Cause Principle Unity

On magic
It is easy for demons to penetrate through bodies and to initiate thoughts
in us. The reason for the latter is that they convey certain impressions
directly to our internal senses, just as we ourselves sometimes seem to
think of something suggested by the internal senses. This knowledge seems
to occur according to the following comparison and analogy. If one wishes
to generate a thought in someone standing at a distance, one must shout so
that the thought is produced in their internal sense through their hearing
it. But if the person is closer, a shout is not needed, only a quieter voice.
And if the person is immediately nearby, a whisper in the ear suffices. But
demons have no need of ears or voices or whispers because they penetrate
into the internal sense directly, as was said. Thus, they send not only
dreams and voices and visions to be heard and seen, but also certain
thoughts which are hardly noticed by some. They communicate truths
sometimes through enigmas, and sometimes through sense impressions.
Sometimes they may even deceive. Not all things are granted to everyone,
although they always happen in a definite sequence and order.
Not all spirits or demons have the same level of existence, power and
knowledge. Indeed, we know that there are many more species of them than
there are of sensible things. Thus, some of them are brute animals and
cause injury without any reason. Although these are far inferior to humans
in knowledge, they still can do as much harm as dangerous animals or poisons.
Mark called these spirits ‘deaf and dumb’, 13 i.e., they are without reason,
since they recognize no commands, and they do not hear or perceive
any threats or prayers. As a result, it has been declared that it is impossible
to banish them, although it has also been said that they can be controlled
and conquered by fasting or abstinence, and by prayer or lofty meditation,
and by the power of the senses. This latter is a medical issue, for spirits of
this crass type, like food and pleasure, are located in our dense humours
and earthy melancholies, which a doctor controls either by thinning them
out through fasting or by expelling them with a proper dose of laxative.
There is another type of demon which is fearful, suspicious and credulous.
These hear and understand voices but do not distinguish the possible
from the impossible, or the appropriate from the inappropriate. They are like
humans who are dreaming and disturbed by fantasies. This type of demon
is usually expelled by threats of death, prison, fire and other such things.
There are other, wiser demons which reside in pure air, which is a simple
substance. They are affected by no cult, no religious practice and no
13 Mark, 9:25.
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