The Healer
Morocco 2002
It was a day of celebration. Mountain villagers had come with picnics to enjoy the day on the banks of a river. They waded in the icy water, paid a few dirham to sit on a horse tacked-up in Fantasia gear and listened to this man who seemed to be a combination of a magician and a preacher. You can see that some women and the men in the foreground hold their hands in a supplicating pose. I think the men were his acolytes.
The marabout, to demonstrate his powers, poured the contents of a boiling teakettle on his arms and face, raised the snake to the heavens and then brought it’s head to his lips. All the time he kept up his exhortations. After the show, his helpers passed the hat.