The Nature Of Perception 4 - The Spiritual Significance of Sensory Appearances

In the spiritual world, angels experience reality in a profoundly distinct manner. Their perception of the sensory world is infused with symbolic meaning, revealing the deeper connections between their mental states, emotions, and the world around them. Through the Divine light angels intuitively understand that every object, from the mineral to the animal kingdom, reflects the Lord's kingdom of love, wisdom, Goodness and Truth.

Divine light and mental state
When angels behold, touch, or are sensually conscious of the presence of animals and plants or any other object that appears in their sensory field, they intuitively perceive these objects and their changes symbolically - as representative effects generated by their mental states and the relative changes in their spheres of life. This perception is made possible by the Divine light that flows into their minds, allowing them to understand their sensuous world as a true reflection of their states of mind.

Reflected images of the Lord’s kingdom
All objects in the sensuous world, whether mineral, vegetable, or animal, constitute a reflected image of the Lord's kingdom of love and wisdom, of goodness and truth. Angels read the manifold uses involved in the harmonious interchange of thoughts and affections through these objects. Even though these sensuous objects are appearances created by Divine life through imperfect forms of mind, there is no difference in their manner of appearance from the sensuous objects of the natural world.

Distinctness and externality
The sensuous objects that appear to angelic perception in the spiritual world are experienced by them as things distinct from the mind and to exist beyond the circumference of the body in the same way as objects are experienced in the natural world. In other words, objects of the spiritual world possess all the characteristics of externality that belong to the objects of the natural world.

Sensuous objects as representation
The difference for angelic consciousness is that the qualities of externality associated with the objects of the senses are intuited to be an appearance whereas for natural thought, the appearance is not seen as an appearance but is held to be the thing itself. The reality of sensory objects for the angelic mind is found in what they represent mentally. It is a spiritual law that all objects of the senses of which an angel's world consists correspond in every detail to the active state of the mind perceiving them.

Sensory perception
To the sensuous faculties of angelic sight and hearing, sensory objects appear as if transmitted through an intervening space, similar to how sounds and sights are experienced in the natural world. The spiritual faculties of smell and taste perceive odours and flavours in countless varieties. The faculty of spiritual touch experiences objects as offering resistance, and they can be felt as hard or soft, smooth or rough, plain or curved, warm or cold in endless variety. Yet angelic thought transcends this sensory experience being in the immediate perception of the mental causes of which sensations are effects.

Unnecessary appendages
The actual extension of space and the progression of time, both extraneous to the sentient being, are not necessary for the complete experience of sensuous objects. Instead, they are simply useless appendages that serve no purpose in the spiritual world. In the natural world, they serve as hypothetical phantasms, which the natural man demonstrates the truth of by appealing to other delusions of a similar kind.

Spiritual understanding
Angels understand that space and time are not required for a full experience of a sensory world. Their perception is based on the internal causes and spiritual meanings behind the appearances, rather than on the sensory characteristics themselves. This spiritual understanding allows them to perceive the deeper truths and uses of the objects in their world.

Conclusion
The perception of angels reveals that sensuous appearances, while similar in form to those in the natural world, hold profound spiritual meanings. These objects reflect the Divine life and the harmonious interchange of thoughts and affections in the Lord's kingdom. The unnecessary appendages of space and time in the natural world serve no real purpose in the spiritual realm, highlighting the deeper spiritual understanding that angels possess. This perspective offers a richer and more meaningful interpretation of sensuous appearances, transcending the limitations of materialistic views.