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walking on red-hot coals.

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Voodoo priests casting a spell.

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-And ancient ceremonies
used to ward off...

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-the Devil himself.

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Can ancient rituals really
unleash incredible powers?

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Physical powers?
Psychic powers?

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There are many who believe
in the power of prayer.

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So what about spells
used to conjure the dead?

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Could they really work?

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And if they do...

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what does that say about
the physical laws

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of the world we live in?

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Well...

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that is what we'll try
and find out.

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SHATNER:
San Pedro Manrique, Spain.

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June 23, 2018.

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Here, as they have
for centuries,

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villagers gather
for an evening festival

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to celebrate
the summer solstice.

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They engage in singing, dancing,

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wearing elaborate costumes.

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But for a select group
of villagers,

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the festivities
aren't so... conventional.

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Because their evening also
includes something

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out of the ordinary:

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a dangerous walk...

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-over fire.

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Now, I've seen many
fire walking rituals

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in many different contexts
in a variety of countries.

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They have this amphitheater
around the, the place where

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the actual fire is,

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and these men
walk on the embers.

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It's five or six steps
from one side to the other.

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And they do it barefoot

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and usually carrying someone
on their shoulders.

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People often wonder,
is the fire walk really hot?

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And the answer is yes.

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Once the wood is first laid out,
the overall temperature

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is between a thousand
and 1,200 degrees.

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That's really hot.

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More than enough
to burn flesh, certainly.

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MICHAEL DENNIN: If you look at
the temperatures involved,

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you're typically
talking temperatures

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over a thousand degrees
Fahrenheit, and skin burns

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at a hundred,
160 degrees Fahrenheit.

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XIMENEZ:
Walking on fire
is very, very dangerous.

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I mean, you're barefoot.

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Just one wrong move

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and you can be severely burned.

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SHATNER:
Walking on fire.

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And at temperatures hot enough
to turn metal into liquid.

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No one in their right mind
would do this

53
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and expect to emerge
unharmed, right?

54
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And yet, the people
of San Pedro Manrique

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manage to do just that,
and on a yearly basis.

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But how?

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Walking across hot embers

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is one of my favorite
physics problems.

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The trick is making sure
the embers are hot enough

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of water vapor between your skin
a very and the hot coals. layer

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Some of these same firewalkers,

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one day,
they walk across unscathed;

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another time they try it,
they do burn their feet.

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My experience tells me the
difference is in their mindset.

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So at my fire walks, once we've
taken the group out to the fire,

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and we're getting ready to walk,

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first, I like to remind them
again about their intention.

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And this helps motivate them
and get them across.

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And then,
we raise people's energy

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before a fire walk.

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Firewalkers around the world,
regardless of tradition,

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religion, they raise
the group's energy

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before they walk.

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So, this can be done with
meditation, chanting,

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singing, dancing...

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Whatever the case,
you want to get your group

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into an excited, pumped-up state

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before the fire walk.

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There is absolutely
something about

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being in an excited,
uplifted state

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that helps you
get across safely.

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So what actually happens
there psychologically

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is there is this
emotional buildup.

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There is this highly intense
arousal that's happening,

85
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and so you have cortisol and
other sort of endocrine hormones

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flooding the system,
which will help to block

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some of the pain receptors.

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SHATNER:
Water vapor?

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Mind control?

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But can fire walking
without pain or injury

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really be just a simple matter
of will power?

92
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Or does it require
something even more?

93
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We know we have the capability
to redirect pain

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or even to numb pain
just by putting ourselves

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in the right mindset.

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But many of these firewalkers
don't even have blisters

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or burns on their feet.

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So, when you look at physics,

99
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that's impossible.

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If you touch something
that's hot,

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you're gonna get burned.

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So the question is,
are we dealing with

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the magical force that
we have yet to fully understand?

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HOBSON:
So in one study with
the San Pedro

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Spanish fire walking ritual,

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a team of anthropologists
were curious what happens to

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a person's heart rate
for the individual

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who's actually walking,

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and for any individual
who is close to them?

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Like a relative
or a family member.

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HOBSON:
The surprising part is that

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you will still have
a state of physiology

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that's similar
to the individual, as if...

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youare walking over the coals,

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when in fact, of course,
you're not.

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AXTELL:
It is so much more than just
an individual ritual.

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It is a community experience.

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Yes, it is technically possible
to cross a coal bed unharmed

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all by yourself.

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But it is much easier
to experience a fire walk

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surrounded by people
who are there to support you:

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your family, your community.

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Crossing barefoot over
thousand-degree coals

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doesn't make
any practical sense.

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And even though
I've personally crossed

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hundreds and hundreds
of coal beds,

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I still don't
perfectly understand

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how and why it works
like it does.

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So what about you?

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Are you willing
to take your chances,

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slip off your shoes
and walk barefoot over fire?

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Well, if you are,
then perhaps you're also ready

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to confront the unknown,
and see what happens

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when you come face-to-face
with the power of voodoo.

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JULIA BUCKLEY:
I was really pretty disabled
by the pain,

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May 2012.

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32-year-old author Julia Buckley

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is writing in her office
when she experiences a pain

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unlike any
she has ever felt before.

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I was just at my desk one day
at work, typing away,

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um, reached out
for a cup of coffee,

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and suddenly, it was as if
my right arm was on fire,

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as if someone had laid out
fireworks all the way

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from my fingers up to my armpit,
and across to my neck.

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I was really pretty disabled
by the pain,

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'cause it was getting worse

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day by day, week by week.

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I couldn't do anything
with this right arm at all.

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I saw three general doctors,
I saw eight specialists;

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I was doing everything
that I was told to do.

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So after two years, I was...

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completely at my wit's end.

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So I was pretty desperate,
and in quite a dark place.

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SHATNER:
With her life virtually
in shambles,

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Julia was willing to try
anything.

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Turning away from
conventional medicine,

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she began
to investigate alternatives,

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and this led her down a,
shall we say, unusual path.

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Voodoo healing.

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I was reading a book
about voodoo.

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And reading it, I hadn't seen
anything like it

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in any of the other research
that I'd done.

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I just got this impression
that the voodoo priests

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were probably the people who had
the most, kind of, grasp of the,

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the mind-body relationship.

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And I just thought if anyone's
gonna be able to help me,

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it's gonna be someone in Haiti.

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SHATNER:
Still fighting
debilitating pain,

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Julia Buckley flew to Haiti,

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and once there, arranged to meet

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with Richard Morse,
a voodoo practitioner.

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BUCKLEY:
I had actually read
interviews and knew

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that he was a voodoo priest
as well as a hotel owner,

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and so I'd already thought,
"Oh, I need to try and ask him

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whether he can, he can
do anything for me."

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So, I checked
into the hotel, met him

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and then we started talking
about voodoo

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and its capacity for healing.

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And so, I told him
exactly why I was there,

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and I just said,
"Can you help me?"

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I think he said, "Are you,
are you sure you want this?"

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And I was like, "Absolutely."

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MORSE: No one taught me
how to do this.

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I didn't go to school
to do this,

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but I have a certain capacity
for something of this sort.

