(1) Arjuna said: O Krishna, at the sight of these my kinsmen, assembled here eager to give battle, my limbs fail and my mouth is parched. My body is shaken and my hair stands on end. The bow Gāndiva slips from my hand and my skin is on fire. I cannot hold myself steady; my mind seems to whirl. O Keśava, I see omens of evil.

(4) We have, however, still to examine what is called the affective phase of the Soul. This has, no doubt, been touched upon above where we dealt with the passions in general as grouped about the initiative phase of the Soul and the desiring faculty in its effort to shape things to its choice: but more is required; we must begin by forming a clear idea of what is meant by this affective faculty of the Soul.

In general terms it means the centre about which we recognize the affections to be grouped; and by affections we mean those states upon which follow pleasure and pain.

Now among these affections we must distinguish. Some are pivoted upon judgements; thus, a Man judging his death to be at hand may feel fear; foreseeing some fortunate turn of events, he is happy: the opinion lies in one sphere; the affection is stirred in another. Sometimes the affections take the lead and automatically bring in the notion which thus becomes present to the appropriate faculty: but as we have explained, an act of opinion does not introduce any change into the Soul or Mind: what happens is that from the notion of some impending evil is produced the quite separate thing, fear, and this fear, in turn, becomes known in that part of the Mind which is said under such circumstances to harbour fear.

But what is the action of this fear upon the Mind?

The general answer is that it sets up trouble and confusion before an evil anticipated. It should, however, be quite clear that the Soul or Mind is the seat of all imaginative representation- both the higher representation known as opinion or judgement and the lower representation which is not so much a judgement as a vague notion unattended by discrimination, something resembling the action by which, as is believed, the "Nature" of common speech produces, unconsciously, the objects of the partial sphere. It is equally certain that in all that follows upon the mental act or state, the disturbance, confined to the body, belongs to the sense-order; trembling, pallor, inability to speak, have obviously nothing to do with the spiritual portion of the being. The Soul, in fact, would have to be described as corporeal if it were the seat of such symptoms: besides, in that case the trouble would not even reach the body since the only transmitting principle, oppressed by sensation, jarred out of itself, would be inhibited.

None the less, there is an affective phase of the Soul or Mind and this is not corporeal; it can be, only, some kind of Ideal-form.

Now Matter is the one field of the desiring faculty, as of the principles of nutrition growth and engendering, which are root and spring to desire and to every other affection known to this Ideal-form. No Ideal-form can be the victim of disturbance or be in any way affected: it remains in tranquillity; only the Matter associated with it can be affected by any state or experience induced by the movement which its mere presence suffices to set up. Thus the vegetal Principle induces vegetal life but it does not, itself, pass through the processes of vegetation; it gives growth but it does not grow; in no movement which it originates is it moved with the motion it induces; it is in perfect repose, or, at least, its movement, really its act, is utterly different from what it causes elsewhere.

The nature of an Ideal-form is to be, of itself, an activity; it operates by its mere presence: it is as if Melody itself plucked the strings. The affective phase of the Soul or Mind will be the operative cause of all affection; it originates the movement either under the stimulus of some sense-presentment or independently- and it is a question to be examined whether the judgement leading to the movement operates from above or not- but the affective phase itself remains unmoved like Melody dictating music. The causes originating the movement may be likened to the musician; what is moved is like the strings of his instrument, and once more, the Melodic Principle itself is not affected, but only the strings, though, however much the musician desired it, he could not pluck the strings except under dictation from the principle of Melody.

