know the affections of their husbands, and prudently moderate them, is among the arcana of conjugial love which lie concealed with wives. They know those affections by three senses, the sight, the hearing, and the touch, and moderate them while their husbands are not at all aware of it. Now as the reasons of this are among the arcana of wives, it does not become me to disclose them circumstantially; but as it is becoming for the wives themselves to do so, therefore four MEMORABLE RELATIONS are added to this chapter, in which those reasons are disclosed by the wives: two of the RELATIONS are taken from the three wives that dwelt in the hall, over which was seen falling as it were a golden shower; and two from the seven wives that were sitting in the garden of roses. A perusal of these RELATIONS will unfold this arcanum.

167. IX. WIVES CONCEAL THIS PERCEPTION WITH THEMSELVES AND HIDE IT FROM THEIR HUSBANDS, FOR REASONS OF NECESSITY, IN ORDER THAT CONJUGIAL LOVE, FRIENDSHIP, AND CONFIDENCE, AND THEREBY THE BLESSEDNESS OF DWELLING TOGETHER AND THE HAPPINESS OF LIFE MAY BE SECURED. The concealing and hiding of the perception of the affections of the husband by the wives, are said to be of necessity; because if they should reveal them, they would cause a complete alienation of their husbands, both in mind and body. The reason of this is, because there resides deep in the minds of many men a conjugial coldness, originating in several causes, which will be enumerated in the chapter ON THE CAUSES OF COLDNESSES, SEPARATION, AND DIVORCES BETWEEN MARRIED PARTNERS. This Coldness, in case the wives should discover the affections and inclinations of their husbands, would burst forth from its hiding places, and communicate its cold, first to the interiors of the mind, afterwards to the breast, and thence to the ultimates of love which are appropriated to generation; and these being affected with cold, conjugial love would be banished to such a degree, that there would not remain any hope of friendship, of confidence, of the blessedness of dwelling together, and thence of the happiness of life; when nevertheless wives are continually feeding on this hope. To make this open declaration, that they know their husbands' affections and inclinations of love, carries with it a declaration and publication of their own love: and it is well known, that so far as wives make such a declaration, so far the men grow cold and desire a separation. From these considerations the truth of this proposition is manifest, that the reasons why wives conceal their perception with themselves, and hide it from their husbands, are reasons of necessity.

168. X. THIS PERCEPTION IS THE WISDOM OF THE WIFE, AND IS NOT COMMUNICABLE TO THE MAN; NEITHER IS THE RATIONAL WISDOM OF THE MAN COMMUNICABLE TO THE WIFE. This follows from the distinction subsisting between the male principle and the female. The male principle consists in perceiving from the understanding, and the female in perceiving from love: and the understanding perceives also those things which are above the body and are out of the world; for the rational and spiritual sight reaches to such objects; whereas love reaches no further than to what it feels; when it reaches further, it is in consequence of conjunction with the understanding of the man established from creation: for the understanding has relation to light, and love to heat; and those things which have relation to light, are seen, and those which have relation to heat, are felt. From these considerations it is evident, that from the universal distinction subsisting between the male principle and the female, the wisdom of the wife is not communicable to the man, neither is the wisdom of the man communicable to the wife: nor, further, is the moral wisdom of the man communicable to women, so far as it partakes of his rational wisdom.

169. XI. THE WIFE FROM A PRINCIPLE OF LOVE IN CONTINUALLY THINKING ABOUT THE MAN'S INCLINATION TO HER, WITH THE PURPOSE OF JOINING HIM TO HERSELF: IT IS OTHERWISE WITH THE MAN. This agrees with what was explained above; namely, that the inclination to unite the man to herself is constant and perpetual with the wife, but inconstant and alternate with the man; see n. 160: hence it follows, that the wife's thoughts are continually employed about her husband's inclination to her, with the purpose of joining him to herself. Her thoughts concerning her husband are interrupted indeed by domestic concerns; but still they remain in the affection of her love; and this affection does not separate itself from the thoughts with women, as it does with men: these things, however, I relate from hearsay; see the two MEMORABLE RELATIONS from the seven wives sitting in the rose-garden, which are annexed to some of the following chapters.

