1170. "And every pilot (gubernator), and all who are employed upon ships, and mariners, and as many as do work on the sea."- That this signifies all those who believed themselves to have wisdom, intelligence, and knowledge, and had confirmed the falsities of doctrine and of that religion by reasonings from the natural man, is evident from the signification of ships, which denote knowledges of truth and good, as well as doctrinals in each sense, see above (n. 514). And because wisdom, intelligence, and knowledge (scientia) are from the knowledges of truth and good, therefore by a pilot are signified those who are in possession of wisdom; by those who are employed upon ships those who possess intelligence, and by sailors those who possess knowledge. It is said wisdom, intelligence, and knowledge, because these follow in such order with those who become wise from knowledges. Wisdom is in the third degree, intelligence in the second, and knowledge in the first or ultimate; they are therefore also mentioned in that order in the Word, as in Moses:
"I have filled" Bezaleel "with the spirit of God, as to wisdom, intelligence, and knowledge" (Exodus 31:3; 35:31).
The meaning above is further evident from the signification of doing work on the sea, as denoting to confirm by reasonings from the natural man, and in this case to confirm the falsities of that religion and doctrine; for the sea signifies the natural man, and doing work thereon signifies to reason, and to confirm by reasonings. Doing work on the sea properly signifies to procure for themselves those things by which they may acquire gain, as well as to sell those things, and to gain by them. But because the gains were described above by merchants and their merchandise, therefore doing work on the sea has here another signification, that is, confirmations by reasonings. That pilots or shipmasters signify those who are wise, is evident in Ezekiel:
"The wise men" of Zidon and Arvad "were thy pilots; the elders of Gebal and the wise men thereof were stopping thy fissure" (27:8, 9).
But these things may be seen explained above (n. 514).
[2] Continuation.- There are in man two faculties of life; the one is called the understanding and the other the will. Those faculties are altogether distinct from each other, but are created to form one, and when they form one, they are called one mind; they are however at first divided, but are afterwards united. They are distinct, exactly like light and heat; for the understanding is from the light of heaven, which in its essence is Divine Truth or Divine Wisdom. Man's understanding, also, while he is in the world, sees from this light, thinking, reasoning, and forming its conclusions from it. A man however is ignorant of this fact, because he knows nothing of that light and its origin. Again, the will is from the heat of heaven, which in its essence is Divine Good or Divine Love. Man's will, while he is in the world, loves from that heat, deriving all its pleasure and delight from it. A man is again ignorant of this fact, because he knows nothing of that heat and of its origin. Now, because the understanding sees from the light of heaven, it is evident that it is the subject and receptacle of this light, thus also the subject and receptacle of truth and the wisdom derived from it. And because the will loves from the heat of heaven, it is evident that it is the subject and receptacle of this heat, thus also the subject and receptacle of good, thus of love. From these considerations it is clearly evident, that these two faculties of man's life are distinct like light and heat, truth and good, wisdom and love.
[3] It may be clearly seen that these two faculties in man are at first divided, from this fact, that man can understand truth, and from truth good, and approve it, without either willing it or from his will doing it. For he understands what is true, and thence what is good, when he hears, or reads the former; and he so perfectly understands, that he can afterwards teach it by preaching and writing. But when he is alone, and thinks from his own spirit, he can then see that he does not will truth, indeed, that he wills to act contrary to it, and that he actually does so, when not restrained by fears. Such is the character of those who can speak intelligently, and yet live otherwise. This is what is meant by a man's seeing one law in his spirit, and another in his flesh, for spirit is the understanding, and flesh the will.
[4] This disagreement between the understanding and will is perceived chiefly by those who desire to be reformed, but little by others. The reason of its existence is, that the understanding in man is not destroyed, but the will is destroyed. For the understanding is comparatively like the light of the world, by which a man is able to see with equal clearness in the time of winter as in the time of summer; and the will is comparatively like the heat of the world, which may be either absent from the light, or present with it, for it is absent in the time of winter, and present in the time of summer. But the case is this, that nothing but the will destroys the understanding, as nothing but the absence of heat destroys the germinations of the earth.
The understanding is destroyed by the will in the case of those who are in evils of life, when the understanding and will act in unison, not otherwise. They act in unison, when a man thinks by himself from his own love, but they do not so act when he is in company with others; for in the latter case, he conceals and thus removes the love proper to his own will, and when this is removed, the understanding is elevated into a higher light.
[5] The following experience may serve to confirm this. I have occasionally heard spirits converse with each other, and also with myself, so wisely, that an angel could scarcely have spoken more wisely, and I have been led from this to suppose, that in a short time they would be taken up into heaven; but after a time I have seen them with the wicked in hell. I was surprised at this, but was then permitted to hear them talking in a totally different manner, not in favour of truths as before, but against them, the reason being that they were then in the love belonging to their real will and understanding, while previously they were not. I have also been permitted to see how man's proprium is distinguished from that which is not his proprium, for this may be seen in the light of heaven. The proprium resides in the interiors, but the non-proprium in the exteriors, and the latter veils and hides the former, so that it does not appear until the veil is taken away, as is the case with all after death. I have also observed that many were amazed at what they saw and heard, but they were those who judge of the state of a man's soul from his conversation and writings, without taking into account the actions of his real will. From these considerations it is evident that these two faculties of life in man are at first divided.
[6] Something shall now be said of their union. They are united in the case of those who are reformed, the union being effected by means of combat against the evils of the will; for when these are removed, the will of good acts in unison with the understanding of truth. It therefore follows that such as is the will, such is the understanding; or, what is the same thing, that such as is the love, such is the wisdom. The reason why the latter is of the same quality as the former is, that the love belonging to the will is the esse of man's life, and the wisdom belonging to the understanding is its existere. The love, therefore, belonging to the will forms itself in the understanding, the form which it there receives being called wisdom; for since both have one essence, it is evident that wisdom is the form of love, or love in form. After these faculties are thus united by reformation, then the love of the will increases daily, by means of spiritual nourishment in the understanding; for in the understanding it has its affection for truth and good, which is like an appetite that hungers and desires.
From the above it is evident that it is the will which must be reformed, and that so far as it is reformed, the understanding sees, that is, grows wise; for, as was said above, the will, but not the understanding, is destroyed. The will and the understanding also make one in the case of those who are unreformed, or evil, if not in this world, still after death; for after death man is not allowed to think from his understanding except according to the love of his will, every one being at length reduced to this condition; and when this is the case, then the evil love of the will has its form in the understanding, which form, because it is from the falsities of evils, is insanity.
