321. We need to realize that to all outward appearances, the spiritual world is just like the physical world. You can see lands there, mountains, hills, valleys, plains, fields, lakes, rivers, and springs like the ones in our earthly world; everything, then, that belongs to the mineral kingdom. You can see parks as well, gardens, groves, and woods, with all kinds of trees and shrubs with their fruits and seeds, smaller plants, flowers, herbs, and grasses; everything, then, that belongs to the plant kingdom. You can see all kinds of animals, birds, and fish--everything that belongs to the animal kingdom. The people there are angels and spirits.

This is prefaced to let it be known that the whole spiritual world is just like the whole physical world, the sole difference being that things there are not static and stable the way they are in a physical world because there is nothing of nature there. Everything is spiritual.

334. These gifts have been given to mankind to use and enjoy, and they are free gifts, as is clearly apparent from the state of angels in heaven, who likewise have a body, rational faculty, and spiritual character, as people do on earth. They are nourished without cost, for they are daily given their food. They are clothed without cost, because they are given their clothing. They have their lodging without cost, because they are given their houses. Nor do they worry about any of these things. ¹ Moreover, to the extent that they are spiritually rational, they experience enjoyment, protection, and the preservation of their condition.

The difference is that angels see that these are gifts from the Lord, because things there are created in accordance with the state of their love and wisdom, as we showed in the preceding discussion (no. 322), while people do not see this, because things here recur yearly and exist not in accordance with the state of people's love and wisdom, but according to the care they expend on them.

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