263、当我反思这一点时，主通过一位天使向我发话说：“你必看见，必因见证地狱之爱的样子而信服。”就在这时，左边的地面突然裂开了，我看见一个魔鬼从地狱上来。他头戴方帽，帽子从额头拉到眼睛上。他脸上满了脓包，像是发高烧留下的；眼神凶狠，胸口肿成菱形。他从嘴里喷出像火炉冒出的那种烟雾；腰部明显着了火；他没有脚，取而代之的是有骨无肉的脚踝；全身散发出一股热，闻上去腐臭、污秽。
我被这个幽灵吓得毛骨悚然，大声叫喊：“别再靠近。告诉我你是从哪来的？”“我从阴间(underworld)来的”，他用刺耳的声音回答说，“我和其他两百人同属一个社群，这社群是所有社群中最为尊贵的。我们所有人都是帝中之帝，王中之王，公爵中的公爵，王子中的王子；没有一个人只是一个皇帝，或一个国王、公爵、王子。在那里，我们坐在宝座中的宝座上，由此向全世界及更远的地方发号施令。”我对他说：“难道你看不出，你们妄想的显赫头衔使你们发疯了吗？”“你怎能说这种话？”他答道，“我们觉得自己完全就是这个样子，并且我们的同伴承认我们的确是这样。”听到这里，我不想再提醒他，他已经疯了，因为他的妄想导致了他的疯狂。我蒙允许得知，这魔鬼在世时不过是一户人家的管家而已。那时，他在灵里如此傲慢，以致与自己相比，他藐视全人类，并沉浸在他比国王乃至皇帝地位还高的幻想中。这种骄傲使他否认神的存在，认为教会的一切神圣事物对他来说毫无价值，纯粹是用来糊弄愚昧群众的摆设。
最后，我问他：“你们这两百人互相吹捧要到几时呢？”“永远”，他说，“不过，我们当中那些因否认我们的显赫头衔而折磨他人者都沉到下面去了。因为我们可以吹嘘，但不能伤害任何人。”我又问：“那你知道沉到下面去的那些人的命运吗？”他说他们下到一个监牢，在那里被称为低贱中的低贱，是最低贱的，并辛苦劳碌。于是，我对这魔鬼说：“小心点，免得你也沉下去。”
263、在我正在思索的时候，主通过天使告诉我：“下面你将看到地狱之爱是怎样的。”
突然间，我左面的地面张开了，我见一个魔鬼从地狱中出来。他戴着一顶方帽子，帽沿盖住了眼睛。脸上长满红瘤，一双凶恶的眼睛。胸部肿得象鼓一样，嘴里象炉子一样喷着炎，腹部燃着火，脚踝没有肌肤，身体上散发着臭气。
见到他我吓了一跳并喊道：“别走近我，告诉我你从哪儿来？”他粗鲁地说：“从下面来，我在那与二百个人一起生活在一个显赫的社会中。我们都是皇中皇，王中王，爵士之爵士，王子之王子，任何人都不是普通人。”
我说：“你难道看不到这种虚假的显赫使你变得疯狂吗？”
“你怎么会这么说。我们完全是象我们所说的那样，我们那的人都承认这点。”
听到这儿，我并不想说：“你是疯子，因为他完全因为那种虚假而变得疯了。”
我之后得知，这个魔鬼在世间时曾是个管家，在那时他就认为别人都比自己低下，自己比任何国王更有价值。因此他拒绝神，视教会的神圣性毫无价值，只是用来欺骗一些蠢人。
最后我说：“生活在那的二百人，他们相信你所说的到什么时候呢？”他说：“到永远。那些否认我们的显赫性而造成伤害的人会沉下去，我们可以彼此夸口，但不可以伤害别人。”
我又问：“你知道那些沉下去的人的命运会怎样吗？”
他说：“他们沉到一个监狱，在那里他们被视为比最低下的人还要低下，他们要出苦力。”
我说：“那你最好小心别沉下去啊。”
263. When I had reached this point in my reflexion, word was sent to me by the Lord through an angel who said, 'Now you shall see and receive visual proof of what hellish love is like.' Then the ground suddenly opened on the left, and I saw a devil coming up from hell. On his head he had a square hat pulled down over his forehead to his eyes, a face covered in spots like those of a raging fever, glowering eyes, and a chest swollen up in the shape of a lozenge. He belched smoke from his mouth like a furnace, his loins were plainly on fire, and in place of feet he had bony ankles devoid of flesh. His body gave off a heat that smelt rotten and filthy.
