El Cielo y sus maravillas y el Infierno de cosas oídas y vistas

ÍNDICE GENERAL DEL CONTENIDO

Parte I — El Cielo

§1 [Prólogo del Autor]

Capítulo 1, (2-6), El Dios del Cielo es el Señor

Capítulo 2, (7-12), La Divinidad del Señor hace el Cielo

Capítulo 3, (13-19), En el Cielo la Divinidad del Señor es el amor a Él y la caridad hacia el prójimo

Capítulo 4, (20-28), El Cielo está dividido en dos reinos

Capítulo 5, (29-40), Hay tres cielos

Capítulo 6, (41-50), Los cielos se componen de innumerables sociedades

Capítulo 7, (51-58), Cada sociedad es un Cielo en la más pequeña forma, y cada ángel en la más pequeña forma, constituye un Cielo

Capítulo 8, (59-67), Todo Cielo en su conjunto, refleja a un sólo hombre

Capítulo 9, (68-72), Cada sociedad en el Cielo refleja a un sólo hombre

Capítulo 10, (73-77), Todo Ángel está en el Cielo en forma completamente humana

Capítulo 11, (78-86), De la Divina Humanidad del Señor es de donde el Cielo, como un todo y una parte, se refleja en el hombre

Capítulo 12, (87-102), Hay una correspondencia de todas las cosas del Cielo con todas las cosas del hombre

Capítulo 13, (103-115), Hay una correspondencia del Cielo con todas las cosas de la Tierra

Capítulo 14, (116-125), El sol en el Cielo

Capítulo 15, (126-140), La luz y el calor en el Cielo

Capítulo 16, (141-153), Las cuatro partes del Cielo o los cuatro puntos cardinales

Capítulo 17, (154-161), Cambios de estado de los ángeles en el Cielo

Capítulo 18, (162-169), El tiempo en el Cielo

Capítulo 19, (170-176), Las representaciones y las apariencias en el Cielo

Capítulo 20, (177-182), Los vestidos con que los ángeles aparecen ataviados

Capítulo 21, (183-190), Las moradas de los ángeles

Capítulo 22, (191-199), El espacio en el Cielo

Capítulo 23, (200-212), La Forma del Cielo y de cómo ésta determina las afiliaciones y las comunicaciones allá

Capítulo 24, (213-220), Los gobiernos en el Cielo

Capítulo 25, (221-227), El culto Divino en el Cielo

Capítulo 26, (228-233), El poder de los ángeles en el Cielo

Capítulo 27, (234-245), El habla de los ángeles

Capítulo 28, (246-257), El habla de los ángeles con el hombre

Capítulo 29, (258-264), La escritura en el Cielo

Capítulo 30, (265-275), La sabiduría de los ángeles del Cielo

Capítulo 31, (276-283), El estado de inocencia de los ángeles en el Cielo

Capítulo 32, (284-290), El estado de paz en el Cielo

Capítulo 33, (291-302), La unión del Cielo con la especie humana

Capítulo 34, (303-310), La unión del Cielo con el hombre a través de la palabra

Capítulo 35, (311-317), El Cielo y el Infierno son propios de la especie humana

Capítulo 36, (318-328), Situación de los no cristianos o de los que están fuera de la Iglesia, en el Cielo

Capítulo 37, (329-345), Los niños en el Cielo

Capítulo 38, (346-356), Los sabios y los sencillos en el Cielo

Capítulo 39, (357-365), Los ricos y los pobres en el Cielo

Capítulo 40, (366-386), Los matrimonios en el Cielo

Capítulo 41, (387-394), Los empleos de los ángeles en el Cielo

Capítulo 42, (395-414), La alegría y la felicidad en el Cielo

Capítulo 43, (415-420), La inmensidad del Cielo

Parte II - El mundo de los espíritus y el estado del hombre después de la muerte.

Capítulo 44, (421-431), De lo que es el mundo de los espíritus

Capítulo 45, (432-444), Con respecto a su interioridad, todo hombre es un espíritu

Capítulo 46, (445-452), La resurrección y la entrada a la vida eterna

Capítulo 47, (453-460), El hombre después de la muerte está en completa forma humana

Capítulo 48, (461-469), Después de la muerte el hombre posee todos los sentidos, toda la memoria, pensamiento y afección que tuvo en el mundo, no dejando nada tras de si, sino su cuerpo terrenal

Capítulo 49, (470-484), El hombre después de la muerte es tal como lo fue en su vida en el mundo

Capítulo 50, (485-490), Las delicias de la vida de cada cual, se transforman, después de la muerte, en las delicias correspondientes

Capítulo 51, (491-498), El primer estado del hombre después de la muerte

Capítulo 52, (499-511), El segundo estado del hombre después de la muerte

Capítulo 53, (512-520), El tercer estado del hombre después de la muerte: estado de instrucción para aquellos que entran al Cielo

Capítulo 54, (521-527), Nadie entra al Cielo por mera misericordia sin los medios necesarios para ello

Capítulo 55, (528-535), No es tan difícil vivir la vida que conduce al Cielo como muchos creen

