Conjugial Love #365

By Emanuel Swedenborg

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Conjugial Love (Rogers translation)


365. 5. The zeal of a good love harbors in its inner aspects friendship and love, but the zeal of an evil love harbors in its inner aspects hatred and vengeance. We said that zeal appears in outward respects like anger and rage, both in those who are prompted by a good love and in those who are prompted by an evil love. But because the internal elements are different, so also their expressions of anger and rage are different; and the differences are as follows:

1. The zeal of a good love is like a heavenly flame, which never leaps out to attack another, but only defends itself - defending itself against an evil assailant in much the same way as when such a one rushes at fire and is burned; whereas the zeal of an evil love is like a hellish flame, which spontaneously leaps out and rushes upon another and tries to devour him.

2. The zeal of a good love immediately dies down and softens when the other desists from the attack; whereas the zeal of an evil love persists and is not extinguished.

3. The reason for this is that the internal element in one who is prompted by a love of good, is, in itself, gentle, mild, friendly and kind. Consequently, even when, to protect itself, the external element hardens, stiffens, bristles, and so acts harshly, still it is tempered by the goodness which moves its internal element. Not so in evil people. In them the internal element is hostile, savage, harsh, seething with hatred and vengeance, and it feeds on the delights of those emotions. And even if it is appeased, still those emotions lie concealed within, like fires smoldering in the wood beneath the ash; and if these fires do not break out in the world, nevertheless they do after death.

Conjugial Love (Wunsch translation)


365. (v) The zeal of a good love hides love and friendship in its internals, but the zeal of an evil love hides hatred and revenge in its internals. We have said that zeal in externals looks like anger and wrath with those in a good love as well as with those in an evil love. But as the internals are different, the anger and wrath are, too. The differences are as follows: 1. The zeal of good love is like a heavenly flame which never bursts forth against another, but only defends itself, doing no more than this against an evil person; it is the latter who rushes into the fire and is consumed. But the zeal of evil love is like an infernal flame; it bursts forth and rushes out and wants to consume the other. 2. The zeal of a good love at once dies down and softens when the other retreats from the attack; but the zeal of an evil love persists and is not extinguished. 3. For the internal of a person in a good love is in itself mild, bland, friendly and benevolent. Therefore the external, though it grows rough, bristles, draws itself up, and thus deals severely to defend itself, is still tempered by the good in which its internal is. The case is otherwise with the evil. With them the internal is unfriendly, fierce, hard, breathing hatred and revenge, finding food in harboring these feelings. Even when there is reconciliation, these feelings hide like a fire under ashes. These fires break out after death if not in this world.

  
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Many thanks to the General Church of the New Jerusalem, and to Rev. N.B. Rogers, translator, for the permission to use this translation.