425、⑵淫乱之爱是婚姻之爱的对立面。宇宙中不存在没有对立面的事物。对立面不是彼此相对，而是完全相反。相对不同在于同一事物的最大和最小之间，而相反则是直接的对立面。反面之间和它们的对立面一样，也有相对不同。所以，它们的相对关系本身也是对立的。每一个事物都有其对立面，这一点可从光、热、时间和季节、情感、觉知、感受，以及许多其它事物明显看出来。光的对立面是暗，热的对立面是冷；时间上的对立面是白昼和黑夜，季节上的对立面是夏天和冬天。情感上的对立面是喜与忧，乐与悲。觉知上的对立面是良善与邪恶，真理与虚假。感受上的对立面是快乐和悲痛。由此可以清楚得出这一结论：婚姻之爱也有其对立面。若愿意，谁都能凭正常理性的一切指示看出，这对立面就是奸淫。你若能，请告诉我，它还有其它对立面吗？此外，凭自己的光清楚看到这一点的正常理性已颁布法律，也就是所谓公正的世间法律赞成婚姻，反对奸淫。
为更清楚地说明它们是对立面，我可以说说我在灵界经常看到的情形。那些在世时出于确认成为奸淫者的人，一发觉从天堂流下来的婚姻之爱的气场，要么立刻逃入洞穴藏起来，要么因坚持反对它而变得暴跳如雷，就像复仇女神。这是因为在灵界，属于情感的一切，无论快乐的还是不快乐的，都能被觉察到，有时清晰得就像鼻子闻到气味一样；因为灵人没有用来吸收这类事物的肉体。
然而，许多世人不知道淫乱之爱与婚姻之爱的对立，这是由于肉体的快感，这些快感表面上模仿婚姻之爱的快乐，以致那些唯独沉浸于快感的人对它们的对立面一无所知。事实上，我能想象得出，若你声称一切事物都有其对立面，因而婚姻之爱也必有其对立面，奸淫者会回答说，这爱没有对立面，因为从感觉上来说，淫乱之爱和婚姻之爱没什么不同。由此也明显可知，若不知道婚姻之爱的性质，就无从知道淫乱之爱的性质；再者，婚姻之爱的性质无法从淫乱之爱得知，但后者可从前者得知。没有人能凭邪恶认识良善，但他能凭良善认识何为邪恶。因为邪恶处于黑暗，而良善处于光明。
425、（2）淫荡之爱是与婚姻之爱相反的。每个事物都有其对立面可以从光、热、时间交替情感，理解，知觉等等中看到。与光相反的是黑暗。与热相反的是寒冷。时间的交替有白天和黑夜，夏天和冬天。情感有快乐和悲哀，理解有善和恶的理解，对真和假的理解，知觉有快乐的和不快乐的。
由此，我们可以看到婚姻之爱也有其对立面，即通奸。理性健全的人可以看到这点，因此有法律来保护婚姻之爱，反对奸情。
为了更清楚地证明这点，我再讲一下我在精神世界中常见到的一些东西。当在世间时放纵自己而有奸情的人在感受到婚姻之爱的氛围后，他们会马上逃到洞穴中藏起来。否则他们就会被激怒而表现得象疯子一样。这种现象产生的原因是，与人的情感相联系的事物，是令人高兴的，还是令人厌恶的都是被感觉到的，有时就象是嗅觉能感知到臭味一样，因为他们没法接受这些东西。
然而，世间很少有人知道淫荡之爱是与婚姻之爱相对立的。因为其中的肉体上的快乐与婚姻之爱中的快乐似乎相似；而只注重快乐的人是不会知道其反面的。你若对他们说万物都有其对立面，婚姻之爱也一样。他们会说淫荡之爱没有对立面，因为它与婚姻之爱的感觉一样。很明显，不知道婚姻之爱的性质的人也不会知道淫荡之爱的性质。同时人不会从淫荡之爱中了解到婚姻之爱的性质，而是人会从婚姻之爱中了解到淫荡之爱的性质。没有人会从罪恶中知道善，而只会从善中知道恶。因为恶处于黑暗之中，而善处于光明之中。
425. (ii) Scortatory love is the opposite of conjugial love.
