5715. A large four-sided opening appeared, falling away at an angle down to a considerable depth. At the bottom I saw a round opening which then lay open but was soon closed. A vexatious heat rose up from there, being a collection emanating from various hells. It arose out of various kinds of evil desires, such as pride, lack of sexual restraint, adultery, hatred, revenge, quarreling and fighting. These desires present in those hells were the origin of the heat that was rising up. When it acted on my body it instantly caused a sickness like that of a burning fever; but once that heat ceased to come into me, this form of sickness instantly departed. When a person falls sick in this way he has contracted his sickness from the life that is his; in his case an unclean sphere corresponding to the sickness attaches itself and is present as the cause from which the sickness springs. To enable me to know for certain that this is the case spirits from many hells have been present with me. Through them the sphere created out of emanations from them has been communicated to me; and as that sphere has been allowed to act on the solid parts of my body, I have been seized by an ache, pain, and indeed the corresponding sickness. But these feelings departed the instant those spirits were driven away. And to leave me in no doubt the experience has been repeated a thousand times.