PARTICIPANTS in a ritualistic ceremony danced, chanted and played drums while one of their friends lay dying from heat exhaustion, the Coroner's Court has heard.

Deputy state coroner Anthony Schapel was told yesterday that the group believed Rowan Douglas Cooke was astral travelling after being exposed to extreme heat inside a North American Indian-style steam lodge.

Mr Cooke, 37, of Melbourne, spent several hours unconscious at a campsite 325km north of Port Augusta before an ambulance was called from Leigh Creek. He died several hours later.

Mr Cooke had travelled with 10 other Victorians to the Gammon Ranges in late October 2004 on a "vision quest" led by a self-described new-age healer, David Jarvis.

Amy Davis, counsel assisting, said the trip involved camping on a creek bed, where earth altars and other ritualistic symbols were set up near a steam lodge, which was built from pine poles and blankets.

Members of the group took turns to sit inside the sealed, dome-like structure, while water was poured over heated volcanic rocks to create steam.

Ms Davis said Mr Cooke and two other people, Maureen Collier and Adrian Asfar, went into the steam lodge late on Tuesday, November 2, because they wanted to participate in a private pipe ceremony.

The trio had sat inside in the structure for about 20 minutes when Ms Collier shouted she wanted to be let out because she was in difficulty.

Other members of the group then found Mr Cooke and Mr Asfar unconscious inside the steam lodge and dragged them outside into the cool air.

Ms Davis said while both men were still breathing, no attempts were made to revive them because it was believed they were having out-of-body experiences.

"It was considered by some of the campers that the men might have been astral travelling, that their conscious selves had left their bodies and that they were deep in a meditative state," she said.

"Given that, it was decided that the group should undertake activities to call them back to their bodies."

Ms Davis said this involved chanting, playing drums and singing.

"It was not until daybreak that two of the group went to the nearest homestead to summons help," she said.

The inquest continues.

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