There cannot exist anything in the universe which does not have its opposite. Opposites are not differentiated as relative, but as contrary. Relative differences are between the greatest and least of the same thing, but contraries are direct opposites. Contraries have relative differences between them, just as their opposites have. So their relationships themselves too are opposite.
It is obvious that every single thing has its opposite, from a consideration of light, heat, times and seasons, affections, perceptions, sensations and many more things. The opposite of light is darkness, of heat cold; the opposites in times and seasons are day and night, summer and winter. The opposites in affection are joy and grief, gladness and sadness. The opposites in perceptions are good and evil, truths and falsities. The opposites in sensations are pleasure and distress.
All the evidence from these comparisons allows the conclusion that conjugial love too has its opposite, and anyone can, if he wishes, see that all the dictates of sound reason assert that this is adultery. Tell me, if you can, what other opposite it has. Moreover since this is plainly to be seen by the light of sound reason, it has been established by the laws of what is called civil justice that marriage is to be encouraged and adultery discouraged.
[2] To make it even plainer that these are opposites, I may report something I have many times witnessed in the spiritual world. Those who in the natural world have been confirmed adulterers, on perceiving the sphere of conjugial love coming down from heaven, immediately either run away and hide in caverns or, if they hold out against it, become furiously angry and rage like furies. The reason this happens is that all the pleasant and unpleasant effects of affections are perceived there, sometimes as clearly as a smell is perceived by the nose, for there is no material body to absorb such things.
[3] However, the reason for the opposition of scortatory and conjugial love being unknown to many in the natural world is the pleasures of the flesh, which appear to imitate the pleasures of conjugial love at the outermost level, so that those who merely feel pleasure know nothing of this opposition. I could hazard the opinion that, if you asserted that everything has its opposite, and that therefore conjugial love must have its opposite, adulterers would reply that there is no opposite to this love, since there is no way scortatory love can be distinguished from it.
It is also obvious from this that anyone ignorant of the nature of conjugial love is also ignorant of the nature of scortatory love. Moreover, it is not possible to know the nature of conjugial love from a consideration of scortatory love, but it is possible to know scortatory love from a consideration of conjugial love. No one knows good from a consideration of evil, but evil from a consideration of good. For evil is in thick darkness, but good in light.
425. 2. Licentious love is opposed to conjugial love. There is nothing in the universe which does not have its opposite; and opposites are not relative to each other but contrary. Matters that are relative lie in a range between the maximum and minimum limits of the same thing, while matters that are contrary stand in opposition to them, being relative to each other as the first are to each other, so that the relative degrees of the one and the other are themselves also opposed.
That each and all things have their opposites is apparent from the examples of light, heat, intervals of time in the world, affections, perceptions, sensations, and many other things. The opposite of light is darkness. The opposite of heat is cold. Instances of opposites in intervals of time in the world are day and night, summer and winter. Instances of opposites in affections are states of joy and states of sorrow, states of happiness and states of sadness. Instances of opposites in perceptions are perceptions of good and perceptions of evil, perceptions of truth and perceptions of falsity. And instances of opposites in sensations are pleasant sensations and unpleasant ones.
From this one may conclude, on the basis of all the evidence, that conjugial love has its opposite. And the opposite is adultery, as everyone can see, if he wills, from the universal dictates of sound reason. Say, if you can, what else the opposite of it is. Moreover, because sound reason has been able by its own light to see this plainly, therefore it has enacted laws, called civil laws of justice, in support of marriages and against adulterous relationships.
[2] To make it still more clearly apparent that these two are opposites, let me relate something I have seen quite often in the spiritual world. When people who, in the natural world, were deliberate adulterers perceive the atmosphere of conjugial love flowing down from heaven, they immediately either flee away into caverns and hide, or, if they stiffen themselves against it, are whipped up into a rage and begin to act like madmen. This phenomenon occurs because all qualities having to do with people's affections, delightful and undelightful, are there perceived, and sometimes as clearly as an odor is by the sense of smell; for they do not have a material body to swallow up such things.
