Photo by Karin Corea-Laurel

Whips are on offer at a shop stall in Shiraz during Muharram, the first month of the Islamic calendar.

According to Muslim tradition, Imam Husain was martyred at Kerbala, Iraq, sometime around 20 October, 680AD for defying the Caliph, who had a penchant for indulgng in earthly pleasures.

The grandson of the Prophet Muhammad, Husain regarded the Caliph as having strayed from the faith and refused to pay him allegiance. As a result, Husain and his small group of resistors were all killed in a bloody clash with the Caliph's army.

Shiite Muslims mourn his death every year on the 10th day of Muharram, sometimes flagellating themselves and drawing blood in a frenzy of grief.