[2] I was terrified by this apparition and called out, 'Don't come closer. Tell me where you are from.' 'I am from the underworld,' he replied in a hoarse voice, 'and I belong with two hundred others to a community which is the most exalted of all. All of us there are emperors of emperors, kings of kings, dukes of dukes, princes of princes. There is no one there who is merely an emperor, king, duke or prince. There we sit on thrones of thrones, from where we despatch our commands through all the world, and beyond.' 'Don't you see,' I said to him, 'that your imagined pre-eminence has driven you mad?' 'How can you say such a thing,' he replied, 'when this is exactly what we seem to ourselves to be, and we are acknowledged by our companions as such?'
On hearing this I was unwilling to go on telling him he was mad, because his madness was the result of his delusion. I was allowed to know that when that devil lived in the world he had been nothing but the steward of a household. He had been so haughty in spirit that he despised the whole human race compared with himself and indulged in the fancy that he was of higher rank than the king or even the emperor. This pride made him deny the existence of God and treat all holy things of the church as of no value to him, but merely something for the unintelligent populace.
[3] At length I asked him, 'How long are the two hundred of you there going to go on boasting to one another?' 'For ever,' he said. 'But those of us who torture others for denying our pre-eminence sink down below. For we are allowed to boast, but not to harm anyone.' 'Do you know,' I went on to ask, 'what awaits those who sink down below?' He said that they sink into a sort of prison, where they are called lower than the low, the lowliest of all, and there they work. Then I told the devil to take care, that he too did not sink down.
263. As I was pondering these matters, I was told by the Lord through an angel, "Now you will see and be convinced by visual demonstration what that hellish love is like."
And suddenly then the earth to my left opened up, and I saw a devil ascending out of hell. He had on his head a square hat pulled down over his forehead to his eyes, a face full of pustules as though from a burning fever, savage eyes, and a chest swollen up into a drum. From his mouth he belched smoke like a furnace; his loins were completely on fire; instead of feet he had only bony ankles without any flesh; and from his body emanated a foul and unclean heat.
[2] On seeing him I was terrified, and I cried out to him, "Don't come any closer! Just say where you have come from."
So he replied, hoarsely, "I come from below, and I live there with two hundred others in a society which is the most preeminent society of all. We are all emperors of emperors, kings of kings, dukes of dukes, and princes of princes there. No one among us is merely an ordinary emperor, or an ordinary king, duke or prince. We sit there on our thrones of thrones, and send out decrees to all the world and beyond."
I then said to him, "Do you not see that your delusion of preeminence has made you insane?"
But he replied, "How can you say that, seeing that we all appear to ourselves completely as I have described, and are acknowledged as such by our colleagues?"
Hearing this, I did not want to say, "You are insane," again, because he really was insane as a result of his delusion.
It was then granted me to learn that when this devil lived in the world, he had been only the caretaker of someone else's house, and that even then he had been so carried away in spirit that he looked down on all the rest of the human race in comparison with himself, indulging in the fantasy that he was worthier than any king, even worthier than any emperor. Because of this conceit, he had rejected God, regarding all the sanctities of the church as of no value to him but only something for the stupid masses.
[3] Finally I asked him, "The two hundred in your society - how long will you go on vaunting yourselves like that with each other?"
"To eternity," he said. But he added, "Those of us who do injury to others for denying our preeminence, sink down. For we are allowed to vaunt ourselves to each other, but we may not inflict harm on anyone."
I inquired further, "Do you know what the fate is for those who sink down?"
He said that they sink down into a certain prison, where they are called lower than the low or the very lowest and are made to labor.
I then said to that devil, "You had better take care, therefore, lest you too sink down."
263. While I was thinking about these things, an angel from the Lord said, "You are going to see how hellish this love is and be convinced, right now!"
Suddenly, to my left, the earth opened, and I saw a devil coming up out of hell. He had a square cap, pressed down on his forehead clear to his eyes. His face was full of pimples as if he had a burning fever, his eyes were ferocious, and his chest swelled up like a top. He belched smoke out of his mouth like a furnace. His sides were all on fire. In place of feet were bony ankles without flesh, and his body gave off a stinking, unclean heat.
I was terrified at the sight of him, and shouted, "Don't come near! Tell me where you're from."
"I am from the lower regions," he answered hoarsely. "I belong to a group of two hundred, and of all societies we are the greatest. All of us are emperors over emperors, kings of kings, dukes among dukes, and princes among princes. No one there is a mere emperor, king, duke, or prince. We sit upon thrones over thrones and send orders from there to the whole world and beyond."
I said, "Don't you see you're insane, with this fantasy of being the greatest?"
"How can you talk that way?" he answered. "We can see we're just what I said, and our comrades admit it."