170. XII. THE WIFE CONJOINS HERSELF TO THE MAN BY APPLICATIONS TO THE DESIRES OF HIS WILL. This being generally known and admitted, it is needless to explain it.

171. XIII. THE WIFE IS CONJOINED TO HER HUSBAND BY THE SPHERE OF HER LIFE FLOWING FROM THE LOVE OF HIM. There flows, yea there overflows, from every man (homo) a spiritual sphere, derived from the affections of his love, which encompasses him, and infuses itself into the natural sphere derived from the body, so that the two spheres are conjoined. That a natural sphere is continually flowing, not only from men, but also from beasts, yea from trees, fruits, flowers, and also from metals, is generally known. The case is the same in the spiritual world; but the spheres flowing from subjects in that world are spiritual, and those which emanate from spirits and angels are altogether spiritual; because there appertain thereto affections of love, and thence interior perceptions and thoughts. This is the origin of all sympathy and antipathy, and likewise of all conjunction and disjunction, and, according thereto, of presence and absence in the spiritual world: for what is of a similar nature or concordant causes conjunction and presence, and what is of a dissimilar nature and discordant causes disjunction and absence; therefore those spheres cause distances in that world. What effects those spiritual spheres produce in the natural world, is also known to some. The inclinations of married partners towards each other are from no other origin. They are united by unanimous and concordant spheres, and disunited by adverse and discordant spheres; for concordant spheres are delightful and grateful, whereas discordant spheres are undelightful and ungrateful. I have been informed by the angels, who are in a clear perception of those spheres, that every part of a man, both interior and exterior, renews itself; which is effected by solutions and reparations; and that hence arises the sphere which continually issues forth. I have also been informed that this sphere encompasses a man on the back and on the breast, lightly on the back, but more densely on the breast, and that the sphere issuing from the breast conjoins itself with the respiration; and that this is the reason why two married partners, who are of different minds and discordant affections, lie in bed back to back, and, on the other hand, why those who agree in minds and affections, mutually turn towards each other. I have been further informed by the angels, that these spheres, because they flow from every part of a man (homo), and are abundantly continued around him, conjoin and disjoin two married partners not only externally, but also internally; and that hence come all the differences and varieties of conjugial love. Lastly, I have been informed, that the sphere of love, flowing from a wife who is tenderly loved, is perceived in heaven as sweetly fragrant, by far more pleasant than it is perceived in the world by a newly married man during the first days after marriage. From these considerations is manifested the truth of the assertion, that a wife is conjoined to a man by the sphere of her life flowing from the love of him.

172. XIV. THE WIFE IS CONJOINED TO THE HUSBAND BY THE APPROPRIATION OF THE POWERS OF HIS VIRTUE; WHICH HOWEVER IS EFFECTED ACCORDING TO THEIR MUTUAL SPIRITUAL LOVE. That this is the case, I have also gathered from the mouth of angels. They have declared that the prolific principles imparted from the husbands are received universally by the wives and add themselves to their life; and that thus the wives lead a life unanimous, and successively more unanimous with their husbands; and that hence is effectively produced a union of souls and a conjunction of minds. They declared the reason of this was, because in the prolific principle of the husband is his soul, and also his mind as to its interiors, which are conjoined to the soul. They added, that this was provided from creation, in order that the wisdom of the man, which constitutes his soul, may be appropriated to the wife, and that thus they may become, according to the Lord's words, one flesh: and further, that this was provided, lest the husband (homovir) from some caprice should leave the wife after conception. But they added further, that applications and appropriations of the life of the husband with the wife are effected according to conjugial love, because love which is spiritual union, conjoins; and that this also is provided for several reasons.

