1641、在来世，灵人和世人一样互相交谈。善灵以亲密的友谊和爱来交谈，正如我多次听到的那样。他们用自己的语言进行讨论，这使他们在一分钟内能表达的，比世人一个小时内能表达的还要多。如前所述，他们的语言是所有语言都通用的，因为它用观念，就是所有词语的雏形为媒介。他们对主题的讨论如此精辟、明晰、深入，运用按顺序接踵而来、绝对令人信服的多个系列的推理，以至于一个人若知道这一点，就会目瞪口呆。他们将说服和情感融入到他们的讨论中，以这种方式赋予它生命。
有时他们也在讨论中使用可见的、因而活生生的代表。例如，他们讨论羞耻，以及没有敬畏，羞耻能否存在。在世人当中，这种话题只能通过基于证据和实例的许多推理来讨论；即便这样，它仍存在疑问。但对灵人来说，这个问题一分钟内就能解决，他们只需考虑按其次序变化的羞耻感的状态，以及敬畏的状态，以这种方式感知一致和分歧，同时在融入讨论的代表中观看它们。他们从中立刻得出结论，这个结论是从以这种方式调和的意见分歧中自发产生的。其它所有主题都是这样来处理的。死后，灵魂直接进入这种能力；这时，善灵只喜欢教导新来者和不知情的人。
灵人们自己都没有意识到他们以如此优越、出色的语言来彼此交谈，或他们享有如此杰出的恩赐，除非主引导他们反思这个问题。因为这种说话方式对他们来说是自然而然的，现在已经根深蒂固，成了本能的。这种情形就像人们将注意力集中在信息的意义上，而不是词语或说话方式上：他们若不反思，有时甚至不知道他们正在使用哪种语言。
New Century Edition
Cooper(2008,2013)
[NCE]1641. In the next life, spirits converse with each other the same way we do on earth. Good spirits engage in the intimate conversation of loving friends, as I have witnessed many times. They use their customary speech, which enables them to express more in a minute than we could over the course of an hour. As noted, their language is universal, common to all tongues, because it uses ideas 钬?the rudiments of all words 钬?as its medium. They discuss things with such acumen and insight, pursuing so many well-constructed, persuasive lines of reasoning that if people knew about it they would be dumbfounded. Spirits link opinion and feeling, which lends animation to their speech.
[2] Sometimes spirits employ representations as well 钬?an appeal to the eye and so to living experience. Take for example a discussion of shame and the question of whether it can exist apart from reverence.{*1} People on earth cannot settle the matter without endless argument involving various proofs and examples, and even then the issue remains in doubt. Spirits, on the other hand, take only a minute. They run in order through the various ways in which shame affects us and then the ways in which reverence does, noticing points of agreement and disagreement. These they also observe in visual representations connected to their speech. From the evidence, they instantly arrive at a conclusion, which rises spontaneously out of the harmony thus imposed on conflicting ideas. All other subjects are dealt with in the same way.
Our souls take up this ability immediately after death. Good spirits like nothing better at that time than to teach uninformed newcomers.
[3] The spirits themselves are unaware 钬?unless the Lord inspires them to reflect on it 钬?that they speak such an exalted language among themselves or that they enjoy such an outstanding gift. This way of speaking is natural for them, and by then it is ingrained. Their situation is like that of people who fix their minds on the meaning of a message and not on the words or form of expression: if they do not reflect on it, they sometimes do not even know what language is being used.
Footnotes:
{*1} In this mention of a hypothetical debate on an academic question, Swedenborg is poking fun at the contrived debates that were a common accompaniment of education from ancient through medieval times and even to his own day. Instructors often chose such topics as that mentioned here and assigned students at random to hold forth on one side of the question or the other. Swedenborg several times expresses his dislike of these contrived exercises, in particular in True Christianity 333, a wry account of one such debate. For more on such Scholastic academic argumentation, see Swedenborg [1771] 2006, 749-750 note 3 in 搂832, and Swedenborg [1763] 2003a, 282 note 1 in 搂1142. [SS]
Potts(1905-1910) 1641
1641. Spirits in the other life converse among themselves as men do on earth; and they who are good, with all familiarity of friendship and love, as I have frequently heard; and this in their own speech, by which they express more in a minute than a man can in an hour. For their speech, as before said, is the universal of all languages, being by means of ideas, the primitives of words. They speak upon subjects with such acuteness and perspicuity, by so many series of reasons following one another in order, and exercising persuasion, that if a man knew of it he would be astounded. They join persuasion and affection to their discourse, and thus give it life. [2] Sometimes also they discourse by means of simultaneous representations before the sight, and thus to the life. As for example: let the discourse be about shame, whether it can exist without reverence: among men this cannot be discussed except by means of many reasonings from evidence and examples, and still it remains in doubt; but with a spirit all would be done within a minute, by means of the states of the affection of shame varied in their order, and by means of those of reverence also; thus by perceiving the agreements and the disagreements, and at the same time beholding them in the representatives adjoined to the speech; from which they forthwith perceive the conclusion, which thus flows of itself from the disagreements thus reduced to agreement. So in all other cases. Souls come into this faculty directly after death; and good spirits then love nothing more than to instruct those who are newly arrived, and the ignorant. [3] The spirits themselves are not aware that they speak with one another with speech of such surpassing excellence, and that they are furnished with an endowment so preeminent, unless it is given them by the Lord to reflect upon it; for this mode of speaking is natural to them, and is then inherent. The case in this respect is the same as it is with a man when he fixes his mind on the meaning of things, and not on the words and the mode of speaking, in that, without reflection, he sometimes does not know what kind of speech he is making use of.
