5115. And it was as though it budded. That this signifies the influx by which the rebirth is effected, is evident from the signification of “budding,” or producing leaves and afterward blossoms, as being the first of rebirth. The reason why influx is signified is that when man is being reborn, spiritual life flows into him, exactly as when a tree is budding its life flows in through the heat from the sun. He who is born a man is in the Word occasionally compared to the subjects of the vegetable kingdom, especially to trees; and this because the whole vegetable kingdom, as well as the animal kingdom, represents such things as are in man, and consequently such as are in the Lord’s kingdom; for man is a heaven in the least form, as is evident from what has been shown at the end of the chapters concerning the correspondence of man with the Grand Man, or heaven. Hence also the ancients called man a microcosm; and they might also have called him a little heaven had they known more about the state of heaven. (That universal nature is a theater representative of the Lord’s kingdom, may be seen above, n. 2758, 3483, 4939.)

[2] But it is especially the man who is being born anew, that is, who is being regenerated by the Lord, who is called a heaven; for he is then implanted in the Divine good and truth which are from the Lord, and consequently in heaven. For the man who is being reborn begins like a tree from seed (and therefore the truth which is from good is signified by “seed” in the Word); and also like a tree he produces leaves, then blossoms, and finally fruit; for he produces such things as are of intelligence, which in the Word are signified by “leaves,” then such things as are of wisdom, which are signified by “blossoms,” and finally such things as are of life, that is, the goods of love and charity in act, which in the Word are signified by “fruits.” Such is the representative likeness between the fruit-bearing tree and the man who is being regenerated, insomuch that if anything is known about spiritual good and truth, the nature of regeneration may be learned from a tree. From this it is evident that by the “vine” in this dream is representatively described the full process of the rebirth of man as to the sensuous subject to the intellectual part; first by the three shoots, then by the budding, next by the blossoms, afterward by the ripening of the clusters into grapes, and finally by their being pressed into Pharaoh’s cup and given to him.

[3] Moreover the dreams which flow in through heaven from the Lord, never appear otherwise than according to representatives. He therefore who does not know what this or that thing in nature represents, and especially he who is quite unaware that anything is representative, cannot but believe that these representatives are merely comparisons, such as everyone uses in common speech. They indeed are comparisons, but such as correspond, and are therefore actually presented to view in the world of spirits, when the angels in an interior heaven are conversing about the spiritual and celestial things of the Lord’s kingdom. (In regard to dreams, see above, n. 1122, 1975, 1977, 1979-1981)