4862. Thinking is taken away from them because if it were left to them, they would communicate with spirits, and as a result confusion would arise; for if thought remained with them, communication would then be possible with those who are spirits given to thinking rather than to being affected by a desire for doing, and thus they would destroy all their rationality, and they would entirely perish. And they would also have communication with people on earth and arouse their hereditary evils and would entirely destroy every way of being regenerated. They would immediately pervert their rationality and so all truth and conception of truth whatever and inspire an affection of what is false instead of what is true.
4862. Thought is taken away from them, for the reason that if it were left to them they would communicate with spirits, and thus confusion would arise; for if thought remained to them, then there could exist communication with those spirits who think more than they are affected with the desire of doing; and so they [the genii] would destroy the whole of their reason and completely annihilate it, and they would also have communication with men, and would excite their hereditary evils and quite destroy the whole process of regeneration. They would forthwith pervert the reason, thus all truths and the idea of every truth whatever, and inspire an affection of the false instead of one of truth.
4862. Cogitatio illis adimitur ex causa, quia si ea illis relicta foret, communicarent cum spiritibus, et sic confusio fieret, si enim illis cogitatio maneret, tunc daretur communicatio cum illis qui sunt spiritus, qui cogitant plus quam afficiuntur cupiditate agendi, et sic destruerent omnem horum rationem, et prorsus deperderent, et quoque communicationem haberent cum hominibus, et excitarent eorum mala haereditaria, et prorsus destruerent omnem modum regenerationis, perverterent rationem illico, ita omnia vera, et cujus veri ideam, ac insufflarent affectionem falsi loco veri.