173. XV. THUS THE WIFE RECEIVES IN HERSELF THE IMAGE OF HER HUSBAND, AND THENCE PERCEIVES, SEES, AND IS SENSIBLE OF, HIS AFFECTIONS. From the reasons above adduced it follows as an established fact, that wives receive in themselves those things which appertain to the wisdom of their husbands, thus which are proper to the souls and minds of their husbands, and thereby from virgins make themselves wives. The reasons from which this follows, are, 1. That the woman was created out of the man. 2. That hence she has an inclination to unite, and as it were to reunite herself with the man. 3. That by virtue of this union with her partner, and for the sake of it, the woman is born the love of the man, and becomes more and more the love of him by marriage; because in this case the love is continually employing its thoughts to conjoin the man to itself. 4. That the woman is conjoined to her only one (unico suo) by application to the desires of his life. 5. That they are conjoined by the spheres which encompass them, and which unite themselves universally and particularly according to the quality of the conjugial love with the wives, and at the same time according to the quality of the wisdom recipient thereof with the husbands. 6. That they are also conjoined by appropriations of the powers of the husbands by the wives. 7. From which reasons it is evident, that there is continually somewhat of the husband being transferred to the wife, and inscribed on her as her own. From all these considerations it follows, that the image of the husband is formed in the wife; by virtue of which image the wife perceives, sees, and is sensible of, the things which are in her husband, in herself, and thence as it were herself in him. She perceives from communication, she sees from aspect, and she is made sensible from the touch. That she is made sensible of the reception of her love by the husband from the touch in the palms of the hands, on the cheeks, the shoulders, the hands, and the breasts, I learnt from the three wives in the hall, and the seven wives in the rose garden, spoken of in the MEMORABLE RELATIONS which follow.

174. XVI. THERE ARE DUTIES PROPER TO THE HUSBAND AND OTHERS PROPER TO THE WIFE; AND THE WIFE CANNOT ENTER INTO THE DUTIES PROPER TO THE HUSBAND, NOR THE HUSBAND INTO THE DUTIES PROPER TO THE WIFE, SO AS TO PERFORM THEM ARIGHT. That there are duties proper to the husband, and others proper to the wife, needs not to be illustrated by an enumeration of them; for they are many and various: and every one that chooses to do so can arrange them numerically according to their genera and species. The duties by which wives principally conjoin themselves with their husbands, are those which relate to the education of the children of each sex, and of the girls till they are marriageable.

175. The wife cannot enter into the duties proper to the husband, nor on the other hand the husband into the duties proper to the wife, because they differ like wisdom and the love thereof, or like thought and the affection thereof, or like understanding and the will thereof. In the duties proper to husbands, the primary agent is understanding, thought, and wisdom; whereas in the duties proper to wives, the primary agent is will, affection, and love; and the wife from the latter performs her duties, and the husband from the former performs his; wherefore their duties are naturally different, but still conjunctive in a successive series. Many believe that women can perform the duties of men, if they are initiated therein at an early age, as boys are. They may indeed be initiated into the practice of such duties, but not into the judgement on which the propriety of duties interiorly depends; wherefore such women as have been initiated into the duties of men, are bound in matters of judgement to consult men, and then, if they are left to their own disposal, they select from the counsels of men that which suits their own inclination. Some also suppose that women are equally capable with men of elevating their intellectual vision, and into the same sphere of light, and of viewing things with the same depth; and they have been led into this opinion by the writings of certain learned authoresses: but these writings, when examined in the spiritual world in the presence of the authoresses, were found to be the productions, not of judgement and wisdom, but of ingenuity and wit; and what proceeds from these on account of the elegance and neatness of the style in which it is written, has the appearance of sublimity and erudition; yet only in the eyes of those who dignify all ingenuity by the name of wisdom. In like manner men cannot enter into the duties proper to women, and perform them aright, because they are not in the affections of women, which are altogether distinct from the affections of men. As the affections and perceptions of the male (and of the female) sex are thus distinct by creation and consequently by nature, therefore among the statutes given to the sons of Israel this also was ordained, "A woman shall not put on the garment of a man, neither shall a man put on the garment of a woman; because this is an abomination." Deut. xxii. 5. This was, because, all in the spiritual world are clothed according to their affections; and the two affections, of the woman and of the man, cannot be united except (as subsisting) between two, and in no case (as subsisting) in one.