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My mom was a voodoo priestess,

187
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and my father's family
goes back to the Puritans.

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00:11:22,246 --> 00:11:24,118
I like to call my thing
Puritan-voodoo,

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because I'm a mix.

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SHATNER:
After learning
about her symptoms,

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00:11:29,689 --> 00:11:31,473
Morse led her
into a dark room,

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one meant to summon spirits

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00:11:34,258 --> 00:11:37,958
and extract
whatever was harming her.

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00:11:38,001 --> 00:11:42,614
BUCKLEY:
There were candles and bottles
all around the room.

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00:11:42,658 --> 00:11:45,792
There were strips of cloth,
different colored cloths

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00:11:45,835 --> 00:11:47,968
that now I know represent
the different Loa, the spirits,

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00:11:48,011 --> 00:11:49,491
all around the room.

198
00:11:49,534 --> 00:11:51,667
There were these
terra-cotta pots

199
00:11:51,711 --> 00:11:55,062
that he said were filled
with the souls of the dead.

200
00:11:55,105 --> 00:11:56,846
And there were
these little bottles of

201
00:11:56,890 --> 00:11:58,718
what I found out afterwards
were holy water

202
00:11:58,761 --> 00:12:01,068
brought from shrines
all over the rest of the world.

203
00:12:02,634 --> 00:12:04,549
He went around me
a couple of times.

204
00:12:04,593 --> 00:12:08,728
Then he stopped at the back
of my neck and started feeling

205
00:12:08,771 --> 00:12:12,906
from the bottom of my skull
down to my neck.

206
00:12:12,949 --> 00:12:14,908
Kind of pressing on it,
almost like

207
00:12:14,951 --> 00:12:16,387
what a chiropractor might do

208
00:12:16,431 --> 00:12:19,869
before they really start
going for it.

209
00:12:19,913 --> 00:12:23,220
I was scared, because that's
where all my problems were,

210
00:12:23,264 --> 00:12:25,353
and I didn't want him
to hurt me, and I didn't want

211
00:12:25,396 --> 00:12:27,834
my neck to be cracked
or anything like that.

212
00:12:27,877 --> 00:12:29,313
I was terrified.

213
00:12:29,357 --> 00:12:33,709
He told me that he had found

214
00:12:33,753 --> 00:12:37,234
a demon in a shape
of a black cat on my neck.

215
00:12:37,278 --> 00:12:40,847
So when he had been dragging
his fingers down my neck,

216
00:12:40,890 --> 00:12:44,285
he was literally picking up
and detaching this black cat.

217
00:12:44,328 --> 00:12:46,287
He said he didn't know
how I'd got it,

218
00:12:46,330 --> 00:12:48,768
when I got it or how long
it had been there,

219
00:12:48,811 --> 00:12:52,380
but he said it was nasty
and that he'd got rid of it.

220
00:12:52,423 --> 00:12:55,513
It was only when
I got to the airport,

221
00:12:55,557 --> 00:12:58,168
decided I needed
a cup of coffee,

222
00:12:58,212 --> 00:13:00,823
and jumped up the stairs
to the coffee bar

223
00:13:00,867 --> 00:13:03,130
carrying my little
carry-on suitcase.

224
00:13:03,173 --> 00:13:05,872
I was standing with the coffee
and I kind of looked down

225
00:13:05,915 --> 00:13:07,874
and thought, "Hang on,
I can't normally do that."

226
00:13:07,917 --> 00:13:10,354
And I checked in with my body,
and I realized, actually,

227
00:13:10,398 --> 00:13:12,269
nowhere is hurting right now.

228
00:13:12,313 --> 00:13:13,967
This is really strange.

229
00:13:14,010 --> 00:13:17,622
It was the first time
in nearly three years

230
00:13:17,666 --> 00:13:20,277
that I hadn't been in pain.

231
00:13:20,321 --> 00:13:23,106
SHATNER:
As far as Julia Buckley
was concerned,

232
00:13:23,150 --> 00:13:26,936
voodoo had worked, after
everything else had failed.

233
00:13:26,980 --> 00:13:29,460
But how?

234
00:13:29,504 --> 00:13:31,680
TOK THOMPSON:
Voodoo is a fabulously
interesting tradition.

235
00:13:31,723 --> 00:13:33,595
We see it in the Caribbean,

236
00:13:33,638 --> 00:13:35,423
primarily perhaps in Haiti,
although certainly

237
00:13:35,466 --> 00:13:37,686
in other places
around the Caribbean as well.

238
00:13:37,729 --> 00:13:40,907
It's a part of a much larger
assemblage of religions

239
00:13:40,950 --> 00:13:43,823
with a shared
sort of worldview.

240
00:13:43,866 --> 00:13:48,131
This traces back to West Africa,
and to several groups

241
00:13:48,175 --> 00:13:50,264
and several different
religions there.

242
00:13:50,307 --> 00:13:53,180
The West African religious
tradition was brought over

243
00:13:53,223 --> 00:13:55,225
via the slave trade
to the Caribbean,

244
00:13:55,269 --> 00:13:57,314
to the Southern United States,
where it flourished

245
00:13:57,358 --> 00:13:59,229
and took on different forms,

246
00:13:59,273 --> 00:14:02,972
and blended somewhat easily
with the Catholic faith.

247
00:14:09,631 --> 00:14:13,069
You can call it God
or you can call it, um,

248
00:14:13,113 --> 00:14:15,028
how you, how you want...

249
00:14:43,883 --> 00:14:45,449
DAVID WHITEHEAD:
So it could be

250
00:14:45,493 --> 00:14:47,712
that when it comes
to these rituals,

251
00:14:47,756 --> 00:14:50,977
that there's something
about the nature of the ritual

252
00:14:51,020 --> 00:14:52,674
that actually activates

253
00:14:52,717 --> 00:14:55,068
something within
the participant.

254
00:14:55,111 --> 00:14:58,071
But the ritual needs
to be believed.

255
00:14:58,114 --> 00:14:59,681
It needs to be true
to the participant

256
00:14:59,724 --> 00:15:02,814
in order for it to work.

257
00:15:02,858 --> 00:15:05,861
So the pageantry and the
theatricality that's associated

258
00:15:05,905 --> 00:15:09,865
with these rituals,
that's where their power lies.

259
00:15:14,304 --> 00:15:17,264
SHATNER:
Perhaps one of the reasons
voodoo's followers

260
00:15:17,307 --> 00:15:20,223
believe in its incredible power
is because they know

261
00:15:20,267 --> 00:15:26,316
it not only can be used to heal,
but also to harm.

262
00:15:26,360 --> 00:15:28,188
We hear this phrase,
"voodoo death," you know,

263
00:15:28,231 --> 00:15:30,277
that people may have cast
a spell or done

264
00:15:30,320 --> 00:15:33,541
some kind of ritual that causes
the death of another person.

265
00:15:33,584 --> 00:15:37,501
And if we're scientific,
"Well, that's ridiculous.

266
00:15:37,545 --> 00:15:38,938
That has no
causal relationship here."

