1662. A person's memory remains entire in the other life
Souls in the other life do indeed seem to have lost their memory of personal or bodily matters, which contains merely material mental images, because they cannot raise up anything from that memory. Yet the ability to understand and speak remains complete, as in life.
But the fact of the matter is that the Lord has so ordained that souls may not draw forth anything out of that memory, for then they would raise up the same circumstances they had in life, and would live in the same way, and would not be able to be perfected. Nevertheless, that memory remains, though it is not active but passive. It can be stimulated by others, for whatever people have done, and anything they have seen, and have heard, when told to them in a similar form, they immediately recognize, and know clearly that they had spoken, seen and heard those things. This is clear to me from so many instances that I would fill up many pages citing them as confirmation.
This being the case, therefore, it is clear that they keep all of their memory of personal matters and have lost nothing whatever of it, but are simply unable to draw anything from it, for the reasons given, namely that they are now being guided into life, and therefore no longer act from their own powers. Souls never know otherwise but that they have spoken from their own memory, and to be sure, they sometimes do so, as I have heard them, but it was from their inward memory, through which things in their bodily memory are raised up. But how they could speak, and even preach, from it, is another matter for investigation. They admitted that they had forgotten personal matters, and it made them indignant. They were only allowed to remember the things they could raise up out of my memory. So spirits do raise up, and then speak about those matters in my memory coinciding with their life which they brought with them from bodily life, for they are unable to raise up anything else. This takes place with variety, depending on the state of life they are in, brought on by the societies into which they are placed, in each of which they speak differently. And because they speak from the life [formed by] their loves, and this life appears very plainly, therefore many elements can be raised up by other spirits that they recognize, and thus they are stimulated to the remembrance of things they had said, seen and heard. But this is all directed by the Lord Alone. 1748, 23 March.
1662. THAT THE MEMORY OF MAN REMAINS UNIMPAIRED IN THE OTHER LIFE.
Souls in the other life seem, indeed, to themselves to have lost the memory of particulars, or the corporeal memory, in which merely material ideas inhere, because they are unable to excite anything from that memory, while yet the full faculty of perceiving and speaking remains as in the life [of the body]. But this is owing to the fact that the Lord has so ordained that the soul shall not be able to draw forth anything from that memory, as then it would excite the same things as it did in the former life, and would live in like manner, and so could not be perfected. Still that memory remains, not, however, as active, but as passive, and it can be excited by others; for whatever men may have done, seen, or heard in their lifetime, when they are spoken of to them with a like idea, then they at once recognize them, and know that they have said, seen, or heard such things which has been evinced to me by such abundant proofs that I could, in confirmation, fill many pages with them. As such, then, is the state of the case, it appears that spirits retain all their memory of particulars, so that they lose nothing, only that, for the causes above mentioned, they cannot draw anything from it, as they are now led onward into [their interior] life, and thus no longer act from their [externals]. Souls are not at all aware but that they speak from their own memory, and do, in fact, sometimes thus speak, as I have heard, but then it is from the interior memory, through which the things in their corporeal memory are excited; and how they can thus speak, and even preach, is a matter for investigation at another time. They confessed, however, that they had lost the memory of particular [or material] things, at which they were indignant. It was only given them to remember those things which they could excite from my memory. Spirits also do the same, and thus speak in a manner suitable to their own life, the life which they have contracted from the life in the body, for they can excite nothing else; [but this they do] with variety according to the state of life in which they are, which state is induced by the societies they are conjoined to, as they then speak in an altered manner. As spirits speak from the life of their loves, and that life appears sufficiently manifest, many things can thus be excited by other spirits which they recognize, and thus what they have said, seen, and heard is excited [indirectly] in their own memory. But all these things are directed to the Lord alone. - 1748, March 23.
1662. Quod memoria hominis integra remaneat in altera vita
Animae in altera vita, quidem memoriam particularium seu corpoream, cui ideae mere materiales insunt, amisisse videntur, quia nihil excitare possunt ex ea memoria, cum plena usque percipiendi, loquendique facultas sicut in vita remaneat, sed res se ita habent 1
, quod Dominus ita ordinaverit, ut anima non quicquam ex ea memoria depromere possit, tunc enim excitaret eadem quae in vita, et similiter viveret, ita non potuisset perfici, sed usque manet ea memoria, sed non agens, verum patiens, excitari potest ab aliis, nam quicquid in vita egerunt, tum quae viderunt, quaeque audiverunt, cum ea iis dicuntur cum idea simili, tunc illico agnoscunt, et sciunt manifeste, quod talia loquuti, viderint, et audiverint, quod tam multis constat mihi, ut plures paginas implerem, si talia confirmarem; cum itaque res se taliter habet, constat quod memoriam suam omnem particularium retineant, sic ut nihil usque amiserint, solum quod ex ea nihil depromere possint, ex causis ut dictum, quia nunc perducuntur in vitam, et sic quod ex suis non amplius agant; animae nequaquam aliter sciunt, quam quod ex sua memoria loquuti sint, et quidem quandoque loquuntur, sicut audivi, verum ex memoria interiori, per quam excitantur ea quae in memoria corporea sunt. At quomodo sic loqui possint, imo praedicare, est res alius indaginis, id confessi sunt, quod obliti sint rerum particularium, quod indignati, solum ea iis dabatur meminisse, quae ex mea memoria potuerunt excitare, praeterea excitant spiritus ea, quae in mea memoria sunt, et sic loquuntur, convenienter suaemet vitae quam a vita corporis secum traxerunt-nam 2
aliud non possunt excitare-et 3
cum varietate, secundum statum vitae in quo sunt, qui status inducitur per societates, quibus inseruntur, ita tunc aliter loquuntur; et quia ex vita suorum amorum loquuntur, et ea vita satis manifeste apparet, ita excitari possunt multa ab aliis spiritibus, quae agnoscunt, et sic in memoriam eorum quae loquuti sunt, viderunt, et audiverunt, excitantur: sed omnia haec Dominus Solus dirigit. 1748, 23 Martius.
Footnotes:
1. nisi legendum habeat
2. The Manuscript has traxerunt, nam
3. The Manuscript has excitare, et