(33) The demon Aîghâsh is the malignant-eyed fiend who smites mankind with his eye. 24. The demon Bût is he whom they worship among the Hindûs, and his growth is lodged in idols, as one worships the horse as an idol. 35 Astô-vîdâd is the evil flyer (vâê-i sarîtar) who seizes the life; as it says that, when his hand strokes a man it is lethargy, when he casts it on the sick one it is fever, when he looks in his eyes he drives away the life, and they call it death. 36. The demon of the malignant eye (sûr-kashmîh) is he who will spoil anything which men see, when they do not say 'in the name of God' (yazdân). 37. With every one of them are many demons and fiends co-operating, to specify whom a second time would be tedious; demons, too, who are furies (khashmakân), are in great multitude it is said. 38. They are demons of ruin, pain, and growing old (zvârân), producers of vexation and bile, revivers of grief (nîvagîh), the progeny of gloom, and bringers of stench, decay, and vileness, who are many, very numerous, and very notorious; and a portion of all of them is mingled in the bodies of men, and their characteristics are glaring in mankind. 39. The demon Apâôsh and the demon Aspengargâk are those who remain in contest with the rain. 40. Of the evil spirit are the law of vileness, the religion of sorcery, the weapons of fiendishness, and the perversion (khâmîh) of God's works; and his wish is this, that is: 'Do not ask about me, and do not understand me! for if ye ask about and understand me, ye will not come after me.' 41. This, too, it says, that the evil spirit remains at the distance of a cry, even at the cry of a three-year-old cock (kûlêng), even at the cry of an ass, even at the cry of a righteous man when one strikes him involuntarily and he utters a cry. 42. The demon Kûndak is he who is, the steed (bârak) of wizards. 43. Various new demons arise from the various new sins the creatures may commit, and are produced for such purposes; who make even those planets rush on which are in the celestial sphere, and they stand very numerously in the conflict. 44. Their ringleaders (kamârîkân) are those seven planets, the head and tail of Gôkîhar, and Mûspar provided with a tail, which are ten. 45. And by them these ten worldly creations, that is, the sky, water, earth, vegetation, animals, metals, wind, light, fire, and mankind, are corrupted with all this vileness; and from them calamity, captivity, disease, death, and other evils and corruptions ever come to water, vegetation, and the other creations which exist in the world, owing to the fiendishness of those ten. 46. They whom I have enumerated are furnished with the assistance and crafty (afzar-hômand) nature of Aharman. 47. Regarding the cold, dry, stony, and dark interior of mysterious (târîk dên afrâg-pêdâk) hell it says, that the darkness is fit to grasp with the hand, and the stench is fit to cut with a knife; and if they inflict the punishment of a thousand men within a single span, they (the men) think in this way, that they are alone; and the loneliness is worse than its punishment. 48. And its connection (band) is with the seven planets, be it through much cold like Saturn (Kêvân), be it through much heat like Aharman; and their food is brimstone (gandak), and of succulents the lizard (vazagh), and other evil and wretchedness (patyân).]

(6) It is natural, then, that having a superstitious dread of those irascible [gods], they imagine that all events are signs and causes of evils. If a mouse bore through an altar built of clay, and for want of something else gnaw through an oil flask; if a cock that is being fattened crow in the evening, they determine this to be a sign of something.

(104) For the qualifying or fountain spirits of the devils are shut up in the hard wrath; their bodies are a hard death, and their spirits are a fierce sting of the wrath of God, and their qualifying or fountain spirits generate themselves continually in the innermost sharpness, according to the sharp law [right or order] of the Deity.

(3) 'From terror of Brahman fire burns, from terror the sun burns, from terror Indra and Vâyu, and Death, as the fifth, run away.'

(4) O Arjuna! Whenever there is a decline of righteousness and rise of evil, I manifest Myself.

(8) And some say that plagues, and hail-storms, and tempests, and the like, are wont to take place, not alone in consequence of material disturbance, but also through anger of demons and bad angels. For instance, they say that the Magi at Cleone, watching the phenomena of the skies, when the clouds are about to discharge hail, avert the threatening of wrath by incantations and sacrifices.

(1) With the decay of a family, perish its dharmas, which have existed from time out of mind. With the ending of the dharmas, adharma overwhelms the whole family. When adharma overwhelms the family, O Krishna, the women of the family become corrupt; and when, O Krishna, the women are corrupt, there arises a mixing of castes. This mixture leads into hell the family itself as well as those who destroy it; for their ancestors fall, deprived of the offerings of rice-balls and water.