[3] Nevertheless, the opposition of licentious love to conjugial love is not known by many in the natural world, owing to delights of the flesh which in outmost respects seemingly emulate the delights of conjugial love; and people who focus on the delights alone do not know anything about that opposition. I can also surmise that if you said to them that everything has its opposite, and concluded that conjugial love has its opposite, too, adulterers would reply that that love does not have an opposite, because licentious love does not differ from it in any physical sensation. From this it is apparent as well that anyone who does not know the nature of conjugial love, also does not know the nature of licentious love; and further, that the nature of conjugial love is not known from the experience of licentious love, but rather the nature of licentious love from the experience of conjugial love. No one knows good from the experience of evil, but evil from the experience of good. For evil dwells in darkness, while good abides in light.
425. 2. Illicit love is opposite to married love. There is nothing in the universe without its opposite, and opposites are not relative to one another but are opposite. Relative relationships are between the most and the least of the same thing, but opposites come from the opposite of something and these opposites are related to each other among themselves the way relative relationships are, so the relationships themselves are opposed.
It is clear from light, heat, the world's seasons, feelings, perceptions, sensations, and many other things that each and every thing has its opposite. The opposite of light is darkness, the opposite of heat is cold. Opposite periods in the world are day and night and summer and winter. Opposite feelings are joy and grief and happiness and sadness. Opposite perceptions are good and evil, true and false, and opposite sensations are pleasure and displeasure. So with all the evidence you can conclude that the love in marriage has its opposite. This is adultery, as anyone can see if he wishes, from the dictates of sound reason. Tell, if you can, what else is its opposite. In addition, since sound reason can see this strikingly in its light, it made laws called civil laws of justice in favor of marriage and against adultery.
To make it stand out more clearly that they are opposites, let me tell about something I have often seen in the spiritual world.
When those who have been confirmed adulterers in the world of nature notice the aura of married love floating out from heaven, either they flee at once into caverns and hide, or if they stand their ground against it, they are provoked to rage and act like furies. This happens because all happy and unhappy things to do with feelings are perceived there - sometimes as clearly as your nose smells an odor - for they do not have a material body that absorbs things like this.
But many in the natural world do not know that illicit love and the love in marriage are opposite, due to physical pleasure, which outwardly seems to rival the pleasure of married love, and those who are only interested in pleasure do not know anything about that opposition. And I can affirm that if you said that each thing has its opposite and concluded that married love has its opposite as well, adulterers would answer that married love has no opposite, because illicit love is not different from it in any sense. It is also clear from this that whoever does not know what married love is like does not know what illicit love is like. And, in addition, it is clear that you cannot find out from illicit love what married love is like, but the former from the latter - nor good from evil, but evil from good. For evil is in darkness, while good is in the light.
425. II. THAT SCORTATORY LOVE IS THE OPPOSITE TO CONJUGIAL LOVE. There is nothing in the universe which has not its opposite; and opposites are not relative to each other but contrary. Relatives are things between the greatest and least of the same thing, While contraries lie over against them from the opposite side, being relatives with respect to each other just as are the former relatives; therefore, the relatives are themselves opposites. That each and everything has its opposite is manifest from light, heat, the times of the world, affections, perceptions, sensations, and many other things. The opposite of light is darkness, the opposite of heat is cold. The opposites of the times of the world are day and night, summer and winter. Opposites in affections are joys and sorrows, gladness and sadness. Opposites in perceptions are goods and evils, and truths and falsities. Opposites in sensations are things delightful and undelightful. Thus the conclusion can be made in all clearness that conjugial love has its opposite. That this opposite is adultery can be seen by every one if he will, from all the dictates of sound reason. Tell me, if you can, what else is its opposite? Moreover, sound reason, seeing this clearly from its own light, has enacted laws called civil laws of justice in favor of marriages and against adulteries.
