An article from NYTimes said:

 

Lashing is a common sentence under the Saudi penal code, applied for crimes ranging from homosexuality and drinking alcohol to theft and adultery. Usually, lashes are meted out in increments because offenders could not survive hundreds of lashes at once. The administrator of the punishment is supposed to hold a Koran under his arm so he cannot swing the whip too fiercely; lashes are not supposed to leave permanent scars. The sentence is frequently delivered in public, often at the entrance to a jail.

Full article can be found here.

 

We can conclude that according to Islamic Sharia Law:

  1. The whipping should not leave any permanent scar
  2. A book (Al-Qur’an) must be placed under the arm of the punishment administrator, so that he can’t whip fiercely

 

The objective of the punishment is for correctional purposes and serve as an example to people, not to inflict severe pain to the offenders.

This is my view. Comments are welcomed.