Friday, June 25, 2010

Lecter series - unified analysis - part 21: The Babel correspondence (cont'd)

CATEGORY: MOVIES

Emanuel Swedenborg's Apocalypse Revealed interprets the bible's book of Revelation. In this post, we will look at some listings from the Swedenborg Concordance that point to certain parts of Apocalypse Revealed in which the term 'Babel' is used in an 'apocalyptic' context. In the below, the leading numbers are section numbers in Apocalypse Revealed, and the material between single quotation marks is that taken by Swedenborg from the book of Revelation itself. Subdivision numbers within the given sections of Apocalypse Revealed have been omitted for clarity. The equals sign ("=") means 'signifies'. All emphasis is in original.

729. 'Upon her forehead was written, Mystery, Babylon the Great, the mother of whoredoms and of abominations of the earth' = the Roman Catholic Religiosity as to its inward quality, which is hidden; that from its origin is the love of domineering from self-love over the holy things of the Church and over Heaven, thus over all things of the Lord and of His Word, it has defiled and profaned those things which are of the Word, and thence of the Church...By 'Babylon the Great' is signified the Roman Catholic Religiosity, and the whole of its quality.

717. [...]By 'Babylonia,' or 'Babel' is meant the love of domineering over the holy things of the Church from self-love...And since this love thus acts the part of the Devil, who has similar aims, it cannot do otherwise than profane holy things by adulterating the goods and truths of the Word, and therefore by 'Babylonia,' or 'Babel' is also signified the profanation of what is holy, and the adulteration of the good and truth of the Word. These things are what are signified by 'Babylonia' here in the Revelation, and by 'Babel' in the prophetical and historical Word. ... [a]

As an aside, in Manhunter, while Will Graham is 'floating' toward Mrs. Leeds (in a vision he is experiencing), he speaks aloud, as if addressing her: "I see you there. And I see me desired by you. Accepted - and loved - in the silver mirrors of your eyes." Swedenborg says that silver denotes truth (e.g., in Arcana Coelestia):

It is unknown to the world at the present day that "brass" signifies natural good, and also that every metal mentioned in the Word has a specific signification in the internal sense-as "gold" celestial good; "silver" spiritual truth; "brass" natural good; "iron" natural truth; and so on with the other metals, and in like manner "wood" and "stone." Such things were signified by the "gold" "silver" "brass" and "wood" used in the ark and in the tabernacle and in the temple, concerning which, of the Lord's Divine mercy hereafter. (--from A.C. n. 425.)


a. Swedenborg, Emanuel. The Swedenborg Concordance: a complete work of reference to the theological writings of Emanuel Swedenborg. Comp. / ed. and trans. John Faulkner Potts. London: Swedenborg Society, 1888. Vol. 1. p. 294.

To skip over the remainder of the Swedenborgian analysis of the Hannibal Lecter movies, click here.

The works of Emanuel Swedenborg from the Internet Sacred Texts Archive
Arcana Coelestia, by Emanuel Swedenborg, [1749-56], tr. by John F. Potts [1905-10], at sacred-texts.com. Web. 1 Jun. 2010.


      

Thursday, June 24, 2010

Lecter series - unified analysis - part 20: The Babel correspondence

CATEGORY: MOVIES












The Tower of Babel by Pieter Brueghel the Elder (1563). [Image from the Wikipedia 'Tower of Babel' page, public domain, via Wikimedia Commons.]


Babel (Babylon) came up within three different contexts in the analysis of Manhunter: in a historical context, in the book of Genesis, regarding the Tower of Babel and the confusion of tongues; in a prophetic context, in the book of Jeremiah; and in an 'apocalyptic' context in Revelation. When we look under 'Babel' in the first volume of the Swedenborg Concordance, we find listed there several pages of entries, most of which contain one or more correspondences for 'Babel' and associated terms. In this post we will look at a few of those entries which have to do with the aforementioned historical and prophetic contexts, and in the next post, we will look at some listings from the Concordance that point to certain parts of Apocalypse Revealed in which the term 'Babel' is used in an apocalyptic context. In what follows, 'E.' is Apocalypse Explained, and 'A.' is Arcana Coelestia. The leading numbers are section numbers in Apocalypse Revealed, and the material between single quotation marks is that taken by Swedenborg from the book of Revelation itself. Subdivision numbers within the given sections of Apocalypse Revealed have been omitted for clarity. The equals sign ("=") means 'signifies'. All emphasis is in original. We first examine some listings pertaining to the book of Jeremiah:

E. 601. 'Babel' (Jer. li) = those who abuse holy things in order to domineer...

A. 583. 'The mighty ones of Babel' (Jer. li.30) = those who are given up to self-love.


Now one of the listings for 'historical' Babel (the subject is Genesis chapter 11):

A. 1283. The Ancient Church in general is now treated of, and that its inward worship was in process of time falsified and adulterated...The falsification and adulteration of inward worship is 'Babel' here. That here also the historical statements are not true, but made up, may be seen from those made concerning the Babylonish Tower...and also from the fact that it is said Babel originated thence, when yet in the preceding chapter, Babel is said to have been built by Nimrod. Hence it is evident that 'Babel' does not signify a city, but a certain thing, and here worship, the interiors of which are profane, while the externals appear holy.[a]


a. Swedenborg, Emanuel. The Swedenborg Concordance: a complete work of reference to the theological writings of Emanuel Swedenborg. Comp. / ed. and trans. John Faulkner Potts. London: Swedenborg Society, 1888. Vol. 1. pp. 291, 295, 296.

To skip over the remainder of the Swedenborgian analysis of the Hannibal Lecter movies, click here.


      

Sunday, June 20, 2010

Table of Contents to the unified analysis of the Lecter series

CATEGORY: MOVIES; WARNING: THIS ANALYSIS CONTAINS SPOILERS!!



There is a button that links to this table of contents, at the bottom of each post in the analysis.

