4573. About the hells of the Sirens

What sirens are like has been described several times before [see the index]. These women are extremely malicious and have learned in the world how to simulate those who are good, as if they were angels. For the purpose of doing this they radiate good affections and thus slip in among simple spirits that relate to a person's outward qualities of thought or earthly characteristics. In this way they keep themselves in the world of spirits and can be forced out only with difficulty, for such things elevate evil spirits from hell for quite a long time and through such things they enter into people's thoughts and lead them entirely. Consequently, because they are of an inward nature, they are the very worst of spirits who take possession of a person's mind, from whom a person can never be defended except by the Lord. They act very stubbornly and fear nothing, trust in their own arts, and know how to slip in by labyrinthine gyres. They speak from these, sometimes in such a way that they are heard elsewhere than where are they really are, so that they are sought in vain. It has granted me to learn this by many actual experiences.

[2] They are of two kinds. Certain ones have the goal of ruling over others and over every society to which they can gain access, doing so by possessing and leading their thoughts. These women are the most annoying. The second kind does likewise but does not have such a wild obsession with ruling. They take freedom entirely away from those who want to have good thoughts and give freedom to those who want to have evil thoughts. These are very obscene women; they are sorceresses and are against everything good and true. Where this gang comes from has been explained before [cf. 3205 ff]. Their hell was in front at some distance toward the left there; the men who want to rule, a little toward the right, in various caverns. But I saw that their hells had been changed and moved to the back toward the left, rather deep down, from which they can never again break out and attack spirits and people on earth. They are there under a thick cloud which their tricks can in no way get through. They were forced in there in crowds of between fifty and a hundred sirens. This went on for many hours.

Above the hell, there is something like a maw with jaws that open. And the moment they arrived, it opened the maw, twisting and bending it like labyrinths into which they put themselves, and it swallowed them up and then thrust them deep under the disreputable earth there, from which they cannot emerge, this appeared to me in 1752, Aug. 5, 6., for they form snakelike connections, in which they fix themselves and then cannot be moved by others except by means of similar connections. Such it is in the other life.

8223. 'And let the waters return onto the Egyptians' means that the falsities arising from evil would flow back onto and surround those steeped in falsities arising from evil. This is clear from the meaning of 'the waters' as falsities, dealt with in 6346, 7307, 8137, 8138, so that 'let the waters return' means falsity flowing back or recoiling on them, at this point surrounding them too, since they were surrounded by the waters of the Sea Suph, which are the falsities arising from evil of those belonging to the Church who have championed faith separated from charity and led a life of evil; and from the meaning of 'the Egyptians' as those steeped in falsities arising from evil, dealt with very often. For what this implies when it is said that the falsities would flow back or recoil on those whose aim was to pour them out onto those governed by truth and good, who are represented by 'the children of Israel', see above in 8214. There it is shown that the evil which they aim in the direction of others recoils on themselves, and that this has its origin in the following law of God's order, You are not to do to another anything except that which you wish others to do to you. Matthew 7:12. This law, which is unchanging and everlasting in the spiritual world, is the source of the laws of retaliation that were laid down in the representative Church, that is to say, the following laws in Moses,

If harm should come about you shall give soul for soul, eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot, burning for burning, wound for wound, blow for blow. Exodus 21:23-24,

In the same author,

If a man disfigures his neighbour, it shall be done to him as he has done - fracture for fracture, eye for eye, tooth for tooth. As he has disfigured the person, so it shall be done to him. Leviticus 24:19-20.

In the same author,

If a lying witness replies with a lie against his brother, you shall do to him as he has thought to do to his brother. Deuteronomy 19:18-19.

From these quotations it is plainly evident that these laws have their origin in the universal law that is unchanging and perpetual in the spiritual world, that is to say, the law that you are not to do to others anything except that which you wish others to do to you. This shows clearly how to understand the idea that the falsities arising from evil which people aim to inflict on others flow back or recoil on themselves.

[2] But the situation with that law in the next life is in addition such that when some like or retaliatory action carried out is evil it is inflicted by the evil, and never by the good; that is, it comes from hell and never from heaven. For hell or the evil there have an unending desire to do evil to others; that is altogether the delight of their life. They perform evil therefore the moment they are allowed to; and they do not care whom they do it to. They do not care whether the person is bad or good, companion or foe. And since it accords with a law of order that the evil which people aim in the direction of others recoils on themselves, they rush in to do it when this law allows it. The evil in hell behave in this way, the good in heaven never do. The latter desire constantly to do good to others, for that is the delight of their life, and therefore the moment the opportunity exists they do good both to enemies and to friends. Nor indeed do they resist evil, for the laws of order defend and protect what is good and true. This is why the Lord says,

You have heard that it was said, An eye for an eye, and a tooth for a tooth. But I say to you, Evil is not to be resisted. You have heard that it was said, You shall love your neighbour and hate your enemy. But I say to you, Love your enemies, bless those who curse you, do good to those who hate you, so that you may be sons of your Father who is in heaven. Matthew 5:38-39, 43-45.

[3] It is a frequent occurrence in the next life for the evil to be severely punished when they wish to inflict evil on the good, and for the evil which they aim at others to recoil on themselves. Such an occurrence has the appearance of being an act of revenge on the part of the good. But it is not an act of revenge; nor are the good responsible for what happens but evil people who are allowed the opportunity by the law of order so to act. Indeed the good do not wish them any harm, but they cannot take away from them the misery of punishment because they are held intent on good, exactly like a judge when he sees a wrong-doer being punished or like a father when he sees his son being punished by his teacher. The evil who carry out punishment act from an inordinate desire to do ill, whereas the good act from a fondness for doing good. From all this one may see what should be understood by the Lord's words in Matthew, quoted above, about loving one's enemy, and about the law of retaliation, which the Lord did not set aside but opened out; that is to say, He explained that those governed by heavenly love should take no delight in any act of retaliation or revenge but in doing good. His words should also be taken to mean that the actual law of order which protects good achieves this of itself by means of those who are evil.