An unmarried
free perfon is
tobefcourged
with one hundred
ftripes.
Mode of exe-
cuting_/co«rg-
il3i -
The ftripes
mull not all
T he corpfe of a perfon executed by lapidation for whoredom is
entitled to the ufual ablutions, and to all other funeral ceremonies,
becaufe of the declaration of the prophet with refpect to Mdaz, “ Do
“ by the body as ye do by thofe o f other believers;”—and alfo, becaufe
the offender thus put to death is flain in vindication of the laws of
God, wherefore ablution is not refufed, as in the cafe of one put to-
death by a fentence of retaliation: moreover, the prophet allowed
the prayers for the dead to Ghamdeea, after lapidation.
If the perfon eonvi&ed of whoredom be free, but unmarried, the
punifhment with refped to him is one hundred flripes\ according to
what is faid in the Koran, “ the whore and whoremonger shall
“ ye scourge with an hundred stripes —for although this text
be cancelled with relpedf to married perfons, yet in regard to all other
than thofe who are married the la w mull be executed in conformity to it.
Observe that the hundred ftripes infli&ed by the decree of the
magiftrate muft be adminiftered with a rod which has no knots
upon i t a n d that the ftripes muft be applied with moderation, that is
to fay, neither with feverity, nor yet with too much lenity ; becaufe
Alee, when he was about to inflid corre&ion, ufed to fmooth off
from the rod any knots’ which might happen to be upon i t ; and as
too much feverity on the one hand tends to deftru&ion, fo on the
other hand too much lenity is inadequate to the defign of corre&ion.
And when punifhment is to be infli&ed, on any perfon, it is neceflary
that he be ftripped naked ; that is to fay, that all the clothes be taken
off, except the girdle;—becaufe Alee dire&ed fo in this matter; and
’alfo, becaufe the punifhment is in this way adminiftered with the
greateft effed : but as the removal of the girdle from the body would
expofe nakednefs, it is therefore to be left.
I t is requifite that the hundred ftripes be given, not all upon
8 the
•the fame part or member * of the perfon upon whom punifhment is
infli&ed, but upon different parts, as it might otherwife be attended
with danger to life; and none of the ftripes muft be infli&ed on the
fa ce, the head, or the privities, becaufe the prophet once faid to an
executioner, “ In infiBing the punijhmcnt take care not to fr ik e the
“ face, the h e a d , or the privities ;” and alfo, becaufe the firft
■of thofe is the feat of expreffion and likewife of beauty ; and the
fecond is the central feat of the fenfes ; and the third is a part which
cannot be wounded without danger to life; and it is to be apprehended
that in the firft and fecond inftance the appearance and the faculties
might fuftain material injury, and the injuring of thofe is a fpecies of
deftru&ion to the man; and that in the laft life might be endangered:
it is unlawful therefore to ftrike on any of thofe parts, the defign of
corre&ion being amendment and not defruBion. Aboo Toofqf has faid
that one or two ftrokes may be given on the head, as Aboo Bihr
once faid to. an executioner, 9 Strike on the head, becaufe there the
“ d e v i l r e f des:" in reply to this,’however, we remark that Aboo Bihr
gave this dire&ion with refped to an infidel alien, who had been ufed
to feduce believers from the faith, and whofe life of courfe had been
forfeited.
W h e n a man is to be fcourged for whoredom he is to receive his
punifhment in aftanding pofture, becaufe Alee has faid, “ CorreBion
is to be infiBed upon men fanding, and upon women fittin g-,'' and
alfo, becaufe the proper infli&ion of punifhment depends upon it’s
being open and publick, which is beft effeded by its being received in a
ftandinv pofture; but yet as a woman is nakednefs+, in thus admini-
fterino- the correftion to her there might be an apprehenfion of ths
cxpofure of nakednefs. It is to be obferved that in adminiftering pu-
* In the original, Ar.no, a limb, which would make this fpecies o f co rre aion more
properly to apply to: the baftinado.
t ' « A woman is mktdnofs-,” that is to fay, every part o fa w om a n ’s perfon is equally
indecent to be feen.
C z
be given on
one part of
the body.
Scourging
muft be in-
flitted upon a
man Jtanding»
and upon a
womanfitting*
nifhment