889. Verse 11. And the smoke of their torment shall go up unto the ages of the ages, signifies the dense falsity encompassing them and continually flowing forth from their loves. This is evident from the signification of "smoke," as being dense falsity flowing forth out of the hells from the evils of earthly and bodily loves with those who are there (see above, n. 539); also from the signification of "torment," as being the direfulness of hell, thus hell itself (see above, n. 888); also from the signification of "going up," as being to encompass and flow forth (of which presently); also from the signification of "unto the ages of the ages," as being continuously. Strictly, "the ages of the ages" signifies what is eternal or without end; but in the spiritual sense, which is apart from the idea of time, it signifies a state interiorly ruling without ceasing. This makes clear that "the smoke of their torment shall go up unto the ages of the ages" signifies the dense falsity encompassing them and flowing forth from their loves continually. [2] That dense falsity encompasses and flows forth from them, follows from the fact that everyone is his own truth or his own falsity, because he is his own love. For everything that a man thinks inwardly or in his spirit is from his love; and everything that a man thinks has reference either to truths or to falsities; consequently man is either his own truth or his own falsity; and, what is yet unknown, man is his own truth or his own falsity not only as to the thoughts that are from his will but also as to his whole body; for the body with all its organs, viscera, and members, is the field into which the thoughts from the will go forth and spread themselves abroad, thence the entire man, as to everything pertaining to him both interior and exterior, is his own love, and thus his own truth or his own falsity (see further above, n. 775, 837). [3] That the truth or the falsity from a man's loves encompasses him and flows forth from him can be seen from the fact that all things in the world, both animate and inanimate, pour forth from themselves a sphere that is sometimes perceived at a great distance, as from animals in the woods which dogs acutely smell and follow by the scent from step to step; likewise from plants in gardens and forests which send out an odoriferous sphere in every direction; also from the soil and its various minerals. But these exhalations are natural exhalations. It is the same in the spiritual world, where from every spirit and angel the sphere of his love, and thus the sphere of his truth or falsity, flows forth in every direction; and in consequence the quality of all spirits can be known solely by the spiritual sphere that pours forth from them, and according to these spheres they have conjunction with societies that have a like love, and thus a like truth or falsity; those who are in the love of good and of truth therefrom are with the societies of heaven, while those who are in the love of evil and of falsity therefrom are with the societies of hell. [4] I can assert that no spirit or man has a single thought that does not communicate through that sphere with some society. That this is so has not hitherto been known to man, but it has been made evident to me by a thousand experiences in the spiritual world; and therefore when the quality of spirits is explored, the direction in which their thoughts pour forth is investigated, and from this it is known with what societies they are conjoined, and thus what they are, and that the evil are with societies of hell and the good with societies of heaven. From this, too, it has been made clear to me that as the eye, according to its determinations, takes the quality of its sight from the objects in the natural world, so the understanding, according to its determinations, takes the quality of its thought from the truths that are its objects in the spiritual world; and thus man has not the least thought from himself, but it is either from hell or from heaven, and his thought is according to the determination of the affections that are of his love; in this determination his freedom has its seat. [5] This has been said to make known what is meant by the dense falsity encompassing such and flowing forth from them. The falsity that flows forth from the hells where they are is manifestly felt by all who are not in falsities, when they are walking over the hells. These falsities sometimes appear to the sight like smoke from conflagrations or from furnaces, sometimes like black clouds, sometimes like black and stinking waters, sometimes like foul odors; but still the hells, lest they should strike the nostrils too strongly and hurt the interiors of other spirits, are covered over with black earths, and where the persuasions of falsity reign, with rocks, and in general with gravel and barren land, and thus are closed up; but yet falsities from evils continually breathe forth from them. From which it is clear why "smoke" in the Word signifies falsities from evils.