ABSTRACT
Trance, a transcendent state of awareness, constitutes an important part of shamanism. Trance, ecstasy and possession by spirits are the same thing in some forms of shamanizing. Students of religion call ecstasy trance and psychopathologists refer to it as ecstasy. Genuine ecstasy is a psychogenic reaction according to the dictates of the visionary's mind, so expressing the conscious and unconscious desires of the ecstatic shaman. The idea of ‘flight’, ‘riding’ and ‘speed’ with reference to shamans are all figurative expressions for ecstasy, which is controlled throughout the ritual in conformity with traditional prescriptions.
