66.  In the natural world there are three degrees of ascent, and in the spiritual world there are three degrees of ascent.  All animals are recipients of life.  The more perfect are recipients of the life and the three degrees of the natural world, the less perfect of the life of two degrees of that world, and the imperfect of one of its degrees.  But man alone is a recipient of the life both of the three degrees of the natural world and of the three degrees of the spiritual world.  From this it is that man can be elevated above nature, while the animal cannot.  Man can think analytically and rationally of the civil and moral things that are within nature, also of the spiritual and celestial things that are above nature, yea, he can be so elevated into wisdom as even to see God.  But the six degrees by which the uses of all created things ascend in their order even to God the Creator, will be treated of in their proper place.  From this summary, however, it can be seen that there is an ascent of all created things to the first, who alone is Life, and that the uses of all things are the very recipients of life; and from this are the forms of uses.

67.  It shall also be stated briefly how man ascends, that is, is elevated, from the lowest degree to the first.  He is born into the lowest degree of the natural world; then, by means of knowledges, he is elevated into the second degree; and as he perfects his understanding by knowledges he is elevated into the third degree, and then becomes rational.  The three degrees of ascent in the spiritual world are in man above the three natural degrees, and do not appear until he has put off the earthly body.  When this takes place the first spiritual degree is open to him, afterwards the second, and finally the third; but this only with those who become angels of the third heaven; these are they that see God.  Those become angels of the second heaven and of the last heaven in whom the second degree and the last degree can be opened.  Each spiritual degree in man is opened according to his reception of Divine Love and Divine Wisdom from the Lord.  Those who receive something thereof come into the first or lowest spiritual degree those who receive more into the second or middle spiritual degree, those who receive much into the third or highest degree.  But those who receive nothing thereof remain in the natural degrees, and derive from the spiritual degrees nothing more than an ability to think and thence to speak, and to will and thence to act, but not with intelligence.

68.  Of the elevation of the interiors of man, which belong to his mind, this also should be known.  In everything created by God there is reaction.  In Life alone there is action; reaction is caused by the action of Life.  Because reaction takes place when any created thing is acted upon, it appears as if it belonged to what is created.  Thus in man it appears as if the reaction were his, because he has no other feeling than that life is his, when yet