Pre-Christian
From The Art and Popular Culture Encyclopedia
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Flagellation is the act of whipping (Latin flagellum, "whip") the human body. Specialised implements for it include rods, switches and the cat-o-nine-tails. Typically, whipping is performed on unwilling subjects as a punishment; however, flagellation can also be submitted to willingly, or performed on oneself, in religious or sadomasochistic contexts.
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Association with religion
Pre-Christianity
Various pre-Christian religions, like the cult of Isis in EgyptTemplate:Fact and the Dionysian cult of Greece,Template:Fact practiced their own forms of ritual flagellation. During the Ancient Roman festival of Lupercalia young men ran through the streets with thongs cut from the hide of goats which had just been sacrificed, and women who wished to conceive put themselves in their way to receive blows, apparently mostly on the hands. Greco-Roman mystery religions also sometimes involved ritual flagellation, as famously depicted in the Villa of the Mysteries at Pompeii, apparently showing initiation into the Dionysian Mysteries.
Christianity
The Flagellation refers in a Christian context to the Flagellation of Christ, an episode in the Passion of Christ prior to the Jesus' crucifixion. The practice of mortification of the flesh for religious purposes was utilized by some Christians throughout most of Christian history, especially in Catholic monasteries and convents. In the 13th century, a radical group of christians, known as the Flagellants, took this practice to an extreme. The flagellants were later condemned by the Catholic Church in the 14th century. Self-flagellation remains common in the Philippines and Latin America. Some members of strict monastic orders, and some members of the lay organization Opus Dei, practice mild self-flagellation using an instrument called a "discipline", a cattail whip usually made of knotted cords, which is flung over the shoulders repeatedly during private prayer. Within the past few decades the practice has become rare within the Catholic Church, particularly as rigorism and heresies such as Jansenism which over-emphasized God's severe justice, are rejected. St. Therese of Lisieux, a Carmelite nun of late 19th century France who has now been declared a Doctor of the Church, is an influential example of a Catholic Saint who questioned prevailing attitudes toward physical penance. Her view was that loving acceptance of the many sufferings of daily life was pleasing to God, and fostered loving relationships with other people, moreso than taking on oneself extraneous sufferings through instruments of penance.
Islam
Flagellation is a form of punishment used in certain cases under Islamic Sharia law. In Islam, lashes for punishment are to be performed with a book under one arm to minimise the swing, are not supposed to leave permanent scars, and when the number of lashes are high, are frequently done in batches to minimise risk of harm.
While self-harm is forbidden in Islam, certain sects of Shi'a Muslims found solely in villages in Iran and the Eastern Region of Saudi Arabia perform self-flagellation when participating in the Zanjeer Zani ritual to mourn the death of Hussain during Muharram, on the Day of Ashura. Although officially done with a special leash, most Shi'as usually beat their chests with their hands, but the use of metal chains and spikes is common as well. The practice is common among Shiites in the Middle East and Asia, although is often frowned upon by Sunnis and other Muslims.
Ecstatics and Mystics
Because practices such as starvation, sleep denial and flagellation are known to induce altered states, flagellation may be used by religious ecstatics and mystics as part of ritualistic practices or ceremonies to achieve unusual states of mind.
See also
