Thursday, April 20, 2023

Dissociation In Hell

Would dissociation from torment be a refuge in the Biblical hell before annihilation or even in any of the unbiblical, evangelical distortions of hell, where all unsaved humans are tortured without end?  A detachment from sensory experiences or select mental experiences (not all, as all experiences are already mental and thus so are dissociative ones), dissociation can rescue people in earthly troubles from some of the horrors they have faced or are facing, and if someone was to be in an unpleasant afterlife, Biblical or not, it could serve as a coveted escape from the full scope of their suffering.  However, a supernatural being like God could have the power to nullify all purposeful or incidental dissociation--both dissociation in hell (or any other unwanted afterlife) and supernatural prevention of dissociation are logically possible.

Of course, some people might have immense trouble dissociating, or they might not be personally able to control it, so the fact of a supernatural being not forcing an undiluted, immediate experience of terror and pain on them would not mean that dissociation in an afterlife would be an easy escape.  It could be a less agonizing state of mind to be in, but the circumstances beyond that dissociation would remain either way.  Should a person suddenly break free from their dissociation for even a moment, whatever unpleasant mental and physical experiences are there would greet them once again.  It is just that the true Biblical penalty for humans in hell is eventual death, the nonexistence, of the soul, no matter if torment is suffered beforehand.  Whatever pain is experienced would not last forever because unrepentant humans would not last forever.

As such, there would be no need to dissociate for eternity anyway unless the likes of the demonic beings hell was intended for (Matthew 25:41) suffer forever, unlike humans.  The need for perpetual dissociation would arise in alternate versions of hell that are sometimes inspired by popular misconceptions about the Bible.  In the video game Agony, for instance, there are plenty of damned men and women who seem to have genuinely dissociated from their surroundings in hell to some extent.  They sometimes wear coverings over their heads or walk in a small area muttering things to themselves.  By no means do they seem to be enjoying their condition, but they might not be suffering as much as a perfectly alert person would if they were placed in the unbiblical hell of the game.

Dissociation would ultimately be more beneficial in such afterlives, including versions of hell, that are very different from the experience the Bible says is in store for those who will receive the second death.  If the Bible is true and hellfire lasts forever (Matthew 18:8), it has already been specified that humanity is not collectively destined for eternal suffering with or without dissociation.  The soul that sins will die (Ezekiel 18:4).  The contents of hell are not the same as the realm itself and would not be necessity also be eternal.  As unwanted as any torment before the death of the soul might be, it is almost certainly to be minor compared to the pain that so many humans maliciously wish on each other for trivial things.

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