I am curious about something – I’m sorry of it seems trite or stupid. I don’t mean to be joking around. That being said, here goes:
Let’s assume, hypothetically for the moment that Hell exists and it is in fact governed by a fallen angel. Imagine what you will about eternal fire, absence of God, eternal and terrifying punishment – whatever your imagination can construe. And for the purposes of this question,the more horrible the better. You wake up tomorrow in the same pain and agony you were in when you went to bed. It’s just another day; same shit, different day. You have the same thoughts of wanting to end it, get out, leave all the crap here and simply no longer exist. The same thoughts you and I always have, every hour of every day. It’s why we post shit here.
Suddenly this “ruler” of Hell appears and offers to give you life – the same life or a different one altogether. Any age you want to be, any lifestyle, same friends or different friends, perfect lover, incredible parents, unlimited resources and money, no work unless you want to. A new and perfect body – no limits on anything and let’s say you can have it for 20 years. Then at the end of the 20 years everything is over. And by agreement with this Devil you cease to exist as a human and with full and eternal awareness you are thrust straight into the depths of Hell. Forever. No discussion, no deals, no out.
Would you do it?
9 comments
Hard to say. If I knew for certain that I could not achieve these things without signing to the devil, then I would probably do so. Otherwise I probably would not. Little hope is still so much better than no hope at all.
I’m also curious what people think about the following ancient djin question.
A djin allows you to enter to a perfect dream that has the similar pros as mentioned by OP, or basically anything that you’d like. Once you are in the dream you no longer know it’s a dream. The catch is that none of the other people in the dream are real, though again you are no longer aware about this once dreaming.
Would you say yes to the djin?
Personally I would say no, unless if I again knew that I have no hope of getting anything of what I seek.
Wanted to add that even in a hopeless situation I wouldn’t necessarily say yes to the djin if I could easily do suicide instead. In that situation I would quite likely sign with the devil though.
That’s a similar concept to entering into an OBE (out of body experience). Some say there is a risk of not returning from an OBE, although other than dying I don’t know what would happen to you if that should happen. There is sort of a point of no return when entering into an OBE when you can decide to let go and proceed or break the process and essentially wake up. Some people become extremely frightened at that point and bail out of the experience.
I’ve never feared an OBE in any way but I think I would not choose to to the deal with the Devil knowing the certainty of the outcome. It would be awfully damned tempting though.
Whaaaa, I just can’t get it right can I.
Devil now: perhaps.
devil if no hope: probably.
djin now: no.
djin if no hope: perhaps.
These kind of questions, even if absurd, are still sorta curious. Perhaps they can tell something about ones personality. The difference between the devil and the djin is that the devil offers something truly good but with a payment, while djin freely offers something that is only seemingly perfect.
Yes, the OBE thing is somewhat similar to these. I would imagine myself being one of those who become frightened.
by giving your power of life to someone else, devil, Angel, human, friend, foe or whatever, you’ve already entered hell no matter what it looks like. So, for 20 years you’re in a feel good hell, then you enter the fire and brimstone hell. Same hell.
Yolo?
I didn’t consider that concept, probably because I am an “avoider” and the 20 years, although it would pass in a heartbeat feels like “I don’t have to think about homework until Sunday night.”
But you are right on – the deal starts when it is sealed and the reality is there is no guarantee that our concept of the perfect life wouldn’t end up being horrible or untenable after all and then you re completely screwed. In fact, my guess is that in a hundred situations the ideal we’d ask for would be flawed 99% of the time.
@CDL: lol!
@noz:
“…my guess is that in a hundred situations the ideal we’d ask for would be flawed 99% of the time.”
Ah! you just reminded me of one of the reasons behind why i use words the way i do.
I’ve given that quoted notion an inordinate amount of thought. I’m not sure what prompted it, but a long time ago, i used to literally sit around thinking about how i would word my request, if i ever had to ask “the devil” for a favor.
And so began the development of my “speak in a way not even the devil himself could twist” approach to verbal precision.
If you ever have something important to say, say it in a way that leaves no room for misinterpretation. Be as literal, technical and direct as possible, even if it takes 10 times as many words. Say exactly what you mean, and don’t leave yourself open to be *justifiably misinterpreted and subsequently misrepresented. There are literally hoards of people hungry to do exactly that, to anyone, as often as they can.
It also helps to differentiate between those who are simply trying to exploit your imprecision, and those who actually care to understand your meaning, enough to spend more time and pay closer attention.
This is part of why, despite how frustrating it is, i find it very useful when people criticize the length, volume or verbosity of any of my comments.
In case you hadn’t figured it out already, i grew up around slick talkers, doublespeak masters, and word twisters. It was necessary for me to develop a methodical and surgical approach to verbal communication, both to catch people being shady, and to protect myself from them.
I had an aunt who used to actually brag about being able to so subtly demean someone, they wouldn’t even realize they’d been insulted until weeks later. Talk about manipulative. “Kill ’em with kindness” was often repeated like a mantra. I think these people could literally kill someone with kindness (which would indeed be false kindness).
I just felt like sharing, since you reminded me of that segment of my development.
It’s important to say what you mean, and mean what you say, and even to do so in a way that minimizes the chance it will be twisted.