267
00:15:38,981 --> 00:15:40,765
But if we dig a little deeper,

268
00:15:40,809 --> 00:15:43,812
there have been cases of voodoo
deaths where someone has said

269
00:15:43,855 --> 00:15:45,335
something or done something

270
00:15:45,379 --> 00:15:48,251
that literally affects
another person.

271
00:15:48,295 --> 00:15:50,993
HOBSON:
Most scientists,
doctors or researchers

272
00:15:51,037 --> 00:15:53,822
would just call it an anomaly.

273
00:15:53,865 --> 00:15:56,042
A physical
or psychological anomaly

274
00:15:56,085 --> 00:16:00,481
that we can't quite explain
with the data

275
00:16:00,524 --> 00:16:03,136
or the information
that are presented before us.

276
00:16:03,179 --> 00:16:08,184
BUCKLEY:
I think there's a lot of value
in things being unexplained.

277
00:16:08,228 --> 00:16:10,317
Something like voodoo,

278
00:16:10,360 --> 00:16:13,711
you're never gonna be able to
have the proof of what happened.

279
00:16:13,755 --> 00:16:16,236
I don't know what happened
in that room and I was there.

280
00:16:16,279 --> 00:16:20,805
SHATNER:
Ancient rituals that can
not only cure disease,

281
00:16:20,849 --> 00:16:22,677
but cause it?

282
00:16:22,720 --> 00:16:25,462
It seems hard to fathom.

283
00:16:25,506 --> 00:16:30,728
But then, why did Julia
Buckley's pain disappear?

284
00:16:30,772 --> 00:16:33,470
Was it all in her head?

285
00:16:33,514 --> 00:16:39,128
Or can the answer be found
by examining another ritual,

286
00:16:39,172 --> 00:16:44,525
one that is a ritual form
of brutality?

287
00:16:50,052 --> 00:16:51,662
WHITEHEAD:
There's something about watching

288
00:17:04,197 --> 00:17:06,764
SHATNER:
What is it about the ritual

289
00:17:06,808 --> 00:17:11,595
of watching violent, sometimes
bloody sports combat

290
00:17:11,639 --> 00:17:14,076
that fascinates us?

291
00:17:14,120 --> 00:17:17,384
Is it merely because it fulfills
a human desire

292
00:17:17,427 --> 00:17:19,647
to witness
organized competition?

293
00:17:21,562 --> 00:17:23,738
Or, does it satisfy

294
00:17:23,781 --> 00:17:28,656
a much darker,
more primal need in us

295
00:17:28,699 --> 00:17:31,093
than we like to admit?

296
00:17:31,137 --> 00:17:34,662
HOBSON: There's much less
killing now in modern humans

297
00:17:34,705 --> 00:17:36,446
than there were in the past,

298
00:17:36,490 --> 00:17:39,841
but there still is
that little bit left within us,

299
00:17:39,884 --> 00:17:43,192
that when you go to a sporting
event and all of the rituals

300
00:17:43,236 --> 00:17:45,412
and all that mob mentality
is pushing

301
00:17:45,455 --> 00:17:48,328
an individual
to act out violently,

302
00:17:48,371 --> 00:17:51,766
well, it turns on
that little spark of violence

303
00:17:51,809 --> 00:17:53,811
that still exists within us.

304
00:17:55,683 --> 00:17:57,424
L.A. JENNINGS:
You may not realize it,

305
00:17:57,467 --> 00:18:00,731
but an MMA fight
is very ritualistic.

306
00:18:00,775 --> 00:18:03,343
The participation in the event
and the spectacle of it

307
00:18:03,386 --> 00:18:07,347
is part of a long history
of rituals.

308
00:18:07,390 --> 00:18:09,349
FRANK TRIGG:
When people get to the arena
for a fight,

309
00:18:09,392 --> 00:18:12,178
there is a specific procedure
that happens every single time.

310
00:18:12,221 --> 00:18:15,529
This procedure is set
specifically to get

311
00:18:15,572 --> 00:18:18,836
not only the fighters ready,
but to get the fans amped up

312
00:18:18,880 --> 00:18:21,665
so they can be the most hyped
that they can possibly be

313
00:18:21,709 --> 00:18:23,972
for this particular fight
when that fight starts.

314
00:18:24,015 --> 00:18:27,932
The song comes on, that starts
at about a level three.

315
00:18:27,976 --> 00:18:29,760
"Oh, fight's about to happen."

316
00:18:32,154 --> 00:18:34,330
Then both guys walk in, the
announcements are being made.

317
00:18:34,374 --> 00:18:36,115
ANNOUNCER:
Ladies and gentlemen,
let's have a nice round...

318
00:18:36,158 --> 00:18:38,943
TRIGG:
Now you're coming up
to a nine, a ten.

319
00:18:38,987 --> 00:18:41,076
"Oh, it's about to happen."
The ring card girl comes in.

320
00:18:41,120 --> 00:18:42,904
The first round is gonna get
started for this fight.

321
00:18:42,947 --> 00:18:44,079
The referee asks
if both fighters are ready.

322
00:18:44,123 --> 00:18:45,341
I want you guys
to have a clean fight.

323
00:18:45,385 --> 00:18:47,213
Follow my orders at all times.

324
00:18:47,256 --> 00:18:49,606
TRIGG:
Now you are amped up.
This is about to happen.

325
00:18:49,650 --> 00:18:51,173
The fight is getting ready
to go.

326
00:18:53,175 --> 00:18:55,830
You're so invested in this guy
that when he's fighting,

327
00:18:55,873 --> 00:18:58,441
you feel like it's actually
happening to you.

328
00:18:58,485 --> 00:19:00,400
This is an assault
on you and your person

329
00:19:00,443 --> 00:19:02,184
when this is happening,
so this is why the crowd

330
00:19:02,228 --> 00:19:04,665
gets so into it,
because they follow the hype.

331
00:19:04,708 --> 00:19:07,798
And the ritual portion of that
happens every single time.

332
00:19:10,236 --> 00:19:11,759
SHATNER:
Las Vegas, Nevada.

333
00:19:11,802 --> 00:19:14,501
October 6, 2018.

334
00:19:14,544 --> 00:19:18,548
Mixed martial arts fighters
Khabib Nurmagomedov

335
00:19:18,592 --> 00:19:20,724
and Conor McGregor
face off in what is touted

336
00:19:20,768 --> 00:19:23,205
as the bout of the year.

337
00:19:23,249 --> 00:19:26,469
20,000 fans watch
as Khabib locks Conor

338
00:19:26,513 --> 00:19:29,777
in a brutal chokehold
and emerges victorious,

339
00:19:29,820 --> 00:19:32,649
retaining the title
of lightweight champ.

340
00:19:32,693 --> 00:19:36,175
But before the closing ceremony,
Khabib gets enraged

341
00:19:36,218 --> 00:19:38,002
by the endless barrage
of trash talk

342
00:19:38,046 --> 00:19:40,135
from his opponent's entourage.

343
00:19:40,179 --> 00:19:42,877
That's when
the real fight begins.

344
00:19:47,621 --> 00:19:50,058
WHITEHEAD: Khabib Nurmagomedov
jumps up on the cage,

345
00:19:50,101 --> 00:19:51,929
jumps into the crowd

346
00:19:51,973 --> 00:19:54,497
and starts fighting
with Conor McGregor's corner.

