314、那些迷恋自己的聪明之人是何性质，这可从他们在内在判断的问题上的幻想看出来；例如，在流注、思维和生命的问题上。他们关于流注的思维是颠倒的，就像肉眼的视觉流入心智的内在视觉，也就是理解力；耳朵的听觉流入也是理解力的内在听觉一样。他们没有想到，理解力从意愿流入眼睛和耳朵，不仅构成了这些感觉，还把它们当作在自然界的工具来使用。由于这一切与表象不符，所以他们不明白，即便你告诉他们，属世之物不流入属灵之物，而是属灵之物流入属世之物，他们仍会想：“什么是属灵之物，不就是一种更纯粹的属世之物吗？当眼睛看见美丽的东西，耳朵听见和谐的声音时，心智，也就是理解力和意愿就感到快乐，这不是显而易见的吗？”他们没有意识到，眼睛凭自己无法看见，舌头凭自己无法品尝，鼻子凭自己无法闻东西，皮肤凭自己无法感觉。相反，正是人的心智或灵在这些器官中进行感觉，并照着它自己的性质而受感官影响。即便如此，人的心智或灵凭自己仍无法感觉这些事物，而是要靠着主。其它任何观点都是基于表象，或说想别的就是出于表象来思想；如果它们被视为真理，那是出于幻觉或谬论。
论到思维，他们会说，它是在空气中所实现的某种变化，照着我们所感知到的物体而变化，因习惯而得到强化。这意味着思维观念就是如空中流星一样的形像，而记忆是它们被铭刻于其上的石版。他们没有意识到，思维发生在纯器官物质中，正如视觉和听觉发生在它们的器官中。只是让他们检查一下大脑，他们就会明白它充满这种物质。要是损伤它们，你就会精神错乱；要是摧毁它们，你就会死亡。关于思维和记忆的性质，可参看前文（279e节）。
对于生命，他们只知道生命是以各种方式使自己被感觉到的一种自然活动，正如一个活的身体通过器官的活动驱动自己一样。如果你说，这意味着自然是活的，他们就会否认，说自然赋予生命。如果你问他们，当身体死亡时，生命就会消失，他们会回答，生命会留在被称为灵魂的那点空气中。如果你再问，在这种情况下，什么是神？祂不是生命本身吗？他们就会沉默不语，不想公开他们的真实想法。如果你问他们是否承认神性之爱和神性智慧是生命本身，他们会反问：“什么是爱，什么是智慧？”这是因为他们无法在自己的幻觉或谬论中明白什么是爱，什么是智慧，或什么是神。列举这些事是为了清楚表明，人如何迷恋自己的聪明，因为他从表象和由此而来的幻觉或谬论中得出他的所有结论。
314. The character of people who are infatuated with their own intelligence can be seen from their imaginary conjectures in matters requiring interior judgment - as regards, for example, influx, thought and life.
Regarding influx, they think the wrong way around, as though the vision of the eye flowed into the internal sight of the mind, namely the intellect, and as though the hearing of the ear flowed into the internal hearing, again the intellect, not perceiving that the intellect flows from the will into the eye and ear and not only forms those senses, but also employs them as its instruments in the natural world.
But because this is contrary to the appearance, they do not perceive it. Only if it is said that something natural does not flow into something spiritual, but that the spiritual flows into the natural, do they perceive it. But still, even then they think, "What is something spiritual but a purer natural entity? Is it not also apparent that if the eye sees something beautiful, or if the ear hears something melodious, the mind, which is the intellect and will, is delighted?"
This they say, not knowing that the eye does not see of itself, or the tongue taste of itself, or the nose smell of itself or the skin feel of itself, but that it is a person's mind or spirit which sensibly perceives the stimuli there and is affected by the sensation in accordance with its character. But even so, the person's mind or spirit does not perceive these sensations of itself, but does so from the Lord. And to think otherwise is to think according to appearances, and if it affirms these, according to misconceptions.
[2] Regarding thought, they say that it is a kind of modification in the air, varied according to its objects, and amplified in the measure of its cultivation; thus, that the ideas of thoughts are images appearing in the air like atmospheric phenomena; and that memory is a tablet on which these images have been impressed. They say this not knowing that thoughts exist in purely organic substances just as sight and hearing do in theirs. Let them only inspect the brain and they will see that it is full of these substances. Injure them and you will suffer delirium. Destroy them and you will die.
What thought is, however, and memory, may be seen in no. 279 above toward the end.
[3] Regarding life, they know nothing else than that it is a kind of activity of nature which causes itself to be felt in different ways, as a live body does in its organic motions. If you say that in that case nature is alive, they deny it, saying rather that nature gives life. If you ask whether life is not then dissipated when the body dies, they answer that life remains in the bit of air called the soul. If you ask what God is then - "is He not life itself?" - at this they fall silent and refuse to say aloud what they think. If you say, "Will you grant that Divine love and wisdom are life itself," they reply, "What are love and wisdom?" For in their misconceptions they do not see what these are, or what God is.
