Handheld frame drums are among the oldest known musical instruments. They are hoop-shaped drums with a diameter that is much greater than the depth of their shell. In prehistoric times, their rhythms helped shamans and seers attain the sacred trance state necessary for healing and prophecy. The rituals of the earliest known religions evolved around the beat of frame drums…Sacred drumming…remained a powerful tool for communal bonding and individual transformation until the fall of the Roman Empire.

-Layne Redmond from “When the Drummers Were Women”

As Redmond states, the frame drum is an ancient technology that is still utilized for a simple reason: It works. Among indigenous peoples around the world, drumming is still used to entrain human brain waves to the beat of the drum to induce a trance state. During this drumming session, a dreamer can explore the innermost aspects of their psyche in order to uncover personal truths as well as directions to take for healing to occur. In the modern world, shamanic practitioners use guided drum journeys to help people meet their High Selves, ancestors, and spirit guides in order to bring more ease and direction to everyday living. These journeys tend to remind folks they are not alone in the universe.

Drumming is often used in shamanic healing ceremonies; the drum can be used to shake up low vibrating energies that are lodged in the client’s energy field so that transformation can occur. The drum is used to harmonize chakras and restore balance to the energy field. In fact, studies are now showing that engaging in singing and percussion activities can help to heal the effects of historical and intergenerational trauma. (I highly recommend Resmaa Menakem’s book “My Grandmother’s Hands: Racialized Trauma and the Pathway to Mending Our Hearts and Bodies” for those who want to learn how to use these embodied practices.)

Singing medicine songs from the earth with a frame drum can help us remember where we came from and who we are. The drum is inherently calming and can be used as part of one’s grounding practice. Since songs from the earth contain specific alchemies, they can be utilized to target energy that is ready to transmute in an individual. To learn more about this topic, listen to the Going Shamanic podcast on Medicine Songs with Jennifer Engrácio.

Jennifer Engrácio has been a student of shamanism since 2005. Jennifer is a certified teacher who has worked with children in many different education settings since 2001. She is a certified shamanic coach, reiki master, and lomilomi practitioner; in addition, she runs Spiral Dance Shamanics. Originally from Vancouver, Canada, she now lives in Calgary, Canada with her life partner.