Parte III - El Infierno

Capítulo 56, (536-544), El Señor gobierna los infiernos

Capítulo 57, (545-550), Ninguno es arrojado al Infierno por el Señor, esto lo hace el espíritu de cada cual

Capítulo 58, (551-565), Todos los que están en los infiernos están en los males y en los errores que hay en ellos, derivados del amor al yo (egoísmo) y al mundo

Capítulo 59, (566-575), Lo que es el fuego del Infierno y el crujir de dientes

Capítulo 60, (576-581), La malicia y los artificios de los espíritus infernales

Capítulo 61, (582-588), La aparente situación y número de los infiernos

Capítulo 62, (589-596), El equilibrio entre el Cielo y el Infierno

Capítulo 63, (597-603), Por medio del equilibrio entre el Cielo y el Infierno, el hombre tiene libertad

10551. 'And so it was, when Moses entered the tent, that the pillar of cloud came down, and stood at the door of the tent, and talked to Moses' means that when the Word had gone beyond what they were capable of understanding, extremely poor visibility descended on them as they stood outside, and yet there was clear perception from within. This is clear from the meaning of 'when Moses entered the tent' as when the Word had gone beyond what they were capable of understanding, dealt with immediately above in 10550; from the meaning of 'the pillar of cloud' as extremely poor visibility so far as that nation was concerned, for by 'cloud' the outward sense of the Word is meant, see Preface to Genesis 18, and 4060, 4391, 5922, 6343(end), 6752, 8443, 8781, and also the poor visibility of the Word so far as those who have no enlightenment are concerned, and its extremely poor visibility so far as those with whom the outward sense of the Word is separated from the inward are concerned, 6832, 8106, 8814, 8819, 9430; from the meaning of 'standing at the door' as being outside, dealt with above in 10549; and from the meaning of 'talking to Moses' as clear perception from within. For the Word - as it is essentially - is meant by 'Moses', see 9372, while perceiving is meant by 'talking', see in the places referred to in 10290. The reason why 'from within' is meant is that Moses, to whom 'the pillar of cloud' talked, was within the tent.

[2] What it is to see from without and to perceive from within must be stated. Those who have enlightenment when they read the Word see it from within; for their internal has been opened, and when the internal has been opened it dwells in the light of heaven. This light flows in and brings enlightenment, though the person is not conscious of its doing so. He is not conscious of this because that light flows into the cognitions or knowledge present in the human memory, which however dwell in natural light. And since the person feels, when he uses them to think with, that he does so all by himself he cannot be aware of the influx; yet there are various indications enabling him to know that he has been given enlightenment. But anyone at all who supposes that he has enlightenment is mistaken if he does not love to know truth for its own sake and for the sake of leading a good life, thus if he does not love Divine Truth for life's sake. For leading a life in keeping with Divine Truths derived from the Word constitutes loving the Lord; and from the Lord, when He is loved, springs all enlightenment.

[3] Those however who do not see a life in keeping with Divine Truths derived from the Word as the end in view, but position, gain, and reputation as the end in view and the Divine Truths of the Word therefore as the means, cannot possibly possess any enlightenment. This end is worldly and bodily, and not spiritual and heavenly. Consequently it closes off their internal man, and once this is closed no light from heaven can flow in and bring enlightenment. If these people suppose that they are enlightened when they read the Word they are completely mistaken; for their thought is inspired not by heaven but by the world, and so springs not from the Lord but from self. And to the extent that it springs from self and the world it is the product of natural light separated from heavenly light; and natural light separated from heavenly light constitutes thickest darkness in spiritual matters. If these people are convinced that they have seen something as a result of having been enlightened they are mistaken. For the only way that they perceive whether anything is true is with the aid of proofs supplied by others, which is to see truth from without and not from within, or else with the aid of faith that is no more than persuasion, the nature of which may be seen in 9363-9369. Such people are able to see falsity as truth and truth as falsity, and also to see evil as good and good as evil.

[4] From all this it is clear what seeing the Word from without is and perceiving it from within is. Seeing it from without is what is meant when it says that the people stood, [each] at the door of [his] tent, and looked after Moses, and also that they saw the pillar of cloud standing at the door of the tent, and they bowed down, [each] at the door of [his] tent. But perceiving the Word from within is what is meant when it says that Moses entered the tent, and that the pillar of cloud at the door of the tent talked to Moses.

[5] A brief statement must also be made about the way in which the influx bringing enlightenment operates. Angels equally with men perceive the Word when it is read; but angels do so on a spiritual level, men on a natural level. A person whose internal has been opened also perceives it on a spiritual level, though he is not conscious of doing so while he lives in the world because his spiritual thought flows into his natural thought in the external man and manifests itself within this. Nevertheless that interior thought is what enlightens and is the channel through which influx from the Lord operates. Some learned people by looking into their own thoughts and reflecting on what they see have also noticed that the human being possesses interior thought which is not overt. They have therefore called the ideas composing it immaterial and intellectual ¹ , distinguishing them from the overt ideas composing exterior thought, which they have called natural and material. But they have not known that the ideas composing interior thought are spiritual, nor that when these flow down from their own level they are converted into natural ones and then take on a different shape and appearance. These considerations show to some extent the way in which the influx bringing enlightenment operates.

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