Final answer:
A means to determine guilt or innocence by supernatural control such as trial by ordeal, including practices like the ordeal by fire in ancient India, were historically used to assert a person's fate in the justice system.
Step-by-step explanation:
The means to determine guilt or innocence by subjecting the accused to a dangerous or painful test, believed to be under supernatural control, is known as a trial by ordeal. Historical accounts, such as the one by Abu Zayd al-Sirafi during the tenth century, describe such practices, including the ordeal by fire, to allow the gods to decide an accused person's fate in ancient India. This method involved placing a red-hot iron on the accused's hand, and if after a few days, no mark was found, their innocence was asserted. During the Salem Witch Trials, similar beliefs in supernatural judgement led to tragic outcomes. The use of ordeals was rooted in the notion that divine forces would not allow the innocent to be harmed, connecting closely to broader concepts of rites of affliction and justice systems informed by spiritual beliefs.