I have cited these examples to show how their own prudence makes people foolish, owing to the fact that they draw all their conclusions from appearances and so from misconceptions.
314. We can tell what people who are deceived by their own intelligence are like if we look at what they imagine when deeper judgment is called for, what they imagine about inflow, for example, about thought, and about life.
When it comes to inflow, they think backwards. They think that our eyesight flows into the inner sight of our minds, our discernment, and that the hearing of our ears flows into our inner hearing, which is also our discernment. They do not see that our discernment is flowing from our volition into our eyes and ears and is not only making them sensitive but is using them as its instruments in the physical world. Since this is not the way things seem, they do not see it. Even if you tell them that the physical does not flow into the spiritual but the spiritual does flow into the physical, they will still think, "What is the spiritual except a purer form of the physical? If the eye sees something beautiful and the ear hears something harmonious, doesn't it seem as though the mind--which is discernment and volition--is pleased?" They do not realize that eyes do not see on their own, tongues do not taste on their own, noses do not smell on their own, and skins do not feel on their own. It is our mind or spirit that is sensing in those organs and is being affected by them according to its own nature; and even so, our mind or spirit is not sensing these things on its own, but from the Lord. Any other notion is based on appearances, and if they are accepted as true, it is based on illusions.
[2] As for thought, they say that it is some change effected in the air, varied according to the objects we perceive, and reinforced by habit. This means that the concepts of our thoughts are likenesses that we see in the air like phenomena in the sky, and that our memory is the slate on which they are recorded. They do not realize that our thoughts take place in substances that are intricately organized, just as our sight and hearing take place in their organs. They should look at the brain, and they would see a wealth of substances like this. Injure them and you go out of your mind; destroy them and you die. On the nature of thought and memory, see the end of 279 above.
[3] Their only concept of life is that it is something that nature does, something that makes itself felt in various ways, just as a living body moves itself organically. If you say that this means nature is alive, they deny it and say that nature only makes things live. If you ask them whether this means that life vanishes when the body dies, they answer that life remains in that bit of air called the soul. If you ask what God is in this case, whether he is life itself, they have no reply and do not want to express what they are actually thinking. If you ask whether they will agree that divine love and wisdom are life itself, they answer, "What is love? What is wisdom?" This is because they cannot see in their illusions what love and wisdom are or what God is.
I include this to show how we are deceived by our own prudence, since we base all our conclusions on appearances and therefore on illusions.
314. The character of those who are infatuated by their own intelligence may be evident from their fancies 1in matters of interior judgment, as, for example, concerning influx, thought and life. Concerning Influx, their thought is inverted; as that the sight of the eye flows into the internal sight of the mind, which is the understanding, and that the hearing of the ear flows into the internal hearing, which also is the understanding. They do not perceive that the understanding from the will flows into the eye and into the ear, and not only constitutes those senses but also uses them as its instruments in the natural world. Because this is not according to the appearance they do not perceive it, if it is only said that the natural does not flow into the spiritual but that the spiritual flows into the natural. They still think, What is the spiritual but a purer form of the natural? Also, Is it not apparent that if the eye sees anything beautiful, and the ear hears anything harmonious, the mind, that is, the understanding and the will, is delighted? They do not know that the eye does not see from itself, nor the tongue taste from itself, nor the nostrils smell from themselves, 2nor the skin feel from itself; but that it is man's mind or spirit that there perceives such things by the sense and is affected by the sense in accordance with its nature. Nevertheless, man's mind or spirit does not perceive them of itself but from the Lord; and to think otherwise is to think from appearances, and if these are confirmed, from fallacies.
[2] Concerning Thought, they say it is something modified in the air, varied according to its objects and increased in proportion as it is cultivated; thus that ideas of thought are images, like meteors, that appear in the air; and that the memory is a tablet upon which they are recorded. They do not know that thoughts are as much in substances purely organic as sight and hearing are in theirs. Let them only examine the brain and they will see that it is full of such substances; if you injure them you will become delirious: if you destroy them you will die. But what thought is, and also what memory is, may be seen above (n. 279), towards the end.
[3] Concerning Life they know nothing else than that it is a certain activity of nature that causes itself to be felt in various ways as a living body moves by the action of its organs. If it is asserted that in this case nature lives, they deny this, but they maintain that nature bestows life. If it is asked, Then is not life dissipated when the body dies? they answer that life remains in that small particle of air that is called the soul. If they are asked, What then is God? is He not Life itself? they are silent and are unwilling to declare what they think. If it is asked, Would you admit that the Divine Love and the Divine Wisdom are life itself? they answer, What is love and what is wisdom? For immersed in their fallacies they do not see what these are, or what God is. These things are set forth that it may be seen how man is infatuated by his own prudence, as he forms all his conclusions from appearances and from fallacies based on them.
Footnotes:
1. Original Edition and the Tafel Latin edition (1855) have "illarum." The Worcester Latin edition (1899) changes "illorum" as the antecedent is masculine.
