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Above: buryatshamans from

Southern Siberia

Below: LakotaGrandfatherFrank Fools Crow

Shamanism is based on theprinciple that the spiritual world

may be contacted through theinner senses in ecstatic trance.The drum, sometimes called theshaman's horse, provides theshaman a relatively easy means of

controlled transcendence.Researchers have found that if a

drum beat frequency of aroundthree to four beats per second issustained for at least fifteenminutes, it will induce significanttrance states in most people, evenon their first attempt.

AN ACTIVE MEDITATION

The first thing you might ask is howdoes a drum induced trance differfrom a traditional meditation, suchas those practiced by Buddhists?

The two forms differ absolutelyin their approach, because

Buddhist-type sitting meditation isgenerally about emptying one ofthought, while shamanic drummingis very active and filled withcontent. Just like a yogi or amonk, who exists in a spiritualstate most of the time because ofconstant devotional practices, wecan readily induce profound statesof deep meditation and heightenedawareness by using a drum as anaid to meditation. This ease ofmeditation with a drum contrastssignificantly with the often long

periods of isolation and practicerequired by many other meditativedisciplines before significanteffects are experienced.

The capacity to enter a range oftrance states is a naturalmanifestation of humanconsciousness; the ability to entertrance states makes us a human -not a shaman.

What makes shamans unique istheir mastery over an otherwise

normal human trait. The shamanhas sometimes been described asbeing a hollow bone, one whocan enter an altered state withouttheir personal ego. This non-egohollowness makes a way for Spiritto use them as a healing tool. Inthis way, the shaman is a channelfor higher consciousness.

THE WAY OF THE HOLLOW BONE

The hollow bone teaching is anancient practice, found underdifferent names in Buddhism,

shamanism, and Native Americanspirituality. It is a way to shift yourconsciousness to become an emptyvessel for spirit. The idea is tobecome a conduit for spirit. Whenwe can move our ego and rationalmind out of the way to channel thedivine power of the universethrough us, all healing is possible.

The venerated, late NativeAmerican Holy Man Frank FoolsCrow taught that you must becomelike a hollow bone to be a greathealer. According to Fools Crow,

We are called to become hollowbones for our people, and anyoneelse we can help, and we are notsupposed to seek power for ourpersonal use and honour. What webones really become is the pipelinethat connects Wakan Tanka [whomwe could call Great Mystery, Godor the Tao], the Helpers and thecommunity together.

In his becoming a hollow bone,Fools Crow believed that he wentthrough four stages: First, he

called in Great Mystery to ridhimself of anything that wouldimpede him in any way, such asdoubt, questions or reluctance.

Then he recognised himself as aclean tube, ready to be filled withhope, possibilities, and anxious tobe filled with power. He experiencedthe power as it came surging intohim. Finally, giving the power awayto others, knowing that as he isemptied out, the Higher Powers willkeep filling him with even greaterpower to be given away.

REAPING THE BENEFITS

Meditative practice, of all kinds, isan important part of the ongoing

SHISSUE ??? 201?www.sacredhoop.org0

In nearly allcultures, both

past and present,the drum has been

used as an instrumentof healing; from the Minianka of

West Africa, to the shamans of Siberia,rhythm has been used for thousands of years

to address any number of health issues

Drummingthehollow

bone

Michael Drake

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SHISSUE ??? 201?www.sacredhoop.org 0

Michael Drake isan internationallyrespected writer

and recording artist.

He is the author ofShamanic Drumming:

Calling the Spirits,The Shamanic Drum:

A Guide to SacredDrumming and

I Ching: The Taoof Drumming.

His musical albumsinclude Shamanic

Journey Drummingand Power Animal

Drumming.His articles have

appeared in numerouspublications, including

Awareness, SacredHoop, and Mother

Earth News.talkingdrumpub

@gmail.comwww.shamanicdrumming.com

task of keeping our insides clean,but hollow bone meditation using adrum also facilitates a transcendentstate of unity consciousness. Trueenlightenment means feeling andrecognising our true oneness witheverything else - reaching a stateof unity consciousness.

