ISB11.众所周知，每一个运作里面都有一个主动者和一个被动者；没有任何事物能唯独从一个主动者产生，也没有任何事物能唯独从一个被动者产生。属灵之物和属世之物也是如此；属灵之物因是一种活的力量，故是主动的，属世之物因是一种死的力量，故是被动的。由此可知，凡从开始就存在于这个太阳世界中，后来时时刻刻存在之物都通过属世之物从属灵之物存在，不仅动物王国的臣民是这样，植物王国的臣民也是这样。
还有一个类似的事实也是众所周知的，即：所产生的每个结果里面都一个主因和一个工具因；当任何事情完成时，这两者就显为一，尽管它们明显为二；因此，这也是智慧的准则之一，即：主因和工具因一起构成一个原因；属灵之物和属世之物也是如此。这两者在产生结果中之所以显为一，是因为属灵之物在属世之物里面，如同肌纤维在肌肉里面，血液在动脉里面，或思维在言语里面，情感在声音里面；它通过属世之物使自己被感觉到。从这些事(尽管到这里还是像透过格子一样模糊)明显可知，属灵之物穿上属世之物，就像一个人穿上衣服一样。
灵魂所穿的有机身体在此好比一件衣服，因为它穿在灵魂身上；当灵魂因(肉体)死亡而从自然界迁到它自己的灵界时，它也会脱去肉体，把它当作空壳或旧衣一样扔掉。此外，肉体像衣服一样会变旧；但灵魂不会，因为它是一种属灵物质，属灵物质与自然界的变化毫无共同之处；自然界的变化会从开始发展到结束，并在规定时间终结。
那些不将身体视为灵魂的衣服或遮盖物，认为它本身是死的，只是适应去接受通过灵魂从神流入的生命原力之人，不可避免地从谬误中得出以下结论：灵魂凭自己活着，身体也凭自己活着，两者的生命之间存在一种前定和谐或预定和谐；甚至灵魂的生命流入身体的生命，或身体的生命流入灵魂的生命；因此，他们以为流注要么是属灵的，要么是属世的；然而，一切受造物都证明了这样一个真理：在后之物不从自身行动，而是从在先之物行动，它从在先之物发出；因此，这在先之物也不从自身，而是从更在先之物行动；因此，一切事物都从一个从自身行动的首先者，因而从神行动。此外，生命唯有一个，这生命不能被造，但非常有能力流入适合接受它的有机组织形式。这些形式就是受造宇宙中的一切事物，无论总体还是细节。
许多人以为灵魂就是生命，因此，一个人因从灵魂活着，故从自己的生命，因而从他自己活着，所以不是靠来自神的一种生命流注活着。但这些人不可避免地系上一种谬误的戈耳迪之结，并将其心智的一切判断都卷进这结里面，结果只会导致在属灵事物上的疯狂；或他们建造了一个迷宫，心智无论通过什么样的推理路线，都永远无法沿原路返回，把自己从中解救出来；他们实际上还让自己可以说下入地下洞穴，在那里住在永远的黑暗之中。
因为这种信念会生发出无数谬误，其中每一个都是可怕的，如：神将自己灌输并转录到人里面，因此每个人都是一个凭自己活着的神，因此他从自己行善、有智慧；同样，他拥有在自己里面的信和仁，因而从他自己，而不是从神获得它们；此外还有诸如流行在地狱里的人当中的许多可怕信念；地狱里的人在世时就相信自然界凭自己的活动活着或产生生命。当这些人仰望天堂时，天堂之光在他们看来就是一片漆黑。
我曾从天上听见有人声说，人里面若有一丝生命火花是他自己的，不属于他里面的神，就不会有天堂和其中的一切，因而不会有地上的任何教会，进而不会有永生。关于这个主题的详情，可查阅《婚姻之爱》一书中的记事(132–136节)。
众所周知，在每一个运作中都有一个主动的和一个被动的；仅有主动的，无一物能产生；同样，仅有被动的，也无一物能产生。灵性和自然也是如此，灵性是一种活的力量，是主动的，自然，是一种死的力量，是被动的，因此，在这个太阳的世界中，一切存在之物从一开始到随后的每一个存在的片刻，都是从灵性通过自然而存在的，不仅在动物王国中的各类是这样，在植物王国中的也是如此。
【2】另一件相似的事情也是众所周知的，那就是，在每一效果的事物中，都有一个主因和一个辅因（instrumental cause，又可译为“工具因”），这两个事物在任何事物产生后，表现为一，虽然它们明显是两个。因此，这也是智慧的法则之一，主因和辅因构成一个原因；灵性和自然也是如此，这两种在产生结果上显为一体，因为灵性在自然之内，如同血液在动脉中、肌肉纤维在肌肉中，或者思维在言语内部、情感在声音的音调中，它通过自然的方式使自己被感觉到。由此可见——虽然还像是透过晶体模糊不明：灵性以自然衣蔽自身，如同人穿衣服一样。
【3】被灵魂穿上的肉体器官在这里被比作一件衣服，因为它遮蔽着灵魂，而当死亡来临、灵魂从尘世移居到它自己所属的灵界时，会将身体当空壳扔掉。因为肉体像衣服变旧一样变老，灵魂却不是这样，它是灵性的物质，与自然的变化毫无共同之处：自然之物从开始到结束发展变化，各有定时。
【4】肉体是灵魂的外衣或遮盖物，肉体本身是死的，只是适应去接受从上帝那里来的、通过灵魂流入的生命力。不相信这些的人，禁不住会从谬误中得出结论，认为灵魂自身是活的，肉体自身也是活的，而在这两个生命之间有一种预先建立的和谐，甚至可能是灵魂的生命流入肉体的生命，又或者肉体的生命流入灵魂的生命，因此，他们认为流注要么是灵性的要么是自然的。然而，被创造的一切证明了一个真相，那就是后面的事物不是从它自身而起作用的，而是从先前的事物起作用来的；先前的事物一定是从更先在的事物起作用来的，所以，除了从太初（First）而来外，不可能是从其它的事物而来，这太初由自身而起作用，即来自上帝。此外，生命独一，不能被创造，但却有特别的能力流入各种形态且有机地适应对它的接受，这诸般的形态就是被创造的宇宙中总体和细节上的全部事物。
【5】许多人相信灵魂就是生命，因此人是凭着灵魂而活，就是从他自己的生命而活，因此，他的生命是来自于他自己，不是来自于上帝的生命流注（influx of life）。这不可避免地把错误的戈耳迪之节（Gordian knot，希腊神话中的一个难题）系紧了一点。他们心智中有关灵性事物的所有判断纠缠在一起，结果只是疯狂；或者像是建造一个迷宫，头脑永远无法以任何理性的线索回溯自己的道路并从中解脱；他们也是实际上让自己下到地下的洞穴中，在那里他们居住在永恒的黑暗里。
