The whip, upclose

Flagellants in Central Luzon, Philippines use a whip that’s made of rope and bamboo.  

The bamboo sticks represent the number of years during which a flagellant will participate in the Holy Week penitensya, as his panata. Each year, a stick is cut off from the whip.

As you can see, the owner of this whip will be a flagellant for seven more years.