5590. The speech of spirits with a person falls into the words of the person on earth, and then the spirit's way of speaking is like that of a person from any nation whatever, and it falls into the foreign languages a person has command of as well. He does not then realize that it is a different kind of speech or that it is spiritual among spirits. The inflow of spirits' speech into a person is similar to the inflow of a person's speech into himself. A person is a spirit, and his speech flows from his spirit into the natural speech of people. And at the time he [is talking with spirits] he does not realize that spirits have a different speech than earthly language. And when they are neither speaking nor thinking that their speech is made up of words, they are unaware of this; likewise the spirits who are with people; the case is altogether the same. Make a comparison.
5590. The speech of spirits with man falls into the man's words; and, then, a spirit is in the like speech with the man, of whatsoever nation he may be: it also [falls] into the foreign languages which are with the man. Such spirit is, at the time, unaware that there is any other speech, or that he is a spiritual [being] among spirits. Similar is the influx of the speech of spirits into man as [the speech] of the man in himself. He is a man-spirit; and his speech inflows from his spirit into the natural 1speech of man; and man is then unaware of the quality of [his] spirit, or that there is in him another speech than the language of earth. And when he is neither speaking, nor thinking that [his] speech belongs to [his] words, he is unaware of the fact: in like manner the spirits who are with a man. The case is precisely similar. Make the comparison.
Footnotes:
1. Here the term "natural" is used in contradistinction to "spiritual"-ED.
5590. Spirituum loquela cum homine cadit in voces hominis, et tunc spiritus in simili loquela est cum homine cujuscunque nationis, etiam in linguas peregrinas quae apud hominem, tunc nescit quod alia loquela sit, nec quod spiritualis inter spiritus, similis influxus est spirituum loquelae apud hominem sicut est hominis in se, est homo spiritus, et ex spiritu ejus influit loquela ejus in loquelam naturalem hominis, et tunc nescit homo qualis spiritus quod alia ei loquela sit, quam lingua terrae, et cum non loquitur nec cogitat quod loquela vocum sit, nescit id, similiter spiritus cum homine, prorsus se similiter habet; fiat comparatio.