Cultural Artifacts and the Oracular Trance States of the Sangoma in South Africa Part 4: Trance Induction Environment he physical environment in which trance induction occurs is often a critical factor. Shamans have frequently trained themselves to achieve an altered mind-set within a specific setting, which over time—through the very act of inhabiting that space—becomes conducive to attaining that goal. Similarly, specific rituals, ceremonies, articles of clothing, body movements, and even the clapping of hands have the power to affect the shaman’s state of mind and induce a trance. I have witnessed a Sangoma induce a trance state simply through the act of entering his hut and wrapping a cloth around his body. His breathing became more erratic, and his body began to shake—an indication that the ancestors were approaching and entering his body, to use him as their channel. That is why the novices (thwasas) help the Sangoma dress, fitting the headdress of ostrich feathers and the wig with the gallbladder, wrapping beads around the arms and body, and tying rattles above the ankles. Within the Sangoma's dwelling is a space dedicated to the ancestors and used as a shrine (indumba). Some of these are inductive spaces. The shrine occupies a corner of the wall furthest from the door, and should face east. The walls are often covered with patterned cloths. Incense or imphepho is burned in this space, and there is a lit candle or lamp. This is where a Sangoma takes off his/her shoes, kneels down, and calls upon his/her ancestors while clapping hands (see fig. 2). There may also be an outdoor shrine, called the gandelo, which is either a dead tree trunk or a live tree, according to Daniel Baloyi. This is a sacred site outside the shaman’s house. Here, he/she can induce a trance state by calling on the ancestors. The gandelo may be seen as analogous to the shamanic world tree.34 CONTINUE		Fig. 2. Daniel Baloyi kneeling in front of the shrine (indumba) inside his dwelling, and calling the ancestors through prayer and ritual clapping of the hands.
				34. Mircea Eliade, Shamanism: Archaic Techniques of Ecstasy (Princeton: Princeton University Press, 1964).
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