I already had a shamanic drum in my musical instrument collection, it is 20 inches wide and has a rich, deep resonant tone but it has an artificial skin and it never felt a part of me, no matter how much I loved it and enjoyed using it in sacred work and at fire ceremonies.
Part of the call to travel to Colombia to take part in a sound retreat (www.tribalsoundhealingretreat.com) was to make my own drum. It was created early in the retreat so it could then be taken to many sacred sites and many ceremonies including being presented to three Elders, one of which was from the Kogi tribe. (My drum went everywhere with me and even slid down a hillside at one point as I slipped down a slope and ripped my trousers and had a few scrapes - Such Gratitude to my sister for skipping after it and retrieving it for me and my brother for carrying it for me for a while while I found my center again.)
I Knew it would take some work to complete this piece, some degree of payment through effort and sacrifice but it was much more of a journey than I could have realised. Now I have made it, it is part of me and I wouldn’t sell it for any price. It is no ornament and will be used regularly and enjoyed in many rituals and healings and ceremonial work.
It was always going to be a long day so we started early, outside under the shade. It felt cool and comfortable to sit on the ground and I was ready for the process. I had already set my intentions and was very focused and grounded in the unfolding practice. Throughout the day I used my meditation techniques and the deepening into my practice took me to a new space as I connected with the physicality of birthing this sacred instrument.
There is so very much spirit involved:- the spirit of the pine wood in the frame and the spirit of the mighty buffalo who gave it’s skin. The spirit of the leather in the beater, the spirit that I brought to the process (Instead of using animal material to string the drum, we used Kevlar, which is incredibly strong and very tough and durable).
For what seemed forever, I pulled and pulled and pulled to tighten the cord and my fingers that had began strong and soon developed more and more discomfort and shortly thereafter the blisters started and only grew worse. I wrapped my fingers in tape but that did little use. I had help a couple of times but mainly this was my creation and I knew it would be a process of a LOT of patience and sitting there quietly until it was done with the tears flowing.
The tears were not just for the physical challenge but for what this drum represented to me. The drum represents the feminine, the Goddess, the void, the womb. This drum is a tool to help heal my own womb as I have carried so very much pain and suffering. I also deeply feel my sisters and the pain of the feminine that has been carried a long time, through ancestral lines and lineages and past lives… So this drum was birthed as a healing tool for All my sisters. It is also to heal aspects of the masculine and any places in me where there is cellular memory where perhaps I have been in a masculine body before and cause any suffering towards the feminine. All the places I notice in the world where sisters still suffer under patriarchal regimes and beliefs. This sacred instrument is incredibly powerful and full of my intentions and prayers for myself and for others.
The drum wasn’t finished and next we had to weave the handle inside. That was interesting to try and concentrate and count when my friend beside me kept counting out loud and loosing her place and asking for clarification or assistance. Again I was Very focused on what I was doing and knuckled down to the task. I loved the pattern of the weaving and how it came together, it gave me a lot of pleasure to make this part although it was still sore and difficult on my fingers. I noticed people coming and going and how they were chatting but I stayed with my process and deepened into the growing relationship between me and my drum. Near the end, my brother brought over his guitar and started playing songs and I heard my sister join in the singing. This was the support I needed to finish what I was doing. There were a few of my favourite songs in there and I appreciated this final support.
Suma gave me my masculine beater. It is the joining of the masculine and feminine that creates the sound, the union. The introduction of these two aspects to one another was very slow and beautiful, very soft, sensual, intimate, delicious and very powerful. Finally we stood together with our new drums and were drummed by Suma, which was very beautiful and just what I needed to close the day.
What next. Well this drum has not been made to gather dust. Yes I made it to work on my own womb space, but it is also to share with others through sacred sound work. In a few weeks I will be starting a Certificate in Sound with Ansu School of Sound ( http://www.ansuschoolofsound.com) so I can take sound work out into the community. My healing work has Always been very heart centered and intuitive and you can’t teach that in any course or book but I have a knowing I will learn a lot in this course and will then share that wider.