When asked to make a drum with someone or for someone the first step of that process is to ask them for what purpose they want to bring this “being” into the ordinary world. As an Animist I view my drums and rattles as living things, so it is important that I understand their intent. To make a drum is easy, to make a shamanic drum that will enable its caretaker to travel outside of ordinary reality is a skill that few people possess. When making drums for myself I travel to all three worlds at different stages of the crafting. First the Lower World to meet the Stag and the tree, to honour their sacrifice. Then the Middle World to ask my guides what designs or symbols need to be on the drum . Finally, after the skin has dried and the drum is ready to sing for the first time, I travel to the Upper World to meet the spirit of the drum and find its purpose.
I make frame drums, the skin is Red Deer or Fallow, I prefer the person I'm teaching to make the drum themselves, and often I make one at the same time. Whenever possible the drums are crafted under the Yew tree that I work with. The Yew is the Axis Mundi of my Shamanic Druidry, the tree of rebirth and ancestral memories.
The skins come from the same herd of deer, and as our drums have grown in number over time they have created a tribe, or herd. Many times, in the drum circle we run here in Kent, people have commented that they could hear the Stags calling to each other as the rhythm flowed; it's like a song beyond the drumming.
The Birthing Process
We start by soaking the deer skin in pure water taken from an ancient spring head on the marshes near were I live. The person making the drum is asked to bring with them plants and herbs that they feel connected to so these can be added to the water and the skin washed with them.
Then I ask the maker to put their hands back into the Red Ochre before they begin stringing the drum as this imitates the natural birthing process and they become the midwife at the birth of their drum. When the threading is done, then comes the tensioning; this is something I normally take over as it takes skill and intuition to make sure that skin and tension will work together.
Next, the maker sands the hoop; with this process they get to not only put their energy into the frame but get to know its very bones. After this we make a paint of Red Ochre and water and this is smeared onto the hoop with their fingers; for me this symbolises the blood of the drum. So, now we have the blood and the bones of our drum. The skin is then removed from the water and thanks are given to the stag who’s life was sacrificed, holes are punched around the skins edge and the hoop is placed on top ready for lacing up. The sinew is then measured out and threaded on to a Fox bone needle which I make from Fox ribs. We use sinew rather than raw hide strips as these become the vocal cords that allow my drums to sing.
When all this is finished we put the drum aside and start on the beater, the heart that makes the drum come alive. I only work with the indigenous trees of Britain so discuss with the drum-maker beforehand what tree they would like to make the beater from. I ask the person to find their beater stick before they make the drum so he or she can spend time with the tree of their choice. Making that effort is what it's really all about.
Once both beater and drum are completed they are blessed over a fire and a ceremony is performed to awaken and welcome the drum to this world. When the skin has dried (usually 3 to 4 days) it is time for the maker to journey with it and meet the spirit of their drum for the first time.
I had been in possession of an Irish bodhran (unused) for years, and so when a friend of mine told me of her intention to make a drum with Phil I thought I would accompany her and make myself a drum-beater. The night before the drum-making the skin of my old bodhran split, and based on this coincidence I decided to go the whole hog and make a new drum. I am so glad I did – not only am I now in possession of something that is not just useful, beautiful and very personal to me, but I have the whole experience of the drum-making day itself which was such an amazing day.
ReplyDeleteI won’t go into every detail of the day as Phil has describes the process in his blog, but there is nothing formulaic in the process, no sense of following a set procedure – it is more like a natural and organic unfolding. What’s more, every step of the creation of the drum reinforces your bond with it, from sanding, staining with ochre, soaking the skin and stringing it to the frame – the drum becomes more than an object: you are away of the lives that have gone into its creation – the deer from which the hide was taken, the tree from whose wood the frame is made – all of whom are thanked. The finished drum, its skin still wet and swollen (drying takes a few days) is something organic, pregnant with life, awaiting its voice.
There is nothing airy-fairy about the whole drum-making ritual, for a ritual it is. Phil is no weekend shaman, someone pretending or acting out a role – there is no sense that what you are doing is ‘pretend’ or ‘wafty’; it is rooted in nature, in reality – there, beneath the branches of that splendid yew-tree, you are close to nature, not escaping it. Your hands are red with ochre and dirt, your hair strewn with yew leaves; the spring water you drink is cool and clean. This is real druidry, a connection to the land and the elements. I’ve met a fair number of would-be shamans and druids and it’s as if they’re trying to wear a mask that doesn’t quite fit. Phil’s affinity with the land is from the core, or should I say from the root? He is practical, down to earth, pragmatic, very funny and enthusiastic. He has no interest in establishing some lost vision of the past. He lives in the here and now – just as every practitioner of such skills in ancient societies and modern tribal societies were and are. Many would-be druids and shamans would be laughed out of such societies by the local shaman – I get the impression that with Phil it would be him who was doing the laughing, and the tribe would laugh along with him, not at him.
This is what I want to stress – we weren’t three modern people in a wood ‘pretending’ to do something powerful and tied in with the land – there was no pretence.
Even just after a week my drum is one of the most precious things I own. It is a beautiful object, its skin dark and tanned, with patches of darker spots – not some mass produced or bleached, featureless object. And when I hold it to the light there, part of the natural pattern of the hide, is a great tree – which will always remind me of that special day under the yew, when it was created. I can’t wait for its voice to be heard amongst its brethren.
John has said it so well and I would echo everything he's written about the day. I feel as if a magical being has come into my life with the most magnificent voice and who speaks to me on every level. Thanks again Phil.
