The "Honumele Drum" Creation Story

From the journal of: The Bardic Artisan™

This is the most unusual drum I’ve painted on so far.  I didn’t make it.  The woman who owns this drum already had it when she asked if I could paint it for her.  It has some kind of waxy coating on it that I’ve never seen before.  Normally I will only use acrylics minimally and watercolors for most of the artwork on a drum.  But this was so waxy that I had to use primarily acrylic.

I painted the matching double rows of lavender Goddesses first and I noticed that before I outlined the moon and their heads with blue – the purple base outline looked like double ended sperm or a two headed snake.  I thought this was an interesting balance of feminine and masculine blending effortlessly together in one (soon to be watery) image.  I like that and always see that as a good sign that the piece I am working on has connected with me and is showing me that it is participating in what we are creating.  What follows is how the art “emerged” through me.

Kuan Yin in the Center: Compassion – pure white healing light.  From her center come the white umbilical cords of blessed energy which extend through the Goddesses (women as sacred life givers, messengers and catalystic teachers for a healthy and balanced humanity), reach into spirals to signify the never ending circle of life and it’s eternal connection of energy between all women and then traveling outward off the edge of the drum for the earth and humanity to hear and heal with.  For this drum’s keeper – compassion propels her inner circle and she holds the image of Kuan Yin very close to her heart. 

Also known as “She Who Hears The Cries of the World”; Kuan Yin provides the pivotal balancing point while the goddesses on this drum form two balanced rows to help support and protect all the sacredness of the womb, the earth, the water, the moon tides, compassion, beauty and more that is intimate to the drums’ keeper.

I found two photographs of Kuan Yin that inspired me.  The first was a photograph of a sculpture of Kuan Yin that is ancient.  I liked the kindness of her features as well as her open, relaxed and inviting posture.

The next image I found was of the same sculpture but had been recreated as a painting that appeared to be in water.  I felt that this was quite appropriate for this drum and felt compelled to meditate upon it intensely while allowing the visualization of the finished drum to come to me.

Sea Turtle represents the earth.  It’s blue and green for water and land.  It glitters with silver and gold to represent the richness of the earth and carries lotus flowers on its’ back.  Lotus flowers are a physical manifestation of Kuan Yin’s presence and represent the hopeful blossoming of a compassionate consciousness in the four corners of the earth.  This is Kuan Yin’s eternal hope for humanity as well as her gift. 

The turtle’s fins cause gentle green ripples to flow out through the lavender Goddesses to resonate with lush abundance and healthy growth, a heartbeat of a compassionately growing earth into the aura of the drummer, those around her and back to the earth herself. 

Sea Turtle is a water spirit also significant of compassion and other healing emotions and is surrounded by it on the drum, but is also able to navigate land and gives birth there by “planting” eggs.  This represents the ability to travel between two worlds, the emotional and the physical – ebbing and flowing with the gentle waves as well as safely swimming below the surface during a storm – and enjoying the protection of the earth relationship for fertility and new beginnings purposes. 

Some may be first inclined to say that the sea turtle lays her eggs without much concern for them, their concealment or safety.  Yet they fail to recognize that this is an enormous task that requires great effort for Sea Turtle to clumsily accomplish on land.  She “plants” her eggs as close to the water as she can to give her young as much advantage as possible without the eggs being washed into the sea with the tide before they have the chance to hatch.  She could hide them further inland, but they’d have farther to go to reach the sea and therefore far less would succeed.  And if she had them in the sea – they would probably never have any inclination that there is land and therefore never realize their potential or provide the next generation.  It has it’s risks, but accepting the fact that all of our lives have risks is the cornerstone to a healthy world view where we embrace responsibility for our realities and the effect those realities have on others.

In essence the turtle is in the watery womb of this drum sending cleansing resonance with each stroke it takes in the clear blue green center.  One pleasing visualization may be to see the turtle taking a stroke with a fin or two with each drum beat.  Sometimes she swims fast, sometimes slow.  The fact that Kuan Yin is at the center of the Sea Turtles’ shell indicates that she is at the center of the world.  As we know, the ”center of the world”, is right where each of us “is”.  For this drum keeper – Kuan Yin is at the center of her earth and emotion reality with her. 

Water is a conductor of electricity – energy.  This is why the white energy travels in three’s off the edge of the drum from the moon which is in the hands of the Goddesses.  Some of the Goddesses catalyze the water.  Some of the Goddesses catalyze the light (electricity).  They are all connected and working harmoniously together ~ and together they create the energy that flows off the edge of the drum into the keeper’s environment.

This drum keepers’ astrology sign is Aquarius which demonstrates her as the “water carrier” = “drum carrier” = “drum keeper”.  With this drum she could be able to bless and cleanse with straight purified water (no tap water), sea water or rain she collects herself to pour forth those healing properties therein for all who are able to absorb of it.  Since this drum by it’s very nature needs a certain amount of moisture in the environment at all times to prevent it from warping – I am compelled to believe this drum keeper could keep a small amount of water with her at all times to have handy to “notice” or bless things with in much the same manner as some people use elder berries or American Indians use tobacco.

And so it is with this drum – an avenue for Kuan Yin to “pour” her compassionate heart out through the affectionate connection to this drum keeper.

In conclusion - if the turtle is in the womb - then Kuan Yin is also – which means that together they both create the ability to - and are preparing to - “birth” as something none of us have ever seen before – a strong, vibrantly healthy and compassionate humanity.  This is what this drum strives to bring about on it’s way.  Through the drum keepers own heartbeat (energy) – transferred to the beat she thrums on the drum – she is symbolically providing for them (Kuan Yin and the Sea Turtle) the same as the any fetus hears in the womb and will be soothed by after emergence.  It is along this vein that I hope she will name this drum, and will continue her “heart beat”.

As for the rest of what there is to “see” and “know” with this drum – I leave you kindly to discover those things on your own.