In the listing below, an 'M' next to a part number means that that part pertains to Manhunter; an 'S' means it pertains to The Silence of the Lambs; and an 'H' denotes Hannibal. Note that many posts apply to more than just one movie.

part 1(S,H) - Lecter has a 'magic touch'

part 2(S) - Lecter is attempting to be reborn

part 3(S) - Lecter's attempt at rebirth (cont'd)

part 4(M) - The reason Michael Mann changed the spelling of Lecter's last name to 'Lecktor' for Manhunter

part 5(M,S,H) - Some background on Emanuel Swedenborg and his theory of correspondences; Swedenborg believed that God does not exist in space

part 6(S) - Swedenborg believed that the universe was not created out of nothing, but was instead created from God

part 7(M) - Swedenborg believed that the New Jerusalem depicted in the biblical book of Revelation corresponds to a New Church; he also believed that by coming to pass "shortly" is meant that the events predicted in Revelation will certainly come to pass

part 8(M) - Swedenborg maintains that worship of the sun is the lowest of all the forms of God-worship, and therefore in scripture is referred to as an "abomination"

part 9(M) - Swedenborg on the three sons of Noah: "Shem" corresponds to internal worship, "Ham" those who were internal and corrupted, and "Japheth" those who were external

part 10(S,H) - According to Swedenborg, there have been four Churches since the Earth was created; Swedenborg describes the Israelitish Church (the third Church) in his Coronis: "The third state of this church was the turning aside from true representative into idolatrous worship and then its vastation or evening." "The fourth state of this church was the profanation of sanctities, and then its consummation or night"

part 11(M) - Swedenborg believed that numbers used in the bible have spiritual significance; the importance of the number three; examples of Swedenborgian triads

part 12(M) - Swedenborg's correspondence for the "Woman Clothed with the Sun" from the book of Revelation, as described in his Apocalypse Explained

part 13(M) - Continuation of part 12: The "Woman Clothed with the Sun" is also discussed in Swedenborg's Apocalypse Revealed

part 14(M,S) - Influences on Swedenborg include some of the people we have come across at various points in the analyses of the individual Lecter movies: Aristotle, Saint Augustine, and Plotinus; William Blake (the Great Red Dragon paintings) was influenced by Swedenborg

part 15(M) - The correspondence for Revelation 12:12-17

part 16(M) - Swedenborg describes the love of self in his book Heaven and Hell: "[O]ne who is in the love of self neither loves the church, nor his country, nor society, nor any use, but himself alone"

part 17(M) - Swedenborg tells us who it is that the great red dragon represents

part 18(M) - Swedenborg on adultery

part 19(M) - Swedenborg's correspondence for Nimrod (Dollarhyde) meshes with the correspondence for the great red dragon (also Dollarhyde)

part 20(M) - Swedenborgian correspondences for the name 'Babel' (Babylon) as used in the biblical books of Genesis and Jeremiah

part 21(M) - Swedenborgian correspondences for 'Babel' (Babylon) from the book of Revelation

part 22(M) - Hannibal Lecktor represents a personification of Satan; Swedenborgian correspondence for 'Baal': "'To set up altars, altars to burn incense unto Baal,' signifies worship from the love of self and from the love of the world"

part 23(H) - Using Swedenborg to interpret something from the movie Hannibal: The description of Clarice Starling as the 'honey in the lion' (the forged letter's reference to Samson's riddle) is to be interpreted as Clarice representing the good of charity, which, if we go by the correspondence for Samson's encounter with the lion, would not be understood by the Philistines

part 24(M,S,H) - Basic introduction to Jungian psychology

part 25(S) - Further resolution of the 'hidden plot' in The Silence of the Lambs

part 26(S) - Clarice Starling confronts her Jungian shadow in the form of Catherine Martin

part 27(S) - One implication of Starling's defeat of Jame Gumb: The Catholic Church has assimilated evil

part 28(S) - The four phases of development of Clarice Starling's animus in The Silence of the Lambs

part 29(S) - One of the underlying themes of The Silence of the Lambs is that the members of the Roman Catholic Church are operating under the influence of Satan, i.e., they are being controlled by evil hermaphroditic Jews

part 30(H) - Lecter desires to unite with God

part 31(S) - The ongoing struggle within the Christian church, between the two distinctly different basic human natures which characterize 'followers' of Plato/Augustine on the one hand, and those of Aristotle/Aquinas on the other, comes into play within a psychical context, when interpreting The Silence of the Lambs

part 32(S) - Ardelia Mapp represents Clarice Starling's Jungian Self

part 33(S) - Symbolism of the 'fly' at the end of The Silence of the Lambs

part 34(S) - Clarice Starling's initiatory process in The Silence of the Lambs

part 35(S,H) - Lecter is trying to become Mercurius, by 'integrating' Clarice Starling into himself; the nature of Mercurius is discussed

part 36(M,S,H) - Description of the four stages of alchemy's Great Work

part 37(S,H) - The disorder of the individuation process is related to the timeless quality of the unconscious

part 38(S,H) - Depiction of the nigredo step of alchemy in The Silence of the Lambs and Hannibal

part 39(S,H) - Determining the Jungian psychological types that correspond to Clarice Starling and Hannibal Lecter

part 40(S,H) - Lecter's ultimate plan is to become the personification of the god Abraxas

part 41(S,H) - Fundamentals of chakras

part 42(S) - The Muladhara chakra and Lecter's use of the sense of smell

part 43(S,H) - Sahasrara chakra - rel. to Lecter becoming a divine being

part 44(S) - Anahata chakra; the rise of Lecter's kundalini

part 45(S) - Starling's supervisor, Jack Crawford, is working with Lecter to defeat Starling

part 46(S) - We identify Hannibal Lecter's Self, anima, and shadow

part 47(S,H) - The Manipura chakra and its relationship to Lecter

part 48(S) - Evidence that Lecter has undergone Baptism with the Holy Spirit in The Silence of the Lambs

part 49(S) - Swadhisthana chakra

part 50(S) - The meaning of Barney telling Starling to "keep to the right" when approaching Lecter's cell

part 51(M) - Applying Jungian concepts, and the concepts of alchemy, to Will Graham in Manhunter

part 52(M) - Representation of the classical planets in Manhunter

part 53(S) - Final resolution of the hidden plot in The Silence of the Lambs

part 54(S,H) - Wrapping up the analysis; one of the 'messages' of The Silence of the Lambs is that our extraverted Western society tends to work against introverts

