Heaven and Hell #122
122. The sun of the world appears to the angels as a dense darkness from being opposite to the Sun of heaven, and the moon as a darkness from being opposite to the Moon of heaven, and this constantly. The reason is that the world's fieriness corresponds to the love of self, and the illumination from it corresponds to what is false from that love. The love of self is the direct opposite of the Divine love, what is false from that love is the direct opposite of the Divine truth, and the opposite of the Divine love and the Divine truth is, to the angels, dense darkness. Therefore, in the Word, to worship the sun and moon of this world and bow down to them, signifies to love self and the falsities that are from the love of self, and such will be cut off.
(Deuteronomy 4:19; 17:3-5, Jeremiah 8:1-2, Ezekiel 8:15-16, 18, Revelation 16:8, Matthew 13:6) 1 .
Footnotes:
1. [Swedenborg's footnote] The sun of the world is not visible to the angels, but, in its place, something dark at the back, opposite to the Sun of heaven, which is the Lord (Arcana Coelestia 7078, 9755).
The sun in the opposite sense signifies the love of self (Arcana Coelestia 2441); in which sense, by adoring the sun, is signified to worship those things that are contrary to heavenly love, or to the Lord (Arcana Coelestia 2441, 10584).
To those who are in the hells, the Sun of heaven is thick darkness (Arcana Coelestia 2441).