[2] To make it still more clear that they are opposites, I may be allowed to tell something which I have often seen in the spiritual world. Those who in the natural world were adulterers from confirmation, when they perceive the sphere of conjugial love flowing down out of heaven, at once either flee into caverns and hide themselves, or, if they stand out against it, are aroused to fury and become like the Furies. This is because in the spiritual world all things pertaining to affections, Whether delightful or undelightful, are perceived, being sometimes perceived just as clearly as an odor is perceived by the smell; for spirits do not have a material body for the absorption of such things.
[3] That the opposition of scortatory love and conjugial love is unknown to many in the natural world is due to delights of the flesh, Which, in their outer appearance, emulate the delights of conjugial love, and those who are in delights alone know nothing of their opposition. Indeed, I can imagine that if you should say that everything has its opposite, and conclude that this applies to Conjugial love also, adulterers would reply that this love has no opposite since in no sensation does scortatory love differ from it. From this it is also evident that one who does not know the nature of conjugial love, does not know the nature of scortatory love; and further, that the nature of conjugial love is not known from scortatory love, but the latter is known from the former. No one from evil can know good, but from good he can know what is evil; for evil is in darkness, but good is in light.
425. (ii) Scortatory love is the opposite of marital love. There is nothing in all the universe without its opposite. Opposites, moreover, are not relatives with respect to each other, but contraries. Relatives lie between greatest and least of the same thing, but contraries are things opposite, and are relative among themselves as the others are among themselves; the very relations, therefore, are opposites. That each and all things have their opposites is plain from light, heat, times in the world, affections, perceptions, sensations and much else. The opposite of light is darkness; of heat, cold; in mundane times the opposites are day and night, summer and winter; among affections the opposites are joys and griefs, gladnesses and sadnesses; among perceptions, they are goods and evils, truths and falsities; and among sensations, the opposites are pleasantness and unpleasantness. In the face of all the evidence one must conclude that marital love also has its opposite. That this is adultery, any one can see, if he will, from all the dictates of sound reason. Say, if you can, what else its opposite is. Add to this, that as sound reason was able to see this plainly from its own light, it therefore has enacted laws, called civil laws of justice, in favor of marriages and against adulteries.
[2] To make it still plainer that these are opposites, let me relate something which I have witnessed frequently in the spiritual world. When those who have been confirmed adulterers in the natural world perceive the sphere of marital love flowing down from heaven, they immediately either flee into caverns and hide, or if they make a stand against it, are excited to rage and become like furies. For all pleasantness or unpleasantness of affection is perceived in the spiritual world, and sometimes as clearly as an odor is by the smell, for its people have no material body to dull such things.
[3] But the opposition of scortatory love to marital love is unknown to many in the world on account of the pleasures of the flesh, which seem to emulate the pleasures of marital love in the final expression, and those who are only in pleasures know nothing of the opposition. I venture to say that if you told adulterers that everything else has its opposite and concluded that marital love has, too, they would reply that that love has no opposite and would give as the reason that scortatory love is not at all distinguishable from it by the senses. Thence, too, it is evident that one who does not know what marital love is like, does not know what scortatory love is like; and further, that what marital love is like is not to be known from scortatory love, but the latter from the former. No one from evil knows good, but from good does know evil; for what is evil is in darkness, but good is in the light.
