959、有一次，我在夜里醒来，听见我周围的灵人想趁我睡着时伏击我；但我很快就昏昏欲睡，作了一场噩梦。我再次醒来，惩罚的灵人突然出现了，这令我十分惊讶。他们正严厉惩罚趁我睡着时伏击我的灵人。他们似乎给这些灵人披上了看得见的肉身和肉身的感觉，从而通过肉体各个部位来回的猛烈撞击折磨他们，并伴有抵抗所造成的疼痛。如有可能，惩罚者会杀了他们，所以他们用了极端的暴力。犯罪者大部分是塞壬（关于她们，参看831节）。惩罚持续了很长时间，并延伸到我周围的更多帮派。令我惊讶的是，所有伏击我的女人都被发现了，尽管她们想藏起来。她们因是塞壬，故耍尽花招试图逃避惩罚，但都未奏效。她们时而想偷偷溜回到更隐蔽的存在层面；时而暗示她们是其他人，而不是她们自己；时而通过投射自己的想法而将惩罚转移给其他人；时而假装她们是婴儿，惩罚者将要折磨的是婴儿；时而假扮善灵，时而又假扮天使；除此之外还有更多把戏；但这一切都是徒劳的。我惊讶地发现她们受到如此严厉的惩罚，但我意识到，像她们那样的行为是相当骇人，无法容忍的，因为人必须能安然入睡，否则人类就会灭亡。这就是为何如此严厉的惩罚是必要的。我感觉同样的事也发生在其他人周围，这些灵人试图趁他们睡着时暗中袭击他们，尽管这些人对此一无所知。因为除非一个人被允许与灵人交谈，通过内在感觉与他们同在，否则他听不到这种事，更不用说看到了；而事实上，这种事发生在所有人周围。主在人睡觉时会极其小心地保护他。
New Century Edition
Cooper(2008,2013)
[NCE]959. One night I awoke from sleep and heard around me spirits who had wanted to ambush me while I lay asleep. Soon drifting off, I had a nightmare but then woke up again, and suddenly, to my surprise, found some scourging spirits at hand. They inflicted bitter punishment on the spirits who had plotted against me in my sleep, by giving them a kind of body — a visible one — and physical sensation and then torturing them by violently knocking their limbs back and forth. They also enhanced the pain by inducing resistance. The scourgers fully intended to kill the spirits, if they could, so they used extreme violence.
Most of them were sirens, who are described in 831.{*1} The punishment lasted a long time and spread out around me to include many other gangs. What amazed me was that all of the spirits who had ambushed me were tracked down, even though they wanted to hide.
Because they were sirens, they tried many tricks for escaping punishment, although they failed at the attempt. First they wanted to slip away to a more hidden plane of existence. Then they wanted to pretend they were someone else. Then they tried to divert the punishment to others by projecting their thoughts. Then they created the illusion that they were babies, whom the castigators were punishing, then good spirits, then angels. They attempted many other ruses too, but all in vain.
Although I was surprised to see how severely they were disciplined, I perceived that this kind of behavior is intolerable because of our need to sleep in safety, since if we could not sleep safely, the human race would die out. That was why the penalty simply had to be so harsh.
I sensed that the same events also occur in the vicinity of other people whom spirits endeavor to attack by stealth in their sleep, although the people themselves are unaware of it. If they are unable to talk with spirits and be present with them by way of an inner perception, they cannot hear, still less see, any such thing, despite the fact that similar occurrences are taking place around them.
The Lord guards us with utmost care when we sleep.
