These tribal leaders, Chuonnasuan (Meng Jin Fu) and Zhao Li Ben, were also powerful shamans. The special community ritual to "send away the spirits" and beg them not to return was held over three nights in Baiyinna and in Shibazhan. The last living shaman of the Oroqen, Chuonnasuan (), died at the age of 73 on 9 October 2000. His life, initiatory illness, and training as a shaman are detailed in a published article, also available online. Chuonnasuan was the last living shaman who practiced his craft prior to the communist banishment of such "superstitions" in this region in 1952. Over three nights in July 1952, in several separate communities, the Oroqen peoples held rituals in which they begged the spirits to leave them forever. Evidence for and enhancement of auditory (spirit songs) and visual mental imagery during altered states of consciousness can be found in Chuonnasuan's account of his practice of shamanism. Noteworthy is that he reported performing only one ritual journey to the lower world, which he called Buni. This term for the lowerworld or land of the dead is identical to that used by the Nanai people of Siberia in accounts of shamans collected almost a century ago. Sacrifices to ancestral spirits are still routinely made, and there is a folk psychological belief in animism. Traditionally the Oroqen have a special veneration for animals, especially the bear and the tiger, which they consider their blood brothers. The tiger is known to them as wutaqi, which means "elderly man", while the bear is amaha, which means "uncle“. Notes External links A 1992 documentary Film about Chuonnasuan It describes the life of Chuonnasuan, the last shaman of the Oroqen of Northeast China. Orochen Foundation Tungusic peoples Ethnic groups officially recognized by China