2930. On those who believe [nothing] about spiritual and heavenly things, nor about the soul and its life after death, because they do not know and understand what it is like
There are very many such people in the world, who reject spiritual things because they do not grasp them with the senses, thus thinking them to be like a cloud or smoke that is dissipated when the body dies. Such have been with me the whole night, and they are overhead, forward, rather high up, where some seemed to be watching guards, who kept watch over me the whole night, to punish me because I had spoken and written so much about spiritual things, when yet they cannot grasp them by means of any kind of physical sense.
Those guards kept me in a middle state, nearer to wakefulness than to sleep, thus annoying me through many hours of the night. Their fantasy was so simple and silly that I cannot describe it, such was their aura. Then it was also due to their aura that I could not be freed by the Lord, but was absurdly unable to come to any spiritual thought.
2930. 1CONCERNING THOSE THINGS, WHICH THEY BELIEVE CONCERNING SPIRITUALS, CELESTIALS, AND THE SOUL, AND ITS LIFE AFTER DEATH, BECAUSE THEY DO NOT KNOW AND UNDERSTAND ITS QUALITY [quale est].
There are very many such in the world, who reject spiritual things, because they do not apprehend them by the senses, thus suppose them to be dispersed like cloud or smoke when the body is dead. Such have been with me the whole night, and are above the head, in front, quite high, where there were some, as it were stationary, who kept me wakeful through the whole night, and so punished [me] because I have spoken and written so many things concerning spiritual things, when yet these things cannot [belong] to such things as pertain to the sense of the body to receive. These stationary [spirits] kept me in a middle state, nearer [potius] wakefulness than sleep, thus harassed me, during many hours of the night. Their phantasy was so simple and foolish [fatua] that I could not describe it. Such was their sphere: moreover that I might not be able to be liberated by the Lord, it was [from] their sphere, yet a foolish [one].
Footnotes:
1. Number 2929 is wanting in the original.
2930. De iis qui 1
de spiritualibus, coelestibus, etiam de anima, ejusque 2
vita post mortem [nihil] credunt, quia non sciunt, et intelligunt, quale est
3
. Sunt perplures tales in mundo, qui spiritualia rejiciunt, quia non sensibus capiunt, sic putant esse sicut nubes aut fumus, qui dissipantur, corpore mortuo, tales apud me fuerunt tota nocte, suntque supra caput, antrorsum, satis alte, ubi erant quidam quasi stationarii, qui me per totam noctem tenerent vigilem, et sic punirent, quia tam multa de spiritualibus loquutus sim, et scripserim, cum tamen ea non possint talibus quae sunt sensus corporis capere, stationarii isti tenebant me in statu medio ad vigiliam potius, quam ad somnum, sic me vexantes per plures horas noctis; phantasia eorum erat tam simplex, et fatua, ut non eam describere possem; talis erat sphaera eorum; tum etiam quod non possem liberari a Domino, etiam erat sphaerae eorum, sed fatue, in nullam cogitationem spiritualem potui venire; per sphaeram istam fatuam repraesentabatur eorum spirituale, quale est in animo eorum; postea veni in somnum, et cum evigilatus, ab iis eorum spirituale quoque repraesentabatur sicut foliosa nubes,
(2931.) fatue quoque, cui nihil spirituale et intellectuale potuisset esse--ex 4
captu eorum hoc, quod nubes nihil sentire et percipere posse 5
, sic quod sit merum naturale, sicut apud bestias--verbo 6
spirituale eorum erat tale, quare dabatur repraesentare iis, quod hoc verum sit, quod cogitemus spiritualiter, quod spiritus sint, tali intellectu praediti, et usque repraesentantur sicut nubes! quomodo id percipere possent, cum illud verum, et hoc tamen ita repraesentatur? ex repraesentatione ista, spiritus isti naturales ita perculsi sunt, et ita affecti, ut describi non possit, petentes ut desisterem a tali repraesentatione, [dicentes] sic se in speciem 7
anxietatis et annihilationis redigi, quae poena 8
erat, quam gravem iis fuisse, ex eo quod ita conquesti sint, percepi. 1748, 26 9
Aug.
Footnotes:
1. The Manuscript has quae
2. The Manuscript has anima; ejusque
3. 2929 deest
4. The Manuscript has esse, ex
5. sic manuscript; vide praefationem hujus editionis sub capite "Idiosyncrasies"
6. The Manuscript has bestias, verbo
7. This is how it appears in J.F.I. Tafel's edition; the Manuscript has specie
8. The Manuscript has erat poena
9. In the Manuscript 25 in 26 emendatum