176. XVII. THESE DUTIES ALSO, ACCORDING TO MUTUAL AID, CONJOIN THE TWO INTO A ONE, AND AT THE SAME TIME CONSTITUTE ONE HOUSE. It is well known in the world that the duties of the husband in some way conjoin themselves with the duties of the wife, and that the duties of the wife adjoin themselves to the duties of the husband, and that these conjunctions and adjunctions are a mutual aid, and according thereto: but the primary duties, which confederate, consociate, and gather into one the souls and lives of two married partners, relate to the common care of educating their children; in relation to which care, the duties of the husband and of the wife are distinct, and yet join themselves together. They are distinct; for the care of suckling and nursing the infants of each sex, and also the care of instructing the girls till they become marriageable, is properly the duty of the wife; whereas the care of instructing the boys, from childhood to youth, and from youth till they become capable of governing themselves, is properly the duty of the husband: nevertheless the duties, of both the husband and the wife, are blended by means of counsel and support, and several other mutual aids. That these duties, both conjoined and distinct, or both common and peculiar, combine the minds of conjugial partners into one; and that this is effected by the love called storge, is well known. It is also well known, that these duties, regarded in their distinction and conjunction, constitute one house.

177. XVIII. MARRIED PARTNERS, ACCORDING TO THESE CONJUNCTIONS, BECOME ONE MAN (homo) MORE AND MORE. This coincides with what is contained in article VI.; where it was observed, that conjunction is effected successively from the first days of marriage and that with those who are principled in love truly conjugial, it is effected more and more thoroughly to eternity; see above. They become one man in proportion as conjugial love increases; and as this love in the heavens is genuine by virtue of the celestial and spiritual life of the angels, therefore two married partners are there called two, when they are regarded as husband and wife, but one, when they are regarded as angels.

178. XIX. THOSE WHO ARE PRINCIPLED IN LOVE TRULY CONJUGIAL, ARE SENSIBLE OF THEIR BEING A UNITED MAN, AND AS IT WERE ONE FLESH. That this is the case, must be confirmed not from the testimony of any inhabitant of the earth, but from the testimony of the inhabitants of heaven; for there is no love truly conjugial at this day with men on earth; and moreover, men on earth are encompassed with a gross body, which deadens and absorbs the sensation that two married partners are a united man, and as it were one flesh; and besides, those in the world who love their married partners only exteriorly, and not interiorly, do not wish to hear of such a thing: they think also on the subject lasciviously under the influence of the flesh. It is otherwise with the angels of heaven, who are principled in spiritual and celestial conjugial love, and are not encompassed with so gross a body as men on earth. From those among them who have lived for ages with their conjugial partners in heaven, I have heard it testified, that they are sensible of their being so united, the husband with the wife, and the wife with the husband, and each in the other mutually and interchangeably, as also in the flesh, although they are separate. The reason why this phenomenon is so rare on earth, they have declared to be this; because the union of the souls and minds of married partners on earth is made sensible in their flesh; for the soul constitutes the inmost principles not only of the head, but also of the body: in like manner the mind, which is intermediate between the soul and the body, and which, although it appears to be in the head, is yet also actually in the whole body: and they have declared, that this is the reason why the acts, which the soul and mind intend, flow forth instantly from the body; and that hence also it is, that they themselves, after the rejection of the body in the former world, are perfect men. Now, since the soul and the mind join themselves closely to the flesh of the body, in order that they may operate and produce their effects, it follows that the union of soul and mind with a married partner is made sensible also in the body as one flesh. As the angels made these declarations, I heard it asserted by the spirits who were present, that such subjects belong to angelic wisdom, being above ordinary apprehension; but these spirits were rational-natural, and not rational-spiritual.

179. XX. LOVE TRULY CONJUGIAL, CONSIDERED IN ITSELF, IS A UNION OF SOULS, A CONJUNCTION OF MINDS, AND AN ENDEAVOUR TOWARDS CONJUNCTION IN THE BOSOMS AND THENCE IN THE BODY. That it is a union of souls and a conjunction of minds, may be seen above, n. 158. The reason why it is an endeavour towards conjunction in the bosoms is, because the bosom (or breast) is as it were a place of public assembly, and a royal council-chamber, while the body is as a populous city around it. The reason why the bosom is as it were a place of public assembly, is, because all things, which by derivation from the soul and mind have their determination in the body, first flow into the bosom; and the reason why it is as it were a royal council chamber, is, because in the bosom there is dominion over all things of the body; for in the bosom are contained the heart and lungs; and the heart rules by the blood, and the lungs by the respiration, in every part. That the body is as a populous city around it, is evident. When therefore the souls and minds of married partners are united, and love truly conjugial unites them, it follows that this lovely union flows into their bosoms, and through their bosoms into their bodies, and causes an endeavour towards conjunction; and so much the more, because conjugial love determines the endeavour to its ultimates, in order to complete its satisfactions; and as the bosom is intermediate between the body and the mind, it is evident on what account conjugial love has fixed therein the seat of its delicate sensation.