347
00:19:54,541 --> 00:19:56,107
TRIGG:
Most fights have a closure.

348
00:19:56,151 --> 00:19:57,935
You have a winner,
you have a closing ceremony.

349
00:19:57,979 --> 00:19:59,633
None of that happened.

350
00:19:59,676 --> 00:20:02,244
It all got stopped
because the fight broke out.

351
00:20:02,288 --> 00:20:04,072
There's no closure.
The fight's not over, like,

352
00:20:04,115 --> 00:20:06,205
now they get to go out
in the streets,

353
00:20:06,248 --> 00:20:07,858
and everyone's been drinking all
night, and so you add alcohol,

354
00:20:07,902 --> 00:20:10,383
you add testosterone,
you add a blood sport...

355
00:20:10,426 --> 00:20:11,993
So people started fighting
out in the streets.

356
00:20:12,036 --> 00:20:13,342
And in that kind of situation,

357
00:20:13,386 --> 00:20:14,648
those kind of things
are gonna happen.

358
00:20:18,304 --> 00:20:21,263
WHITEHEAD:
If you go to an ice-skating
competition or a tennis match,

359
00:20:21,307 --> 00:20:22,699
you rarely hear about people
breaking out

360
00:20:22,743 --> 00:20:24,484
into fistfights in the crowd.

361
00:20:24,527 --> 00:20:27,269
So when we look
at what happened in Las Vegas,

362
00:20:27,313 --> 00:20:30,011
could it be that there's
something about the act

363
00:20:30,054 --> 00:20:32,796
of watching violent blood sports

364
00:20:32,840 --> 00:20:36,844
that brings us into some kind
of ritual in a way?

365
00:20:36,887 --> 00:20:39,673
TRIGG:
Everybody wants to see

366
00:20:39,716 --> 00:20:42,066
the most violent thing
that can happen to somebody.

367
00:20:42,110 --> 00:20:46,506
Everybody cheers
for the knockout.

368
00:20:46,549 --> 00:20:48,638
They don't even realize that
they're there for the violence.

369
00:20:48,682 --> 00:20:50,466
The don't understand
why they're actually there

370
00:20:50,510 --> 00:20:52,773
to watch this fight
until the knockout happens.

371
00:20:52,816 --> 00:20:55,341
We love watching violence when
it's happening to somebody else.

372
00:20:55,384 --> 00:20:58,387
And we've been doing it since
the gladiator times.

373
00:21:01,521 --> 00:21:03,218
JENNINGS:
Ancient Romans also loved

374
00:21:03,262 --> 00:21:05,481
fighting sports,
and gladiator events

375
00:21:05,525 --> 00:21:08,310
were unique in that
it wasn't trained,

376
00:21:08,354 --> 00:21:10,921
skilled athletes fighting
against each other,

377
00:21:10,965 --> 00:21:13,446
but it was often people who had

378
00:21:13,489 --> 00:21:17,754
committed a crime that made them
eligible for the death penalty.

379
00:21:17,798 --> 00:21:19,278
And the death penalty
in this case

380
00:21:19,321 --> 00:21:22,803
was fighting against a gladiator
in the Colosseum.

381
00:21:22,846 --> 00:21:26,720
The Colosseum could fit up to
50,000 people, and they went

382
00:21:26,763 --> 00:21:30,854
for the pleasure,
the cathartic experience

383
00:21:30,898 --> 00:21:33,248
of watching humans being killed.

384
00:21:33,292 --> 00:21:35,946
WHITEHEAD:
We think of this life-or-death

385
00:21:35,990 --> 00:21:39,254
type of sport as being something
that's only in the ancient past,

386
00:21:39,298 --> 00:21:41,300
but there is still a sport

387
00:21:41,343 --> 00:21:43,084
where life and death
is involved,

388
00:21:43,127 --> 00:21:45,173
and this would be the sport
of bullfighting.

389
00:21:48,219 --> 00:21:51,005
XIMENEZ:
Bullfighting in Spain
is not only a tradition

390
00:21:51,048 --> 00:21:53,268
or a show,

391
00:21:53,312 --> 00:21:55,401
it's, uh, actually
part of the culture,

392
00:21:55,444 --> 00:21:57,141
and it's the last part in which

393
00:21:57,185 --> 00:22:00,971
a very, very strict, uh,
dance happens around the bull,

394
00:22:01,015 --> 00:22:03,278
and this man, this matador,

395
00:22:03,322 --> 00:22:07,369
actually is risking his life
in front of you.

396
00:22:07,413 --> 00:22:09,284
THOMPSON:
The danger and the bloodiness
is a part of it.

397
00:22:09,328 --> 00:22:11,852
If the matador wins,
the bull bleeds to death

398
00:22:11,895 --> 00:22:13,593
in front of the spectators.

399
00:22:13,636 --> 00:22:17,292
Now, of course if the bull wins,
uh, the-the matador gets gored.

400
00:22:17,336 --> 00:22:20,600
XIMENEZ:
In 2016, everybody was reminded

401
00:22:20,643 --> 00:22:22,558
about how dangerous
bullfighting is

402
00:22:22,602 --> 00:22:25,387
when Víctor Barrio
got gored to death by a bull

403
00:22:25,431 --> 00:22:27,607
in the middle
of a bullfighting season.

404
00:22:27,650 --> 00:22:32,133
This was just another
bullfighting festival.

405
00:22:32,176 --> 00:22:35,615
Uh, one of the hundreds
that are in Spain in the summer.

406
00:22:35,658 --> 00:22:38,792
And Víctor Barrio
was a experienced matador,

407
00:22:38,835 --> 00:22:43,187
and he was gored to death
right there.

408
00:22:43,231 --> 00:22:46,495
It was a shocking event
for the nation.

409
00:22:46,539 --> 00:22:49,672
It was a-a reminder of
how dangerous this practice is.

410
00:22:49,716 --> 00:22:52,545
The possibility

411
00:22:52,588 --> 00:22:54,982
of a man dying before your eyes,

412
00:22:55,025 --> 00:22:57,332
it adds a layer of thrill to it.

413
00:22:57,376 --> 00:22:58,594
It's undeniable

414
00:22:58,638 --> 00:23:00,248
that it's just
part of the attraction.

415
00:23:00,291 --> 00:23:02,990
Think of it as rodeos.
Think of it as

416
00:23:03,033 --> 00:23:05,427
NASCAR races.
They have a layer of danger,

417
00:23:05,471 --> 00:23:06,994
of live danger.

418
00:23:09,126 --> 00:23:10,824
WHITEHEAD:
It's not just

419
00:23:10,867 --> 00:23:14,828
witnessing winning and losing
and some friendly competition.

420
00:23:14,871 --> 00:23:16,786
This takes it to the next level.

421
00:23:16,830 --> 00:23:21,574
And the question is,
what is it about human nature

422
00:23:21,617 --> 00:23:25,055
that would have thousands
of people wanting to gather

423
00:23:25,099 --> 00:23:27,841
in some Colosseum
or some modern stadium

424
00:23:27,884 --> 00:23:32,628
to watch this ritualistic form
of combat,

425
00:23:32,672 --> 00:23:34,500
and why they would actually want
to be involved

426
00:23:34,543 --> 00:23:36,676
in witnessing a ritualized form
of death?

