Documentation The Bisha'a has been variously described in ethnographic and cross-cultural studies. The earliest well-documented reports of the Bisha'a ceremony come from the accounts of Austin Kennett, Claude Jarvis and G. W. Murray. Later accounts of Glubb Pasha and Aref al-Aref also refer to the practice. Glubb Pasha's account mentions the high rate of correct judgement, which he attributes to the skill of the mubesha. A quote from his account: In practice, more than half the accused persons who set out to lick the spoon lose their nerve while the spoon is in the fire, and voluntarily confess to their guilt without blistering their tongues. A further twenty-five per cent probably blister their tongues, and twenty-five per cent are declared innocent. The efficiency of the process depends, of course, entirely on the skill of the “mubesha.” The days of the “true light of God” are doubtless numbered, and in the full glare of modern democracy and (doubtless) enlightenment, the little red-hot spoon will soon vanish. Before it does so, I cannot resist paying a tribute to the skill of those who practise this infamous superstition, and to the considerable number of miscarriages of justice which were by this means avoided. The quasiscientific explanation of the ordeal is that stress would cause the mouth of liar to dry up, hence increasing the possibility of a burn. However, the stress of the ordeal could just as easily cause the same physical symptoms in an innocent person. Like many trial by ordeals, correct results depend on the Judge being able to swap out the testing item right before use if the judge believes the person to be innocent. In popular culture Recent interest in the Bisha'a stems from two contemporary Israeli films which portray the Bisha'a - Yellow Asphalt (2001) and Bisha: The Awesome Fire Test (2002). References Further reading Joseph Ginat, Bedouin Bisha’h Justice: Ordeal by Fire (Sussex Academic Press, 2009) Trial by ordeal Rituals Bedouin society Bedouins in Israel Pain infliction methods Lie detection