1385. Er zijn geesten, die tot de streek van de huid, vooral van de schubachtige huid behoren, die over alles willen redeneren en geenszins gewaarworden, wat goed en waar is, en die het zelfs hoe meer zij redeneren, des te minder gewaarworden, doordat zij in het redeneren de wijsheid stellen, en ook zo als wijs gezien te worden. Hun werd gezegd, dat de wijsheid van de engelen bestaat in het innerlijk gewaarworden of iets goed en waar is, zonder geredeneer; maar zij begrijpen niet, dat zo’n innerlijke gewaarwording kan bestaan Het zijn diegenen, die in het leven van het lichaam het goede en het ware verward hebben door wetenschappelijke en filosofische dingen, en zich vandaar voor geleerder hielden dan anderen en die van te voren niet enig beginsel van het ware uit het Woord hadden opgenomen; en zij hebben daarom minder gezonde rede.
The New Jerusalem and its Heavenly Doctrine # 52
52. Of the natural memory, which is of the external man, and of the spiritual memory, which is of the internal man.
Man has two memories, an exterior and an interior memory, or a natural and a spiritual memory (n. 2469-2494). Man does not know that he has an interior memory (n. 2470-2471). How much the interior memory excels the exterior memory (n. 2473). The things in the exterior memory are in natural light, but the things in the interior memory, in spiritual light (n. 5212). It is from the interior memory that man is able to think and speak intellectually and rationally (n. 9394[1-6]). All and every particular which man has thought, spoken, and done, and all that he has heard and seen, are inscribed on his interior memory (n. 2474, 7398). That memory is man's book of life (n. 2474, 9386, 9841, 10505). In the interior memory are the truths which are become of faith, and the goods which are become of love (n. 5212, 8067). The things which are rendered habitual, and have become of the life, are in the interior memory (n. 9394, 9723, 9841). Scientifics and knowledges are of the exterior memory (n. 5212, 9922). They are very obscure and involved, respectively to those things which are of the interior memory (n. 2831). The languages which man speaks in the world are from the exterior memory (n. 2472, 2476). Spirits and angels speak from the interior memory, and consequently their language is universal, being such that all can converse together, of whatever land they may be (n. 2472, 2476, 2490, 2493); concerning which language, see the work on Heaven and Hell (n. 234-245); and concerning the wonders of the interior memory; which remains with man after death (see n. 463).
Arcana Coelestia # 2227
2227. That 'Abraham will certainly become a great and numerous nation' means that from the Lord will come all good, and from this all truth, is clear from the representation of 'Abraham' as the Lord, dealt with often above, and also from the meaning of 'nation' as good, dealt with in 1159, 1258-1260, 1416, 1849 - here 'a great and numerous nation', by which good and truth deriving from it are meant. That 'great' has reference to good and 'numerous' to truth may become clear from other places in the Word, but I must refrain from quoting them here. Truth derived from good is in the genuine sense spiritual good, for there are two kinds of good, quite distinct and separate from each other, namely celestial good and spiritual good. Celestial good is the manifestation of love to the Lord, spiritual good the manifestation of love towards the neighbour. From the former, that is, celestial good, flows the latter, that is, spiritual good; for no one is able to love the Lord unless he also loves the neighbour. Love to the Lord embraces love towards the neighbour, for love to the Lord originates in the Lord, thus in Love itself towards the whole human race. Abiding in love to the Lord is the same as abiding in the Lord, and one who abides in the Lord must inevitably abide in His love which is directed towards the human race, and thus towards the neighbour, so that in him both kinds of good are present - both celestial and spiritual. Celestial good is indeed good itself, but spiritual good is in fact truth that goes with or is derived from that celestial good. This truth, as stated, is spiritual good. It is celestial good that is meant by 'great', but spiritual good by 'numerous'.