I didn't want to tell him "You're insane" again, when I heard this, because he really was insane with his fantasy. And I found out that this devil was only a manager in someone else's household when he lived in the world, and he acquired such an inflated ego that he despised the whole human race compared to himself and indulged in the fantasy that he was worthier than a king or even an emperor. It led him to deny God and consider all the holy things of the church of no account to him but only to the stupid masses.
"About you and your two hundred," I finally said - "how long will you glory among yourselves there?"
"To eternity," he said. "Except that the ones who torment others for denying that they are the greatest sink down. We can glorify ourselves, but we're not allowed to harm others."
Then I said, "Do you know what happens to the ones who sink down?"
"They sink into a kind of prison where they are called viler than the vile, or most vile," he said, "and they work."
Then I told this devil, "Be careful. Don't sink down yourself."
263. While meditating on this, it was said to me by the Lord through an angel, "You shall now see the nature of that infernal love, and seeing, you will be confirmed." Then suddenly, the earth on the left opened and I saw a devil coming up out of hell. On his head he had a square cap pressed down over his forehead as far as his eyes. His face was full of pustules as of a burning fever, his eyes fierce, and his chest swollen into a rhomb. Out of his mouth he belched smoke like a furnace. His loins were all aflame. Instead of feet were bony ankles without flesh; and from his body exhaled a stinking and unclean heat.
[2] Terrified at sight of him, I called out, "Do not come near. Tell me whence you are." He answered hoarsely: "I am from the lower regions and am there with two hundred in a society which is pre-eminent above all societies. There we are all emperors of emperors, kings of kings, dukes of dukes, and princes of princes. No one there is a mere emperor or a mere king, duke or prince. There we sit upon thrones of thrones and send out our mandates into all the world and beyond."
I then said to him, "Do you not see that from the fantasy of pre-eminence you are insane?" and he replied, "How can you speak in that way? To ourselves we seem such as I have said. Moreover, by our companions we are recognized as such." Hearing this, I did not wish to repeat "You are insane," because from his fantasy he really was insane. It was then granted me to learn that, while living in the world, that devil had been merely a house steward, and that he was then so greatly elated in spirit that he despised the whole human race in comparison with himself, and indulged the fantasy that he was more worthy than a king and even than an emperor. From this pride he had denied God and counted all the holy things of the Church as nothing for himself and as something only for the stupid multitude.
[3] At last I asked him, "As to your two hundred there, how long do you thus boast among yourselves?" He said, "For ever; but those of us who torment others for denying their pre-eminence sink down, it being allowed us to boast but not to bring evil on any one."
I then asked him, "Do you know what is the lot of those who sink down?" He said, "They sink into a prison where they are called viler than the vile or the very vilest, and there they labor." To that devil I then said, "Have a care then lest you also sink down."
263. While I was pondering these things I was told by an angel from the Lord, "This very moment you shall see, and be assured by seeing, how infernal this love is."
Suddenly, at the left, the earth opened and I saw a devil emerging from hell, with a square cap on his head crushed down over the forehead even to the eyes, a face full of blisters from a high fever, ferocious eyes, and a bosom swollen out of shape. From his mouth belched the fumes of an oven; his loins were all aflame; instead of feet he had ankle bones without flesh; and from his body exhaled a stinking and unclean heat.
[2] Terrified at the sight of him, I cried to him:
"Come no nearer! Tell me, whence are you?"
He answered hoarsely, "From the lower regions where I am in a society of two hundred which is supreme over all other societies. We are all emperors of emperors, kings of kings, dukes of dukes, and princes of princes. No one is just an emperor, or just a king, duke, or prince. We sit on thrones of thrones and issue mandates into all the world and beyond."
I said to him, "Do you not see that you are insane with an hallucination of preeminence?"
He replied, "How can you say that? We seem to have such preeminence, and our companions acknowledge we have."
Hearing this, I did not wish to say again, "You are insane," for in his phantasy he really was insane. I was informed that in the world this devil had been only the steward of some one's house, but was so elated in spirit that he despised the whole human race in comparison with himself and indulged the phantasy that he was worthier than a king or even an emperor. In this arrogance he had denied God and accounted all the holy things of the Church as nothing to him, if still of some account to the stupid multitude.
[3] At length I asked him, "How long will you two hundred boast thus among yourselves?" He said, "To eternity. But those of us who torment others for denying our supereminence sink underground. We are allowed to boast, but not to injure any one."
I asked again, "Do you know what the lot is of those who sink underground?" He said, "They sink into a kind of prison where they toil and are called viler or vilest of the vile."
Then I said to this devil, "Better take heed lest you also sink down."
