se
of the latter, and not for the former, unless they are of such a
character as to suffer themselves to be instructed.

[Footnote tt: Man after death has with him the memory of all his
concerns in the world, nos. 2476-2486.]

128. In a state of wakefulness, I was led as to the spirit by the Lord
through angels to a certain earth in the universe, accompanied by some
spirits from this globe. The progression took place towards the right,
and lasted for two hours. Near the boundary of our solar system, there
appeared first a whitish but dense cloud, and after it a fiery smoke
ascending from a great gulf: this was an immense chasm, separating our
solar system on that side from certain systems of the starry heaven.
The fiery smoke appeared over a considerable distance. I was conveyed
across the midst of it, and then there appeared beneath in that gulf
or chasm very many men, who were spirits (for all spirits appear in
the human form, and are actually men). I also heard them talking with
each other; but whence they were, or of what character, it was not
given me to know. One of them, however, told me that they were guards
to prevent spirits passing without permission from this into any other
system in the universe. That this was the case, was also confirmed;
for when some spirits who were in the company, and who had not
received permission to pass, came to that great interstice, they began
to cry out wildly that they were perishing, for they were like persons
struggling in the agony of death; wherefore they stopped on this side
of the chasm, and could not be conveyed any further; for the fiery
smoke which exhaled from the chasm attacked them, and tortured them in
this manner.

129. After I had been translated across that great chasm, I at length
reached a place where I stopped; and then some spirits appeared to me
above, and it was given me to speak with them. From their speech, and
from their peculiar manner of apperceiving things and explaining
them, I discerned clearly that they were from another earth; for they
differed altogether from the spirits of our solar system. They also
apperceived from my speech that I had come from a great distance.

130. After we had conversed for awhile on various subjects, I asked
them what God they worshipped. They said they worshipped some angel,
who appears to them as a Divine man, for he is resplendent with light;
and that he instructs them and enables them to apperceive what they
ou