427
00:23:36,719 --> 00:23:40,419
TRIGG:
It's really interesting
to watch the fans.

428
00:23:40,462 --> 00:23:42,551
People actually get
to a space where

429
00:23:42,595 --> 00:23:44,858
they lose social graces.

430
00:23:44,901 --> 00:23:46,990
They kind of lose themselves
in the event,

431
00:23:47,034 --> 00:23:49,645
which is why going to
a live event is so important

432
00:23:49,689 --> 00:23:51,517
for somebody that loves MMA.

433
00:23:51,560 --> 00:23:53,519
You'll see normal guys,
and it could be

434
00:23:53,562 --> 00:23:54,824
even someone
that you know personally.

435
00:23:54,868 --> 00:23:56,783
"Oh, he's a great guy.
He's a Christian.

436
00:23:56,826 --> 00:23:59,307
He's a super family man, doesn't
swear, hardly ever drinks,"

437
00:23:59,350 --> 00:24:01,396
but he gets to the fight
and he is cursing and swearing

438
00:24:01,440 --> 00:24:03,050
and throwing stuff down
at everybody.

439
00:24:03,093 --> 00:24:04,530
You're like,
"What? What happened?

440
00:24:04,573 --> 00:24:06,357
Oh, he's... That's his guy.
That's his fighter."

441
00:24:10,449 --> 00:24:12,799
SHATNER:
When we watch two men
fight each other

442
00:24:12,842 --> 00:24:14,365
for sport, or watch a matador

443
00:24:14,409 --> 00:24:17,151
stare down a raging bull,

444
00:24:17,194 --> 00:24:20,284
is there a "spark of violence"

445
00:24:20,328 --> 00:24:22,330
that gets unleashed
within all of us?

446
00:24:22,373 --> 00:24:27,161
A streak of barbarism that
becomes somehow satisfied

447
00:24:27,204 --> 00:24:31,470
by what is, in effect,
a ritual form of brutality?

448
00:24:31,513 --> 00:24:34,385
Perhaps the answer
can be found by examining

449
00:24:34,429 --> 00:24:37,519
another ancient ritual,

450
00:24:37,563 --> 00:24:40,957
one designed to cure,
not just a diseased body...

451
00:24:41,001 --> 00:24:44,570
-...but a diseased soul

452
00:24:44,613 --> 00:24:46,528
-by casting out...

453
00:24:46,572 --> 00:24:48,008
...the Devil himself.

454
00:24:51,968 --> 00:24:53,796
Gary, Indiana.THOMPSON:
In 2018,R:

455
00:24:53,840 --> 00:24:56,059
April 2012.

456
00:24:56,103 --> 00:24:58,453
Father Michael Maginot,

457
00:24:58,497 --> 00:25:00,890
the pastor of Saint Stephen,
Martyr Catholic Church,

458
00:25:00,934 --> 00:25:04,807
meets with Latoya Ammons
in her home.

459
00:25:04,851 --> 00:25:08,594
But this is not a common
pastoral house call

460
00:25:08,637 --> 00:25:12,685
because Father Mike, as he
is known by his parishioners,

461
00:25:12,728 --> 00:25:14,556
is also an exorcist,

462
00:25:14,600 --> 00:25:17,385
and he has been asked

463
00:25:17,428 --> 00:25:20,562
to rid this home of a demon.

464
00:25:22,564 --> 00:25:25,959
Latoya moved into
this particular house

465
00:25:26,002 --> 00:25:29,876
in Gary in November of 2011.

466
00:25:29,919 --> 00:25:33,619
She was the mother
of three children.

467
00:25:33,662 --> 00:25:36,578
And once the family moved in,

468
00:25:36,622 --> 00:25:38,667
they were noticing
all kinds of phenomena

469
00:25:38,711 --> 00:25:40,408
happening in the house.

470
00:25:41,583 --> 00:25:43,280
Flies were swarming

471
00:25:43,324 --> 00:25:45,761
in the middle of winter.

472
00:25:48,329 --> 00:25:50,723
They would hear noises
through the house.

473
00:25:50,766 --> 00:25:54,422
-Footsteps coming up the stairs

474
00:25:54,465 --> 00:25:57,860
from the basement.

475
00:25:57,904 --> 00:26:00,689
They would see shadow figures
pacing back and forth

476
00:26:00,733 --> 00:26:03,649
in the living room
and turn on the light

477
00:26:03,692 --> 00:26:06,608
and see muddy footprints

478
00:26:06,652 --> 00:26:08,567
left on the floor.

479
00:26:10,177 --> 00:26:13,180
Her children, uh,
were also exhibiting

480
00:26:13,223 --> 00:26:14,877
some really odd behavior.

481
00:26:16,575 --> 00:26:19,273
One of the boys was seen
talking to an imaginary friend

482
00:26:19,316 --> 00:26:23,103
that resided somewhere
within the house.

483
00:26:23,146 --> 00:26:27,934
And reports also suggest that
the daughter was seen levitating

484
00:26:27,977 --> 00:26:29,762
several feet
above her bed at night.

485
00:26:33,026 --> 00:26:36,377
MAGINOT:
And so, Latoya was convinced

486
00:26:36,420 --> 00:26:40,207
something beyond explanation
was happening to her family,

487
00:26:40,250 --> 00:26:42,296
but no one would
really believe her.

488
00:26:42,339 --> 00:26:46,517
During that time, the children,
they were getting sick.

489
00:26:46,561 --> 00:26:49,390
And then
Child Protective Services

490
00:26:49,433 --> 00:26:52,698
were getting reports that they
were missing a lot of school,

491
00:26:52,741 --> 00:26:57,180
so they actually were
investigating, um, Latoya.

492
00:26:57,224 --> 00:27:01,750
She was saying that
it was demonic possession,

493
00:27:01,794 --> 00:27:05,188
and so they were giving her
psychiatric examinations,

494
00:27:05,232 --> 00:27:10,324
but they couldn't find any
psychological illness with her.

495
00:27:10,367 --> 00:27:12,761
SHATNER:
Not only did the authorities
fail to find

496
00:27:12,805 --> 00:27:16,112
any trace of mental illness
in Latoya's behavior,

497
00:27:16,156 --> 00:27:20,116
or any inconsistencies
in her story,

498
00:27:20,160 --> 00:27:23,467
they also witnessed an event
involving her son

499
00:27:23,511 --> 00:27:25,687
that made them realize
that something

500
00:27:25,731 --> 00:27:27,820
really was happening
to this family,

501
00:27:27,863 --> 00:27:30,823
something unexplained.

502
00:27:30,866 --> 00:27:34,783
During the family's
psychiatric evaluations,

503
00:27:34,827 --> 00:27:39,353
the youngest child began rolling
eyes in the back of his head,

504
00:27:39,396 --> 00:27:42,182
growling.

505
00:27:42,225 --> 00:27:46,882
And then the case worker,
as well as several members

506
00:27:46,926 --> 00:27:51,278
of hospital staff, witnessed the
boy walk backwards up a wall.