180. XXI. THE STATES OF THIS LOVE ARE INNOCENCE, PEACE, TRANQUILLITY, INMOST FRIENDSHIP, FULL CONFIDENCE, AND A MUTUAL DESIRE OF MIND AND HEART TO DO EVERY GOOD TO EACH OTHER; AND THE STATES DERIVED FROM THESE ARE BLESSEDNESS, SATISFACTION, DELIGHT AND PLEASURE; AND FROM THE ETERNAL ENJOYMENT OF THESE IS DERIVED HEAVENLY FELICITY. All these things are in conjugial love, and thence are derived from it, because its origin is from the marriage of good and truth, and this marriage is from the Lord; and because love is of such a nature, that it desires to communicate with another, whom it loves from the heart, yea, confer joys upon him, and thence to derive its own joys. This therefore is the case in an infinitely high degree with the divine love, which is in the Lord, in regard to man, whom he created a receptacle of both love and wisdom proceeding from himself; and as he created man (homo) for the reception of those principles, the man (vir) for the reception of wisdom, and the woman for the reception of the love of the man's wisdom, therefore from inmost principles he infused into men (homines) conjugial love into which love he might insinuate all things blessed, satisfactory, delightful, and pleasant, which proceed solely from his divine love through his divine wisdom, together with life, and flow into their recipients; consequently, which flow into those who are principled in love truly conjugial; for these alone are recipients. Mention is made of innocence, peace, tranquillity, inmost friendship, full confidence, and the mutual desire of doing every good to each other; for innocence and peace relate to the soul, tranquillity to the mind, inmost friendship to the breast, full confidence to the heart, and the mutual desire of doing every good to each other, to the body as derived from the former principles.

181. XXII. THESE THINGS CAN ONLY EXIST IN THE MARRIAGE OF ONE MAN WITH ONE WIFE. This is a conclusion from all that has been said above, and also from all that remains to be said; therefore there is no need of any particular comment for its confirmation.