425. (2) That scortatory love is opposite to conjugial love. There is nothing in the universe which has not its opposite; and opposites are not things having relation to each other, but are contraries. Relatives are between what is the greatest and least of the same thing; but contraries are in opposition over against them, and these are relative among themselves just as those are among themselves, and therefore, the relations themselves also are opposites. That to all things and to everything there is an opposite is manifest from light, heat, the times in the world, from affections, from perceptions, sensations, and from many other things. The opposite of light is thick darkness; the opposite of heat is cold; the opposites of times in the world are day and night, summer and winter; the opposites of affections are joys and sorrows, and gladness and sadness; the opposites of perceptions are goods and truths and evils and falsities; and the opposites of sensations are delightful and undelightful. From all this evidence then it must be concluded that conjugial love has its opposite. That this opposite is adultery everyone can see if he will, from all the dictates of sound reason. Say if you can what else is its opposite. To this is added, that inasmuch as sound reason has been able to see this clearly of its own light, it has therefore, established laws, which are called civil laws of justice, for the protection of marriages and against adulteries. To make it still more obvious that they are opposites, I may refer to what I have frequently seen in the spiritual world. When those who in the natural world were adulterers from confirmation perceive the sphere of conjugial love flowing down out of heaven, they either instantly flee into caverns and hide themselves, or if they stand out against it they are excited to rage and become like furies. That it is so is because there all delightful and all undelightful things of the affections are perceived, sometimes as clearly as odor is perceived by the smell, for they have not a material body which absorbs such things. But that the opposition of scortatory love and conjugial love is unknown to many in the natural world is from the delights of the flesh, which in the extremes apparently emulate the delights of conjugial love; and they that are in delights alone know nothing of that opposition. And I can affirm that if you should tell them that everything has its opposite, and conclude that conjugial love has also, adulterers would reply that there is no such opposite to that love, for that scortatory love in no sense distinguishes itself from it. From which it is evident also, that one who does not know what the quality of conjugial love is does not know the quality of scortatory love. And besides that, the quality of conjugial love is not known from scortatory love, but the latter from the former. No one from evil knows good, but from good one knows evil; for evil is in thick darkness but good is in light.
425. II. Quod Amor Scortatorius sit oppositus Amori conjugiali. Non datur in Universo aliquid, cui non est suum oppositum, ac opposita non sunt inter se relativa, sed sunt contraria; relativa sunt inter maximum et minimum ejusdem rei, sed contraria sunt ex opposito contra illa, et haec inter se sunt relativa, sicut illa inter se, quare etiam ipsae relationes sunt oppositae. Quod omnibus et singulis sint sua opposita, patet a luce, calore, temporibus Mundi, affectionibus, perceptionibus, sensationibus, et pluribus aliis; Lucis oppositum est caligo, Caloris oppositum est frigus, Temporum Mundi opposita sunt dies et nox, aestas et hyems; Affectionum opposita sunt gaudia et luctus, ac laetitiae et tristitiae, Perceptionum opposita sunt bona et mala, ac vera et falsa, et Sensationum opposita sunt jucunda et injucunda: inde in omni evidentia concludi potest, quod Amori conjugiali sit 1suum oppositum; quod hoc sit adulterium, unusquisque potest, si vult, ex omnibus sanae rationis dictaminibus videre; dicite, si potestis, quid aliud ejus oppositum est; accedit, quoniam sana ratio ex sua luce hoc manifeste videre potuit, ideo illa sancivit leges, quae vocantur justitiae civiles, pro Conjugiis, et contra Adulteria.
[2] Ut adhuc exstantius pateat, quod opposita sint, licet referre, quod saepius in Mundo spirituali vidi; quando illi qui in Mundo naturali ex confirmato adulteri fuerunt, percipiunt sphaeram amoris conjugialis defluentem e Coelo, actutum vel aufugiunt in cavernas et se abscondunt, vel si obstinant se contra illam, exacerbantur furore, et fiunt sicut furiae; quod ita fiat, est quia omnia affectionum jucunda et injucunda percipiuntur ibi, et quandoque tam clare, sicut odor percipitur olfactu, non enim est illis materiale corpus quod talia absorbet.
[3] Quod autem oppositio amoris scortatorii et amoris conjugialis a multis in Mundo naturali ignoretur, est ex jucundis carnis, quae apparenter aemulantur jucunda Amoris conjugialis in extremis, et illi qui in solis jucundis sunt, non sciunt aliquid de oppositione illa; ac possum autumare, quod si dixeris, quod unicuique rei sit suum oppositum, et concluseris, quod etiam Amori conjugiali sit suum, adulteri responsuri sint, quod illi Amori non oppositum sit, quia Amor scortatorius nullo sensu se discriminat ab illo; ex quo etiam patet, quod qui non scit, qualis est Amor conjugialis, non sciat qualis est Amor Scortatorius; et adhuc quod ex Amore scortatorio non sciatur qualis est Amor conjugialis, sed ex hoc ille; nemo scit bonum ex malo, sed malum ex bono; malum enim in caligine est, bonum autem in luce.
Footnotes:
1. Prima editio: sir