【6】由这样的信念产生了无数的谬误，每一个都是可怕的。例如，上帝把自己传送、转录进了人，因此每个人都是一个上帝，靠自己活着；他行善、有智慧也是来自于自身；同样，在他里面他拥有信仰和仁爱，这些来自于他自身，而不是来自上帝。还有许多荒谬的信念在地狱里的人中盛行，当这些人在尘世的时候，相信自然是凭借自身的活动而活着或产生生命。当他们仰望天堂时，他们把它的光明看作只是一片漆黑。
我曾听见有声音从天上说，若有一丁点生命的火花在人里面，是他自身的，不是从上帝而来的在他里面，就没有天堂和其中的一切，也就没有地上的教会，也因此就没有永恒的生命。关于这一主题的更多内容，可参阅《婚姻之爱（Conjugal Love）》一书中的相关内容（132-136节）。
11. IX. That which is spiritual clothes itself with that which is natural, as a man clothes himself with a garment.
It is well known that both an active and a passive are necessary to every operation, and that nothing can be produced from an active alone, and nothing from a passive alone. It is similar with what is spiritual and what is natural: what is spiritual, as a living force, being active, and what is natural, as a dead force, being passive. Hence it follows that whatever existed in this solar world from the beginning, and whatever comes into existence from moment to moment since, exists from what is spiritual by means of what is natural; and this not only in regard to the subjects of the animal kingdom, but also to those of the vegetable kingdom.
[2] Another similar fact is also known, namely, that in every effect which is produced there are both a principal and an instrumental cause, and that these two, when anything is done, appear as one, although they are distinctly two; hence it is one of the laws of wisdom, that the principal cause and the instrumental cause make together one cause; so also do what is spiritual and what is natural. The reason that in producing effects these two appear as one is that the spiritual is within the natural, as a fibre is within a muscle and blood within the arteries, or as thought is inwardly in speech and affection in the tones of the voice; and it causes itself to be felt by means of the natural. From these considerations though thus far only indistinctly, as through a lattice it appears that what is spiritual clothes itself with what is natural, as a man clothes himself with a garment.
[3] The organic body with which the soul clothes itself is here compared with a garment, because it invests the soul; and the soul also withdraws itself from it, and casts it off as old clothing, when it departs by death from the natural into its own spiritual world. Moreover, the body grows old like a garment, but not the soul; because this is a spiritual substance, which has nothing in common with the changes of nature, which advance from their beginnings to their ends, and are terminated at stated times.
