Arcana Coelestia (Potts) n. 7803

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7803. As regards the speech of spirits with the inhabitants of the planet Jupiter, there are spirits who chastise; there are those who instruct; and there are those who rule them. The spirits who chastise apply themselves to the left side, and incline themselves toward the back; and when they are there, they draw forth from the man's memory all his deeds and thoughts; for this is easy to spirits, because, when they come to a man, they come instantly into all his memory (n. 6199, 6193, 6198, 6199, 6214). If they find that he has done evil or thought evil, they reprove him, and also chastise him with a pain in the joints of the feet or of the hands, or with pain about the epigastric region; this moreover, spirits can do dexterously, when it is permitted. When such chastisers come to a man, they excite horror together with fear; whereby he is aware of their approach. Evil spirits can excite fear when they approach anyone, especially those who when they lived in the world had been robbers. That I might know in what manner these spirits act when they come to a man of their earth, it was permitted that such a spirit should come also to me. When he was near, horror attended with fear palpably seized me; but I was not terrified and in horror inwardly, but outwardly, because I knew that he was such a spirit. He was also seen, and appeared like a dark cloud with little moving stars in the cloud; moving stars signify falsities; but fixed stars truths. He applied himself to my left side, toward the back; and he also began to reprove me on account of the things I had done and thought, which he drew forth from my memory and gave a wrong interpretation to; but he was hindered by the angels who also were present. When he noticed that he was with another than a man of his own earth, he began to speak to me, and to say that when he comes to a man, he knows all and everything which the man has done and thought; also that he severely reproves him, and likewise chastises him with various pains.


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