West photographer spent two months visiting Kazakh shaman

• Western photographer spent two months visiting Kazakh shaman

In the Kazakh village Ungurtas, at the foot of the mountain of the same name, lives a Sufi dervish Bifatima Dualetova. Bifatima argues that this "place of power" where it can solve the problems of people karmic. In her guest house live followers from all over the former Soviet Union.

Photographer Denis Vedzhas Ungurtas spent in two months, from January to March 2011. He accompanied the pilgrims in the campaigns that capture the rituals that holds the shaman, and performed its assignments - for example, helping to graze sheep.

Bifatima Dualetova.

Every morning, pilgrims begins with a meditation on the sacred hill.

Day shaman receives visitors and treats them with tea and sandwiches with butter.

animal skull on the entrance of a house.

Bifatima blesses a man by pouring water from the river.

The birth of a lamb.

The head of sheep ready to eat food.

The shaman prays.

Bifatima regularly performs Qurban ritual - the killing of sheep to save his followers from evil spirits, instead of giving the animal soul. Who wants to go through a ritual to bring her two animals - a sheep and a sheep. Sheep shaman scores and takes a sheep in his flock. The photo captures a part of the ritual, when the pilgrim must crawl under the animal.

Shaman beats all the participants of the ritual of the neck to release the latent energy in them.

After the ritual, people bathe in searing cold river to wash away their sins. Bifatima explains this action by a parallel with the birth of the light: the baby passes through the birth canal, covered in blood, and then cleaned with water.

Most of the residents of the guest house Bifatima divided into three categories: some want to be cured of the deadly disease, the second - to beat addiction to drugs, and others - to get pregnant. Some followers remain here for a few days, others - for years. Aksulu - one of the oldest members of the community, she comes to Ungurtas three years.

Some cleansing ritual - shaman beats his followers sheep lungs.

In the hands of Bifatima sheep lungs. Writing on the wall - a list of donations that wants to commune.

Once a month shaman shaves the head of all the inhabitants of the guest house.

The remains of ritual animals often gets the dog.

Bifatima leads pilgrims to the holy Sufi places.

The mausoleum of the Sufi mystic and poet Khoja Ahmed Yasavi.

Bifatima sings prayers in front of the mausoleum.

Evening prayer in the sacred hill.

Bifatima pilgrims from Russia.

Dzhumagali Assistant Bifatima.

The people of the community. Usually, they work day on the farm: clean barns, grazing sheep and chase the geese. According Bifatima, that the spirits of ancestors and want every employee must himself recognize the symbolic importance of the actions that it performs.

One of the pilgrims drink tea after Kurban. On its face the blood of sacrificial sheep.

Night meditation in an underground mosque.

The road to the Mount Ungurtas. According to legend, a Sufi Ahmed Yasavi chose it as the final resting place.