507
00:27:54,368 --> 00:27:58,024
MAGINOT:
When they witnessed the boy
walk up the wall backwards,

508
00:27:58,067 --> 00:27:59,373
yeah, they were believers.

509
00:27:59,416 --> 00:28:02,419
They knew there was
no explanation for that.

510
00:28:02,463 --> 00:28:06,467
And so, I got called
to investigate this case

511
00:28:06,510 --> 00:28:08,817
by the hospital chaplain,

512
00:28:08,861 --> 00:28:11,298
and I went to visit Latoya.

513
00:28:11,341 --> 00:28:13,300
It was a four-hour interview,

514
00:28:13,343 --> 00:28:16,303
and it was in the midst of that

515
00:28:16,346 --> 00:28:18,697
that I placed the crucifix

516
00:28:18,740 --> 00:28:23,571
on her forehead
and she began to convulse.

517
00:28:23,614 --> 00:28:25,921
Then I took it off
and she stopped convulsing.

518
00:28:25,965 --> 00:28:30,230
And that's one of
the main things that fits

519
00:28:30,273 --> 00:28:32,754
the signs of demonic possession.

520
00:28:32,798 --> 00:28:36,323
After considering the evidence,

521
00:28:36,366 --> 00:28:39,500
I was convinced that
the only way to get rid of it

522
00:28:39,543 --> 00:28:42,546
was a church-sanctioned
exorcism.

523
00:28:42,590 --> 00:28:46,550
And so I reported that, uh,
to the bishop

524
00:28:46,594 --> 00:28:48,204
and he gave permission.

525
00:28:48,248 --> 00:28:53,644
An exorcism is a ritual,
a spiritual battle,

526
00:28:53,688 --> 00:28:58,301
and so you need to somehow
upset the demon.

527
00:28:58,345 --> 00:29:00,913
One of the instruments
that I would use

528
00:29:00,956 --> 00:29:02,566
would be a blessed crucifix

529
00:29:02,610 --> 00:29:05,178
to put on the person's forehead.

530
00:29:05,221 --> 00:29:09,225
A second thing
is sprinkling holy water.

531
00:29:09,269 --> 00:29:13,055
There are three sections
of the rite

532
00:29:13,099 --> 00:29:15,318
where you're addressing
the demon

533
00:29:15,362 --> 00:29:17,625
and a second place
where you're addressing God,

534
00:29:17,668 --> 00:29:20,323
and you could do it in English,

535
00:29:20,367 --> 00:29:22,195
or else, you could
also do it in Latin.

536
00:29:22,238 --> 00:29:25,111
-In Latoya's case,

537
00:29:25,154 --> 00:29:27,069
when we were addressing
the demon in Latin,

538
00:29:27,113 --> 00:29:29,811
Latoya would be convulsing,

539
00:29:29,855 --> 00:29:33,206
but when we were addressing God,
she would stop convulsing.

540
00:29:33,249 --> 00:29:35,512
I'm the only one there
that knew the Latin,

541
00:29:35,556 --> 00:29:37,776
and-and I found that
kind of amazing.

542
00:29:39,734 --> 00:29:43,085
A demonic entity will fight
for the territory

543
00:29:43,129 --> 00:29:45,348
that they have gained,

544
00:29:45,392 --> 00:29:48,482
but then, eventually,
it starts to lessen.

545
00:29:48,525 --> 00:29:51,572
With Latoya,
finally she fell asleep,

546
00:29:51,615 --> 00:29:55,706
and that was kind of
an indication that it left.

547
00:29:55,750 --> 00:29:58,405
Once she got cleared, um,

548
00:29:58,448 --> 00:30:02,235
then the children were also fine
after that as well.

549
00:30:02,278 --> 00:30:06,543
SHATNER:
What saved Latoya Ammons
and her children

550
00:30:06,587 --> 00:30:10,112
from their deep physical
and emotional torment?

551
00:30:10,156 --> 00:30:13,681
Was it really the spiritual
power of the ritual

552
00:30:13,724 --> 00:30:16,075
that Father Michael performed?

553
00:30:16,118 --> 00:30:20,035
Or was it the psychological
or psychosomatic effect

554
00:30:20,079 --> 00:30:25,736
that simply performing a ritual
had on Latoya and her family?

555
00:30:25,780 --> 00:30:27,216
Latoya's case
is really interesting

556
00:30:27,260 --> 00:30:29,566
because it's a case that
actually made national news.

557
00:30:29,610 --> 00:30:32,787
Herself and her children
were exhibiting symptoms

558
00:30:32,831 --> 00:30:35,137
that could not
be explained rationally

559
00:30:35,181 --> 00:30:37,792
by modern medical science,
but in the end,

560
00:30:37,836 --> 00:30:39,576
after all of their attempts,

561
00:30:39,620 --> 00:30:41,535
it was the exorcism itself

562
00:30:41,578 --> 00:30:43,754
that actually produced
the positive effect.

563
00:30:43,798 --> 00:30:46,714
We have evidence
of exorcism rituals

564
00:30:46,757 --> 00:30:50,283
dating back 3,000 years ago
in ancient Babylon.

565
00:30:51,893 --> 00:30:53,808
CHAVEZ:
To those that say that exorcism

566
00:30:53,852 --> 00:30:56,767
shouldn't exist
in modern society,

567
00:30:56,811 --> 00:31:00,815
they really need to appreciate
just how successful

568
00:31:00,859 --> 00:31:05,428
exorcism can be as a ritual,
how it's able to help people.

569
00:31:05,472 --> 00:31:08,388
TZADOK:
Exorcisms are not just performed
by one religion

570
00:31:08,431 --> 00:31:11,304
or another, they're performed
by all the different religions.

571
00:31:11,347 --> 00:31:13,741
It happens everywhere
because we're dealing with

572
00:31:13,784 --> 00:31:16,657
the commonality of human souls.

573
00:31:16,700 --> 00:31:20,791
We recognize that the nature
of a possession

574
00:31:20,835 --> 00:31:26,014
is an earthbound soul
which is unable to

575
00:31:26,058 --> 00:31:30,236
or afraid to move forward
in its spiritual progression.

576
00:31:30,279 --> 00:31:36,024
And we perform rituals because
the nature of ritual

577
00:31:36,068 --> 00:31:39,375
is being an expression
of inner psychological

578
00:31:39,419 --> 00:31:41,725
ideas and beliefs.

579
00:31:41,769 --> 00:31:46,643
And therefore, as such,
exorcisms become

580
00:31:46,687 --> 00:31:48,819
a required practice.

581
00:31:54,086 --> 00:31:57,959
Can ritual really be used
to fight off evil spirits?

582
00:31:58,003 --> 00:32:01,745
You may say that notion sounds
too outlandish to even consider,

583
00:32:01,789 --> 00:32:03,834
until you realize that,
at one time or another,

584
00:32:03,878 --> 00:32:06,359
even you...

585
00:32:06,402 --> 00:32:09,188
have probably used a ritual
to connect with a higher power.

586
00:32:09,231 --> 00:32:10,754
It's called prayer.

