From The Doctrines For Spiritual Christianity
…every man has a lower or exterior mind, and a higher or interior mind; the lower or exterior mind is the natural mind, which is called the natural man, while the higher or interior mind is the spiritual mind, and is called the spiritual man. The mind is called a man, for the reason that man is man because of his mind. These two minds, the higher and the lower, are altogether distinct; by the lower mind man is in the natural world, together with the men there, but by the higher mind he is in the spiritual world with the angels there. These two minds are so distinct that while man is living in the world he does not know what is going on in himself in his higher mind; and when he becomes a spirit, as he does immediately after death, he does not know what is going on in his lower mind. (Apocalypse Explained 527)
As every man has two minds, a natural and a spiritual, and the natural mind is opened and formed by such things as are in the world, while the spiritual mind is opened and formed by such things as are in heaven, and as the things that are in heaven are all spiritual, so a man’s spiritual mind must needs be opened and formed by such things as are in the Word, in which all things are spiritual because they are Divine. In the Word there are truths that are to be known and thought, and goods that must be willed and done; therefore it is by these goods and these truths that man’s spiritual mind is opened and formed. From this it follows, that unless the spiritual mind is opened and formed by truths and goods from the Word it remains closed; and when this is closed the natural mind only is opened and formed by such things as are in the world, from which man, indeed, derives a natural lumen, but such as has in it no wisdom from heaven. From this it is clear, in the second place, that faith is not faith so long as the natural mind only is opened, but that if the thought that a thing is so is called faith it is historical faith, which is nothing but knowledge from which the natural man thinks. (Apocalypse Explained 790 {4})
By means of the communication with the internal man, a man can think of celestial and spiritual things, or can look upward, which beasts cannot do. By means of the communication with the exterior man, a man can think of worldly and corporeal things, or can look downward; in this differing little from the beasts, which have in like manner an idea of earthly things. In a word, the interior or middle man is the rational man himself, who is spiritual or celestial when he looks upward, but animal when he looks downward. (Arcana Coelestia 1702)
Charity and good works are two distinct things, like willing what is good and doing what is good. With every man there is an internal and an external. His internal is what is called the internal man, and his external the external man. He who does not know what the internal man is, and what the external, may suppose that the internal man is that which thinks and wills, and the external that which speaks and acts. It is true, indeed, that speech and action are of the external man, and thought and will of the internal; but nevertheless, these are not what essentially constitute the external and the internal man. According to the common idea, man’s mind is the internal man. The mind itself, however, is divided into two regions, namely, the spiritual region, which is higher and interior, and the natural region, which is lower and exterior. The spiritual mind looks principally to the spiritual world, and has for its objects the things of that world, whether they are in heaven or in hell; for both these are in the spiritual world. The natural mind, however, looks principally to the natural world, and has for its objects the things of that world, whether good or evil. All man’s action and speech proceed directly from the lower region of the mind, and indirectly from the higher region, since the lower region of the mind is nearer to the bodily senses, and the higher region more remote from them. Man’s mind is thus divided, because he was created to be both spiritual and natural, and thus a man and not a beast. From this it is evident that a man who primarily regards the world and himself is an external man, because he is natural not only in body but also in mind; while the man who primarily looks to the things of heaven and the Church is an internal man, because he is spiritual both in mind and in body. He is spiritual even in body, because his actions and speech proceed from the higher mind which is spiritual, through the lower which is natural; for it is well known that effects proceed from the body, and the causes which produce them, from the mind, and that the cause is wholly in the effect. It is evident that the human mind is thus divided, because a man has the power to play the part of a dissembler, a flatterer, a hypocrite, or an actor; and while assenting to what another says, he may hold it in ridicule. In this case he ridicules it from his higher mind, and assents to it from the lower. (True Christian Religion 420 VII)
Key Points From The Video
The Inherent Limits of Language: Human language is inherently limited by its grounding in space and time, hindering the expression of complex spiritual experiences.
Understanding “Superior” and “Inferior” Minds: “Superior” and “inferior” (or “higher”/”lower”, “internal”/”external”) when referring to the spiritual and natural minds describe respective roles and dignity, not hierarchical value.
The Dual Nature of the Mind: Every individual has the potential for a spiritual and a natural mind, accessing distinct spheres of thought. The spiritual mind engages with higher truths and more profound realities, while the natural mind interacts directly with the physical world and our immediate sensations.
Two Worlds: Sensation and Thought: Sensations and experiences are linked to either the spiritual or natural mind. In the natural mind, we inhabit the natural world, which reflects the collective state of natural minds.
Entering the Realm of the Spiritual: The spiritual world is accessible to those who engage with higher realities and spiritual thought, unbound by the limitations of space and time.
