Arcana Coelestia (Elliott) n. 5185

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5185. There are spirits who correlate with the Pancreatic Duct, the Hepatic Duct, and the Cystic Duct, and who consequently correlate with the bile present in them, which is excreted by the intestines. These groups of spirits are distinct and separate, yet they work together as demanded by the state of those in whom they operate. They are present in particular at chastisements and punishments, which they would like to be in charge of. The worst of them are so stubborn that they have no wish at all to desist unless they are frightened off by fears and threats; for they are afraid of being punished themselves, and so will promise to do anything. They are spirits who during their lifetime stuck rigidly to their own opinions, not so much because they led an evil life as because they were naturally perverse. When in their own natural state they have no real thought at all (a person has no real thought at all when he has vague thoughts about many things simultaneously but has no distinct idea about any one thing in particular). Their delights consist in the work of chastisement and doing good by carrying it out; but they do not refrain from foul deeds.


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