Conjugial Love

...labyrinth is truly an entrance into heaven; I know the way that leads out of it, and if you will follow me, I will show it to you." As soon as he said those words, they got up from the ground and, embracing the angel, went along with him and his companions.

As they walked, the angel taught them about the true nature of heavenly joy and the eternal happiness that comes from it. "These things," he said, "do not consist merely in external pleasures of paradise, unless they are also accompanied by internal ones. External pleasures reach only the physical senses, but internal pleasures reach the affections of the soul. Without the soul, external pleasures lack heavenly life. Any delight without its corresponding soul becomes increasingly weak and dull, eventually tiring the mind more than hard work. There are gardens like paradise in every part of heaven where angels find great joy; however, that joy is only real and true when it is accompanied by the delight of the soul."

Upon hearing this, they all asked, "What is the delight of the soul, and where does it come from?"

The angel replied, "The delight of the soul comes from the love and wisdom that flow from the Lord. Since love is active—and works through wisdom—they both come together in the result of that action, which is original: "use"; in Swedenborgian theology, "use" refers to performing services, duties, or good works for the benefit of others use. This delight enters the soul by original: "influx"; the spiritual process of life or influence flowing from God into the mind and body influx from the Lord. It flows down through the higher and lower regions of the mind into all the senses of the body, where it becomes full and complete. In this way, it becomes a true joy that shares in the eternal nature of the source from which it flows. You have just seen a garden like paradise. I can assure you that there is nothing there—not even a single leaf—that does not exist because of the 'marriage' of love and wisdom in their practical application. Therefore, if a person lives in this marriage of love and wisdom, they are in a heavenly paradise, and thus in heaven."

9. After this, the guide returned to the meeting house. He spoke to those who had convinced themselves that heavenly joy and eternal happiness consist of nothing but a constant glorification of God and a never-ending festival of prayer and praise. They believed this because of ideas they held while in the world—namely, that they would see God face-to-face and that life in heaven is a "perpetual Sabbath" centered entirely on worship.

"Follow me," the angel told them, "and I will lead you to your joy."

He led them into a small city with a temple at its center, where all the houses were considered to be consecrated chapels. In that city, they saw a large crowd of people gathering from all over the surrounding countryside. Among them were many priests who welcomed them, greeted them on their arrival, and led them by the hand to the gates of the temple. From there, they led them into some of the nearby chapels, where they initiated them into the per