Pessimistic Passage of the Day...

[DarkView]

“The dread of being stares us in the eye, and in a deadly gush we perceive how the minds are dangling in threads of their own spinning, and that a hell is lurking underneath.”
― Peter Wessel Zapffe, The Last Messiah

[Liam Barden]

– Carrie Bradshaw, Sex and the City

[Arthur Staaz]

Quote Originally Posted by DarkView

“The dread of being stares us in the eye, and in a deadly gush we perceive how the minds are dangling in threads of their own spinning, and that a hell is lurking underneath.” ― Peter Wessel Zapffe, The Last Messiah

The following quote immediately came to mind -

"The God that holds you over the Pit of Hell,
much as one holds a Spider, or some loathsome Insect,
over the Fire, abhors you, and is dreadfully
provoked . . ." Jonathan Edwards, Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God

[DarkView]

Quote Originally Posted by Arthur Staaz

Quote Originally Posted by DarkView “The dread of being stares us in the eye, and in a deadly gush we perceive how the minds are dangling in threads of their own spinning, and that a hell is lurking underneath.” ― Peter Wessel Zapffe, The Last Messiah The following quote immediately came to mind - "The God that holds you over the Pit of Hell, much as one holds a Spider, or some loathsome Insect, over the Fire, abhors you, and is dreadfully provoked . . ." Jonathan Edwards, Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God

Not the hell Zapffe had in mind, but the Christian hell and heaven, though different on the surface, are both infinite in time, which we can't conceive; and this infinity fundamentally--not the superficialities of torment or reward--is what represents, I think, a subconscious acknowledgment of the same horror of being only through religious symbology.

[ChildofOldLeech]

"We want a little light to live by. A start somewhere. Little steps for little feet. Or even something commanding, scriptural or mighty. I myself am discouraged to finding a hot lead on the Altogether. Like every child of the century deluded enough to keep his head out of the noose, I expect God's Mercy in the end. Nevertheless, I frequently feel that anybody's refusal to commit suicide is a little fey. Walking about as though nothing were wrong is just too studied for the alert."
- Thomas McGuane, Panama

[cannibal cop]

Quote Originally Posted by DarkView

Not the hell Zapffe had in mind, but the Christian hell and heaven, though different on the surface, are both infinite in time, which we can't conceive; and this infinity fundamentally--not the superficialities of torment or reward--is what represents, I think, a subconscious acknowledgment of the same horror of being only through religious symbology.

We can't conceive of a purely "spiritual" existence, either, so any speculation along these lines is almost certainly irrelevant. But then we'll all find out eventually, won't we?

It's also worth pointing out that "torment" in the truest sense denotes an entirely non-superficial condition.

[DarkView]

Quote Originally Posted by cannibal cop

Quote Originally Posted by DarkView Not the hell Zapffe had in mind, but the Christian hell and heaven, though different on the surface, are both infinite in time, which we can't conceive; and this infinity fundamentally--not the superficialities of torment or reward--is what represents, I think, a subconscious acknowledgment of the same horror of being only through religious symbology. We can't conceive of a purely "spiritual" existence, either, so any speculation along these lines is almost certainly irrelevant. But then we'll all find out eventually, won't we? It's also worth pointing out that "torment" in the truest sense denotes an entirely non-superficial condition.

Naturally we can't conceive of it. That doesn't make it irrelevant in regards to feelings of horror, however. We can only conceive of and consider time by some number representing it. It's because we can't conceive of infinity at all that just the idea of it represents horror. Torment we can conceive of as we experience it physically by accident, sickness, death, etc. So, we do have a physical analogue to project onto a spiritual hell, making whatever torment we can imagine in such a place quite horrible, but ultimately conceivable. This is what I mean by superficiality.

[ToALonelyPeace]

A quote I find hilarious and captivating:

"Luther Dead by Lucas Fortnagel. A plebian, aggressive, terrifying mask, as of some sublime hog...which perfectly renders the features of the man we cannot sufficiently praise for having declared: "Dreams are liars; if you #### * in your bed; that's true." "

-Emil Cioran, The Trouble With Being Born

*[s-h-i-t]: the censor here is inconvenient

[cannibal cop]

"The dead know only one thing: it is better to be alive."

--Stanley Kubrick, Full Metal Jacket

[qcrisp]

From Gulliver's Travels:

http://www.online-literature.com/swift/gulliver/24/