457 The Rules of Life

Isaac Pitman (1813-1897), knighted by Queen Victoria in 1894, is famous for having developed a widely used form of shorthand, now referred to as Pitman shorthand.  In 1837 he published a small pamphlet on the subject titled Stenographic Sound-hand. Of interest to our readers is the fact that one of the texts he chose to use as an illustration of his shorthand method was Emanuel Swedenborg’s “Rules of Life.” Pitman, a member of the New Church in England, was very active in the dissemination of Swedenborg’s theological works.

Swedenborg’s Rules of Life have been used by various New Church organizations since at least the mid-nineteenth century. Although they have been attributed to Swedenborg, no actual document containing them has ever been found among Swedenborg’s books and papers. The sole reference for the Rules is in the text of a eulogy for Swedenborg delivered by Samuel Sandels. In his address, Sandels states that he had found the Rules of Life among Swedenborg’s manuscripts, and proceeds to list them.*  The translated Rules are as follows (although it must be noted that slight variations exist between different translations): Continue reading » » » »