Holding his whip and itshoba (cow-tail whisk) in his hand, Chris Ntombemhlophe Reid pauses while he walks through the rural areas of the Transkei to check on his thwasa, Nolwandle, on Nov. 17, 2014 in Mdakane, Lusikisiki District, South Africa.Corinna Kern—Getty Images Reportage
From former male model and horse breeder to respected traditional healer, Chris Ntombemhlophe Reid left his life of excess and wealth to become one of the first white sangomas among the Pondoland people in South Africa.
Sangomas are spiritual healers who practice traditional forms of African medicine. However, they do not reject Western medication, often incorporating it into their practices.
Reid is one of 200,000 sangomas in South Africa. He was first initiated in 1997, and regularly gives consultations in Cape Town as well as around his homestead in the Transkei, a southeastern region of South Africa.
Before becoming a full-fledged sangoma, trainees, who are initiated in a spiritual ceremony, must go through a learning period when they are referred to as a “thwasa”. This process can last several years.
German photojournalist Corinna Kern was given unprecedented access to follow sangoma Reid to document his lifestyle and the initial ceremony of becoming a “thwasa”. “I slept with them in the homestead at his place, it was very rural and there was no electricity,” she tells TIME. “The most eye-opening thing for me about this whole project was the trainees and what they have to go through to become a sangoma. They have to wear white clothing when they get initiated and they are not allowed to sleep on beds. They can only sleep on the ground or on a thin mat.”
Looking back on her project, Kern is “grateful to have had this unique experience, to see all of these things that most people, even in South Africa, would never see.”
Corinna Kernis a photojournalist and documentary photographer based in South Africa. Follow her on Twitter
Holding his whip and itshoba (cow-tail whisk) in his hand, Chris Ntombemhlophe Reid pauses while he walks through the rural areas of the Transkei to check on his thwasa, Nolwandle, on Nov. 17, 2014 in Mdakane, Lusikisiki District, South Africa. Corinna Kern—Getty Images ReportageSangoma Chris Ntombemhlophe Reid walks along the river in where he washes himself when staying at his spiritual family's homestead on Nov. 13, 2014 in Umzizwanga, Lusikisiki District, South Africa. rs.Corinna Kern—Getty Images ReportageSangoma Chris Ntombemhlophe Reid smokes a cigarette on his bed at his spiritual family's homestead while sangoma Ntombethongo washes himself on Nov. 13, 2014 in Umzizwanga, Lusikisiki District, South Africa. Corinna Kern—Getty Images ReportageWith a kiss Tyatyambo greets her spiritual sister sangoma Vumanithongo who carries a box of three chickens on her head on Nov. 20, 2014 in Mdakane, Lusikisiki District, South Africa. Corinna Kern—Getty Images ReportageAssisted by sangoma Camagwini, Chris Ntombemhlophe Reid breathes in the smoke of burning mphepho, a herb with spiritually cleansing properties, to emotionally ground himself on Nov. 14, 2014 in Umzizwanga, Lusikisiki District, South Africa.Corinna Kern—Getty Images ReportageChris Ntombemhlophe Reid puts a medicine named 'khotha' on the hands of his spiritual daughter, sangoma Tyatyambo on Dec. 3, 2014 in Mdakane, Lusikisiki District, South Africa. Corinna Kern—Getty Images ReportageA few hours before her 'ingenisa' ceremony that initiates her as a thwasa, Gugulethu relaxes at the river with her teacher Chris Ntombemhlophe Reid on Nov. 28, 2014 in Mdakane, Lusikisiki District, South Africa. Corinna Kern—Getty Images ReportageA day before her 'ingenisa', the ceremony that initiates her as a thwasa, Gugulethu Khumalo relaxes at the river with her teacher Chris Ntombemhlophe Reid on Nov. 27, 2014 in Mdakane, Lusikisiki District, South Africa. Corinna Kern—Getty Images ReportageDuring her 'ingenisa', the initiation ceremony to become a thwasa Gugulethu Khumalo meditates, holding two chicken under her arms while a third one sits on her head, accompanied by sangomas' singing and dancing in the background on Nov. 28, 2014 in Mdakane, Lusikisiki District, South Africa. Corinna Kern—Getty Images ReportageDuring Gugulethu Khumalo's 'ingenisa' her teacher Chris Ntombemhlophe Reid anoints a chicken with foam on Nov. 28, 2014 in Mdakane, Lusikisiki District, South Africa.Corinna Kern—Getty Images ReportageWearing her new headdress made from the sacrificed chickens' feathers, Gugulethu Khumalo drinks the contents of the sacrificed chicken's and goat's gallbladders during her 'ingenisa' on November 29, 2014 in Mdakane, Lusikisiki District, South Africa. Corinna Kern—Getty Images ReportageDuring her ingenisa, the initiation ceremony to become a thwasa Gugulethu Khumalo experiences a strong emotional energy and is grounded through burning mphepho, a spiritually cleansing herb, by her teacher and spiritual father Chris Ntombemhlophe Reid on Nov. 29, 2014 in Mdakane, Lusikisiki District, South Africa.Corinna Kern—Getty Images ReportageDuring a weekend long ceremony, sangoma Camagwini takes a nap in the Makhosini (sacred hut) at the homestead of sangoma Chris Ntombemhlophe Reid on Nov. 23, 2014 in Mdakane, Lusikisiki District, South Africa. Corinna Kern—Getty Images ReportageSangoma Chris Ntombemhlophe Reid (L), 50, teaches his thwasas and his spiritual daughter about traditional medicines on Dec. 3, 2014 in Mdakane, Lusikisiki District, South Africa.Corinna Kern—Getty Images ReportageChris Ntombemhlophe Reid stands with his fellow sangomas in a dedicated area to burn the bones of the sacrificed animals on Nov. 29, 2014 in Mdakane, Lusikisiki District, South Africa. Corinna Kern—Getty Images Reportage
