In
a word, wisdom is like the light or brightness of fire, which impresses
itself on the eyes, and thereby forms beauty."
384. After him the third arose, and spoke to this effect: "It is neither
love alone nor wisdom alone, which is the origin of beauty; but it is
the union of love and wisdom; the union of love with wisdom in a youth,
and the union of wisdom with its love in a maiden: for a maiden does not
love wisdom in herself but in a youth, and hence sees him as beauty, and
when a youth sees this in a maiden, he then sees her as beauty;
therefore love by wisdom forms beauty, and wisdom grounded in love
receives it. That this is the case, appears manifestly in Heaven. I have
there seen maidens and wives, and have attentively considered their
beauties, and have observed, that beauty in maidens differs from beauty
in wives; in maidens being only the brightness, but in wives the
splendor of beauty. The difference appeared like that of a diamond
sparkling from light, and of a ruby shining from fire together with
light. What is beauty but the delight of the sight? and in what does
this delight originate but in the sport of love and wisdom? This sport
gives brilliancy to the sight, and this brilliancy vibrates from eye to
eye, and presents an exhibition of beauty.
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