{Footnote 1} As husband and wife should be one, and should live together in the inmost of life, and as they together make one angel in heaven, so true marriage love is impossible between one husband and several wives (n. 1907, 2740).  To marry several wives at the same time is contrary to Divine order (n. 10837).  That there is no marriage except between one husband and one wife is clearly perceived by those who are in the Lord’s celestial kingdom (n. 865, 3246, 9002, 10172).  For the reason that the angels there are in the marriage of good and truth (n. 3246).  The Israelitish nation were permitted to marry several wives, and to add concubines to wives, but not Christians, for the reason that that nation was in externals separate from internals, while Christians are able to enter into internals, thus into the marriage of good and truth (n. 3246, 4837, 8809.)

380.  The love of dominion of one over the other entirely takes away marriage love and its heavenly delight, for as has been said above, marriage love and its delight consists in the will of one being that of the other, and this mutually and reciprocally.  This is destroyed by love of dominion in marriage, since he that domineers wishes his will alone to be in the other, and nothing of the other’s will to be reciprocally in himself, which destroys all mutuality, and thus all sharing of any love and its delight one with the other.  And yet this sharing and consequent conjunction are the interior delight itself that is called blessedness in marriage.  This blessedness, with everything that is heavenly and spiritual in marriage love, is so completely extinguished by love of dominion as to destroy even all knowledge of it; and if that love were referred to it would be held in such contempt that any mention of blessedness from that source would excite either laughter or anger. [2] When one wills or loves what the other wills or loves each has freedom, since all freedom is from love; but where there is dominion no one has freedom; one is a servant, and the other who rules is also a servant, for he is led as a servant by the lust of ruling.  But all this is wholly beyond the comprehension of one who does not know what the freedom of heavenly love is.  Nevertheless from what has been said above about the origin and essence of marriage love it can be seen that so far as dominion enters, minds are not united but divided.  Dominion subjugates, and a subjugated mind has either no will or an opposing will.  If it has no will it has also no love; and if it has an opposing will there is hatred in place of love. [3] The interiors of those who live in such marriage are in mutual collision and strife, as two opposites are wont to be, however their exteriors may be restrained and kept quiet for the sake of tranquillity.  The collision and antagonism of the interiors of such are disclosed after their death, when commonly they come together and fight like enemies and tear each other; for they then act in accordance with the state of the interiors.  Frequently I have been permitted to see them fighting and tearing one another, sometimes with great vengeance and cruelty.  For in the other life everyone’s interiors are set at liberty; and they are no longer restrained by outward bounds or by worldly considerations, everyone then being just such as he is interiorly.