182. To the above I will add TWO MEMORABLE RELATIONS. FIRST. After some weeks, I heard a voice from heaven, saying, "Lo! there is again an assembly on Parnassus: come hither, and we will shew you the way." I accordingly came; and as I drew near, I saw a certain person on Helicon with a trumpet, with which he announced and proclaimed the assembly. And I saw the inhabitants of Athens and its suburbs ascending as before; and in the midst of them three novitiates from the world. They were of a Christian community; one a priest, another a politician, and the third a philosopher. These they entertained on the way with conversation on various subjects, especially concerning the wise ancients, whom they named. They inquired whether they should see them, and were answered in the affirmative, and were told, that if they were desirous, they might pay their respects to them, as they were courteous and affable. The novitiates then inquired after Demosthenes, Diogenes, and Epicurus; and were answered, "Demosthenes is not here, but with Plato; Diogenes, with his scholars, resides under Helicon, because of his little attention to worldly things, and his being engaged in heavenly contemplations; Epicurus dwells in a border to the west, and has no intercourse with us; because we distinguish between good and evil affections, and say, that good affections are one with wisdom, and evil affections are contrary to it." When they had ascended the hill Parnassus, some guards there brought water in crystal cups from a fountain in the mount, and said, "This is water from the fountain which, according to ancient fable, was broken open by the hoof of the horse Pegasus, and was afterwards consecrated to nine virgins: but by the winged horse Pegasus they meant the understanding of truth, by which comes wisdom; by the hoofs of his feet they understood experiences whereby comes natural intelligence; and by the nine virgins they understood knowledges and sciences of every kind. These things are now called fables; but they were correspondences, agreeable to the primeval method of speaking." Then those who attended the three strangers said, "Be not surprised; the guards are told thus to speak; but we know that to drink water from the fountain, means to be instructed concerning truths, and by truths concerning goods, and thereby to grow wise." After this, they entered the Palladium, and with them the three novitiates, the priest, the politician, and the philosopher; and immediately the laureled sophi who were seated at the tables, asked, "WHAT NEWS FROM THE EARTH?" They replied, "This is news; that a certain person declares that he converses with angels, and has his sight opened into the spiritual world, equally as into the natural world; and he brings thence much new information, and, among other particulars, asserts, that a man lives a man after death, as he lived before in the world; that he sees, hears, speaks, as before in the world; that he is clothed and decked with ornaments, as before in the world; that he hungers and thirsts, eats and drinks, as before in the world; that he enjoys conjugial delights, as before in the world; that he sleeps and wakes, as before in the world; that in the spiritual world there are land and water, mountains and hills, plains and valleys, fountains and rivers, paradises and groves; also that there are palaces and houses, cities and villages, as in the natural world; and further, that there are writings and books, employments and trades; also precious stones, gold and silver; in a word, that there are all such things there as there are on earth, and that those things in the heavens are infinitely more perfect; with this difference only, that all things in the spiritual world are from a spiritual origin, and therefore are spiritual, because they are from the sun of that world, which is pure love; whereas all things in the natural world are from a natural origin, and therefore are natural and material, because they are from the sun of that world, which is pure fire; in short, that a man after death is perfectly a man, yea more perfectly than before in the world; for before in the world he was in a material body, but in the spiritual world he is in a spiritual body." Hereupon the ancient sages asked, "What do the people on the earth think of such information?" The three strangers replied, "We know that it is true, because we are here, and have viewed and examined everything; wherefore we will tell you what has been said and reasoned about it on earth." Then the PRIEST said, "Those of our order, when they first heard such relations, called them visions, then fictions; afterwards they insisted that the man had seen spectres, and lastly they hesitated, and said, 'Believe them who will; we have hitherto taught that a man will not be in a body after death until the day of the last judgement.'" Then the sages asked, "Are there no intelligent persons among those of your order, who can prove and evince the truth, that a man lives a man after death?" The priest said, "There are indeed some who prove it, but not to the conviction of others. Those who prove it say, that it is contrary to sound reason to believe, that a man does not live a man till the day