Introduction

Within Islam, the Sufis or Dervishes are the gentlest and most tolerant of believers and yet, surprisingly, some adherents thrust iron pins through their cheeks in the course of their devotions. Of course, there is nothing harmful to others in the act of piercing one’s own flesh. Besides, it has always been restricted to a small number of Sufi orders and even among these it has become rare. But it is still practiced by the dervishes I knew in Skopje, Macedonia.