1750. Spirits of this kind, if allowed, even try to take complete possession of a person, to the point that if they were able, they would try to cast out the person's life, and then enter so as to live in the other's body, entertaining fantasies like those of certain spirits at the time the Lord was in the world.
I was shown that this is what they want to do also, and I said to one that this is impossible, demonstrating it plainly by the fact that each person is an instrument, whose inward parts are organic forms that could never be occupied by the organic forms of someone else, nor be changed into someone else's. Perhaps they were thinking that their inward parts were nothing but life, like a flame; but if so, they are immensely mistaken.
1750. Such spirits also, if it were permitted them, would desire to possess the whole man, so much so, that if it were possible they would fain cast out man's life, and thus enter and live in the body of another. It was shown me according to the phantasies of certain spirits [who lived] at the time the Lord was in the world, that they were prompted by this desire. I said to a certain one that that was impossible, and plainly demonstrated it, namely, from the fact that man is an organ, and his interiors are organic forms, which can by no means be occupied by the organic forms of another, nor changed into those of another; they perhaps supposing that their interiors were life alone, like a flame; but they are immensely deceived.
1750. Tales etiam, si eis licet, totum hominem occupare cupiunt, adeo ut, si potuissent, cuperent hominis vitam ejicere, et sic intrare, ut vivant in alterius corpore, secundum phantasias quorundam, tempore dum in mundo fuit Dominus; quod etiam id cupiant, quoque mihi ostensum est: cuidam dixi, quod id impossibile sit, et demonstravi manifeste, nempe quia homo est organum, et interiora ejus sunt formae organicae, quae ab alius formis organicis nequaquam occupari possint, nec mutari in alius; putantes forte, quod interiora eorum esset solum vita, sicut flamma, sed immensum falluntur.