# Would you sell your Soul? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [January 15, 2016, 4:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-sell-your-soul/743192 "2016-01-15T04:06:04Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [January 15, 2016, 8:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-sell-your-soul/743192/61 "2016-01-15T20:22:10Z")
> [@The Great Sun Jester](#): > > In one’s existence before and after our sojourn in this physical world, we exist entirely as soul. Soul, of course, is but an independently conscious parcel of God’s own mind–or more simply, a bit of God. As a function of free will, allegiance of a part generally defaults to the whole whence it originated. However, this is not always a given and on occasion parcels have been known to fall away from God and either drift unfettered though the universe and even coalesce with other fragments, forming another entity entirely. The new entity is fully aware of God, and vice versa, but feels no allegiance to Him. > > For reasons unimportant to this post, parcels of soul become attached to entities in this physical world. In doing so, they become hyper focused on the stimuli available to them here. The physical world being limited, only a small number of senses remain active while the others atrophy or fall asleep. The result is commonly referred to as a ‘veil’ and manifests itself in the soul forgetting, almost completely, life outside of this realm. So inhibited, these parcels are vulnerable to suggestion and alteration of allegiance which would normally not affect them. Amalgamations of detached parcels can ‘call through the walls’ of the physical realm and communicate with the souls preoccupied with this world, and can even exert some physical influence over matter, and make suggestions to other souls as necessary to effect a change in the disposition of a target. In this manner, a soul is persuaded to voluntarily change allegiance to the predatory entity. Only when the soul disengages from the physical world does it fully realize what has happened. The process can be reversed, of course, but that mechanism isn’t really germane to the thread. And you know this how? ---
**Author:** ![CCitizen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/4af34b/32.png) [@CCitizen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CCitizen)\ **Post date:** [January 15, 2016, 8:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-sell-your-soul/743192/62 "2016-01-15T20:22:25Z")
> [@Czarcasm](#): > > Where did you get this idea? Some Jewish scholars believe that evil is inside any person’s mind. Common sense tells me that any inner voice telling anyone to try heroin just once is the voice of Satan. ---
**Author:** ![CCitizen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/4af34b/32.png) [@CCitizen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CCitizen)\ **Post date:** [January 15, 2016, 8:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-sell-your-soul/743192/63 "2016-01-15T20:23:31Z")
> [@raventhief](#): > > Wait - I thought Jewish people didn’t believe in eternal punishment? Some do some do not. It is The Great Unknown. ---
**Author:** ![DrFidelius](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/drfidelius/32/3447_2.png) [@DrFidelius](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrFidelius)\ **Post date:** [January 15, 2016, 8:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-sell-your-soul/743192/64 "2016-01-15T20:24:51Z")
You know tobacco is more addiction than heroin, even ig it’s not written in red crayon. ---
**Author:** ![Telemark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/telemark/32/372_2.png) [@Telemark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Telemark)\ **Post date:** [January 15, 2016, 8:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-sell-your-soul/743192/65 "2016-01-15T20:27:20Z")
I’ve got a sub-lease on my Mojo, I’m accepting offers on my Funk, but my Soul is available for a reasonable price OBO. ---
**Author:** ![QuickSilver](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/quicksilver/32/7832_2.png) [@QuickSilver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/QuickSilver)\ **Post date:** [January 15, 2016, 8:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-sell-your-soul/743192/66 "2016-01-15T20:27:41Z")
> [@CCitizen](#): > > If you do not believe in eternal punishment, why would you act in good faith? Perhaps he’s a mensch. ---
**Author:** ![Doctor\_Jackson](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/doctor_jackson/32/32_2.png) [@Doctor\_Jackson](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Doctor_Jackson)\ **Post date:** [January 15, 2016, 8:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-sell-your-soul/743192/67 "2016-01-15T20:32:49Z")
> [@Senegoid](#): > > Only rarely does one find a story in which one sells one’s soul to the devil and then defeats the devil to regain one’s soul at the end. > > See: (1) [_The Devil and Daniel Webster_](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Devil_and_Daniel_Webster) by Stephen Vincent Benét. > (2) _Damn Yankees_. > [@Nava](#): > > Quite a few Spanish legends along those lines; usually what’s used to pay for the soul is some public works. Two that come to mind are the Acqueduct in Segovia (the soul belongs to a servant who is tired of having a very long walk for water) and several involving bridges (one from the province of Girona involves a mother whose child is sick; she needs the bridge to be able to take him to a healer). > [@Sangahyando](#): > > There’s _The Bottle Imp_ by Robert Louis Stevenson… Y’all left out the most famous example - _[The Devil wend Down to Georgia](http://www.azlyrics.com/lyrics/charliedanielsband/thedevilwentdowntogeorgia.html)_, by the world famous philosopher Charlie Daniels ---
**Author:** ![QuickSilver](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/quicksilver/32/7832_2.png) [@QuickSilver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/QuickSilver)\ **Post date:** [January 15, 2016, 8:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-sell-your-soul/743192/68 "2016-01-15T20:35:13Z")
> [@CCitizen](#): > > Common sense tells me that any inner voice telling anyone to try heroin just once is the voice of Satan. What does Common sense tell you about why god punishes people for their mortal sins since it’s all the work of Satan? After all, as you said, Satan is smarter than any human: “Forgive them lord for they know not what they do!”, isn’t that right? ---
