Selection from Arcana Coelestia ~ Emanuel Swedenborg
— Doctrinal Things of Charity —
Heaven and Heavenly Joy
The love of good and the derivative faith of truth make the life of heaven, and the love of evil and the derivative faith of falsity make the life of hell.
Heaven is present with all, both angels and men, who receive love and faith from the Lord; and therefore those come into heaven after death who have heaven in them during their life in the world.
Those who have heaven in them desire the good of all, and feel delight in benefiting others, not for the sake of themselves and the world, but for the sake of the good, and for the sake of the truth, which is so to be done. But those who have hell in them desire evil to all, and feel delight in doing evil to others. If these feel delight in benefiting others, it is not for the sake of what is good and true, but for the sake of themselves and the world.
Heaven with man is in his internal, thus in his thinking and willing; and from this is in the external, that is, in his speaking and doing. But heaven is not in the external without the internal, for all hypocrites can speak well and do well, but not think well and will well. By thinking well, and willing well, is meant thinking and willing what is from the love of good, and from the faith of truth.
When a man comes into the other life, which takes place immediately after death, it is evident whether heaven is in him, or hell; but not while he lives in the world. For in the world only the external appears, and not the internal; whereas in the other life the internal stands open, because the man then lives in respect to his spirit.
From all this it can be seen what makes heaven, namely, love to the Lord and love toward the neighbor, and likewise faith, but this latter only insofar as it has life from these loves. Hence it is again evident that the Lord's Divine makes heaven, for both this love and the derivative faith are from the Lord, and whatever is from the Lord is Divine.
Eternal happiness, which is also called heavenly joy, exists with those who are in love and faith toward the Lord from the Lord. This love, and this faith, have this joy in them; and after death the man who has heaven in him comes into this joy. In the meantime it lies hidden in his internal.
In the heavens there is a communion of all goods. There the peace, intelligence, wisdom, and happiness of all are communicated to everyone, and that of everyone is communicated to all, yet to each according to the reception of love and of faith from the Lord. From this it is evident how great in heaven are the peace, intelligence, wisdom, and happiness.
Those in whom reign the love of self and the love of the world, do not know what heaven is, and what is the happiness of heaven, and it appears incredible to them that there is any happiness in other loves than these; when yet the happiness of heaven enters only insofar as these loves are removed, as ends. The happiness which succeeds on their removal is so great that it surpasses all man's apprehension.
(Arcana Coelestia 10714-10724)
(series to be continued)