The philosophy of Emanuel Swedenborg : God, Man and the cosmos

and that it feels that other’s joy as a joy in itself. This is to love. But to feel its own joy in another and not that other’s joy in itself, is not to love; for this is to love one’s self, but the former is to love the neighbour. These two kinds of love are diametrically opposite to one another... .

“Who that can look into the essence of love cannot see this? For what is loving one’s self alone and not another outside of one’s self; by whom one may be loved in return? This is dissolution rather than conjunction. Conjunction of love is by reciprocity; and there is no reciprocity in self alone... . Hence it is plain that the Divine Love cannot otherwise than be and exist in others whom it may love and by whom it may be loved. For if there is such a thing in all love, it must be most of all, that is, infinitely, in Love Itself.’

The passages speak for themselves and therefore need no further explanation, beyond the remark that the essence of love is givingness.

Plain as these passages are in their meaning, Swedenborg felt it necessary to add a cautionary statement, lest his readers should assume from what he had written, that his philosophy was pantheistic, or that his doctrine of God should be supposed to be in any way pluralistic. I quote the relevant passage—

“With respect to God, loving and being reciprocally loved cannot exist with others in whom there is anything of Infinity, or anything of the essence and life, of love in itself or anything of the Divine. For if there were anything of Infinity in them, or of the essence and life of love in itself, that is, anything of the Divine, then He would not be loved by others, but would love Himself, for the Infinite or Divine is one and single. If this were in others it would be Very God, and He would be the love of self, of which nothing can be in God... Wherefore the love must be given in others in whom there is nothing of the Divine in itself... . 6