35. Man has two inherent powers of will and understanding. When the understanding is governed by the will they then constitute one mind and so one life; for what a person in that case wills and does he also thinks and intends. But when the understanding is at variance with the will, as it is with people who claim to have faith and yet live otherwise, then a mind previously one is split in two. One half seeks to transport itself into heaven, while the other inclines towards hell. And because the will is what accomplishes everything, the whole man would rush straight into hell unless the Lord took pity on him.

3680. 'And had sent him away to Paddan Aram' means the beginning of the manifestation [of the Natural] through cognitions of that good. This is clear from the meaning of 'he sent him away' as the beginning of its manifestation, dealt with above in 3674 and from the meaning of 'Paddan Aram' as the cognitions of truth, dealt with in 3664. They are called cognitions of good because all truths are cognitions of good. Truths which are not rooted in good, or which do not have good as the end in view, are not truths. But insofar as they look to doctrine they are called cognitions of truth.