364. Everyone sees that discernment is the vessel of wisdom, but not many see that volition is the vessel of love. This is because our volition does nothing by itself, but acts through our discernment. It first branches off into a desire and vanishes in doing so, and a desire is noticeable only through a kind of unconscious pleasure in thinking, talking, and acting. We can still see that love is the source because we all intend what we love and do not intend what we do not love.

525. Most of those who come into the other life from the Christian world bring with them this belief that they can be saved as a result of immediate mercy, for they pray for that mercy; but when examined they are found to believe that coming into heaven is merely gaining admission, and that those who are let in are in heavenly joy, being wholly ignorant of what heaven is and what heavenly joy is. Consequently, they are told that the Lord denies heaven to no one, and that they can be admitted and can stay there if they desire it. Those who were so desirous were admitted; but as soon as they reached the first threshold they were seized with such anguish of heart from a draught of heavenly heat, which is the love in which angels are, and from an inflow of heavenly light, which is Divine Truth, that they felt in themselves infernal torment instead of heavenly joy, and, struck with dismay, they cast themselves down headlong. Thus they were taught by living experience that it is impossible to grant heaven to anyone as a result of immediate mercy.