ReplyDeleteMy drum-making day with Phil last year was deeply magical, but my friendship with him and sense of close connection made it also seem absolutely natural. I appreciate you sharing your lyrical description, John, and reminding me to take a step back and appreciate Phil as the real shamanic deal who gives our reservations and complacency a well-deserved kick.
ReplyDeleteIf you feel drawn to owning a drum then i would highly recommend Phil to guide you on the process of birthing your own drum.
ReplyDeleteI feel that have created an instrument that will guide me in my shamanic work and am very glad that found Phil to be my guide on that journey.
Thank you
What an amazing day! A perfect setting in woods under a beautiful Yew tree. We started the process by honouring the deer that gave its skin and the trees for their wood and then working with all the materials, imbueing it with our energy and love to create a thing of beauty. I especially loved journeying to meet the spirit of the drum at which point the drum really became a living thing to me. I hadn't envisaged how emotional it would make me feel to hold the finished article, how beautiful it looks and how comfortable it feels, like an extension of my self. Phil is incredibly enthusiastic and inspiring. I am looking forward to many journeys with my drum.
ReplyDeleteI have had my drum some months now, deepening my connection with it over time.
ReplyDeleteI have a therapy practice working from home. A few weeks ago, a regular client of mine was able to release much energy in a session related to the particularly cruel physical and emotional abuse she received as a child.
After the session I went out shopping. When I cam home, I was shocked opening the door to see in my periphery vision several shadows scuttling to the corners of the room, and the space felt several degrees darker than normal.
Instinctively I flung open the windows and went round the room banging my drum. The atmosphere seemed to lighten and the room felt "all my own" again.
Tending to the rational, the birthing of my drum led by Phil starkly reminded me of the magic of things - and the power inherent within the acceptance of guidance.
What a fantastic day....and Phil is 'the real dea' as John has said, not just someone acting out a role, but a real, working shamanic druid who knows his craft, his land and his own path through personal experience and practice, not just through books. I brought my drum home, the skin still wet, last Friday, having spent a wonderful and enlightening day with Phil, and by Saturday I had what will become, like John, one of the most previous objects I own, as well as one of the most useful. If you are thinking of buying a drum for shamanic purposes, I would strongly recommend that you make one under Phil's expert eye. Even if you are, like me, not the most manually skilled of people, his care and unobtrusive supervision and help will put you at ease, and ensure you go home with a drum you will be able to use for many years. Thank you Phil - both your drums and the person that you are have enriched my life greatly
ReplyDeleteMy specially made drum arrived this week. I am overjoyed - its a work of art. The braiding at the back is absolutely stunning. Although I wasn't able to make my own, I had every confidence that Phil would provide the energies and characteristics I was looking for. I've not dissapointed - the drum has a wonderful resonating voice. I would recommend any one who is looking for an authentic drum, made in the traditional way to ensure a truly personnal touch, to approach Phil to make one. You will not be disappointed. I can't wait now for my specially made rattle to make my special set. Without doubt my drum, beater and rattle will be amongst my most treasured possessions. Many thanks Phil. Kathryn (April 2011)
ReplyDeletePhil birthed my drum under the huge full moon of March 2011. It came into being as 13 people chanted around it. The result is an amazing instrument with a character and spirit as distinct as that of our fellow humans. I was quite taken back with the personal care and attention that went into its creation and I thank Phil with my heart. You are an artist in the fullest sense of the word...
ReplyDeleteI birthed my drum with Phil in April of this year. Insofar as words are fit to convey something about the process which we went through, I shall say that my feeling that there was a strong resonance between Phil's interests and my own, formed after finding this website, was confirmed when I finally came to meet him. I was most heartened to find someone working with the spirits of the land with such respect, sensitivity and humility, free from affiction by iamashaman-itis, that great illness of our superficial times. This work, as I see it, is about reclaiming our native archaic technologies, not creating an exotic facade for ourselves beneath which our shadow may continue to operate undetected. Thank you Phil for making your presence known to the world and for sharing your knowledge; may the tribe increase...
ReplyDelete"I Birthed a Drum" Poem by J.H.P
ReplyDeleteUnder magical canopy Tree of Yew,
I Birthed a Drum in forest dew.
Using fire & smoke & cleansing sounds,
we blessed the Deer & Tree & Grounds.
With Ceremony Rattle & Chanting & Drumming,
The forest awakened with a soft low humming.
The skin was sewn taught round a Maple Ochred frame,
and a Beater made of Hazel with Deerskin O' the same.
Lying on forest floor, connected with the Earth, Moon & Sun,
I was finally ready to meet the Spirit of my Drum.
A Journey to the Lowerworld travelling far underground,
Searching for my animal Totem, eventually I found.
On returning back with exciting news I couldnt wait to talk,
my feathered new companion was an awesome Sparrow Hawk.
Overwhelmed with JoY & New Life in my Heart,
All I knew for sure was this is just the Start!!
Birthing my drum with Phil and Lynne was such a powerful and humbling experience and one I will never forget. As the autumn sunlight came dancing through the trees, Phil guided me to connect with nature and the earth in a way that few people get an opportunity to do in modern life. The process enabled me to forget about any silly worries or distractions, and concentrate on what really matters. Phil ensures you are directly involved with every step of the drum creation, and therefore personally invest your heart and creative energy into the process. I have read books telling me about the special bond a shaman has with their drum,but did not imagine that I would be lucky enough to experience first hand. Thank you so much Phil and Lynne for the amazing work you do, I believe it is something everyone should experience in their lifetime.
ReplyDelete