A shaman's conversation with the spirits | MONGOLIA

Today, Gan Zorig invokes the ancestral spirits. They will protect his son and guide him in this remote and dangerous region haunted by spirits and the Badak Shan.

Gan Zorig's whistling sounds imitate the wind, because the spirits of the ancestors travel on gusts of wind. The first ancestor-spirit arrives speaking through Gan Zorig's quavering voice. Qizilol's ancestor spirits are now gathered around him. The spirits fly back to their dark heavens, riding on the wind.

Tsaatan shamans directly enter trances. They do not need any psychotropic substances to trigger hallucinations and deliriums. They burn juniper in an incense burner. It delights the smell-eating spirits and purifies humans. It also protects animals. It confers magical powers to the lasso.

Extract from "Tracking the White Reindeer"

Direction: Hamid Sardar
Production: ZED

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