8343. 'The horse and its rider He has thrown into the sea' means that as a result simply of His presence falsities in faith and evils in life cast themselves into hell. This is clear from the meaning of 'horse and rider' as falsities arising from evil, dealt with in 8146, 8148; and from the meaning of 'throwing into the sea' as into hell, dealt with in 8099, 8137, 8138. As regards its happening as a result simply of the Lord's presence, see 8137 (end), 8265. The reason for saying that the falsities and evils cast themselves into hell is that falsities and evils themselves are what are cast into hell, and these drag down with them the people to whom they cling. For through evil in life a person becomes a form of the falsity that arises from evil; consequently when evils themselves accompanied by falsities are thrown down, forms to which they cling are dragged down together with them. Falsities and evils are emanations from the hells, flowing in among those who through evils in life have made their inner selves into forms that receive those emanations, since everything composing thought and will flows in, what is good from heaven, but what is bad from hell, see 2886-2888, 4151, 4249, 5846, 6189, 6191, 6193, 6203, 6206, 6213, 6324, 6325, 7147, 7343. These then are the reasons for saying that the falsities in faith and evils in life cast themselves into hell. On account of this when angels think and talk about the hells they think and talk about falsities and evils completely separate from the inhabitants there; for angels always banish ideas that focus on persons and confine themselves to those that focus on things, 5225, 5287, 5434.

6325. It is an eternal truth that the Lord rules over heaven and earth, also that no one apart from the Lord is self-existent, consequently that all life flows in - life filled with goodness flowing in from the Lord, life filled with evil flowing in from hell. This is what they believe in the heavens; and when a person shares their belief, which he is able to do when he is governed by good, evil cannot be attached to him or be accepted by him as his own because he knows that it does not originate in himself but in hell. When this is a person's state peace can be granted to him, for he trusts solely in the Lord. Nor can peace be granted to anyone else but those who have that faith springing from charity; for others constantly plunge themselves into anxious cares and evil desires that give rise to feelings of unease. Spirits who wish to govern themselves imagine that that state would amount to a loss of their own will, thus of their freedom, consequently of all delight, thus of all life and its sweetness. They say and imagine this because they do not know the real truth of the matter, which is that one who is led by the Lord enjoys true freedom, and so true delight and bliss. Forms of good and truths are assigned to him as his own; an affection and desire to do good are imparted to him, in which case nothing gives him greater happiness than the performance of useful services; a perception of what is good is imparted to him, also a sensation of it; and intelligence and wisdom are imparted to him. And all these things that he is given feel as though they are his own. For when led by the Lord he is a recipient of the Lord's life. It is well known in the world of learning that a principal cause and an instrumental cause act together as a single cause. Now since man is a form receptive of the Lord's life, he is the instrumental cause, whereas the life from the Lord is the principal cause. This life is felt by the instrumental cause to be its own, when in fact it is not its own.