Thursday, June 17, 2010

Lecter series - unified analysis - part 19: The Nimrod correspondence

CATEGORY: MOVIES

Previously in this analysis we have explored Emanuel Swedenborg's correspondences for the great red dragon from the book of Revelation. However, we know from the Manhunter analysis that Francis Dollarhyde not only represents the dragon, but he also represents the biblical giant Nimrod, from the book of Genesis. To tell us what the correspondences are which have to do with Nimrod, Swedenborg first recites Genesis chapter 10, verses 8-10 (in Arcana Coelestia):

8. And Cush begat Nimrod. He began to be a mighty one in the earth. 9. He was mighty in hunting before Jehovah; wherefore it was said, As Nimrod, mighty in hunting before Jehovah. 10. And the beginning of his kingdom was Babel, and Erech, and Accad, and Calneh, in the land of Shinar. (--from A.C. n. 1129.)

Now the correspondence:

Verses 8, 9. And Cush begat Nimrod; he began to be a mighty one in the earth. He was mighty in hunting before Jehovah; wherefore it was said, As Nimrod mighty in hunting before Jehovah. By "Cush" are signified here as before, interior knowledges of things spiritual and celestial; by "Nimrod" are signified those who made internal worship external; thus by "Nimrod" is signified such external worship. "Cush begat Nimrod," means that they who had knowledges of interior things instituted such worship. He was "a mighty one in the earth," signifies that such a religion prevailed in the church, "the earth" being the church, as before. "He was mighty in hunting before Jehovah," signifies that he persuaded many; "wherefore it was said, As Nimrod mighty in hunting before Jehovah," signifies that because so many were persuaded, such a form of speech became proverbial; and further, it signifies that such a religion easily captivates the minds of men. (--from A.C. n. 1173.)

That by "Nimrod" are signified those who made internal worship external, and that "Nimrod" thus signifies such external worship, may be seen from what follows. It must be here stated, beforehand, what is meant by making internal worship external. It was said and shown above that internal worship, which is from love and charity, is worship itself; and that external worship without this internal worship is no worship. To make internal worship external is to make external worship essential, rather than internal, which is the reverse of the former, being as if it was said that internal worship without external is no worship, while the truth is that external worship without internal is no worship. Such is the religion of those who separate faith from charity, in that they set the things which are of faith before those which are of charity, or the things which are of the knowledges of faith before those which are of the life, thus formal things before essential ones. All external worship is a formality of internal worship, for internal worship is the very essential; and to make worship consist of that which is formal, without that which is essential, is to make internal worship external. As for example, to hold that if one should live where there is no church, no preaching, no sacraments, no priesthood, he could not be saved, or could have no worship; when yet he can worship the Lord from what is internal. But it does not follow from this that there ought not to be external worship.

[2] To make the matter yet more clear, take as a further example the setting up as the essential itself of worship the frequenting of churches, going to the sacraments, hearing sermons, praying, observing feasts, and many other things which are external and ceremonial, while, talking about faith, men persuade themselves that these are sufficient-all of which are formal things of worship. It is quite true that those who make worship from love and charity the essential, act in the same way, that is, they frequent churches, go to the sacraments, hear sermons, pray, observe feasts, and the like, and this very earnestly and diligently; but they do not make the essential of worship consist in these things. In the external worship of these men there is what is holy and living, because there is internal worship in it; but in the external worship of those referred to before there is not what is holy and not what is living. For the very essential itself is what sanctifies and vivifies the formal or ceremonial; but faith separated from charity cannot sanctify and vivify worship, because the essence and life are absent. Such worship is called "Nimrod;" and it is born of the knowledges which are "Cush," as these are born from faith separated from charity, which faith is "Ham." From "Ham," or faith separated, through the knowledges which belong to faith separated, no other worship can possibly be born. These are the things that are signified by "Nimrod." (--from A.C. n. 1175.)

Notice how all this meshes with the red dragon correspondence: Those who make internal worship external, separate faith from charity, and believe the former alone to be sufficient. Also note from Genesis 10:10 that Babel was part of Nimrod's kingdom. Finally, since Nimrod was descended from Ham, one of Noah's sons, then Dollarhyde represents a descendant of Ham.

To skip over the remainder of the Swedenborgian analysis of the Hannibal Lecter movies, click here.

The works of Emanuel Swedenborg from the Internet Sacred Texts Archive
Arcana Coelestia, by Emanuel Swedenborg, [1749-56], tr. by John F. Potts [1905-10], at sacred-texts.com. Web. 17 Jun. 2010.


      

Monday, June 14, 2010

Lecter series - unified analysis - part 18: Swedenborg on adultery

CATEGORY: MOVIES









Will and Molly Graham sitting on the pier in Manhunter. Molly has committed what Swedenborg calls triplicate adultery (adultery with blood-relatives) by having an affair with Dr. Sidney Bloom, her half-brother, while married to Will.


Emanuel Swedenborg on adultery ('C.L.' denotes Conjugial Love):

THE SIXTH COMMANDMENT. THOU SHALT NOT COMMIT ADULTERY. In the natural sense, this commandment means not only not to commit adultery, but it refers also to willing and doing obscene things and thinking and speaking about lascivious things. That merely to lust is to commit adultery, is evident from the Lord's words: Ye have heard that it was said by them of old time, Thou shalt not commit adultery. But I say to you, that everyone that looketh on another man's wife to lust after her, hath committed adultery with her already in his heart (Matt. 5:27, 28). (--from T.C.R. n. 313.)

