248. The speech of an angel or spirit with man is heard by him as audibly as the speech of man with man, yet by himself only, and not by others who are standing near. The reason is that the speech of an angel or spirit flows first into a man's thought, and by an inner way into his organ of hearing, and so sets it in motion from within, while the speech of man with man flows first into the air and by an outward way into his organ of hearing, and sets it in motion from without. Evidently, then, the speech of an angel or spirit with man is heard within him, and as it equally sets the organs of hearing in motion, it is equally audible. That the speech of an angel or a spirit flows down from within even into the ear has been made clear to me by the fact that it flows also into the tongue, causing a slight vibration, but not with any such motion as when the speech tone is articulated into words by the man himself by means of the tongue.