263. While I was reflecting upon these things it was said to me by an angel from the Lord, 'Just now you shall see and be confirmed by seeing what the infernal quality of this love is.'
Then suddenly on the left the earth opened and I saw a devil coming up out of hell, who had on his head a square cap pressed down over the forehead even to the eyes, his face full of pustules as of a burning fever, his eyes ferocious, his bosom swelling into a rhomb. Out of his mouth belched forth a fume as of a furnace; his loins were all aflame; in the place of feet were bony ankles without flesh; and from his body exhaled a stinking and unclean heat. I was terrified at the sight of him, and called out to him:
' Do not come near. Tell me whence you are?'
He answered hoarsely, ‘I am from the lower regions, and am there in a society with two hundred which is super-eminent above all societies. We there are all emperors of emperors, kings of kings, dukes of dukes, and princes of princes. No one there is a mere emperor, or a mere king, duke, and prince. We sit there upon thrones of thrones, and send forth mandates thence into all the world and beyond.' I said unto him, 'Do you not see that you are insane from the fantasy of pre-eminence?'
He replied, 'How can you speak so? We altogether see ourselves to be such, and are also acknowledged to be such by our companions.'
Hearing this, I did not wish to say again, 'You are insane,' for from the fantasy he really was insane. And it was given me to know that this devil, while he lived in this world was only the steward of the house of someone, and that he was then so elated in spirit that he despised the whole human race in comparison with himself, and indulged the fantasy that he was worthier than a king, or even an emperor, from which pride he had denied God, and counted all holy things of the church as nothing to him, but of some account to the stupid multitude.
At length I asked him, 'How long do you two hundred thus glory among yourselves there?' He said, 'To eternity. But those of us who torment others for denying their super-eminence sink down, for we are allowed to glory, but are not allowed to do harm to others.' I asked again, 'Do you know what is the lot of those who sink down?' He said, 'They sink into a kind of prison where they are called viler than the vile, or most vile, and they work.'
Then I said to this devil, 'Have a care then that you also do not sink down.'
263. Cum haec meditatus sum, dictum mihi est per Angelum a Domino, "jam jam videbis et confirmaberis ex visu qualis infernalis ille Amor est:" et tunc subito aperuit se terra ad sinistrum, et vidi ascendentem ex Inferno diabolum, cui super capite erat pileus quadratus depressus super frontem usque ad oculos, facies plena pustulis sicut ardentis febris, oculi truces, pectus tumens in rhombum; ex ore eructabat fumum sicut furnus, lumbi ei erant plane igniti, loco pedum erant tali ossei absque carne; et ex corpore ejus exhalabatur calor putidus et immundus.
[2] Illo viso territus sum, et clamavi ad illum, "ne accede, dic unde es;" et respondit rauce, "sum ex inferis, et ibi in Societate cum ducentis, quae omnium societatum supereminentissima est; ibi omnes sumus imperatores imperatorum, reges regum, duces ducum, et principes principum; non aliquis ibi est nude imperator, neque nude rex, dux et princeps; sedemus ibi super thronis thronorum, et inde mandata in universum orbem, et ultra, emittimus:" tunc dixi illi, "videsne quod ex phantasia supereminentiae insanias;" et respondit, "quomodo potes ita loqui, quia nobis prorsus videmur, et quoque agnoscimur a consociis, tales;" hoc audito, non volui adhuc dicere, insanis, quia ex phantasia insanivit: et datum est mihi cognoscere, quod ille diabolus, cum in mundo vixit, fuerit modo curator alicujus domus; et quod tunc in tantum elatus spiritu fuerit, ut prae se omne Genus humanum spreverit, ac indulserit phantasiae, quod dignior esset rege, et quoque imperatore; ex quo fastu negaverat Deum, ac reputaverat omnia sancta Ecclesiae sicuti nihili pro se, sed aliquid pro stupida plebe.
[3] Tandem quaesivi illum, "vos ducenti ibi, quam diu 1gloriabimini 2ita inter vos;" dixit, "in aeternum, sed quod illi e nobis, qui cruciant alios propter negatam supereminentiam, subsidant; licet enim nobis gloriari, sed non alicui malum inferre;" quaesivi iterum, "scisne qualis sors est subsidentibus;" dixit, quod subsidant in quendam carcerem, ubi vocantur viliores vilibus seu vilissimi, et laborant; tunc dixi ad diabolum illum, "cave itaque tu, ne etiam subsidas."
Footnotes:
1. Prima editio: quamdiu (sic etiam Vera Christiana Religio 661[8])
2. Prima editio: gloriamini (sic etiam Vera Christiana Religio 661[8])