h truth in the spiritual marriage. That conjugial love descends from
this spiritual marriage, has been proved above in the chapter which
treats particularly on that subject; hence it may be seen, as in an
image, that the wife conjoins the man to herself, as good conjoins truth
to itself; and that the man reciprocally conjoins himself to the wife,
according to the reception of her love in himself, as truth reciprocally
conjoins itself to good, according to the reception of good in itself;
and that thus the love of the wife forms itself by the wisdom of the
husband, as good forms itself by truth; for truth is the form of good.
From these considerations it is also evident, that conjugial delights
with the wife originate principally in her desiring to be one with the
husband, consequently to be the love of her husband's wisdom; for in
such case she is made sensible of the delights of her own heat in the
man's light, according to what was explained in Article IV., n. 188.

199. XIV. THUS A MAIDEN IS FORMED INTO A WIFE, AND A YOUTH INTO A
HUSBAND. This flows as a consequence, from what has been said above in
this and the foregoing chapter respecting the conjunction of married
partners into one flesh. A maiden becomes or is made a wife, because in
a wife there are principles taken out of the husband, and therefore
supplemental, which were not previously in her as a maiden: a youth also
becomes or is made a husband, because in a husband there are principles
taken out of the wife, which exalt his receptibility of love and wisdom,
and which were not previously in him as a youth: this is the case with
those who are principled in love truly conjugial. That it is these who
feel themselves a united man (_homo_), and as it were one flesh, may be
seen in the preceding chapter, n. 178. From these considerations it is
evident, that with females the maiden principle is changed into that of
a wife, and with men the youthful principle is changed into that of a
husband. That this is the case, was experimentally confirmed to me in
the spiritual world, as follows: Some men asserted, that conjunction
with a female before marriage is like conjunction with a wife after
marriage.--On hearing this, the wives were very indignant, and said:
"There is no likeness at all in the two cases. The difference between
them is like that between what is fancied and what is real." Hereupon
the men rejoined, "Are you not females as before?" To this the wives
repli