of the last judgement, and that in the mean while he is a soul without a body. What is the soul, or where is it in the interim? Is it a vapor, or some wind floating in the atmosphere, or some thing hidden in the bowels of the earth? Have the souls of Adam and Eve, and of all their posterity, now for six thousand years, or sixty ages, been flying about in the universe, or been shut up in the bowels of the earth, waiting for the last judgement? What can be more anxious and miserable than such an expectation? May not their lot in such a case be compared with that of prisoners bound hand and foot, and lying in a dungeon? If such be a man's lot after death, would it not be better to be born an ass than a man? Is it not also contrary to reason to believe, that the soul can be re-clothed with its body? Is not the body eaten up by worms, mice, and fish? And can a bony skeleton that has been parched in the sun, or mouldered into dust, be introduced into a new body? And how could the cadaverous and putrid materials be collected, and reunited to the souls? When such questions as these are urged, those of our order do not offer any answers grounded in reason, but adhere to their creed, saying, 'We keep reason under obedience to faith.' With respect to collecting all the parts of the human body from the grave at the last day, they say, 'This is a work of omnipotence;' and when they name omnipotence and faith, reason is banished; and I am free to assert, that in such case sound reason is not appreciated, and by some is regarded as a spectre; yea, they can say to sound reason, 'Thou art unsound.'" On hearing these things, the Grecian sages said, "Surely such paradoxes vanish and disperse of themselves, as being full of contradiction; and yet in the world at this day they cannot be dispersed by sound reason. What can be believed more paradoxical than what is told respecting the last judgement; that the universe will then be destroyed, and that the stars of heaven will then fall down upon the earth, which is less than the stars; and that then the bodies of men, whether they be mouldering carcases, or mummies eaten by men, or reduced to mere dust, will meet and be united again with their souls? We, during our abode in the world, from the inductions of reason, believed the immortality of the souls of men; and we also assigned regions for the blessed, which we call the elysian fields; and we believed that the soul was a human image or appearance, but of a fine and delicate nature, because spiritual." After this, the assembly turned to the other stranger, who in the world had been a POLITICIAN. He confessed that he did not believe in a life after death, and that respecting the new information which he had heard about it, he thought it all fable and fiction. "In my meditations on the subject," said he, "I used to say to myself, 'How can souls be bodies? -- does not the whole man lie dead in the grave? -- is not the eye there; how can he see? -- is not the ear there, how can he hear? -- whence must he have a mouth wherewith to speak? Supposing anything of a man to live after death, must it not resemble a spectre? and how can a spectre eat and drink, or how can it enjoy conjugial delights? whence can it have clothes, houses, meats, &c.? Besides, spectres, which are mere aerial images, appear as if they really existed; and yet they do not. These and similar sentiments I used to entertain in the world concerning the life of men after death; but now, since I have seen all things, and touched them with my hands, I am convinced by my very senses that I am a man as I was in the world; so that I know no other than that I live now as I lived formerly; with only this difference, that my reason now is sounder. At times I have been ashamed of my former thoughts." The PHILOSOPHER gave much the same account of himself as the politician had done; only differing in this respect, that he considered the new relations which he had heard concerning a life after death, as having reference to opinions and hypotheses which he had collected from the ancients and moderns. When the three strangers had done speaking, the sophi were all in amazement; and those who were of the Socratic school, said, that from the news they had heard from the earth, it was quite evident, that the interiors of human minds had been successively closed; and that in the world at this time a belief in what is false shines as truth, and an infatuated ingenuity as wisdom; and that the light of wisdom, since their times, has descended from the interiors of the brain into the mouth beneath the nose, where it appears to the eyes as a shining of the lip, while the speech of the mouth thence proceeding appears as wisdom. Hereupon one of the young scholars said, "How stupid are the minds of the inhabitants of the earth at this day! I wish we had here the disciples of Heraclitus, who weep at every thing, and of Democritus, who laugh at every thing; for then we should hear much lamentation and much laughter." When the assembly broke up, they gave the three novitiates the insignia of their authority, which were copper plates, on which were engraved some hieroglyphic characters; with which they took their leave and departed.

