Emanuel Swedenborg didn’t simply use microscopes and telescopes in his pursuit of scientific knowledge; he made his own. He even ground his own lens. A true polymath comparable to Leonardo Da Vinci and Sir Isaac Newton, Swedenborg devoured virtually every resource about the known sciences he could find. He created new fields of study as he compiled, organized and then documented and published the information he gleaned from the books he read. Not content to be a jack of all trades, Swedenborg became expert in practically any skill, craft or scientific endeavor he undertook.
Astronomer, inventor, scientist, philosopher and mystic, Swedenborg spoke nine languages fluently. He even learned Hebrew in order to personally translate the ancient texts of the Bible. By his early fifties, Swedenborg had mastered every known branch of science and invented or designed a number of innovative devices well ahead of his time, including the first fire extinguisher, submarine, airplane, air gun, home heater, and a music machine. He designed what was at the time the world’s largest dry dock, then supervised the movement of a fleet of warships over a mountain range that resulted in a huge naval victory for Sweden. He bound books, made watches, cabinets, and as previously mentioned, even built his own scientific instruments.
No published reports have been discovered suggesting that he was able to leap small buildings with a single bound, however. Swedenborg studied geology, anatomy, mechanics, physiology. He was one of the first people to study and began to understand the nervous system and the purpose of the pituitary gland. He compiled at least 150 publications that conveyed the body of scientific knowledge he accumulated. To describe Emanuel Swedenborg as merely pretty smart would be grossly understating his intellect, to the point of absurdity.
As early as 1735, Swedenborg wrote and published de Infinito (On the Infinite), his first foray into the study of spiritual phenomena. In that book he proposed the soul originated from material substances. His unquenchable thirst for scientific knowledge finally sated by the early 1740s, Swedenborg turned his attention to a new, bold endeavor. He decided to write a set of books that gave an anatomical explanation for the existence of the human soul. However, Swedenborg changed his mind dramatically after a personal experience he claimed to have one night as he lay in bed. He was praying for a divine revelation in his effort to understand the soul. Swedenborg wrote,
Immediately there came over me a powerful tremor….together with a resounding noise like great winds clashing. I found that something holy had encompassed me; it shook me and prostrated me on my face. I saw that I was thrown down and I found the words put into my mouth. “Oh, thou almighty Jesus Christ, who of thy great mercy deignest to come to so great a sinner, make me worthy of this grace.
The experience profoundly changed him. Swedenborg became more humble for the remainder of his life. His pursuit of scientific knowledge ceased abruptly. He devoted his remaining years to the pursuit and propagation of spiritual knowledge through his writing. In the process of his spiritual awakening, Swedenborg became a well known mystic. When Swedenborg earnestly pursued his quest for spiritual understanding, he faced ridicule from many people who once respected him. This included some prominent clergymen. They openly questioned the source of inspiration for his works Heaven and Hell and Arcana Coelestia.
Yet as he studied the Bible, Swedenborg claimed to find even deeper meanings even in seemingly trivial passages. As he spent more time searching for God, Swedenborg’s faith grew more profound. Although he was raised Lutheran, Swedenborg’s rather unconventional religious beliefs laid the formation of two future religions: a Swedenborgian Christian Church; Mormonism is also based in part on his teachings. Church founder Joseph Smith was heavily influenced by Swedenborg’s theological writing.
One rarely, if ever, got the best of Swedenborg in a battle of wits. One famous verbal exchange between Swedenborg occurred between him and an archbishop named Troilus revealed the degree of contempt the polymath held for organized religion. Archbishop Troilus was a notorious gambler, but one of his regular playing partners in the three player card game called Tresett had died. At a party Troilus teased Swedenborg about his interest in the afterlife by asking “By the way, Assessor, tell us about the spirit world. How does my friend Broman spend his time there?”
Swedenborg quipped, “I saw him but a few hours ago shuffling his cards in the company of the Evil One, and he was only waiting for your worship to make up a game of Tresett.”
His critics argued but failed to make the case that Swedenborg had gone insane or suffered a nervous breakdown that caused his transformation from scientist to spiritualist. The Swedish Scientific Association conducted a study and concluded he was sane. However, his theological writings still led to heresy charges against two of his supporters. Afterward, the Swedish Royal Council issued a statement in 1771 that “there is much that is true and useful in Swedenborg’s writings,” ruling in their favor. Through numerous dreams, Swedenborg gained insights to mystical experiences and spiritual knowledge. The final thirty years of his life were spent in pursuit of spiritual insights, which he documented by writing 36 different books.
Before Swedenborg achieved enlightenment, he encountered what he called his “shadow” persona, and battled against the dark side of his personality, which he claimed had been manifested as impure spirit and arrogant pride. Years later, Karl Jung would benefited from Swedenborg’s writings, applying knowledge gained from reading Swedenborg to his pioneering work in Psychology.
Now as far as Swedenborg’s alleged psychic abilities are concerned, at least four separate events were witnessed by others and rather well documented. These accounts include:
- Queen Louisa of Sweden once asked Emanuel Swedenborg to communicate with her dead brother. The message relayed by Swedenborg shocked the queen so badly that she left court immediately, “pale and shaking” as witnesses reported. Later Queen Louisa claimed that Swedenborg had communicated intimate and private information to her no living person could have possibly known.
- During a dinner party at the house of prominent merchant William Casteel in Gothenburg, Swedenborg suddenly became agitated and told other guests that a fire had just broken out near his home in Stockholm, 300 miles away. Messengers arrived several days later to confirm the details Swedenborg had provided about the fire were accurate.
- At another dinner party, Swedenborg went into a trance and gave a detailed account of the murder of Emperor Peter III of Russia being strangled in prison. Once again, reports arrived days later that confirmed Swedenborg’s account of the murder.
- Most amazingly, Emanuel Swedenborg predicted his own death accurately to the year, day and even the hour. Witnesses reportedly that Swedenborg’s mood became increasingly joyous as his anticipated time of death approached.
While Swedenborg believed he was able to communicate with spirits in another realm, he cautioned against believing everything they told him. He was appropriately skeptical. Swedenborg apparently figured out that these spirits weren’t always being truthful. Considering the fact some of these spirits said they were from other planets such as Mars, Venus, and Mercury, he was apparently wise not to trust them.
On his deathbed, his friend Pastor Ferelious gave Emanuel Swedenborg one final opportunity to recant his spiritual writings, if they had not been sincere. The dying polymath summoned enough strength to sit up in bed long enough to say these last words”
As truly as you see me before your eyes, so true is everything that I have written; and I could have said more had it been permitted. When you enter eternity you will see everything, and then you and I shall have much to talk about.
I’d like to meet Emanuel Swedenborg when my time to enter eternity has come. I doubt I’d have much to say that might interest him, which is perfectly okay.
I’d be content to simply shut up, listen, and learn.
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