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For example, one posture was similar to sitting in meditation, except that
the legs are both tucked under the body and turned toward the right. Subjects
experienced color sensations, spinning and strong alterations in mood. This
posture was that assumed by Nupe Mallam diviners. According to the literature,
the divination experience begins by alterations in moods.
In another posture, subjects stood erect with their heads back and their hands
clasped at the abdomen. Subjects reported warmth, a flow of energy rising, and
a channel opening at the top of the head. According to the ethnographic
literature, this posture had been associated with healing, involving the flow
of energy. In a similar manner, the other postures tested produced experiences
resembling the reports of native shamans who assume the posture in their trance
work.
The author can only speculate concerning the mechanism by which posture affects
the content of ritualized trances. We know that posture affect mood states.
It is perhaps by their effect upon a wide variety of psychophysiological
variables that posture affects the course of ecstasy.