587
00:32:10,798 --> 00:32:12,800
And there are billions of people
all over the world

588
00:32:12,843 --> 00:32:16,151
who believe that prayer

589
00:32:16,195 --> 00:32:19,372
is the most powerful
ritual of all.

590
00:32:25,334 --> 00:32:26,422
SHATNER:
Israel.TZADOK:
You can have a gathering
of literally

591
00:32:26,466 --> 00:32:28,424
January 2018.

592
00:32:29,948 --> 00:32:33,690
Here, in what is known
as the Holy Land,

593
00:32:33,734 --> 00:32:38,043
the average temperature
is almost 90 degrees Fahrenheit,

594
00:32:38,086 --> 00:32:42,830
and water
is a precious commodity.

595
00:32:42,873 --> 00:32:45,224
But this is no average year.

596
00:32:49,010 --> 00:32:50,707
It's been almost five years

597
00:32:50,751 --> 00:32:53,145
since more than
a few drops of rain

598
00:32:53,188 --> 00:32:56,235
fell upon Israel's
thirsty sands,

599
00:32:56,278 --> 00:33:00,500
and the people
are beginning to panic.

600
00:33:00,543 --> 00:33:03,329
TZADOK:
The spring season
in the Middle East

601
00:33:03,372 --> 00:33:07,072
is the time
for the rains to come.

602
00:33:07,115 --> 00:33:10,075
As such, if the rains
are not there,

603
00:33:10,118 --> 00:33:11,641
you don't have your agriculture,

604
00:33:11,685 --> 00:33:15,210
which is a life-and-death type
of experience.

605
00:33:15,254 --> 00:33:16,429
Even in modern times,

606
00:33:16,472 --> 00:33:18,474
with all of our
modern technology,

607
00:33:18,518 --> 00:33:20,781
rain makes the crops grow.

608
00:33:20,824 --> 00:33:23,479
No crops, no food;
no food, no life.

609
00:33:23,523 --> 00:33:26,526
So when we have a drought,

610
00:33:26,569 --> 00:33:28,615
this creates crisis.

611
00:33:31,226 --> 00:33:33,272
SHATNER:
Israel is one of the wealthiest

612
00:33:33,315 --> 00:33:36,536
and most technologically
advanced countries in the world.

613
00:33:36,579 --> 00:33:40,931
It is also one
of the most religious.

614
00:33:40,975 --> 00:33:45,632
So when facing its worst drought
in close to 100 years,

615
00:33:45,675 --> 00:33:49,114
with the fate of the entire
country hanging in the balance,

616
00:33:49,157 --> 00:33:51,725
what is their solution?

617
00:33:51,768 --> 00:33:55,294
-Prayer.

618
00:33:55,337 --> 00:33:57,861
TZADOK:
In our Judaic tradition,

619
00:33:57,905 --> 00:34:00,908
we have had
a long-standing history

620
00:34:00,951 --> 00:34:02,823
that when there is drought,

621
00:34:02,866 --> 00:34:04,781
the chief rabbi of the country

622
00:34:04,825 --> 00:34:08,437
can call the entire nation
to prayer.

623
00:34:08,481 --> 00:34:11,614
And you can have a gathering
in Jerusalem

624
00:34:11,658 --> 00:34:15,357
of literally thousands
or tens of thousands of minds,

625
00:34:15,401 --> 00:34:17,446
souls, that will come together

626
00:34:17,490 --> 00:34:22,016
and pour out
their collective energy,

627
00:34:22,060 --> 00:34:27,369
calling upon God in heaven
to literally manipulate

628
00:34:27,413 --> 00:34:31,069
the forces of nature
and bring rain.

629
00:34:34,159 --> 00:34:38,293
THOMPSON:
In 2018, Israel was
in a major drought,

630
00:34:38,337 --> 00:34:40,121
and this was really beginning
to cause problems.

631
00:34:40,165 --> 00:34:43,385
At this point,
uh, Chief Rabbi David Lau

632
00:34:43,429 --> 00:34:46,127
organized a massive ritual,

633
00:34:46,171 --> 00:34:48,695
put out a call
for believers to ce

634
00:34:48,738 --> 00:34:51,654
to one of the most sacred sites
in Judaism,

635
00:34:51,698 --> 00:34:56,006
-the Wailing Wall.

636
00:34:56,050 --> 00:34:57,704
They went to the Wailing Wall,

637
00:34:57,747 --> 00:35:00,881
and you had thousands of Jews
praying for rain to come.

638
00:35:03,927 --> 00:35:06,016
TZADOK:
When the individual
Torah-observant

639
00:35:06,060 --> 00:35:11,544
Jewish man wraps himself
in his tallit prayer shawl

640
00:35:11,587 --> 00:35:15,417
and puts on the boxes
of the tefillin,

641
00:35:15,461 --> 00:35:22,032
he creates for himself
a psychic bubble of energy,

642
00:35:22,076 --> 00:35:26,167
which unites the individual
mind and heart

643
00:35:26,211 --> 00:35:30,954
with the collective power
of the word of God,

644
00:35:30,998 --> 00:35:34,044
literally materialized
before him in the form

645
00:35:34,088 --> 00:35:35,611
of the fringes
of the prayer shawl,

646
00:35:35,655 --> 00:35:39,789
and literally in the form
of the scrolls

647
00:35:39,833 --> 00:35:41,878
that are upon his arm
next to his heart

648
00:35:41,922 --> 00:35:44,272
and on his head,
close to his mind.

649
00:35:46,709 --> 00:35:50,800
SHATNER:
It is one thing for us to
believe the ritual of prayer

650
00:35:50,844 --> 00:35:53,629
has the ability
to affect our world.

651
00:35:53,673 --> 00:35:56,893
But can the act
of praying actually

652
00:35:56,937 --> 00:36:01,202
connect us to a higher power?

653
00:36:01,246 --> 00:36:04,597
A ritual is a very predictable
sequence of, of events.

654
00:36:17,000 --> 00:36:19,525
But the interesting thing is,
if you have two things,

655
00:36:19,568 --> 00:36:20,961
you have a boundary
between them.

656
00:36:21,004 --> 00:36:24,182
And prayer and prayer rituals
might be a way

657
00:36:24,225 --> 00:36:26,836
of influencing that boundary
between the physical

658
00:36:26,880 --> 00:36:30,057
and the nonphysical in a way
that the nonphysical

659
00:36:30,100 --> 00:36:32,190
then interacts again
with the physical world.

660
00:36:35,280 --> 00:36:38,239
SHATNER:
To those more secular
and cynical-minded,

661
00:36:38,283 --> 00:36:42,722
praying is a rather quaint,
if not irrelevant pastime.

662
00:36:42,765 --> 00:36:46,204
There's no reason
it should work, right?

663
00:36:48,554 --> 00:36:50,947
-Except that in the case

664
00:36:50,991 --> 00:36:53,950
of ending
Israel's drought in 2018,

665
00:36:53,994 --> 00:36:58,041
many believe it did.

