Overcoming torture

[fork]

how would you overcome mental/physical torture?
I have heard of some tribes that trained themselves to overcome discomfort and shows no signs of suffering while being tortured for long time, how is it? what do you think was their mindset or training that allowed them to overcome it?

[Dan Rowden]

What level of faith do you place in the anecdotes about such abilities?

[Flanker27S]

I don't think there's a surefire way to resist torture, and that it's just a matter of some people being stronger than others (for example, I know I'm not that resilient to physical pain, and that I'd spill the beans quickly), or sometimes, fearing that giving in would be actually worse than enduring torture itself, like people who are protecting/hiding oppressed minorities in dictatorships.

[Glostik91]

I imagine there are techniques the CIA teach to help their agents resist torture. Keep in mind that there is a wide spectrum of what constitutes torture. Loud noises preventing sleep for instance can be torture.

Hypnosis has seemed to be effective in mitigating painful events. Have a look https://youtu.be/owootTAuxic?t=603
I've experimented with self-hypnosis and pain mitigation, but I haven't had very good results unfortunately. I think I might be missing something.

[Flanker27S]

I'd say it's because you're fully aware of what you're doing and why, so it dampens/negates the effects of self-hypnosis.
But then, that's a wild guess from someone who isn't a professional.

[Pam Seeback]

If one has realized the spiritual logic and love of A = A (emphasis on realized), they have the means to suffer being tortured by one who has not (spiritually) realized equivalence of form. One can practice the mind and heart spiritual wisdom of A = A without being tortured by another: the aging and sick body as well as exposure to worldly political divisiveness provides us a way to equalize thoughts of good and evil, to endure suffering while in the same breath understand it to be the way through suffering.

This is the meaning of "turn the other cheek" - one must come to see that pain, in whatever form it takes, is no higher or lower a form than is pleasure. Why? Because every form is caused for the sake of consciousness, even the form called 'ego' that resists pain and desires pleasure.

[Glostik91]

I'd say it's because you're fully aware of what you're doing and why, so it dampens/negates the effects of self-hypnosis.
But then, that's a wild guess from someone who isn't a professional.

Specifically I'm aware of the pain which I will be putting myself through. Implying a person under hypnosis is not burdened by these psychological filters. For instance, a needle going into an arm isn't very painful, but some people find the act absolutely terrifying (which perhaps amplifies the otherwise small pain).

I recall reading somewhere (don't ask me where) that the placebo effect is so strong in some people, there is little difference between the control group and the experimental group regarding pain medication.

If one has realized the spiritual logic and love of A = A (emphasis on realized), they have the means to suffer being tortured by one who has not (spiritually) realized equivalence of form. One can practice the mind and heart spiritual wisdom of A = A without being tortured by another: the aging and sick body as well as exposure to worldly political divisiveness provides us a way to equalize thoughts of good and evil, to endure suffering while in the same breath understand it to be the way through suffering.

This is the meaning of "turn the other cheek" - one must come to see that pain, in whatever form it takes, is no higher or lower a form than is pleasure. Why? Because every form is caused for the sake of consciousness, even the form called 'ego' that resists pain and desires pleasure.

Way to keep it on the forum topic, but the topic of the thread is overcoming torture which is different from endurance. Enduring implies undergoing suffering. Overcoming implies abatement of suffering.

[Flanker27S]

Of course, we strive towards a life without suffering, especially the kind of suffering inflicted by adverse political or religious institutions, and we are hoping that some day our world will be like that, but the world we long for does not exist yet, and it is interesting to prepare for the potential threats on our life if we want to see our goal some day.

[phil]

I'm glad I came across this thread, for I've given much thought to such things, haven been the subject of more than my fair share of difficulty, loss and pain.

I hope to "hear' from many members on this one. In particular as it might apply to advanced spiritual beings, who, if all I hear is correct, experience no loss to speak of, pain being a loss of comfort, fear and suffering being a loss of clarity, and so on down the line for whatever loss you care to imagine.

A question: Does having had endured such things make one stronger? Spiritually (presuming no obvious permanent damage)

Furthermore, here we sit comfortably expounding great wise truths in ideal or nearly ideal circumstances.
Not much of a test of ones endurance to (if you will allow) fear, for instance.

I mean really, how do we know, having barely been tested in this comfortable existence of ours, how do we know that the best of us wouldn't be shitting our pants lost in the wilderness with a greater likelihood of encountering a grizzly bear than a person who knows how to get back to civilization?

One cannot know if one hasn't been in these shoes.

Or am I mistaken?