Ummm...

Let's see. I'm (a) writing a dissertation; (b) writing a dissertation on pain; and (c), not leaving the house enough. Sounds about right...

the Adamites, as the members of a heretical sect flourishing about A.D. 200 called themselves... Practised self-flagellation reserving the discipline...for their private gatherings in connection with the religion they professed. In any public processions, the shoulders only were bared, and flagellation was not practised.
--Scott's A History of Torture p.256*

*Sidenote: Scott's book really isn't historically very informative. It's mostly violence-porn masquerading as polemic. For a much, much, much, better resource see Edward Peters's Torture. While Scott's thesis is roughly 'people in societies torture each other and always have', Peters's book is a sober history and exploration of the relationships between torture, criminal law, and class.