Footnotes:
{*1} On these evil female spirits, see note 1 in 831. Sirens are also often described in Swedenborg's unpublished diary Spiritual Experiences (Swedenborg 1998-2002); for example, in 3699-3702, 3710, 3712-3723, 3728. [SS]
Potts(1905-1910) 959
959. I awoke in the night from my sleep, and heard spirits about me who desired to ambush me in my sleep, yet presently dozing I had a sad dream. But having awaked, punishing spirits were suddenly present-at which I wondered-and miserably punished the spirits who had ambushed me in my sleep. They induced on them as it were bodies-visible ones-and bodily senses, and thus tortured them by violent collisions of the parts to and fro, with pains induced by resistance. The punishers would have killed them if they could, so that they used the most extreme violence. Those guilty were for the most part sirens (concerning whom see n. 831). The punishment lasted a long time, and extended around me to many troops, and to my astonishment all those who had ambushed me were found, though they wanted to hide themselves. Being sirens, they tried with many arts to elude the penalty, but could not. Now they sought to withdraw into interior nature, now to induce the belief that they were others, now to transfer the punishment to others by a transference of ideas, now they counterfeited infants who would thus be tortured, now good spirits, now angels, besides making use of many other artifices, but all in vain. I was surprised that they should be so grievously punished, but perceived that the crime is enormous from the necessity of man's being able to sleep in safety, without which the human race would perish; so that it is of necessity that there should be so great a penalty. I perceived that the same takes place around other men whom they attempt to assail insidiously in their sleep, although the men know nothing about it. For one to whom it is not given to speak with spirits and to be with them by inner sense, can hear nothing of the kind, still less see it, when yet the same things happen with all. The Lord guards man with most especial care during his sleep.
Elliott(1983-1999) 959
959. I once woke up in the night and heard spirits around me who wished to waylay me while I slept, but I soon became drowsy and had a miserable dream. I woke up once again and suddenly spirits who punish were present, which amazed me. They were punishing pitiably the spirits who had waylaid me while slept. They had clothed them, it seemed, with physical bodies, which were visible, and with bodily senses, and they were tortured, now with seemingly physical bodies, by means of violent and repeated concussion of parts, accompanied by pains caused by resistance. It was in the mind of those who punished to murder them if they could - hence their extreme violence. For the most part the culprits were sirens, who are described in 831. The punishing went on for a long time and extended to many more bands about me. And what amazed me, though they desired to hide themselves, all those females who had waylaid me were discovered. Being sirens they tried out many tricks to escape punishment, but could not. At one point they wished to retreat surreptitiously into an interior nature; at another to suggest that they were people other than themselves; at another to divert the punishment on to others by means of transference of ideas; at another to pretend that they were infants whom the tormentors would be punishing; at another that they were good spirits; at another angels; and many more tricks besides. But it was all in vain. I was amazed that they should be punished so severely, but I perceived that such behaviour as theirs was quite outrageous, for it is imperative that a person should sleep in safety. Otherwise the human race would perish. This was why so great a punishment was necessary. I have perceived that the same also takes place around other people whom they try to take possession of by waylaying them in their sleep, though the person himself is not conscious of it happening. Indeed unless a person is allowed to talk to spirits and to be with them by an inward sensory ability, he can hear nothing, still less see anything of the sort, despite the fact that everybody has such occurrences taking place around him. The Lord protects man with utmost care while he sleeps.
Latin(1748-1756) 959
959. Expergefactus sum nocte e somno et audivi spiritus circum me qui in somno vellent mihi insidiari, at mox insopitus somnium triste habui; sed expergefactus, subito aderant spiritus punitores, quod miratus, et miserabiliter puniebant spiritus qui mihi in somno insidiati sunt, inducendo iis quasi corpora, quae visa, et corporeos sensus, et sic eos per violentas collisiones partium cis et retro cum inductis per renisus doloribus torquebant; animus erat punitoribus eos, si potuissent, necandi, inde violentia maxima. Erant plurima parte sirenes, de quibus n. 831; punitio perstabat diu, et pergebat circum me ad cohortes plures; et quod miratus, inveniebantur omnes quae insidiatae, tametsi se occultare vellent: quia sirenes erant, multis artibus eludere tentabant poenam sed non potuerant; nunc se surripere volebant in naturam interiorem, nunc inducere quod alii essent, nunc derivare poenam in alios per translationes idearum, nunc mentitae infantes quos cruciarent, nunc spiritus bonos, nunc angelos, praeter plura alia, sed usque incassum. Quod tam graviter punirentur, miratus sum, sed perceptum quod tale sit inorme, ex necessitate, quod homo tuto dormire debeat; quod nisi fieret, humanum genus periret, inde ex necessitate tanta poena: perceptum quod etiam simile fiat circa alios homines, quos in somno insidiose invadere conantur, tametsi homo hoc nescit; cui enim cum spiritibus loqui non datum est, et sensu interno cum illis esse, nihil tale audire minus videre potest, cum tamen usque similia circa alios existunt: Dominus quam maxime custodit hominem cum dormit.