400.在肉身死后，离世的灵魂会获得许多能力，这些能力超越他们活在肉身时所拥有的能力。离世者的灵魂，无论是肉身死后不久的，还是死后较长时间的，在与灵人结合之前，都非常迟钝，几乎一无所知。不过，一旦与许多灵人结合，他们就会获得一种创造力，不仅重新获得他们在肉身时所拥有的那种敏锐性，而且当与类似灵人以这样一种方式结合，即他们能充当思维聚焦的媒介时，他们的创造力，无论是何性质，都会被大大磨砺，以致他们比活在肉身时敏锐得多。此外，这时他们的行为不是来自对个人事物的记忆；这种记忆在肉身生活期间使他们退离内层事物，但他们同时也出于一种本能行事。因此，他们似乎更深入、更充分地领悟对话的含义，因为他们的心智从肉身及其对象中退出了，以致肉身的知觉几乎不能深入渗透。此外，他们能以一个世人的母语与他对话，无论他出生在哪里。一个灵人以同样的方式完全拥有一个人的记忆，以致他甚至似乎就是这个人，因而似乎拥有其理解力。但不同之处在于，这个灵人会保持他自己的生命，也就是他自己的爱或贪欲的生命，使他以不同的方式进行感觉。然而，当世人通过他们被引导时，这些灵人就被剥夺了这种生命。他们还非常容易地表现出各种状态，如数不清的清醒和睡眠的状态，以及其它许多状态。（1747年12月25日）
400. After the death of the body, departed souls gain many abilities beyond those they had while living in the body
The souls of the departed either a shorter or longer time after the death of the body, before being brought into the company of spirits, are quite dull, and know almost nothing. But as soon as they become associated with many, they acquire mental powers. Not only do they regain the keenness of mind they had possessed in the body, but also, when associated with their peers in such a way that they can serve as mediums for thought focussing, then whatever mentality they have is so greatly sharpened that they are much more acute than they were during bodily life.
Add to this the fact that now they do not function with a memory of personal affairs, which distracts them in bodily life, but directly from a kind of instinct. Now they seem to grasp more deeply and more fully the meaning of what is being said, because their mind is withdrawn from the body and its objects - so that the perception of one in the body is not nearly as penetrating.
Moreover, they are able to speak with people on earth in their own language, no matter where they were born. Also, [the spirit] comes into complete possession of the person's memory, to the point where he seems to be the person, thus even [to possess] their power of understanding. But there is the difference, that the spirit retains his own life, that is, the life of his own love or passion, causing him to feel things differently - however, these spirits are deprived of that life while people are being led by them.
Also, they very easily put on various conditions, such as innumerable different states of wakefulness and sleep, among many others. 1747, the 25th day of December.
400. THAT THE SOULS OF THE DEAD RECEIVE MANY FACULTIES AFTER THE DEATH OF THE BODY, ABOVE THOSE WHICH THEY HAD WHEN THEY LIVED IN THE BODY
The souls of the dead, whether for a short or a long time after the death of the body, before they are consociated with spirits, are very dull, and know almost nothing; but as soon as they are associated with a number, they acquire a power of ingenuity, not only the acumen which they had in the body, but when they are associated in a certain manner with similar spirits, so that they can serve as subjects of concentrations, then their ingenuity, of whatsoever quality it was, is sharpened to such a degree, that they are much more acute than when in the life of the body. Add to this, that they do not then act from the memory of particulars, which memory in the life of the body withdraws them [from things interior], but they at the same time act from a kind of instinct. Thus they also perceive the sense of conversations as it were more interiorly and fully, because the "animus" is withdrawn from the body and its objects, so that the perception in the body is scarcely able to penetrate so far. Moreover, they can speak with man in his native tongue, wherever he was born. In like manner a spirit comes into the possession of all those things which are in a man's memory, so that he even seems to be the man; consequently, he also comes into his faculty of understanding, but with this difference, that he retains his own life, that is, the life of his love, or cupidity, which causes him to feel in a different manner. But still those spirits are deprived of that life when men are being led through them. They also very easily put on various states, as the innumerable states of wakefulness and sleep, besides many others. 1747, Dec. 25. 1
Footnotes:
1. Paragraph heading crossed out: "THAT MEN ARE VERY GREATLY SEDUCED IN SPIRITUAL THINGS, AND ARE HENCE BLINDED BY..."
400. Quod animae mortuorum multas facultates post mortem corporis accipiant, prae iis dum in corpore vivunt
Animae mortuorum, sive pauco tempore post mortem corporis sive multo, antequam consociantur spiritibus, sunt admodum hebetes, et fere nihil sciunt, ut primum vero associantur pluribus, vim ingenii adipiscuntur, non solum acumen quod habuerunt in corpore, sed dum similibus adsociati certo modo, ut servire possint pro subjecti concentrationum, tunc acuitur ingenium, qualecunque, ii tantum, ut 1
multo acutiores sint quam in vita corporis accedit quod tunc non ex memoria particularium, quae ii vita corporis eos abstrahit, sed simul a quodam instincti agant; ita etiam percipiunt quasi interius et plenius sensum sermonum, quia abstractus est animus a corpore et ejus objectis; ita ut vix tantum penetrare queat perceptio ii corpore; praeterea, possunt loqui cum homine ejus. idiomate, ubicunque natus erat; similiter in possessionem venit omnium istorum quae in memoria hominis sunt, adeo ut videatur is esse homo, proinde etiam [possidere] ejus; intelligendi facultatem, sed cum differentia, quod suam vitam, hoc est, sui amoris seu cupiditatis vitam retineat quod facit, ut diversimode sentiat; sed usque orbantur ii spiritus ista vita, dum per eos homines ducuntur; facillime etiam varios status induunt, sicut status innumeros vigilia et somni, praeter plures. 1747, die 25 Dec.
Footnotes:
1. This is how it appears in J.F.I. Tafel's edition; the Manuscript has et