**Author:** ![Inigo\_Montoya](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/inigo_montoya/32/124_2.png) [@Inigo\_Montoya](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Inigo_Montoya)\ **Post date:** [January 15, 2016, 8:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-sell-your-soul/743192/69 "2016-01-15T20:37:04Z")
> [@Czarcasm](#): > > And you know this how? It’s all there in my newsletter… 😉 ---
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [January 15, 2016, 8:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-sell-your-soul/743192/70 "2016-01-15T20:42:35Z")
That bit where he punished Satan-what lesson did Satan learn, and what effect did this “lesson” have on the rest of us? Does he have any reason whatsoever _not_ to act the way he does, if there is no chance of forgiveness, and his only possible joy is to piss off God even more by corrupting humans? Is your god capable of making _any_ good decisions when it comes to personnel? ---
**Author:** ![CCitizen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/4af34b/32.png) [@CCitizen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CCitizen)\ **Post date:** [January 15, 2016, 9:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-sell-your-soul/743192/71 "2016-01-15T21:07:52Z")
I love talking to people at SDMB and Internet and even a break for Sabbath will be difficult 25 hours for me. But The Law is The Law. The Sabbath begins in 20 minutes. ---
**Author:** ![ekedolphin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ekedolphin/32/10003_2.png) [@ekedolphin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ekedolphin)\ **Post date:** [January 15, 2016, 9:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-sell-your-soul/743192/72 "2016-01-15T21:14:18Z")
I’m apparently in the minority here (no surprise), and believe my soul actually exists. So I wouldn’t sell it for anything. ---
**Author:** ![CCitizen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/4af34b/32.png) [@CCitizen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CCitizen)\ **Post date:** [January 15, 2016, 9:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-sell-your-soul/743192/73 "2016-01-15T21:16:22Z")
> [@ekedolphin](#): > > I’m apparently in the minority here (no surprise), and believe my soul actually exists. So I wouldn’t sell it for anything. Thank you – you are right. I will be back in 25 hours. ---
**Author:** ![Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bosda_di_chi_of_tricor/32/16845_2.png) [@Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bosda_Di_Chi_of_Tricor)\ **Post date:** [January 15, 2016, 10:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-sell-your-soul/743192/74 "2016-01-15T22:29:45Z")
It’s a bad investment, to trade the longest of long-term assets, for the shortest of short-term gains. ---
**Author:** ![doubleminus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/5daacb/32.png) [@doubleminus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/doubleminus)\ **Post date:** [January 16, 2016, 12:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-sell-your-soul/743192/75 "2016-01-16T00:12:10Z")
I’d be happy to buy or rent one to see if I feel any difference. ---
**Author:** ![Fuji](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/a9a28c/32.png) [@Fuji](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fuji)\ **Post date:** [January 16, 2016, 1:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-sell-your-soul/743192/76 "2016-01-16T01:41:25Z")
Fuck, no. If you believe the soul exists, the offer is unthinkable. If you don’t believe, it’s in bad taste to accept the offer in good faith, IMO. ---
**Author:** ![CCitizen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/4af34b/32.png) [@CCitizen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CCitizen)\ **Post date:** [January 16, 2016, 11:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-sell-your-soul/743192/77 "2016-01-16T23:09:12Z")
> [@Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](#): > > It’s a bad investment, to trade the longest of long-term assets, for the shortest of short-term gains. Definitely. But sometimes, a drug user’s desire for drugs is too strong. ---
**Author:** ![River\_Hippie](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/river_hippie/32/26_2.png) [@River\_Hippie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/River_Hippie)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2016, 12:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-sell-your-soul/743192/78 "2016-01-17T00:04:53Z")
I voted “never”. Eternity is a long, long time. ---
**Author:** ![PatrickLondon](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/patricklondon/32/4422_2.png) [@PatrickLondon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PatrickLondon)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2016, 10:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-sell-your-soul/743192/79 "2016-01-17T10:51:28Z")
Since I don’t believe in such a thing as a soul or eternity, to sell it would, I suppose, be the perfect fraud. So how would I feel about benefitting from the gullibility of a being who by definition deserves no consideration? Oh, wait a minute, I don’t believe there’s a devil, either, nor therefore that there would be any benefit to me. If offered the bargain, I think I’d say I’d got better things to do with my time. ---
**Author:** ![elfkin477](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/a9a28c/32.png) [@elfkin477](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elfkin477)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2016, 6:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-sell-your-soul/743192/80 "2016-01-17T18:40:04Z")
I wouldn’t sell mine. It’s like my organs, even if I’m not using them, they’re mine. But anyway, even if you were convinced you had no soul, wouldn’t you be super suspicious of an offer to buy yours for serious money? I mean, if someone seems to think it has value, wouldn’t that make you more reluctant to part with “it”? The value to the other person might simply be convincing you that you’ve made a deal regardless of whether or not there’s actually a soul to hand over, and if that’s valuable to them… it should seem troubling. A person trying to buy your soul, imaginary or not, isn’t just going to fade into the woodwork. Who knows what they’ll attempt when next you meet. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-sell-your-soul/743192.md?page=3) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-sell-your-soul/743192.md?page=5)