In the spiritual sense, "to commit adultery" means to adulterate the goods of the Word and to falsify its truths. That "to commit adultery" means this also, has been hitherto unknown, because the spiritual sense of the Word has been hitherto concealed. That such is the meaning in the Word of "to commit adultery," "to adulterate," and "to commit whoredom" is evident from the following passages: Run ye to and fro through the streets of Jerusalem, and seek if ye can find a man that executeth judgment, and seeketh the truth. When I had fed them to the full, they committed adultery (Jer. 5:1, 7). In the prophets of Jerusalem I have seen a horrible stubbornness in adulterating and walking in a lie (Jer. 23:14). They have wrought folly in Israel, and have committed whoredom, and have spoken My Word falsely (Jer. 29:23)...There are many other passages where "adulteries" and "whoredoms" mean adulterations and falsifications of the Word... (--from T.C.R.. n. 314.)

In the celestial sense, "to commit adultery" means to deny the holiness of the Word, and to profane it. This meaning follows from the preceding spiritual meaning, which is to adulterate its goods and to falsify its truths. The holiness of the Word is denied and profaned by those who in heart ridicule all things of the church and of religion, for in the Christian world all things of the church and of religion are from the Word. (--from T.C.R.. n. 315.)

That at this day in the kingdoms where the church is, adulteries are made light of by very many persons, is because the church is at its end, and thus there is no longer any faith, because there is no charity; for the one corresponds to the other. Where there is no faith, falsity is in the place of truth, and evil is in the place of good, and from this there flows the result that adulteries are no longer accounted as criminal; for when heaven is closed with a man, such things flow in from hell. (--from A.C. n. 8904.)

I. _There are three genera of adulteries,--simple, duplicate, and triplicate._ II. _Simple adultery is that of an unmarried man with another's wife, or of an unmarried woman with another's husband._ III. _Duplicate adultery is that of a husband with another's wife, or of a wife with another's husband._ IV. _Triplicate adultery is with relations by blood. (--from C.L. n. 478.)


To skip over the remainder of the Swedenborgian analysis of the Hannibal Lecter movies, click here.

The works of Emanuel Swedenborg from the Internet Sacred Texts Archive
True Christian Religion, by Emanuel Swedenborg, [1771], tr. by John C. Ager [1906] at sacred-texts.com. Web. 14 Jun. 2010.
Arcana Coelestia, by Emanuel Swedenborg, [1749-56], tr. by John F. Potts [1905-10], at sacred-texts.com. Web. 14 Jun. 2010.
Conjugial Love, by Emanuel Swedenborg, [1768], at sacred-texts.com. Web. 10 Dec. 2016.


      

Saturday, June 12, 2010

Lecter series - unified analysis - part 17: More on who the dragon represents

CATEGORY: MOVIES

Emanuel Swedenborg's Apocalypse Revealed adds somewhat to what we have already learned, as far as who it is that is represented by the biblical book of Revelation's great red dragon.

And behold, a great red dragon, signifies those in the church of the Reformed who make God three,[a] and the Lord two, and separate charity from faith, and who make faith saving but not charity together with it. These are here meant, and in what follows, by "the dragon;" for they are against the two essentials of the New Church, which are, that God is one in Essence and in Person, in whom there is a Trinity, and that the Lord is that God; also that charity and faith are one like an essence and its form; and that no others have charity and faith, but they who live according to the commandments of the Decalogue, which are that evils are not be done; and so far as anyone does not do evils, shunning them as sins against God, in the same proportion he does the goods which are of charity, and believes the truths which are of faith. (--from A.R. n. 537.)

It is evident from reading over Swedenborg's Brief Exposition ('B.E.'), that it is Protestants (as opposed to Catholics) who separate faith from charity:

I. The churches which by the Reformation separated themselves from the Roman Catholic Church, differ in various things; but they all agree in the articles concerning a Trinity of Persons in the Divinity, original sin from Adam, imputation of the merit of Christ, and justification by faith alone. (--from B.E. n. 17.)

BRIEF ANALYSIS. The churches which by the Reformation separated themselves from the Roman Catholic Church, are from those who call themselves Evangelical and Reformed, likewise Protestants, or from the names of their leaders, Lutherans and Calvinists, among which the church of England holds the middle place. We shall say nothing here of the Greek church, which long ago separated from the Roman Catholic church. That the Protestant churches differ in various things, particularly concerning the Holy Supper, Baptism, election, and the Person of Christ, is known to many; but that they all agree in the articles of a Trinity of Persons in the Divinity, original sin, imputation of the merit of Christ, and justification by faith alone, is not universally known. The reason of this is, because few study into the differences of dogmas among the churches, and consequently the agreements. It is only the clergy that study the dogmas of their church, while the laity rarely enter deeply into them, and consequently into their differences. That nevertheless they agree in the four articles above mentioned, both in their general principles, and in most of the particulars, will appear evident to anyone if he will consult their books, or attend to their sermons. (--from B.E. n. 18.)


Swedenborg also states,

"It is to be known, that all Protestants, both the Evangelical and the Reformed, teach in like manner justification by faith alone..." (--from B.E. n. 80.)


a. Swedenborg used "Reformed Church" and "church of the Reformed" to refer to Protestantism.

To skip over the remainder of the Swedenborgian analysis of the Hannibal Lecter movies, click here.

The works of Emanuel Swedenborg from the Internet Sacred Texts Archive
Apocalypse Revealed, by Emanuel Swedenborg, [1766], tr. by John Whitehead [1912], at sacred-texts.com. Web. 12 Jun. 2010.
Brief Exposition, by Emanuel Swedenborg, [1769], tr. by John Whitehead [1892] at sacred-texts.com. Web. 12 Jun. 2010.