183. THE SECOND MEMORABLE RELATION. I saw in the eastern quarter a grove of palm-trees and laurels, set in winding rows, which I approached and entered; and walking in the winding paths I saw at the end a garden, which formed the centre of the grove. There was a little bridge dividing the grove from the garden, and at the bridge two gates, one on the side next the grove, and the other on the side next the garden. And as I drew near, the keeper opened the gates, and I asked him the name of the garden. He said, "ADRAMANDONI; which is the delight of conjugial love." I entered, and lo! there were olive-trees; and among them ran pendulous vines, and underneath and among them were shrubs in flower. In the midst of the garden was a grassy circus, on which were seated husbands and wives, and youths and maidens, in pairs; and in the midst of the circus, on an elevated piece of ground, there was a little fountain, which, from the strength of its spring, threw its water to a considerable height. On approaching the circus I saw two angels clad in purple and scarlet, in conversation with those who were seated on the grass. They were conversing respecting the origin of conjugial love, and respecting its delights; and this being the object of their discourse, the attention was eager, and the reception full; and hence there was an exaltation in the speech of the angels as from the fire of love. I collected the following summary of what was said. They began with the difficulty of investigating and perceiving the origin of conjugial love; because its origin is divinely celestial, it being divine love, divine wisdom, and divine use, which three proceed as a one from the Lord, and hence flow as a one into the souls of men, and through their souls into their minds, and there into the interior affections and thoughts, and through these into the desires next to the body, and from these through the breast into the genital region, where all principles derived from their first origin exist together, and, in union with successive principles, constitute conjugial love. After this the angels said, "Let us communicate together by questions and answers; since the perception of a thing, imbibed by hearing only, flows in indeed, but does not remain unless the bearer also thinks of it from himself, and asks questions concerning it." Then some of that conjugial assembly said to the angels, "We have heard that the origin of conjugial love is divinely celestial; because it is by virtue of influx from the Lord into the souls of men; and, as it is from the Lord, that it is love, wisdom, and use, which are three essentials, together constituting one divine essence, and that nothing but what is of the divine essence can proceed from him, and flow into the inmost principle of man (homo), which is called his soul; and that these three essentials are changed into analogous and corresponding principles in their descent into the body. We ask therefore now in the first place, What is meant by the third proceeding divine essential, which is called use?" The angels replied, "Love and wisdom, without use, are only abstract ideas of thought; which also after some continuance in the mind pass away like the winds; but in use they are collected together, and therein become one principle, which is called real. Love cannot rest unless it is as work; for love is the essential active principle of life; neither can wisdom exist and subsist unless when it is at work from and with love; and to work is use; therefore we define use to be the doing good from love by wisdom; use being essential good. As these three essentials, love, wisdom, and use, flow into the souls of men, it may appear from what ground it is said, that all good is from God; for every thing done from love by wisdom, is called good; and use also is something done. What is love without wisdom but a mere infatuation? and what is love with wisdom without use, but a puff of the mind? Whereas love and wisdom with use not only constitute man (homo), but also are man; yea, what possibly you will be surprised at, they propagate man; for in the seed of a man (vir) is his soul in a perfect human form, covered with substances from the purest principles of nature; whereof a body is formed in the womb of the mother. This is the supreme and ultimate use of the divine love by the divine wisdom." Finally the angels said, "We will hence come to this conclusion, that all fructification, propagation, and prolification, is originally derived from the influx of love, wisdom, and use from the Lord, from an immediate influx into the souls of men, from a mediate influx into the souls of animals, and from an influx still more mediate into the inmost principles of vegetables; and all these effects are wrought in ultimates from first principles. That fructifications, propagations, and prolifications, are continuations of creation, is evident; for creation cannot be from any other source, than from divine love by divine wisdom in divine use; wherefore all things in the universe are procreated and formed from use, in use, and for use." Afterwards those who were seated on the grassy couches, asked the angels "Whence are the innumerable and ineffable delights of conjugial love?" The angels replied, "They are from the uses of love and wisdom, as may be plain from this consideration, that so far as any one loves to grow wise, for the sake of genuine use, so far he is in the vein and potency of conjugial love; and so far as he is in these two, so far he is in the delights thereof. Use effects this; because love and wisdom are delighted with each other, and as it were sport together like little children; and as they grow up, they enter into genial conjunction, which is effected by a kind of betrothing, nuptial solemnity, marriage, and propagation, and this with continual variety to eternity. These operations take place between love and wisdom inwardly in use. Those delights in their first principles are imperceptible; but they become more and more perceptible as they descend thence by degrees and enter the body. They enter by degrees from the soul into the interiors of a man's mind, from these into its exteriors, from these into the bosom, and from the bosom into the genital region. Those celestial nuptial sports in the soul are not at all perceived by man; but they thence insinuate themselves into the interiors of the mind under a species of peace and innocence, and into the exteriors of the mind under a species of blessedness, satisfaction, and delight; in the bosom under a species of the delights of inmost friendship; and in the genital region, from continual influx even from the soul with the essential sense of conjugial love, as the delight of delights. These nuptial sports of love and wisdom in use in the soul, in proceeding towards the bosom, become permanent, and present themselves sensible therein under an infinite variety of delights; and from the wonderful communication of the bosom with the genital region, the delights therein become the delights of conjugial love, which are superior to all other delights in heaven and in the world; because the use of conjugial love is the most excellent of all uses, the procreation of the human race being thence derived, and from the human race the angelic heaven." To this the angels added, that those who are not principled in the love of wisdom for the sake of use from the Lord, do not know anything concerning the variety of the innumerable delights of love truly conjugial; for with those who do not love to grow wise from genuine truths, but love to be insane from false principles, and by this insanity perform evil uses from some particular love, the way to the soul is closed: hence the heavenly nuptial sports of love and wisdom in the soul, being more and more intercepted, cease, and together with them conjugial love ceases with its vein, its potency, and its delights. On hearing these statements the audience said, "We now perceive that conjugial love is according to the love of growing wise for the sake of uses from the Lord." The angels replied that it was so. And instantly upon the heads of some of the audience there appeared wreaths of flowers; and on their asking, "Why is this?" the angels said, "Because they have understood more profoundly:" and immediately they departed from the garden, and the latter in the midst of them.