[4] Those who do not consider the body as a vesture or covering of the soul, which in itself is dead, and only adapted to receive the living forces flowing into it through the soul from God, cannot avoid concluding from fallacies that the soul lives of itself, and the body of itself, and that there is, between their respective lives, a pre-established harmony. They likewise infer either that the life of the soul flows into the life of the body, or the life of the body into the life of the soul, whence they conceive influx to be either spiritual or natural: when, nevertheless, it is a truth attested by every object in creation that what is posterior does not act from itself, but from something prior, from which it proceeded; thus that neither does this act from itself, but from something still prior; and thus that nothing acts except from a First, which does act from itself, thus from God. Besides, there is only one life, and this is not capable of being created, but is eminently capable of flowing into forms organically adapted to its reception: all things in the created universe, in general and in particular, are such forms.
[5] It is believed by many that the soul is life, and thus that a man, since he lives from his soul, lives from his own life, thus of himself, consequently not by an influx of life from God. But such persons cannot avoid tying a sort of Gordian knot of fallacies, in which they entangle all the judgments of their mind till nothing but insanity in regard to spiritual things is the result; or they construct a maze, from which the mind can never, by any clue of reason, retrace its way and extricate itself. They also actually let themselves down, as it were, into caverns underground, where they dwell in eternal darkness.
[6] For from such a belief proceed innumerable fallacies, each of which is horrible: as that God has transfused and transcribed Himself into men, whence every man is a sort of deity that lives of himself, and thus that he does good and is wise from himself; likewise, that he possesses faith and charity in himself, and thus derives them from himself, and not from God; besides other monstrous sentiments, such as prevail with those in hell, who, when they were in the world, believed nature to live or to produce life by its own activity. When these look towards heaven, its light appears to them as mere thick darkness.
[7] I once heard from heaven the voice of some one saying that if a spark of life in man were his own, and not of God in him, there would be no heaven nor anything that exists there; whence also there would be no church on earth, and consequently no life eternal.
For further particulars relating to this subject, the memorable relation in the work on Conjugial Love 132-136, 1may be consulted.
Footnotes:
1. See also in The True Christian Religion 48.
11. IX. THAT WHICH IS SPIRITUAL CLOTHES ITSELF WITH THAT WHICH IS NATURAL, AS A MAN CLOTHES HIMSELF WITH A GARMENT.
It is well known that both an active and a passive are necessary to every operation, and that nothing can be produced from an active alone, and nothing from a passive alone. It is similar with what is spiritual and what is natural: what is spiritual, as a living force, being active, and what is natural, as a dead force, being passive. Hence it follows that whatever existed in this solar world from the beginning, and whatever comes into existence from moment to moment since, exists from what is spiritual by means of what is natural; and this not only in regard to the subjects of the animal kingdom, but also to those of the vegetable kingdom.
[2] Another similar fact is also known, namely, that in every effect which is produced there are both a principal and an instrumental cause, and that these two, when anything is done, appear as one, although they are distinctly two; hence it is one of the laws of wisdom, that the principal cause and the instrumental cause make together one cause; so also do what is spiritual and what is natural. The reason that in producing effects these two appear as one is that the spiritual is within the natural, as a fibre is within a muscle and blood within the arteries, or as thought is inwardly in speech and affection in the tones of the voice; and it causes itself to be felt by means of the natural. From these considerations - though thus far only indistinctly, as through a lattice - it appears that what is spiritual clothes itself with what is natural, as a man clothes himself with a garment.
[3] The organic body with which the soul clothes itself is here compared with a garment, because it invests the soul; and the soul also withdraws itself from it, and casts it off as old clothing, when it departs by death from the natural into its own spiritual world. Moreover, the body grows old like a garment, but not the soul; because this is a spiritual substance, which has nothing in common with the changes of nature, which advance from their beginnings to their ends, and are terminated at stated times.
[4] Those who do not consider the body as a vesture or covering of the soul, which in itself is dead, and only adapted to receive the living forces flowing into it through the soul from God, cannot avoid concluding from fallacies that the soul lives of itself, and the body of itself, and that there is, between their respective lives, a PRE-ESTABLISHED HARMONY. They likewise infer either that the life of the soul flows into the life of the body, or the life of the body into the life of the soul, whence they conceive INFLUX to be either SPIRITUAL or NATURAL: when, nevertheless, it is a truth attested by every object in creation that what is posterior does not act from itself, but from something prior, from which it proceeded; thus that neither does this act from itself, but from something still prior; and thus that nothing acts except from a First, which does act from itself, thus from God. Besides, there is only one life, and this is not capable of being created, but is eminently capable of flowing into forms organically adapted to its reception: all things in the created universe, in general and in particular, are such forms.