      

Thursday, June 10, 2010

Lecter series - unified analysis - part 16: On the love of self

CATEGORY: MOVIES

Recall from part 12 of this analysis, that the Swedenborgian interpretation for Revelation 12 verses 1-4 in Apocalypse Explained, indicates that Francis Dollarhyde suffers from love of self. The below is from a section in Samuel Warren's Compendium of the Theological Writings of Emanuel Swedenborg, which quotes from Swedenborg's Heaven and Hell ('H.H.') on what exactly the nature of this love of self is:

The Nature of Self-Love

I wondered at first why it is that the love of self and the love of the world are so diabolical, and that they who are in those loves are such monsters to look upon...The love of self consists in a man's wishing well to himself alone, and to no others except for the sake of himself, - not even to the church, his country, or any human society; as also in doing good to them for the sake of his own reputation, honour, and glory; which unless he sees in the uses he performs to others, he says in his heart, What does it concern me? What does it concern me? Why should I do this? Of what advantage is it to me? And so he lets it pass. Whence it is evident that one who is in the love of self neither loves the church, nor his country, nor society, nor any use, but himself alone...He who loves himself loves also his own; who in particular are his children and grandchildren; and in general, all who make one with him, whom he calls his own. To love these is also to love himself; for he looks upon them in himself, as it were, and himself in them. Among those whom he calls his are also all who praise, honour, and reverence him. (--from H.H. n. 555, 556.)

Such indeed is the nature of the love of self, that in so far as the reins are given to it, that is, in so far as external restraints are removed, - which are the fear of the law and its penalties, and of the loss of reputation, of honour, of gain, of employment, and of life, - in so far it rushes on, until at length it not only desires to rule over the whole terrestrial globe, but also over the whole heaven, and over the Divine [Being] Himself. It has no limit or bound. This propensity lurks within every one who is in self-love, although it is not evident before the world, where the above-mentioned restrains keep it back. That this is so no one can fail to see in potentates and kings, with whom there are no such curbs and restraints; who, so far as they succeed in their purposes, rush on and subjugate provinces and kingdoms, and aspire after unlimited power and glory. That it is so is still more manifest from the Babylon of this day, which has extended its dominion to heaven, and transferred to itself all the Divine power of the Lord, and lusts continually for more (--from H.H. n. 559.)
[a]


a. Warren, Samuel M. A Compendium of the Theological Writings of Emanuel Swedenborg. West Chester, Pennsylvania: Swedenborg Foundation Publishers, 2009. pp. 692-694.

To skip over the remainder of the Swedenborgian analysis of the Hannibal Lecter movies, click here.

The works of Emanuel Swedenborg from the Internet Sacred Texts Archive
Apocalypse Explained, by Emanuel Swedenborg, [1757-9], tr. by John Whitehead [1911], at sacred-texts.com. Web. 10 Jun. 2010.


      

Sunday, June 6, 2010

Lecter series - unified analysis - part 15: The correspondence for Rev. 12:12-17

CATEGORY: MOVIES



At left is The Great Red Dragon and the Woman Clothed with the Sun, a painting by William Blake.[Image from the Wikipedia 'The Great Red Dragon Paintings' page, public domain, via Wikimedia Commons.] It is an image of this painting that Francis Dollarhyde shows to Freddy Lounds during their 'session' together (as shown above). However, Dollarhyde incorrectly refers to it as "The Great Red Dragon and the Woman Clothed in the Rays of the Sun", which is a different Blake painting (the one shown in part 12 of this analysis).[a]



The painting shown above is cataloged in the National Gallery of Art (in Washington, D.C.) under The Great Red Dragon and the Woman Clothed with the Sun: "the Devil is Come Down." It refers to Revelation 12 verses 12-17, and depicts events after the second downfall of Satan. Swedenborg's correspondence for Rev. 12:12-17 is given in his Apocalypse Explained (in n. 751 through n. 770). First, the biblical verses themselves:

12. For this rejoice, ye heavens, and ye that dwell in them. Woe to those that inhabit the earth and the sea, for the devil is come down unto you, having great anger, knowing that he hath but a short time. 13. And when the dragon saw that he was cast unto the earth, he persecuted the woman that brought forth the son. 14. And there were given to the woman two wings of a great eagle, that she might fly into the wilderness into her place, where she is nourished a time, and times, and half a time, from the face of the serpent. 15. And the serpent cast out after the woman out of his mouth water as a river, that he might cause her to be swallowed up by the river. 16. And the earth helped the woman; and the earth opened her mouth, and swallowed up the river, which the dragon cast out of his mouth. 17. And the dragon was angry against the woman, and went away to make war with the rest of her seed, who keep the commandments of God, and have the testimony of Jesus Christ. (--from A.E. n. 704.)

Now, part of the correspondence:

For the devil is come down unto you, signifies because they receive evils from hell. This is evident from the signification of "devil," as being the hell from which come evils; also from the signification of "coming down unto them," as being, in reference to the devil, to be among them, to lead them astray, and to be received by them. Those unto whom the devil came down mean "those that inhabit the earth and the sea," and these signify the merely natural and sensual who have become such because they have rejected the life of faith, which is called charity; and those who reject this from religion, and who believe and say in their heart that what they do contributes nothing to salvation, but faith alone and piety in worship are what save, such continue natural, and even become sensual so far as they reject goods in act or deeds, and give themselves up to the pleasures that spring from the loves of self and of the world. Because such continue natural and even become sensual, they receive with delight the evils that rise up out of hell; for the natural man is in those evils from birth, and unless he becomes also spiritual he continues in them; for when man becomes spiritual he has communion with the heavens, and receives goods therefrom, and goods received from the Lord through heaven remove evils, which is effected solely by means of a life according to the commandments from the Word. (--from A.E. n. 753.)


a. The painting shown in part 12 of this analysis (shown again below for the reader's convenience), is cataloged in the Brooklyn Museum (in New York) as The Great Red Dragon and the Woman Clothed with the Sun. It is oftentimes called The Great Red Dragon and the Woman Clothed in Sun, and is also sometimes called "The Great Red Dragon and the Woman Clothed in the Rays of the Sun."























To skip over the remainder of the Swedenborgian analysis of the Hannibal Lecter movies, click here.