666
00:37:21,500 --> 00:37:24,285
AMIR HUSSAIN:
You can say that it's just
simply correlation--

667
00:37:24,329 --> 00:37:27,680
yes, you prayed and yes,
three days later there was rain,

668
00:37:27,723 --> 00:37:29,290
but the one thing
didn't cause the other.

669
00:37:29,334 --> 00:37:32,206
I mean, that's
the scientific approach.

670
00:37:32,250 --> 00:37:33,729
The religious approach
is a little bit different

671
00:37:33,773 --> 00:37:36,515
to say, well, maybe we did,
maybe we did influence this,

672
00:37:36,558 --> 00:37:39,822
maybe God listened
to these prayers.

673
00:37:45,959 --> 00:37:49,528
TZADOK:
In Judaism, there are rituals
that augment the power

674
00:37:49,571 --> 00:37:51,747
of the individual--

675
00:37:51,791 --> 00:37:56,056
the passion, the desire,
the thought, the idea,

676
00:37:56,099 --> 00:38:00,147
creating, if you will,
a psychic field,

677
00:38:00,190 --> 00:38:05,065
which combines to give
great psychic spiritual energy

678
00:38:05,108 --> 00:38:09,548
for the fulfillment of that
which the individuals seek.

679
00:38:09,591 --> 00:38:13,595
But when we come together
as a collective,

680
00:38:13,639 --> 00:38:18,339
we find that it does have
the power to influence change.

681
00:38:18,383 --> 00:38:22,474
They prayed for rain.
And the prayers were answered.

682
00:38:27,130 --> 00:38:30,003
SHATNER:
Of course, there's always the
chance that it wasn't prayer,

683
00:38:30,046 --> 00:38:33,833
but coincidence that saved
the Israeli people.

684
00:38:33,876 --> 00:38:36,096
The drought would have ended
at some point.

685
00:38:36,139 --> 00:38:40,274
But then, why take chances?

686
00:38:40,318 --> 00:38:42,363
Perhaps the faithful
know something

687
00:38:42,407 --> 00:38:45,366
that nonbelievers don't.

688
00:38:45,410 --> 00:38:47,977
And this could also help
to explain the rituals

689
00:38:48,021 --> 00:38:51,067
associated with the event
that, for all of us,

690
00:38:51,111 --> 00:38:54,462
really is the final frontier...

691
00:38:55,811 --> 00:39:01,208
...death.

692
00:39:01,251 --> 00:39:02,862
SHATNER:
Indonesia.

693
00:39:02,905 --> 00:39:06,126
High in the mountains
of the island of Sulawesi,

694
00:39:06,169 --> 00:39:10,565
the residents of a small Torajan
village gather for a funeral.

695
00:39:10,609 --> 00:39:13,786
But are funeral rites a sign

696
00:39:13,829 --> 00:39:18,312
that mankind has difficulty in
accepting the finality of death?

697
00:39:18,356 --> 00:39:22,795
Or is it because our
subconscious minds

698
00:39:22,838 --> 00:39:27,103
know that death is not really
an end, but a beginning?

699
00:39:27,147 --> 00:39:29,279
THOMPSON:
Every culture in the world

700
00:39:29,323 --> 00:39:32,239
has some sort of death ritual,
and studying those will tell you

701
00:39:32,282 --> 00:39:33,893
a lot about
what those people think

702
00:39:33,936 --> 00:39:37,984
of the afterlife,
about the soul, about society.

703
00:39:38,027 --> 00:39:41,988
So, in the Toraja communities,
when somebody dies,

704
00:39:42,031 --> 00:39:45,339
they preserve the corpse
so it doesn't rot, and then

705
00:39:45,383 --> 00:39:47,428
they treat it
as if it were alive.

706
00:39:47,472 --> 00:39:51,519
Even the term they use
for a recently deceased person

707
00:39:51,563 --> 00:39:54,566
in this state is,
actually, means sick,

708
00:39:54,609 --> 00:39:56,872
so they don't acknowledge that
the person has really died yet.

709
00:40:06,665 --> 00:40:08,536
They will talk to them,
they will fill them in,

710
00:40:08,580 --> 00:40:09,755
in what's happening
in the world...

711
00:40:12,105 --> 00:40:14,281
WHITEHEAD:
They do mock dancing sessions

712
00:40:14,324 --> 00:40:17,023
with them,
they parade them around.

713
00:40:17,066 --> 00:40:19,895
It's as if they're trying
to stay in touch with the dead

714
00:40:19,939 --> 00:40:22,811
or, or somehow
relate to the dead.

715
00:40:22,855 --> 00:40:25,553
THOMPSON:
What is the relationship

716
00:40:25,597 --> 00:40:28,600
between your body and your soul
and what happens at death?

717
00:40:28,643 --> 00:40:30,645
These are
the elemental questions

718
00:40:30,689 --> 00:40:33,518
that studying different funerary
traditions can tell us.

719
00:40:33,561 --> 00:40:36,738
So, all these different
traditions seem

720
00:40:36,782 --> 00:40:39,175
very, very focused

721
00:40:39,219 --> 00:40:41,526
on maintaining strong links
with the dead.

722
00:40:41,569 --> 00:40:44,137
Some cultures, like,
for example, Indonesia,

723
00:40:44,180 --> 00:40:46,487
you may do things with the body

724
00:40:46,531 --> 00:40:49,969
that to us may seem
very strange.

725
00:40:50,012 --> 00:40:52,493
But it's no different than
a funeral, where the person

726
00:40:52,537 --> 00:40:55,627
has been dead for ten days,
and the mortician

727
00:40:55,670 --> 00:40:59,544
makes them look like they're
alive and they're just sleeping.

728
00:40:59,587 --> 00:41:02,590
There's this amazing connection
that we have for the deceased.

729
00:41:02,634 --> 00:41:06,942
I can never call up my best
friend again who passed away,

730
00:41:06,986 --> 00:41:09,075
but I'm still in connection
with that person.

731
00:41:09,118 --> 00:41:11,381
I still think about that person.

732
00:41:11,425 --> 00:41:13,079
Sometimes I still talk to them.

733
00:41:13,122 --> 00:41:16,561
And I think these rituals
help us to understand

734
00:41:16,604 --> 00:41:19,825
that we're still informed
by these people.

735
00:41:19,868 --> 00:41:22,784
We're still in relationship
with those who have passed.

736
00:41:22,828 --> 00:41:25,700
It's just a different
kind of relationship.

737
00:41:28,094 --> 00:41:32,533
So, do rituals really work?

738
00:41:32,577 --> 00:41:33,969
Well, many of us certainly
believe they do,

739
00:41:34,013 --> 00:41:36,406
even if we don't know how.

740
00:41:36,450 --> 00:41:39,845
Whether it's to acquire
superhuman abilities

741
00:41:39,888 --> 00:41:44,502
or to ward off evil,
rituals help to connect us

742
00:41:44,545 --> 00:41:47,809
to a world
very different from our own.

743
00:41:47,853 --> 00:41:51,334
It's a world of the spiritual.

744
00:41:51,378 --> 00:41:56,514
It's a world
of the supernatural.

745
00:41:56,557 --> 00:41:58,777
It's a world of The UnXplained.

746
00:41:58,820 --> 00:42:00,996
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