The Wrong Hands - Part 1: Blind, Dumb Faith

I am not a fan of religion, for various different reasons, mostly regarding my personal values, morality, skepticism and philosophies. Because of this, in the past I have had a tendency to criticize religion quite heavily.
I wanted to continue that for my Halloween Countdown, and list the myriad ways in which religion has been used to cause, exacerbate or even justify torture.
So, I was creating a very long list of religious tortures, and it was getting very long, but after reading Hunter Jeremiah's latest post about angels, I started to feel like religion has already had it's fair share of knocks, lately.
So, not only did I decide to limit the scope of my list, I also felt it would be fair to include a list of ways in which something I am a fan of - science - has also been used to cause, exacerbate or justify torture.

I consider this list very sobering, since it goes to show that no matter how noble the intentions, how valuable the results or powerful the tool . . . in the wrong hands, it can be used for both good and evil.

So, we're going to look at religion and science, and the harms they have managed to cause. As for religion, technically we've covered some of the ways that religion has been used to torture, simply by referring to ancient torture devices. So, today, I was most interested in listing ways which religion has been used to encourage self-torture. Specifically, pain, suffering and death, in which the victim is also the cause . . .

5. Self-flagellation
What? This is a form of self-harm, whereby a person deliberately inflicts pain upon themselves via superficial damage to their skin.
How? This can be done via cutting or whipping one's own skin, usually the skin of their back with a specialized whip such as a zanzerjani, or a set of chained knives. Some even practice using a cilice, a personal garment such as an abrasive shirt or a spiked belt worn around the thigh or even shoes with soles covered with nails and lemon juice, which causes irritation and pain throughout the day.

Why? For Catholics such as those in Opus Dei [Dan Brown didn't make them up], this is a mortification of the flesh a personal penance to god as a form of redemption for incalculable sin. In Islam, tatbir (cutting one's forehead, scalp or back with blades), is a ritual of mourning for the murder of one of Muhammad's descendants, and seen as devotion to Islam.

4. Genital Mutilation
What? This is a form of body modification which involves damaging the genitals, to either alter or remove portions of the genitalia.
How? In cases where this is not forced upon infants, the person sometimes, but not always, has anaesthesia administered (generally, or locally), and a traditional circumciser then quickly cuts the genitals using a knife, but in some circumstances they have been recorded using razors, scissors, glass, sharpened rocks and fingernails.
Why? In some Animist tribes in Africa, women also undergo genital mutilation before puberty, as a rite of passage for entering into womanhood, and preparing for marriage. In Islam, almost every male undergoes Khitan (male circumcision), but unlike Judaism this is not always forced on children and can be done as late as twelve years old, and it is seen as a practice of devotion. As well, some Muslim females undergo khifaḍ (female circumcision), but this is not as widely practiced.

3. Self-impalementWhat? This is a form of self-mutilation that involves the penetrating one's body with sharp objects, to puncture a hole through the skin.
How? This can be done by piercing through the cheeks, and/or tongue with syringes, skewers or needles, or by pinching skin on the chest, limbs or back and puncturing it with hooks or skewers. In some extreme cases, people have impaled their own eyes. Some cut the wound large enough so that myriad large objects, from umbrellas to flutes, can impale the hole.
Why? Hindus perform kavadi attam as a physical representation of a personal or family burden, and this "debt bondage" is an appeal to their god (Murugan) to relieve this burden. Taoists during Thetsakan Kin Che, will impale their cheeks with various objects, ranging from the diameter of a pea to the diameter of a tennis ball, as a form of reverence to their gods and ancestors, as well as a kind of meditation. Some also take part in acupuncture, an alternative medicine based upon inserting thin needles in the body to alter the flow of qi (a spiritual energy from Chinese Folk Religions), as they believe it is a form of pain relief.

2. Self-Immolation
What? This is setting oneself on fire, often as a form of suicide, but it can be done as a form of non-fatal sacrifice.
How? This often involves wrapping oneself in a cloth soaked in flammable liquid, then setting it alight, often whilst praying or meditating. But, it can involve setting a wood-fire, then jumping into it, or simply dousing oneself in some form of fuel. In non-fatal self-immolations, this can involve burning off fingers or an entire arm.
Why? In Chinese Buddhism, the practice of yishen (abandoning the body), involves many forms of self-mutilation and suicide, from burning off body parts, up to and including setting one's own body alight; this is done to show devotion to the spirit and achieve enlightenment, as well as a form of religious protest. In Hinduism, when a married man died, sometimes their bride chose to perform sati, by leaping onto the funeral pyre (although, in some cases she is thrown).

1. Self-Mummification
What? Self-mummification is a form of suicide via starvation and isolation, in an attempt to preserve one's body after death,
How? Usually this is done by following a strict diet so as to reduce fat content, and slowly reducing fluid intake until the body is weakened. Then, once they stop eating altogether, they do nothing but wait until they die of starvation.
Why? In Shugendō Buddhism, an extreme form of ascetism (rejection of worldly pleasure) was Sokushinbutsu, which involved monks dying from malnutrition over several years, in the hopes of achieving buddhadhātu. In Hinduism, when someone has no worldly obligations, and no desire to live, they can perform Prayopavesa, which is a religious suicide by fasting which is considered to be a form of euthanasia and is meant to stop worldly suffering. In Jainism, one can also choose fast to death in a practice called Sallekhanā, where it is seen as a form of sacred body "thinning", or cleansing, so as to unburden the soul, and destroy negative karma.


Religion has lead to a lot of harm in the world, but one of its greatest sins is the harm that it causes to those that follow it. Today I have listed its most prominent physical self-sufferings, but the list does not stop there. I wish that more people would turn away from religion, and towards reason and science . . .
However, even science is not free from evil.
I'm the Absurd Word Nerd, and until next time, I will be creating a list of some of the worst abuses and tortures that have come about, from science.