The works of Emanuel Swedenborg from the Internet Sacred Texts Archive
Apocalypse Explained, by Emanuel Swedenborg, [1757-9], tr. by John Whitehead [1911], at sacred-texts.com. Web. 6 Jun. 2010.


      

Lecter series - unified analysis - part 14: Influences on Swedenborg

CATEGORY: MOVIES












Emanuel Swedenborg's crypt in Uppsala Cathedral. [Image from the Wikipedia 'Emanuel Swedenborg' page; Swedenborg's grave, licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0 via Wikimedia Commons.]


According to Martin Lamm's Emanuel Swedenborg: The Development of His Thought, Swedenborg was influenced by, among other people, Aristotle, Saint Augustine, and Plotinus (author of the Enneads).[a] All of these have come into play at various places in the analyses of the individual Lecter movies.

William Blake, the creator of the Great Red Dragon paintings, was profoundly influenced by some of the ideas of Swedenborg.[b]


a. Lamm, Martin. Emanuel Swedenborg: The Development of His Thought. Trans. Thomas Spiers and Anders Hallengren. West Chester, Pennsylvania: Swedenborg Foundation Publishers, 2000.
b. 'William Blake'. Encyclopædia Britannica. Encyclopædia Britannica Online. Encyclopædia Britannica Inc., 2015. Web. 17 Sep. 2015. URL = http://www.britannica.com/biography/William-Blake.

To skip over the remainder of the Swedenborgian analysis of the Hannibal Lecter movies, click here.


      

Lecter series - unified analysis - part 13: Swedenborg on Rev. 12:1-4 (cont'd)

CATEGORY: MOVIES

This post is a continuation of the previous post; recall that we had looked at Swedenborg's interpretation of the book of Revelation chapter 12, verses 1-4, in his Apocalypse Explained. He interprets the same verses in Apocalypse Revealed ('A.R.'):

A woman clothed with the sun, and the moon under her feet, signifies the Lord's New Church in the heavens, which is the New Heaven, and the Lord's New Church about to be upon earth, which is the New Jerusalem. That the Lord's New Church is signified by this "woman," is evident from the particulars in this chapter understood in the spiritual sense; that by "a woman," in other parts of the Word also, the church is signified, may be seen (n. 434); and the church is signified, because the church is called the Bride and Wife of the Lord. The reason why she was seen "clothed with the sun," is because the church is in love to the Lord, for it acknowledges Him and does His commandments, and this is to love Him (John 14:21-24). That "the sun" signifies love (see n. 53). The reason why "the moon" was seen under the woman's feet is because the church on earth, which is not yet conjoined with the church in the heavens, is meant. By "the moon" is signified intelligence in the natural man, and faith (n. 423); and by being seen "under the feet," is signified that it is about to be upon earth; otherwise by "feet" is signified the church itself when it is conjoined.

[2] It is to be known, that there is a church in the heavens as well as on earth, for there also is the Word; there are temples also, and preachings in them, and there are ministerial and priestly offices. For all angels there were men, and their departure out of the world was only a continuation of their life; therefore they are also perfected in love and wisdom, everyone according to the degree of the affection of truth and good which he took with him out of the world. The church among them is here meant by "the woman clothed with the sun," who had upon her head a crown of twelve stars;" but because the church in the heavens cannot subsist, except there be also a church on earth, which is in concordant love and wisdom, and as this was about to be, therefore "the moon was seen under the feet of the woman," which here specifically signifies faith, by which, such as it is at this day, there is no conjunction.

[3] The reason why the church cannot subsist in the heavens unless there is a church on earth in conjunction with it, is because heaven where angels are, and the church where men are, act as one, like the internal and the external with man; and the internal with man cannot subsist with its state, unless an external be conjoined with it; for an internal without an external is like a house without a foundation, or like seed upon the ground and not in the ground, thus like anything without a root; in a word, like a cause without an effect in which it may exist. From these things, it may be seen how absolutely necessary it is that there should be a church somewhere in the world, where the Word is, and where by it the Lord is known. (--from A.R. n. 533.)


To skip over the remainder of the Swedenborgian analysis of the Hannibal Lecter movies, click here.

The works of Emanuel Swedenborg from the Internet Sacred Texts Archive
Apocalypse Revealed, by Emanuel Swedenborg, [1766], tr. by John Whitehead [1912], at sacred-texts.com. Web. 6 Jun. 2010.


      

Saturday, June 5, 2010

Lecter series - unified analysis - part 12: The great red dragon from Rev. 12:1-4

CATEGORY: MOVIES













Shown at left is William Blake's The Great Red Dragon and the Woman Clothed in Sun (also sometimes called "The Great Red Dragon and the Woman Clothed in the Rays of the Sun").[a] This is the painting that Manhunter's Francis Dollarhyde seems to think he identifies with, even though, as we will see later, he shows a different Blake painting to Freddy Lounds. The painting shown at left depicts the events of Revelation 12 verses 1-4, which are quoted below. [Image from the Wikipedia 'The Great Red Dragon Paintings' page, public domain, via Wikimedia Commons.]



In this post we go over material from Swedenborg's Apocalypse Explained (with Swedenborg's parenthetical references to various sections omitted for clarity):

APOCALYPSE. CHAPTER 12 1. And a great sign was seen in heaven; a woman arrayed with the sun, and the moon under her feet, and upon her head a crown of twelve stars. 2. And being with child she cried out, travailing, and pained to bring forth. 3. And there was seen another sign in heaven; and behold, a great red dragon, having seven heads, and ten horns, and upon his heads seven diadems. 4. And his tail drew the third part of the stars of heaven, and cast them unto the earth. And the dragon stood before the woman who was about to bring forth, that when she brought forth he might devour her offspring. (--from A.E. n. 704.)


Verses 3 and 4 above depict the first downfall of Satan.

