5855. Before the way was opened that enabled me to talk to spirits I had been of the opinion that no one except God alone - no spirit or any angel - could possibly know and perceive my thoughts since they were within me. Then one day something happened; I noticed that a certain spirit knew what I was thinking, for he spoke a few words to me about the things I was thinking, and he used a certain sign to indicate his presence. I was dumbfounded by this, above all by the fact that he knew my thoughts. The experience proved to me how difficult it is for a person to believe that a spirit can know what he is thinking, when in fact a spirit can know not only the thoughts of which a person himself is aware but also the smallest details of the thoughts and affections of which a person is not aware. Indeed the spirit can know things the person can never be aware of during his lifetime. This is something I know about from experience which has gone on for a number of years.