Wait, what? You mean most people would volunteer to be tortured horribly as long as any damage is 100% reversed the next day? Uh, I’m not sure whether your model of people is entirely accurate.
Do you think i am entirely wrong, and suffering is worse than death?
Do you think it is better to die, instead of enduring suffering and then getting to live some more?
There's many cultures that have coming of age rituals that would be considered torture in the western world. People do those things because they're "part of a larger package" so to speak.
THAIPUSAM, MALAYSIA
In a demonstration of devotion and offer of penance to the Hindu God Lord Murugan, devotees perform incredible (and sometimes gruesome!) feats. They pierce their body and face with skewers, drag chariots with hooks attached to their skin and carry uncomfortable metal frames called ‘kavadis’ through the streets and up the 272 steps to the shrine at the top of the cave. During the festival some participants enter trance-like states when their soul is believed to be cleansed of sins.
PHUKET VEGETARIAN FESTIVAL, THAILAND
By the name of this festival you may assume it to be a gentle affair where new-age vegetarian hippies share tofu recipes over yoga mats in Thailand. However, the Phuket Vegetarian festival is one of the craziest, most spectacular events in South East Asia. You’ll witness incredible acts of self-torture such as walking on hot coals, climbing bladed ladders and the piercing of cheeks with swords, shards of glass – even beach umbrellas.
Filipino fanatics re-enact crucifixion for Good Friday
In a bloody display of religious devotion Roman Catholic fanatics in the Philippines have had themselves nailed to the cross as the Christian world marks the day Jesus was crucified.
Read the link for quotes from people talking about the repeated nerve pain, blood, etc.:
http://www.abc.net.au/news/2012-04-06/philippino-fanatics-cr...
Yes. Read reports of torture victims. They frequently request death over continued pain.
- torture causes permanent physical damage
- torture causes mental trauma
- the torture victim does not know when the torture will stop
In some cases, certainly.
I'd also say that it being voluntary, and knowing that there is an end (and can be brought to an end by you), makes for a very different experience.