A woman arrayed with the sun, signifies the church with those who are in love to the Lord, and thence in love towards the neighbor. This is evident from the signification of "woman," as being the spiritual affection of truth, from which the church is a church, consequently also the church in respect to that affection; it follows that this means the New Church to be established by the Lord after the end of the present church, which is in the Christian world. (--from A.E. n. 707.)

And the moon under her feet, signifies faith with those who are natural and who are in charity. This is evident from the signification of "moon" as being faith in which there is charity; and from the signification of "feet," as being things natural; here, therefore, those who are natural, because this is said of the "woman," by whom the church is signified, and the "sun" with which she was arrayed, signifies love to the Lord from the Lord and love to the neighbor (as shown in the preceding article); therefore "the woman arrayed with the sun" signifies the church with those who are celestial and thence spiritual, and "the moon under her feet" signifies the church with those who are natural and sensual, and at the same time in the faith of charity; for the goods and the truths therefrom of heaven and the church succeed in order, like the head, the body, and the feet with man. In the head of the Greatest Man, which is heaven, are those who are in love to the Lord from the Lord, and these are called celestial; but in the body, from the breast even to the loins of that Greatest Man, which is heaven, are those who are in love towards the neighbor, and these are called spiritual; but in the feet of the Greatest Man, which is heaven, are those who are obscurely in the faith of charity, and these are called natural. (--from A.E. n. 708.)

And behold a great red dragon, signifies all who are merely natural and sensual from the love of self and of the world, and yet have more or less knowledge from the Word, from doctrine therefrom or from preaching, and think to be saved by knowledge alone apart from life. This is evident from the signification of "dragon," as being a man who is merely natural and sensual, and yet has a knowledge of things in themselves spiritual, whether from the Word or from preaching or from religion...also from the signification of "great red," as meaning to be in the love of self and in its evils; for "great" is predicated in the Word of good, and in the contrary sense of evil, as "many" is predicated of truths, and in the contrary sense of falsities, and "red" is predicated of love in both senses, namely, of celestial love, which is love to the Lord, and in the contrary sense of diabolical love, which is the love of self. (--from A.E.. n. 714.)




Top left: In his killing of the Leeds family, Dollarhyde placed mirror shards in the eye sockets of Mrs. Leeds' dead body, and then, as described by Will Graham, he arranged her body and those of the other members of the Leeds family such that they were looking at him. This indicates that he suffers from the love of self referred to by Swedenborg in the above. Top right: Francis looks in a bathroom mirror for a few moments, while holding Reba captive in another room in his house. Above left: He then punches the mirror with his bare fist to break it. Above right: He next prepares to use a large shard of the mirror glass, held in his right hand, to kill Reba.


Continuing with Apocalpyse Explained,

In general ["the dragon"] signifies those who are more or less natural, and yet are in a knowledge of spiritual things from the Word. But in particular it signifies those who have confirmed themselves by doctrine and life in a faith separated from charity. These constitute the head of the dragon. But those who from self-intelligence hatch out for themselves dogmas from the Word constitute its body, while those who study the Word without doctrine constitute its external parts. All these also falsify and adulterate the Word, since they are in the love of self, and thence in the pride of self-intelligence, from which they become merely natural, yea, even sensual, and the sensual man is unable to see the genuine truths of the Word because of fallacies, obscurity of perception, and the evils of the body residing therein; for the sensual clings to the body, from which such things come...

The sensual who are meant by "the dragon" are those who do not see anything from the light of heaven, but only from the light of the world, and who from that light alone, when excited by the fire of the love of self and pride therefrom are able to talk about Divine things, and to reason keenly and readily about them; but yet they are unable to see whether these things be truths or not, calling that truth which they have imbibed from childhood from a master or preacher, and then from doctrine, and which they have afterwards confirmed by some passages of the Word not interiorly understood. Because they see nothing from the light of heaven they do not see truths, but in place of them falsities, which they call truths; for truths themselves can be seen only in the light of heaven, and not in the light of the world unless that light is illuminated by the light of heaven. These being such love no other than a bodily and worldly life; and as the pleasures and lusts of that life have their seat in the natural man the interiors of such are filthy and crowded with evils of every kind, which close up every way for the influx of the light and heat of heaven; consequently they are inwardly devils and satans, however much they may appear to be spiritual and to be Christians by their talk and simulated gestures. Such are merely sensual, for while they are able to talk outwardly about the holy things of the church, inwardly they believe nothing; and those who think they believe have only a historical and thence a persuasive belief derived from some teacher or from self-intelligence, which in itself is false, but which they believe for the sake of fame, honor, or gain. Such are meant in general by "dragons." (--from A.E. n. 714.)



a. This painting is cataloged in the Brooklyn Museum (in New York) as The Great Red Dragon and the Woman Clothed with the Sun. It is not to be confused with the painting cataloged in the National Gallery of Art (in Washington, D.C.) called The Great Red Dragon and the Woman Clothed with the Sun: "the Devil is come down." (We will see the latter painting a little later in this analysis).

To skip over the remainder of the Swedenborgian analysis of the Hannibal Lecter movies, click here.

The works of Emanuel Swedenborg from the Internet Sacred Texts Archive
Apocalypse Explained, by Emanuel Swedenborg, [1757-9], tr. by John Whitehead [1911], at sacred-texts.com. Web. 5 Jun. 2010.


      

Friday, June 4, 2010

Lecter series - unified analysis - part 11: Swedenborg on the number three

CATEGORY: MOVIES

In the Manhunter analysis, we went over the importance of the number three in the movie (i.e., the references to the three days the biblical Jonah spent in the belly of the whale). Swedenborg believed that certain numbers used in the bible have spiritual significance. In the below, 'A.E.' denotes Apocalypse Explained and 'T.C.R.' denotes True Christian Religion:

"Number" and "measure" are mentioned in many passages in the Word, and it is believed that these mean simply number and measure; but "number" and "measure" in the spiritual sense mean the quality of the thing treated of...There are simple numbers that are more significative than others, and from which the greater numbers derive their significations, namely, the numbers two, three, five, and seven; "two" signifies union, and is predicated of good; "three" signifies fullness, and is predicated of truths; "five" signifies much and something; and "seven" signifies holiness...From the number three the numbers 6, 12, 24, 72, 144, 1,440, and 144,000 arise; and these numbers have a similar signification as three, because they arise from this simple number by multiplication. (--from A.E. n. 429, 430.)

