Page:The Swedenborg Library Vol 9.djvu/36

From Wikisource
Jump to navigation Jump to search
This page has been proofread, but needs to be validated.

and with one of the sex. Moreover, love for many and with many is a natural love, for it is common with beasts and birds which are natural; but conjugial love is a spiritual love, and is peculiar and proper to men because they were created and are born to become spiritual. Therefore so far as a man becomes spiritual, he puts off the love of the sex and puts on conjugial love.

In the beginning of marriage the love of the sex appears as if conjoined with conjugial love, but in its progress they are separated; and then, with those who are spiritual the love of the sex is expelled, and conjugial love is introduced; but with those who are natural, the contrary takes place. Hence it is evident that the love of the sex, because it is with many and is in itself natural, yea, animal, is impure and unchaste; and because it is vague and unlimited, it is scortatory. But conjugial love is altogether different. That this love is spiritual and properly human, will appear plain from what follows.

MEETING OF CONSORTS AFTER DEATH.

Two consorts most commonly meet after death, know each other, again consociate, and for some time live together; which takes place in the first state, that is, while they are in externals as in the world.

There are two states into which man comes after death, an external and an internal. He comes first