{Footnote 1} There are as many degrees of life in man as there are heavens, and these are opened after death in accordance with his life (n. 3747, 9594).  Heaven is in man (n. 3884).  Therefore he that has received heaven into himself in the world, comes into heaven after death (n. 10717).

34.  Furthermore, all perfection increases towards interiors and decreases towards exteriors, since interiors are nearer to the Divine, and are in themselves pure, while exteriors are more remote from the Divine and are in themselves grosser.{1} Intelligence, wisdom, love, everything good and the resulting happiness, are what constitute angelic perfection; but not happiness apart from these, for such happiness is external and not internal.  Because in the angels of the inmost heaven the interiors have been opened in the third degree their perfection immeasurably surpasses the perfection of angels in the middle heaven, whose interiors have been opened in the second degree.  So the perfection of these angels exceeds in like measure the perfection of angels of the outmost heaven.

{Footnote 1} Interiors are more perfect because nearer to the Divine (n. 3405, 5146, 5147).  In the internal there are thousands and thousands of things that appear in the external as one general thing (n. 5707).  As far as man is raised from externals towards interiors, so far he comes into light and thus into intelligence and the elevation is like rising out of a cloud into clearness (n. 4598, 6183, 6313).

35.  Because of this distinction an angel of one heaven cannot go among the angels of another heaven, that is, no one can ascend from a lower heaven and no one can descend from a higher heaven.  One ascending from a lower heaven is seized with a distress even to anguish, and is unable to see those who are there, still less to talk with them; while one descending from a higher heaven is deprived of his wisdom, stammers in his speech, and is in despair.  There were some from the outmost heaven who had not yet been taught that the interiors of angels are what constitute heaven, and who believed that they might come into a higher heavenly happiness by simply gaining access to a heaven where higher angels are.  These were permitted to enter among such angels.  But when they were there they could see no one, however much they searched, although there was a great multitude present; for the interiors of the newcomers not having been opened in the same degree as the interiors of the angels there, their sight was not so opened.  Presently they were seized with such anguish of heart that they scarcely knew whether they were alive or not.  Therefore they hastily betook themselves to the heaven from which they came, glad to get back among their like, and pledging themselves that they would no longer covet higher things than were in agreement with their life.  Again, I have seen some let down from a higher heaven; and these were deprived of their wisdom