Drumming Circles

“The drum is the voice of the earth coming through to speak in the universal language of the heart. Drumming is tribal music; one of the innate powers of the drum is to call in Spirit by drawing the awareness of the earth into the body. This is one of the best ways to get connected with our roots.”

Joshua Halpern

Until you have drummed for yourself, it is hard to comprehend the profound effect drumming can have on your physical, emotional and spiritual selves. Drumming is an age-old tool, used by indigenous cultures from around the world for healing and spiritual renewal. As one Navajo elder has said, “the drum is the Great Spirit’s favorite instrument. That is why we were all given a heartbeat.” Current medical research shows that a high majority of disease is stress related. Meditation is a well-known antidote for stress. Recent studies on biofeedback show that drumming induces brain waves that are similar to the brain waves of meditation. So in a sense drumming can be said to meditate us. Drumming to the rhythm of your heartbeat is effortless and immensely pleasurable.

Shamanism is a powerful tool that helps you navigate through life experiences by way of your heart. Drumming allows you to connect to your heart and listen from an open non-judgmental place to your inner knowing.

Shamanic Drumming allows us to travel to non-ordinary reality offering insights to aid us on our life journey. Find your power animal, spirit guides, life path, meet your ancestors, the elements, or gain clarity on career, relationships, home life, and focus on manifesting your dreams.

By drumming in a group the focus of the spiritual realm is enhanced and journeys can be deeply profound. The sharing that takes place amongst the group offers us further insight, affirmation, and community.

Journeying is a powerful shamanic tool for gaining insight and developing your intuitive skills. You can set specific intentions for your journeys depending upon your needs. Here are some suggestions to get you started and help you develop this tool.

• FIND YOUR POWER ANIMAL – often done as a retrieval for another person. Animals have many archetypal meanings and have been used by indigenous people for guidance, protection, power, healing and in numerous other ways. Find the animal that speaks to you, that can give you information on your life path that has been your guide (like a guardian angel) whether you are aware of their spirit yet or not.
  
• FIND YOUR POWER SPOTS – there are places in both ordinary reality and non-ordinary reality that can be your source of power and renewal; ask to be taken to these places.
  
• SHAPESHIFT YOUR DREAMS – use the power of drumming to help you manifest the energies in your life that are needed for you to be in your truth, to help you live your dream and find your path of service.
  
• FOR PROSPERITY – Find out the truth of what prosperity means for you, whether it is monetary, energetic, relations, and how to manifest it in your life.
  
• FOR LIFE PATH – see your path, your purpose, and the way in which your life will unfold with resonance.
  
• FOR GUIDANCE- DECISIONS/RELATIONS/CAREER - this can be done for yourself or for another person. Often having someone else journey for information and insight on personal questions can open up possibilities you had not been receiving for yourself.
  
• FOR SPACE – SPIRITUAL GROWTH – see your own expansiveness, feel the element of Ether and its connection to the spirit world, identify your spiritual path.
  
• TO MEET YOUR SPIRIT GUIDES – we are all given guides to aid us on our life journeys. Ask to meet your guides and find out what information they have for you.
  
• SHAPESHIFTING HUACA – also often done as retrieval, find the sacred item or place that exists for you to aid you in shapeshifting your life.
  
• TRAVEL INTO YOUR HUACA – if you already have sacred items, i.e., a rock, pendulum, feather, necklace, crystal etc., travel deep into its spirit for insight and information.
  
• CONNECT TO THE CENTER OF THE EARTH – discover what the heart of the Earth has to tell you and the connection of the Earth’s vibration to that of our own hearts.
  
• CONNECT AND LEARN FROM THE ELEMENTS- EARTH AIR FIRE WATER – Find your physical and spiritual connection with the qualities of each of the elements. Ask to be initiated into their power.
  
• TO ANY ELEMENT OF NATURE – CLOUDS, RAIN, THUNDERSTORM, SNOW ETC. – our current weather patterns are a source of information and spiritual connection.
  
• TO THE 4 DIRECTIONS AND THE SPIRITS THEY HOLD – Ask to meet the spirits of the East, South, West and North, and to be initiated into their power.
  
• PLANT TOTEM – ask to meet the power plants that are among your spirit guides. Shapeshift into them or ask what you need to know now.
  
• PACHAMAMA – journey to the spirit of mother earth and universal oneness for support and nourishment; find out how you can assist in changing the current western dream to an earth honoring one.
  
• SEASONS – the Equinoxes and Solstices create a wonderful opportunity to connect with nature. Ask to meet the spirits of Winter, Spring, Summer, Fall.
  
• MOON CYCLES – also offer another chance to connect with the Spirit of Nature. Go to meet the Spirits of the Full Moon, New Moon and Eclipses to gain insight and information.
  
• THE LAND OF DREAMS – Want to know more about your dreams, good and bad? Ask to be taken to the Land of Dreams where you can re-enter your dream to re-experience it, ask questions of the people and things in it, finish it or even change it.
  
• ANCESTORS – ask your spirits to take you to an Ancestor who held the shamanic wisdom in your family. Then ask to be initiated into his/her power.
  
• HEALINGS – Journey to your Spirits to receive an emotional or physical healing. Do healings for each other in the group or anyone outside of the group who asks for a healing. Allow the Spirit guides to do the work.
  
• TO THE SPIRIT OF YOUR CURRENT CIRCLE – connect with the spirit of your circle; find information on ways to keep the circle serving the highest good for all the members and to deepen the spiritual connections within the group.

www.nyshamaniccircle.org