Batgerel Batmunkh, a shaman, kisses
his niece Munkhsoyol while “possessed by the white spirit” during a shamanic
healing ritual in their ger on the outskirts of Ulan Bator, Mongolia, in a
photo taken on July 4, 2012 and made available to NBC News today.

This ancient faith dominated the
land during the time of Genghis Khan but was brutally suppressed under decades
of communist rule, the European Pressphoto Agency reports. In recent years
ancestor worship has seen a resurgence, as many have sought to fill a spiritual
void in a bewildering urban landscape dominated by the burgeoning mining industry, where the traditional nomadic lifestyle is becoming a thing of the
past.

Batgerel and his brother Gankhuyag
became shamans only two years ago, having previously worked in construction.
Illness and misfortune plagued their family, they say, causing them to seek the
advice of a shaman. It was revealed to them then that they had been chosen by
spirits to serve as shamans. Only by doing so would their lives improve and
would they be able to avoid further miseries, they were told.

“When I first heard that I had
been chosen to receive the spirits, I did not believe it and was angry and
ignored the calling,” Batgerel said. “But my life became worse and
worse and I began to believe. After receiving the spirits, my life and health
became better and now I live in happiness. I am very thankful to the spirits
and this way of life.”