[5] It is believed by many that the soul is life, and thus that a man, since he lives from his soul, lives from his own life, thus of himself, consequently not by an influx of life from God. But such persons cannot avoid tying a sort of Gordian knot of fallacies, in which they entangle all the judgments of their mind till nothing but insanity in regard to spiritual things is the result; or they construct a maze, from which the mind can never, by any clue of reason, retrace its way and extricate itself. They also actually let themselves down, as it were, into caverns underground, where they dwell in eternal darkness.
[6] For from such a belief proceed innumerable fallacies, each of which is horrible: as that God has transfused and transcribed Himself into men, whence every man is a sort of deity that lives of himself, and thus that he does good and is wise from himself; likewise, that he possesses faith and charity in himself, and thus derives them from himself, and not from God; besides other monstrous sentiments, such as prevail with those in hell, who, when they were in the world, believed nature to live or to produce life by its own activity. When these look towards heaven, its light appears to them as mere thick darkness.
[7] I once heard from heaven the voice of some one saying that if a spark of life in man were his own, and not of God in him, there would be no heaven nor anything that exists there; whence also there would be no church on earth, and consequently no life eternal.
For further particulars relating to this subject, the memorable relation in the work on CONJUGIAL LOVE 132-136, 1may be consulted.
Footnotes:
1. And in THE TRUE CHRISTIAN RELIGION 48.
11. IX. The spiritual clothes itself with the natural, as a man clothes himself with a garment.
It is known that in every operation there is an active and a passive; and that from the active alone nothing exists, and nothing from the passive alone. It is the same with the spiritual and the natural; the spiritual, because it is a living force, is active, and the natural, because it is a dead force, is passive. Hence it follows that whatever has existed in this solar world from the beginning, and afterwards exists every moment, is from the spiritual through the natural, and this not only in the subjects of the animal kingdom, but also in the subjects of the vegetable kingdom.
[2] Another similar thing is also known, namely, that in everything which is effected there is a principal and an instrumental, and that these two, when anything is done, appear as one, although they are distinctly two; wherefore this also is one of the canons of wisdom, that the principal cause and the instrumental cause make together one cause; so also do the spiritual and the natural. That these two in producing effects appear as one, is because the spiritual is within the natural as the fibre is within the muscle, and as the blood is within the arteries; or as the thought is within the speech, and the affection in sounds; and it makes itself felt by means of the natural. From these things, but still as if through a lattice, it is evident that the spiritual clothes itself with the natural, as a man clothes himself with a garment.
[3] The organic body with which the soul clothes itself is here likened to a garment, because it clothes the soul, and the soul also puts off the body, and casts it away as exuviae when by death it emigrates from the natural world into its own spiritual world. For the body grows old like a garment; but not the soul, because this is a spiritual substance, which has nothing in common with the changes of nature, which progress from their beginnings to their ends, and are periodically terminated.
[4] They who do not consider the body as the vesture or covering of the soul, and as being in itself dead, and only adapted to receive the living forces flowing in through the soul from God, cannot help concluding, from fallacies, that the soul lives by itself, and the body by itself, and that there is a preestablished harmony between the lives of the two; or even that the life of the soul flows into the life of the body, or the life of the body into the life of the soul, and thus they conceive influx as either spiritual or natural; when yet it is a truth which is proved by everything that is created, that what is posterior does not act from itself, but from what is prior, from which it proceeded; thus that neither does this act from itself, but from something still prior; and thus that nothing acts except from the First which acts from itself, thus from God. Besides, there is only one life, and this is not capable of being created, but is eminently capable of flowing into forms organically adapted to its reception. Such forms are each and all of the things in the created universe.
[5] It is believed by many that the soul is life, and thus, that a man, because he lives from the soul, lives from his own life, thus from himself, and therefore not by an influx of life from God; but these cannot help tying a sort of Gordian knot of fallacies, and entangling in it all the judgments of their mind, whence are mere insanities in spiritual things; or constructing a labyrinth, from which the mind can never, by any thread of reason, retrace its way and extricate itself; they also actually let themselves down as it were in caverns under the earth, where they dwell in eternal darkness.
