2208. The attempt of an angel to work through interactions
While I was walking along the road, an angel attempted to see how the properties of an angel flowed into an earthly human, and thus to investigate the interactions. But he did not succeed except in a few respects.
The reason, I realized, was that the thoughts of angels, though richer than man's thought, were too tiny to arouse interactions. And besides, things of his own were getting mixed in, and thus evil feelings, which were being stirred up. Moreover, these feelings are of a cruder quality, and when they stirred them often enough, they also aroused a mixture in the person's mind, letting spirits grasp the opportunity to raise up disharmonious mental imagery.
In short, angels' mental imagery is extremely limited, and cannot possibly lead a person on earth; but to the extent that it comes from what is the angel's own, it would corrupt the person. 1748, 6 June.
2208. THE ATTEMPT OF AN ANGEL TO ACT BY MEANS OF CORRESPONDENCES.
A certain angel, when I was walking in the way, attempted to see how those things which belong to an angel inflowed into man's thought, and thus to explore correspondences; but he did not succeed, save in a few things. The reason was, as I perceived, that the thoughts of angels, though richer than man's thought, were very few in comparison with the correspondence excited; and further, that when they be omitted from his own proprium, evil affections were excited; and also further, such as were of the grosser sort, that when they excited such things out of their own [thoughts], they also excited in the mind things that were mixed; thence gave spirits a handle to excite more incongruous ideas. In a word, the ideas of angels are most limited [finitissimae] nor can they ever lead man. But so far as they act from proprium, they pervert. - 1748, June 6.
2208. Tentamen angeli per correspondentias agendi
Quidam angelus, cum ambularem in via, tentavit videre, quomodo in hominem, ejus cogitationem influerent ea, quae angeli, et sic explorare correspondentias, sed non successit, modo in aliquibus, causa erat, sicut percepi, quod angelorum cogitationes, tametsi locupletiores cogitatione hominis, admodum paucae essent, quam ut correspondentias excitarent, et praeterea, quod ex propriis ejus intermiscerentur, inde affectiones malae quae excitabantur, et praeterea quoque crassiores, ut dum ea saepe excitarent, etiam ea in mente excitarent, quae mixta essent, unde spiritus ansam arriperent, ideas istas excitandi quae incongruae essent; verbo angelorum ideae sunt finitissimae, nec usquam ducere possunt hominem; sed quantum ex proprio, perverterent. 1748, 6 Junius.