Most of us hear the word Stoning It takes us back in history and leads us to a past era in which it was a fairly common form of execution for certain crimes. Practically, we had only heard about it from the Bible, when Jesus stops the stoning of a woman , condemned as an adulteress, telling the men who wanted to execute her: "He who is without sin cast the first stone." However, globalization has made us know that in many places in the world it is still a current penalty. Join us to know more about the Stoning and discover 10 Curiosities of a terrible punishment that lasts.
The Stoning, a terrible punishment
The stoning is according to the dictionary a form of execution in which stones are thrown at the inmate to kill him. It is a system that was used in pre-Christian times throughout the Mediterranean basin and that was abandoned with the advance of Christianity. At present, it is still in force as an execution system in some Muslim countries.
10 curiosities about stoning
1. The stoning as a form of execution has the characteristic that can not be singled out a single culprit of the death of the accused, and no one knows who is the cause of death in the end.
2. With the stoning It seeks to achieve great suffering in the prisoner since people can endure strong blows before losing consciousness and death occurs in a slow and terrible way. To carry out a stoning, the inmate is usually buried and only the head is left outside or tied tightly while a crowd proceeds to throw stones at him.
3. In Greek mythology and ancient Greek literature there are already references to the stoning . Oedipus, for example, after having sex with his mother, wants to be stoned and when he does not find anyone who can execute the grief he decides to tear his eyes out.
4. This form of execution, oddly enough, is still in force in several Muslim-majority countries such as Saudi Arabia, Iran, Yemen, Pakistan, Sudan, the United Arab Emirates and some states in Nigeria. The penalty is applied especially to punish women when it is believed that they have had sexual relations considered illegal by the laws of the country. One of the cruelest cases of recent times was that of Aisha Ibrahim Duhulow 13 years old in Somalia. The girl reported a rape and was stoned as an adulteress. 50 men threw stones at her until she was killed by the impassibility of more than a thousand spectators.
5. Interestingly, although the stoning is currently in force in Muslim majority countries, this practice comes through the Jewish religion. According to the experts, there are no verses in the Qur'an that indicate that one has to punish "Rain of stones" to adulterers It was added by Caliph Omar to introduce stoning in Islamic Law. The Koran (24: 2) He says that the punishment for adulterers is whipping. In addition, Islamic jurisprudence has very specific demands that are not usually contemplated.
6. According to international amnesty, most victims of stoning are women . In Iran alone, 7 out of 10 people awaiting execution of the stoning sentence are women, although according to the Iranian government, the law prohibits stoning. In some countries, although it is not officially admitted, unofficially, women and homosexuals continue to be stoned.
7. Among the historical figures who were subjected to stoning stands out Hypatia of Alexandria . The astronomer, philosopher and Egyptian-Roman writer, in the month of March of the year 415 was stoned by a turbulent group of Christian fanatics.
8. In the Torah and in the Pentateuch of the Old Testament we find several curious facts that entail the stoning punishment : an ox that cornea to a man must be stoned, those who do not respect the Sabbath or Sabbath, the one who has a " family spirit ", The man who gives his son to the god Moloch, the one who does not obey his parents or the one who marries saying that she is a virgin without being one.
9. When Muslims go on pilgrimage Mecca they perform a symbolic ceremony that is known as "Stoning of the devil" . Following the instructions of Archangel Gabriel, Ibrahim (Abraham) threw three stones at the appearance of satan, the pilgrims remenoran that action in the place where they believe that these events occurred.
10. As a last detail, mention that the stoning It was not only practiced in the Mediterranean area. The Aztecs also practiced it in case of adultery, as can be seen in that image of the Florentine Codex in which an adulterer is being stoned.
Did you know this data about the stoning ? If you want to know more about other ancient punishments we invite you to read: "1000 ways to die" in the Roman Empire or The Punishment of the Radish for adulterers in Ancient Greece
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