(157) Now in all the spirits there was nothing else but a mere hot, fiery, cold and hard corruption, and so one evil quality tasted the others, whereby the whole body grew so very fierce and wrathful; for the heat was against the cold, and the cold against the heat.

(27) Now the rising up of the heat and of the astriction makes a trembling, fierce, terrible spirit, which raveth and rageth, as if it would tear the Deity asunder. But thou must understand this, exactly and properly.

(11) Into Thee enter these hosts of gods, and some in fear extol Thee with folded hands. And bands of Rishis and Siddhas exclaim, “May there be peace!” and praise Thee with splendid hymns.

(7) Now when it had half-generated the animated or soulish spirit in the body, that spirit became in this kind and manner a fierce, stinging, raging, kindled and tearing spirit, bitter as gall; and is rightly the quality of hell fire, a very fierce and enemicitious hostile being.

(1) After I cease to be upon the earth and withdraw up to my rest, a great, evil error will come upon the world, and many evils in accordance with the number of the forms of nature. Evil times will come. And when the era of nature is approaching destruction, darkness will come upon the earth. The number will be small. And a demon will come up from the power who has a likeness of fire. He will divide the heaven, and he will rest in the depth of the east. For the whole world will quake. And the deceived world will be thrown into confusion. Many places will be flooded because of envy of the winds and the demons who have a name that is senseless: Phorbea, Chloerga. They are the ones who govern the world with their teaching. And they lead astray many hearts because of their disorder and their unchastity. Many places will be sprinkled with blood. And five races by themselves will eat their sons. The regions of the south will receive the word of the light. But they who are from the error of the world and from the east. . . . A demon will come forth from the belly of the serpent. He was in hiding in a desolate place. He will perform many wonders. Many will loathe him. A wind will come forth from his mouth with a female likeness. Her name will be called Abalphe. He will reign over the world from the east to the west.

(14) These bear fruits of rejoicing, or of affliction, as they are sprung from holy or unholy works.

(1) In the last place, the dispositions of the soul of those that invoke the Gods to appear receive, when they become visible, a liberation from the passions, a transcendent perfection, and an energy entirely more excellent, and participate of divine love and an immense joy. But when archangels appear, these dispositions receive a pure condition of being, intellectual contemplation, and an immutable power. When angels appear, they participate of intellectual wisdom and truth, pure virtue, stable knowledge, and a commensurate order. But when dæmons are seen, they receive the appetite of generation and a desire of nature, together with a wish to accomplish the works of Fate, and a power effective of things of this kind. If heroes are seen, they derive from the vision other such like manners and many impulses, which contribute to the communion of souls. But when these dispositions come into contact with archons, mundane or material, motions are excited in conjunction with the soul. And, together with the vision of souls, the spectators derive genesiurgic tendencies and connascent providential inspections, for the sake of paying attention to bodies, and such other peculiarities as are allied to these.

(113) But when the astral spirits are enlightened from the animated or soulish spirit, which in the light uniteth with God, then they grow fervent, and very longing and desirous of the light. On the other hand, the animated or soulish spirit of the devil, which ruleth in the outermost birth or geniture of man, is very terrible and angry, and of a very contrary or opposite will.

(1) O Krishna! I see many ill-omens and I do not understand what good could come by killing my own people in battle.

(117) But that the astringent and bitter spirit does so grumble and murmur, when the spirit from the heart goeth through its house, and ruleth powerfully, signifieth that the wrath of God, together with the devils, are, in the house of this world, set in opposition to the love, so that both these, all the time of this world, must fight and strive one against the other, as two armies in the field; from whence also wars and fightings among men, and among beasts, and all creatures, have their original.

(29) Afterwards, Aûharmazd seizes on the evil spirit, Vohûman on Akôman, Ashavahist on Andar, Shatvaîrô on Sâvar, Spendarmad on Tarômat who is Nâûnghas, Horvadad and Amerôdad on Tâîrêv and Zâîrîk, true-speaking on what is evil-speaking, Srôsh on Aeshm