In order that man may be in a state of liberty, as necessary to his being reformed, he is connected, as to his spirit, with heaven and with hell:  for spirits from hell, and angels from heaven, are attendant on every man.  By the spirits from hell, man is held in his evil; but by the Angels from heaven, he is held in good by the Lord.

Thus he is preserved in spiritual equilibrium, that is, in freedom or liberty.

The particulars which have been delivered in this work respecting heaven, the world of spirits, and hell, will appear obscure to those who take no pleasure in acquiring a knowledge of spiritual truths; but they will appear clear to those who take pleasure in that acquirement; and especially those who cherish an affection of truth for its own sake,—­that is, who love truth because it is truth.  For everything that is loved enters with light into the ideas of the mind:  and this is eminently the case, when that which is loved is truth:  for all truth dwells in light.

* * * * *

THE TALMUD

The word “Talmud,” from the Hebrew verb lamad, equalling “to learn,” denotes literally “what-is-learning.”  Then it comes to mean “instruction,” “teaching,” “doctrine.”  What is usually called the Talmud consists of two parts:  1.  The Mishnah (literally, “tradition” and then “traditional doctrine”) a code of Jewish laws, civil, criminal, religious, and so forth; based ostensibly on the Pentateuch, expounding, applying, and developing the laws contained in the so-called five books of Moses. 2.  The Gemara, a word which means literally “completion,” or “supplement,” i.e., in reference to the Mishnah.  Some, however, explain the word as meaning “teaching.”  The word is used technically to denote the expansion, exposition, and illustration of the Mishnah which is found in the Talmud.  Strictly speaking, the word “Talmud” denotes the Gemara only, but in its ordinary sense the word denotes the Mishnah together with its completion in the Gemara.  In the Talmud itself, as usually printed, the section of the Mishnah to be commented on and illustrated is followed by the Gemara in which the opinions of the great Rabbi are stated and discussed.

As in the case of the Mishnah, so, also, the Talmud has six principal divisions:  these will be followed in the subsequent epitomes and need not, therefore, be given here.  There are two versions or forms of the Talmud:  1.  The Babylonian, or that due to the studies and discussions of the Jewish doctors in the various Hebrew colleges of Babylon (Sura, Pumbaditha, and so forth):  in this the Gemara is some ten times as large as the Mishnah.  When we speak of the Talmud it is that of Babylon which is always meant.  Its language is Eastern Aramaic. 2.  The Palestinian Talmud, compiled and edited by the heads of the Hebrew schools in Palestine, Tiberius, Sepphoris, and so forth.