The benefits of this state ofunity consciousness include adeep sense of relaxation, healing,more personal energy, bettermemory, greater mental clarity, andenhanced creativity. Feelings ofpeacefulness, timelessness, andspiritual well-being are common,along with a oneness of feelingand purpose with the totality of adynamic, interrelated universe.

When we feel that deeponeness we are ecstatic, ecstasydoesn't necessarily mean joy or

bliss, it's the feeling of oneness.Becoming a hollow bone is asimple and effective way to inducethis profound state ofconsciousness.

BECOMING A HOLLOW BONE

To become a hollow bone, try theexercise below. To perform theexercise, you will ideally need adrum, or at least a shamanicdrumming recording.

If you do not have a drum, simplyimprovise one from available

materials; try tapping on anoverturned plastic container with aspoon - the larger the container: thedeeper the sound. A five-gallonbucket, for example, makes anexcellent improvised drum. Readthrough the exercise first tofamiliarise yourself with the process.

Dim the lights and sit comfortablyerect in a chair or on the floor. Closeyour eyes and breathe slowly anddeeply seven times. Let yourabdomen rise and fall as you

breathe. Focus on the breath as itenters your nose and fills your lungs,and then gently exhale any tensionyou might feel, clearing the energychannels of your body.

When you are fully relaxed, askthe Higher Powers to remove anyblockages that prevent you fromfunctioning as a hollow bone.Repeat the affirmation, I choose tobe a clean, hollow bone. Visualiseyourself as a hollow bone or tubethat is all shiny on the inside andempty. The cleaner the bone, the

more energy you can channelthrough it, and the faster it will flow.

The next step is to enter atrance state. Begin drumming a

steady, metronome-like pattern ata tempo of about three to fourbeats per second (or listen to yourshamanic drumming recording).Focus your attention on the soundof the drum, thereby stilling thechatter in your mind. Allow thedrum to empty you - become one

with the drum.As you drum, imagine theunifying spirit of the divine sourceflowing through you. Visualise aspiral of energy descending fromthe heavens above, entering yourhollow bone and traveling downinto the earth. You may feel it, see

it, sense it, or simply imagine it. Asyou focus on it, it will occur, forenergy and life force followthought. Allow spirit to flow intoand embody you so that the speedand rhythm of your playing comeunder its control.

As the drum meditation evolves,you will become more ecstatic and

spirit will perhaps create newrhythms. You are now moving intoa higher state of universalconsciousness and developing anew shamanic skill. At the higherlevels, a healer becomes adept atdetaching all sense of self, fullypresent in the moment, as ahollow bone or living conduit forhealing energy to move through.

When it feels appropriate,gradually slow the tempo of yourdrumming to draw yourconsciousness back into your

body. Do not rush thetransformation. Visualise yourselffully grounded in your body, andthen slowly open your eyes.

Once you have returned toordinary reality, end your drummeditation with four strong beats tosignal that the sacred time of focusis ended (If you are listening to ashamanic drumming recording,most recordings have a similar callback signal near the end of the

track). Sit quietly for a fewmoments, and then open your eyes.

NEW TRICKS - OLD WAYS

In addition to drums and drummingrecordings, there is now a newtechnology called binaural beats thatcan easily induce transcendent states

of awareness. German researcherH.W. Dove discovered that when twopure tones close in frequency arepresented, one to each ear, the braindetects the difference between themas a third frequency.

The two hemispheres of the brainentrain to this binaural beat ratherthan the audible tones. For example,a 90 Hz tone and 95 Hz tone will

induce a 5 Hz theta brainwave cycle.Theta activity reflects the dream-likestate between wakefulness andsleep. Theta rhythms are associatedwith meditation and shamanic statesof consciousness. Theta increasescreativity, enhances learning, reducesstress, and awakens intuition.

Binaural beats can induceprofoundly deep altered stateswithin minutes. All you need is apair of stereo headphones and acomfortable chair. The soundtechnology does the rest. Rhythmic

stimulation continues to offer todaywhat it has offered for thousandsof years: namely, a simple andeffective technique of ecstasy.

Theta brain wave activity

reflects the dream-like state

between wakefulness and

sleep. Theta rhythms are

associated with meditation

and shamanic states of

consciousness. Theta

increases creativity, enhances

learning, reduces stress, and

awakens intuition