Multiple Choice Questions
1. What is the primary limitation of human language according to the Text?
a. its lack of vocabulary
b. its inability to express emotions
c. its grounding in space and time
d. its complexity
Answer c)
2. When referring to the spiritual and natural minds, the terms “superior” and “inferior” are used to indicate:
a. the respective roles and inherent dignity of each
b. a strict hierarchical ranking
c. that the natural mind is less valuable than the spiritual mind
d. that the spiritual mind is only for certain individuals
Answer a)
3. What is the key characteristic of the spiritual mind?
a. its focus on material experiences
b. its engagement with higher truths and profound realities
c. its dependence on sensory information
d. its inability to understand the natural world
Answer b)
4. The natural world, as experienced through the natural mind, primarily reflects:
a. the thoughts and feelings of spiritual beings
b. the limitations of human language
c. a purely objective reality independent of the mind
d. the aggregate state of natural minds
Answer d)
5. What defines the spiritual world?
a. its grounding in material experiences
b. its freedom from the limitations of space and time
c. its dependence on human language for understanding
d. its inaccessibility to most people
Answer b)
Reflective Questions
1. How can recognising the limitations of language influence your approach to understanding spiritual concepts and communicating them to others?
2. In what ways do you currently engage with both your spiritual and natural minds, and how might you cultivate a greater balance between the two?
3. How can you actively seek to transcend the limitations of space and time in your own spiritual practices and understanding of the world?
Experiential Integration
Daily Dual Mind Practice: Set aside 15 minutes for focused reflection. Divide the time into two parts. First, engage your natural mind by focusing on a concrete task, like planning your day or solving a problem. Notice the sensations and thoughts that arise. Then, transition to your spiritual mind by focusing on a spiritual concept, such as love, compassion, or truth. Allow your mind to explore this concept without judgment, noticing the different qualities of thought and feeling that emerge.
Journal your observations, paying attention to the distinctions and connections between your natural and spiritual mind experiences.
Extra Exploration
There are also in every man two minds, the one interior, called the spiritual mind, the other exterior, called the natural mind. The spiritual mind is created for the reception of light from heaven, but the natural mind for the reception of light from the world; therefore the spiritual mind, which is the interior mind of man, is heaven in him, and the natural mind, which is his exterior mind, is his world. The interior mind, which is heaven in man, is opened in proportion as man acknowledges the Divine of the Lord, and man so far acknowledges as he is in the good of love and of charity, and in the truths of doctrine and of faith. But this interior mind, which is heaven in man, so far as he does not acknowledge the Divine of the Lord, and does not live a life of love and of faith, is not opened; and that mind is so far closed as a man is in evils and thence in falsities, and when it is closed, then the natural mind in man becomes infernal. For evil and its falsity are in the natural mind, and therefore when the spiritual mind, which is heaven in man, is closed, then the natural mind, which is hell, is dominant….the man of the church is alternately in a spiritual state and in a natural state. (Apocalypse Explained 644{3,6})
A man who in his earthly life has been elevated from sensuous things by means of the good of faith, is alternately in sensuous and in interior light; when he is in worldly cares, in company where external things flourish, and in pleasures, he is in sensuous life; in this state he shuns and is also averse to speaking and thinking about God, and about the things that belong to faith; and if he were then to speak and think on these subjects, he would make light of them, unless at the moment he were to be elevated by the Lord toward interior things. When the same man is not in worldly things, but in interior light, he thinks from what is just and fair; and if he is in a still more interior light, he thinks from spiritual truth and good. He who is in the good of life is elevated from one light into the other; and into the more interior light in an instant when he begins to think evilly; for angels are near him. This has been given to know by much experience, because I have frequently perceived the elevations, and at the same time the changes of state in respect to the affections, and in respect to the thoughts. (Arcana Coelestia 6315)
In general, there are affections of truth from two sources, namely, from a natural and from a spiritual source. Those who are in the affection of truth from a natural source look first to self and the world, and thence are natural; but those who are in the affection of truth from a spiritual source look first to the Lord and to heaven, and thence are spiritual. Man’s affection or love looks either downwards or upwards; those who look to self and the world look downwards, but those who look to the Lord and to heaven look upwards. (Apocalypse Explained 112{2})
Spiritual things must not be searched into by means of the knowledges [scientifica] of the natural man, nor by means of reasonings therefrom, but by the means of the Word, thus out of heaven from the Lord; for those who are in spiritual affection, and in spiritual thought therefrom, see the knowledges [scientifica] of the natural man and reasonings therefrom as below them, but from these no one can see spiritual things; from above one can look down on lower things on every side, but not the reverse. (Apocalypse Explained 569{16})