That there is nothing complete and perfect unless it is a trine, geometry also teaches; for a line is nothing unless it becomes a surface, nor is a surface anything unless it becomes a solid; therefore one must pass into the other in order that they may have existence; and they have coexistence in the third. As it is in this, so it is also in each and all created things; they are terminated in a third. And it is from this that the number three signifies in the Word what is complete and whole. (--from T.C.R. n. 387.)

Examples of Swedenborgian triads are: wisdom, love, and use; end, cause, and effect; charity, faith, and works; affection, thought, and operation; and will, understanding, and action (see True Christian Religion).

To skip over the remainder of the Swedenborgian analysis of the Hannibal Lecter movies, click here.

The works of Emanuel Swedenborg from the Internet Sacred Texts Archive
Apocalypse Explained, by Emanuel Swedenborg, [1757-9], tr. by John Whitehead [1911], at sacred-texts.com. Web. 4 Jun. 2010.
True Christian Religion, by Emanuel Swedenborg, [1771], tr. by John Whitehead [1906], at sacred-texts.com. Web. 4 Jun. 2010.


      

Tuesday, June 1, 2010

Lecter series - unified analysis - part 10: The Isrealitish and Jewish Church

CATEGORY: MOVIES












In The Silence of the Lambs, Hannibal Lecter represents evil hermaphroditic Jews.


Emanuel Swedenborg declared that there have been four churches since the Earth was created, one succeeding another. The first church, called the Most Ancient, existed before the flood, and was consumed by it. The second church, which he called the Ancient, was in Asia and part of Africa; it was destroyed by idolatry. The third church was the Israelitish, which began when the Ten Commandments were given, and was ended by the profanation of the Word and the crucifixion of Jesus. The fourth is the Christian, which in its progress was divided into three parts: the Greek, the Roman Catholic, and the Reformed. Swedenborg discusses the stages of the Israelitish Church in his Coronis ('Cor.'):

The Israelitish and Jewish Church. In order that the states of this church may be thoroughly laid open and distinctly exhibited, it is of importance that we survey them in the following order: I. The first state of this church was the appearing of the Lord Jehovih, and the calling and covenanting, and then its rise and morning. II. The second state of this church was instruction, and at length introduction into the land of Canaan, and then its progression into light and day. III. The third state of this church was the turning aside from true representative into idolatrous worship and then its vastation or evening. IV. The fourth state of this church was the profanation of sanctities, and then its consummation or night. V. Before this state and after it, a promise was made of the coming of the Lord Jehovih into the world, and respecting a new church in which justice and judgment should reign. VI. The fifth state of this church was the separation of the good from the evil, and then the judgment upon those who were from it; but this was in the spiritual world. (--from Cor. n. 46.)

To skip over the remainder of the Swedenborgian analysis of the Hannibal Lecter movies, click here.

The works of Emanuel Swedenborg from the Internet Sacred Texts Archive
Coronis, by Emanuel Swedenborg, [1771], tr. by John Whitehead [1914] at sacred-texts.com. Web. 1 Jun. 2010.


      

Lecter series - unified analysis - part 9: Swedenborg on the sons of Noah

CATEGORY: MOVIES







Manhunter - from left: Will Graham, Beverly Katz, Brian Zeller. Katz and Zeller, in deceiving Will, are helping Hannibal Lecktor in his plan to defeat the second coming of Christ.


In part 70 of the Manhunter analysis, the allegorical relationship between Beverly Katz and Brian Zeller was discussed, including how these two characters represent descendants of Shem and Japheth, respectively. Beginning with Swedenborg's analysis of Genesis 9:18 in Arcana Coelestia ('A.C.'):

Verse 18. And the sons of Noah, that went forth from the ark, were Shem, and Ham, and Japheth; and Ham is the father of Canaan. "The sons of Noah, that went forth from the ark" signify those who constituted the Ancient Church; "that went forth from the ark" signifies those who are regenerate; "Shem" signifies the internal church; "Ham" signifies the church corrupted; "Japheth" signifies the external church; "and Ham is the father of Canaan" signifies that from the corrupted church sprang worship in externals without internals, which worship is signified by "Canaan." (--from A.C. n. 1060.)

That "Shem" signifies the internal church, "Ham" the church corrupted, and "Japheth" the external church, [is evident] from what follows, where their quality is described. As in every church, so in the Ancient there were men who were internal, men who were internal and corrupted, and men who were external. Those who are internal are those who make charity the principal of their faith; those who are internal and corrupted make faith without charity the principal of their faith; and those who are external think little about the internal man, but still perform works of charity and sacredly observe the rites of the church. Besides these three kinds of men there are no others who are to be called men of the spiritual church; and because they were all men of the church, they are said to have "gone forth from the ark." Those in the Ancient Church who were internal men, that is, who made charity the principal of their faith, were called "Shem"; those who were internal and corrupted, who made faith without charity the principal, were called "Ham"; while those who were external and thought little about the internal man, but still performed works of charity and sacredly observed the rites of the church, were called "Japheth." (--from A.C. n. 1062.)
(emphasis not in original).

If we go by the above, then Beverly Katz and Brian Zeller must represent persons who are not of what Swedenborg calls the "spiritual church", since they are betraying Graham, who was to become Christ.

To skip over the remainder of the Swedenborgian analysis of the Hannibal Lecter movies, click here.

The works of Emanuel Swedenborg from the Internet Sacred Texts Archive
Arcana Coelestia, by Emanuel Swedenborg, [1749-56], tr. by John F. Potts [1905-10], at sacred-texts.com. Web. 1 Jun. 2010.


      





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