2. Original Edition omits "se."
314. The character of those who are infatuated by their own intelligence can be seen from their fancies in matters of interior judgment; for example, respecting influx, thought, and life. Respecting influx their thought is inverted, as that the sight of the eye flows into the internal sight of the mind, which is the understanding; and the hearing of the ear flows into the internal hearing, which also is the understanding; and they fail to perceive that the understanding from the will flows into the eye and the ear, and not only makes those senses but also uses them as its instruments in the natural world. But as this is not in accordance with the appearance they fail to perceive what is meant when it is simply said that the natural does not flow into the spiritual but that the spiritual flows into the natural, still thinking, "What is the spiritual but a purer natural?" also, "Is it not evident that when the eye sees any thing beautiful, or the ear hears any thing harmonious, the mind, which is the understanding and the will, is delighted?" And they are not aware that the eye does not see from itself, nor the tongue taste from itself, nor the nose smell from itself, nor the skin feel from itself; but that it is man's mind or spirit that there perceives things by the sense, and is affected by the sense in accordance with its nature; and still these things are not felt by man's mind or spirit from itself, but from the Lord; and to think otherwise is to think from appearances, and if these are confirmed, from fallacies.
[2] Of Thought they say that it is something modified in the air, varied according to its objects and enlarged according to culture, thus that the ideas of the thoughts are images like meteors appearing in the air, while the memory is the tablet on which they have been impressed; and they are not aware that thoughts are as much in substances purely organic as the sight and the hearing are in theirs. Only let them examine the brain and they will see that it is full of such substances; injure them and you become delirious, destroy them and you will die. But what thought is and what memory is can be seen above (near the end of279).
[3] Of Life they know nothing else than that it is a certain activity of nature that makes itself felt in various ways, as a living body moves itself organically. If it is asserted that if this be so nature is alive, they deny it, and say that nature imparts life. If it is asked, Then is not life dissipated when the body dies? they answer that life remains in that body of air that is called the soul. If it is asked, What is God then? is He not Life itself? they are silent, and are unwilling to declare what they think. If it is asked, Would you admit that Divine love and Divine wisdom are life itself? they answer, "What are love and wisdom?" For in their fallacies they fail to see what these are or what God is. These things are adduced to make clear how man is infatuated by his own prudence, for the reason that he draws all conclusions from appearances and consequent fallacies.
314. Quales sunt illi, qui infatuati sunt ex propria intelligentia, constare potest ex illorum 1imaginariis in rebus interioris judicii; pro exemplo, de Influxu, de Cogitatione, deque Vita. De INFLUXU inverse cogitant, ut quod visus oculi influat in visum internum mentis qui est intellectus, et quod auditus auris influat in auditum internum, qui etiam est intellectus, et non percipiunt, quod Intellectus ex voluntate influat in oculum et in aurem, et non modo faciat illos sensus, sed etiam utatur illis ut suis instrumentis in naturali mundo: sed quia hoc non secundum apparentiam est, non percipiunt, solummodo si dicitur, quod naturale non influat in spirituale, sed quod spirituale in naturale, at usque tunc cogitant, quid spirituale nisi quam purius naturale; tum annon apparet quod si oculus videt aliquod pulchrum, et auris audit aliquod harmonicum, mens, quae est intellectus et voluntas, delectetur; non scientes quod oculus non videat ex se, nec lingua gustet ex se, nec nares odorent ex [se], nec cuticula sentiat ex se, sed quod sit mens seu spiritus hominis, qui illa ibi sensu percipit, et ex illo secundum quale ejus afficitur; sed usque quod mens seu spiritus hominis non sentiat illa a se, sed a Domino; et quod aliter cogitare, sit ex apparentiis, et si confirmantur, ex fallaciis.
[2] De COGITATIONE, dicunt, quod sit aliquod modificatum in aere, variatum secundum objecta, et ampliatum secundum cultum, ita quod ideae cogitationum sint imagines, sicut meteora, apparentes in aere; et quod memoria sit tabula cui impressae sunt; non scientes quod cogitationes sint aeque in substantiis pure organicis, sicut sunt visus et auditus in suis; spectent modo Cerebrum, et videbunt illud talibus substantiis plenum; laede illas et delirabis, ac perde illas et morieris: quid autem cogitatio, et quid memoria, videatur supra 279 fin.
[3] De VITA non sciunt aliud, quam quod sit quaedam naturae activitas, quae se facit sentiri diversimode, sicut corpus quod vivit, se organice movet: si dicitur, quod sic natura vivat, hoc negant, sed quod natura det vivere; si dicitur annon tunc vita dissipatur, cum corpus moritur, respondent quod vita in particula aeris, quae vocatur anima, maneat: si dicitur, quid tunc Deus; numne Ille est ipsa vita; ad haec tacent, et non volunt edicere quod cogitant; si dicitur, velitisne quod Divinus Amor et Divina Sapientia sint ipsa Vita, respondent, quid amor et quid sapientia; nam in suis fallaciis non vident quid haec, nec quid Deus. Haec adducta sunt, ut videatur, quomodo homo a propria prudentia infatuatur, ex causa quia omnia ex apparentiis et inde fallaciis concludit.
Footnotes:
1 Prima editio: illarum