[6] For from such a belief proceed innumerable fallacies, each of which is horrible; as that God transfused and transcribed Himself into men, and that thus every man is a sort of Deity, which lives from itself, and thus that he does good and is wise from himself; likewise that he possesses faith and charity in himself, and thus derives them from himself, and not from God; besides many monstrous beliefs such as prevail with those in hell, who, when they were in the world, believed that nature lived, or produced life by its own activity. When these look towards heaven they see its light as mere thick darkness. I once heard the voice of one saying from heaven, that if a spark of life in man were his own, and not of God in him, there would be no heaven, nor anything therein, and hence that there would not be any church on earth, and consequently no life eternal. More upon this subject may be consulted in the Relation inserted in the work on Conjugial Love (132-136).
11. IX. Quod Spirituale induat se naturali, sicut homo se veste.
Notum est, quod in omni operatione sit activum et passivum, et quod ex solo activo nihil existat, nec aliquid ex solo passivo; simile est cum spirituali et naturali, spirituale quia est vis viva est activum, ac naturale quia est vis mortua est passivum; inde sequitur, quod quicquid in hoc Mundo solari a principio exstitit, et dein omni momento existit, sit ex spirituali per naturale, et hoc non modo in subjectis Regni animalis, sed etiam in subjectis Regni vegetabilis. Notum etiam est ejus simile, quod in omni quod efficitur sit principale et instrumentale, et quod haec duo, dum aliquid fit, appareant ut unum, tametsi distincte duo sunt; quare inter canones sapientiae etiam hoc est, quod causa principalis et causa instrumentalis faciant simul unam causam; ita quoque spirituale et naturale; quod haec duo in efficiendis appareant ut unum, est quia spirituale est intra naturale sicut fibra intra musculum, et sanguis intra arterias, aut sicut cogitatio intus in loquelis, et affectio in sonis, ac facit se sentiri per naturale ex his; sed adhuc, sicut per transennam, patet quod spirituale se induat naturali, sicut homo se veste. Corpus organicum, quo Anima se induerat, assimilatur hic vesti, quia hanc illud investit, et quoque Anima se illo exuit, et illud a se projicit sicut exuvias, cum per mortem a naturali Mundo emigrat in suum spiritualem; veterascit etiam corpus sicut vestis, non autem anima, quia haec est substantia spiritualis, quae nihil commune habet cum naturae mutationibus, quae progrediuntur ab exordiis ad fines, ac periodice terminantur. Illi qui non considerant Corpus ut vestimentum seu indumentum animae, quod in se est mortuum, et modo adaptatum recipiendis viribus vivis influentibus per Animam ex Deo, non possunt aliter quam ex fallaciis concludere, quod Anima per se vivat et Corpus per se, et quod inter utriusque vitam sit Harmonia Praestabilita; aut etiam quod vita animae influat in vitam corporis, aut vita corporis in vitam animae, et sic concipiunt Influxum aut Spiritualem aut Naturalem; cum tamen veritas ex omni quod creatum est contestata est, quod posterius non agat ex se sed ex priori a quo, ita nec hoc ex se sed ex adhuc priori, et quod sic non aliquid nisi a Primo, qui agit ex se, ita a Deo: praeterea Vita est unica, et haec non creabilis est, sed summopere influxibilis in formas organice adaptatas ad receptionem; tales formae sunt omnia et singula in Universo creato. Creditur a multis, quod Anima sit vita, et quod sic homo, quia vivit ex anima vivat ex sua vita, ita ex se, proinde non per Influxum vitae a Deo, sed hi non possunt aliter quam complicare quendam nodum gordium ex fallaciis, et omnia judicia mentis suae eidem intricare, unde mera insania in spiritualibus, aut struere labyrinthum, e quo mens nusquam per aliqua rationis fila potest remetiri viam et se educere; actualiter etiam se demittunt sicut in cavernas sub terra, ubi in aeternis tenebris degunt; nam fallaciae inde prodeunt innumerabiles, et singulae horrendae, ut quod Deus se transfuderit et transscripserit in homines, et quod inde unusquisque homo sit aliquod Numen, quod vivit ex se, et sic quod bonum faciat et sapiat ex se; similiter quod fidem et charitatem possideat in se et sic depromat illa a se, et non a Deo, praeter plura enormia, qualia sunt apud illos in inferno, qui, dum in Mundo erant, crediderunt naturam vivere, aut activitate sua producere vitam; hi dum spectant ad Caelum, vident lucem ejus ut meram caliginem. Quondam audivi vocem e Caelo dicentis, quod si foret scintilla vitae in homine ejus, et non Dei in illo, non foret Caelum, nec aliquid ibi, et inde quod non foret aliqua Ecclesia in terris, et inde non Vita aeterna. Consulantur plura de hac re in Memorabili inserto Operi de Amore Conjugiali 132-136.