Elliott(1983-1999) 1641
1641. Spirits in the next life discuss things with one another just as people do on earth. Those who are good do so with all the close intimacy of friendship and love, as I have heard them do many times. They discuss these things in their own manner of speech, in which they express more in a minute than man can in an hour; for as has been stated, their speech is the universal of all languages - a speaking by means of ideas, the first origins of actual words. Their discussion of subjects is so incisive and penetrating, employing so many lines of reasoning which follow in order one after another and which are absolutely convincing, that man would be dumbfounded if he knew of it. They weave persuasion and affection into their discussion and in this way make it live.
[2] Sometimes in their discussions they also employ visual, and thus living representations. Their discussion, for example, may be about shame, and whether shame is possible without reverential awe. Among men this cannot be discussed except through many reasonings based on proofs and examples; and even then it remains in doubt. But with spirits the matter is resolved within a minute by considering the states of the feeling of shame, varied in their sequence, and also the states of reverential awe, and in this way perceiving the agreements and the disagreements, while at the same time seeing these in the representatives woven into the discussion, from which in an instant they perceive the conclusion thus flowing of itself from differences of opinion that are reconciled in this fashion. All other questions are resolved in a similar way. Souls enter into this ability immediately after death, at which time good spirits love nothing more than teaching newcomers and the uninformed.
[3] Spirits themselves do not realize that they speak to one another in so superior a kind of speaking, and that they are furnished with so excellent a gift, unless they are led by the Lord to reflect on the matter, for that speech comes to them naturally and is now instinctive. The situation is like that of a person whose mind is intent on the meaning of things and not on the words he uses and the way he speaks, in that unless he sometimes stops to reflect he is not aware of what kind of speech he is using.
Latin(1748-1756) 1641
1641. Spiritus in altera vita inter se colloquuntur, sicut homines in terra; et qui boni sunt, cum omni familiaritate amicitiae et amoris, quod multoties audivi, et hoc loquela sua, qua exprimunt plura minuto quam homo potest intra horam temporis, nam loquela eorum est, ut dictum, universalis omnium linguarum, per ideas, primitivas vocum; loquuntur de rebus ita acute et perspicaciter, per tot series rationum consequentium ordine et persuadentium ut si homo sciret, obstupesceret; persuasionem et affectionem adjungunt, et sic animant; [2] etiam quandoque simul per repraesentationes ad visum, ita ad vivum; ut pro exemplo, si loquela de pudore, num dari queat absque reverentia; apud hominem hoc discuti nequit nisi per multa ratiocinia ab argumentis et exemplis, et usque manet in dubio; at apud spiritum intra minutum per status affectionis pudoris variatos ordine, tum reverentiae, et sic per convenientias et disconvenientias perceptas, et simul perspectas in repraesentativis adjunctis loquelae, ex quibus ilico percipiunt conclusum, ita ex se fluens ex dissensibus sic in consensum redactis; similiter in omnibus reliquis: in hanc facultatem veniunt animae statim post mortem: nec tunc plus amant boni spiritus quam instruere novitios et ignaros. [3] Ipsi spiritus non sciunt quod inter se loquantur tam praestante loquela, et instructi tam excellente dote, nisi illis datur a Domino reflectere super id, nam loquela illa est illis naturalis et tunc insita; se habet hoc, sicut cum homine, cum animum tenet in sensu rerum, non in vocibus et loquela, quod absque reflexione, quandoque nec sciat qua loquela loquitur.