How to craft your own Shamanic Rattle
When we craft sacred tools, we put our love and energy into them, making them very personal and special to us. By crafting your own Shamanic Rattle, you can fill it with prayers and intentions for what you intend to use it for, assisted by the combination of elements that you have used to make it which each have their own qualities of spirit.
Rattles are part of healing, journeying and ceremonial work for those on the Shamanic Path. They are used either for calling to Ally Spirits or to help in Healing by clearing and purifying.
By crafting your own Shamanic Rattle, you also have the opportunity to quest for your own handle, choosing a wood that is right for you, and fill the Rattle with the combination of stones, crystal, shell, and more, to get the right sound, and the right qualities of spirit for you.
Shamanic Rattles can be easily made using our Rawhide Offcuts, which have been blessed in our Drum Birthing ceremonies from the same sustainably sourced hides that we make our Shamanic Drums from, and with our waxed sinew thread for sewing and binding. In addition to this, you will need to quest for your stick (details below), and some glue to secure the Rattle head.
Take a look at the video below of how to make a Shamanic Rattle.
It’s as simple as that!
Find below everything you need to make your own Shamanic Rattle
How to gather a stick for your Shamanic Rattle handle:
It is great to quest for your own Rattle handle, especially if you have an affinity for a particular tree, or are able to find a stick from somewhere that is special and personal to you.
Practically speaking, it needs to be comfortable in your hand, it needs to be strong, and ideally it would want to be about 2-3cm thick, and 30-40cm long.
When going to gather the stick, it is good to first introduce yourself to the spirits of place, let them know why you are there, and give an offering of herbs to the land, asking to guided, or for permission from the tree or the spirits before taking anything. If you don’t have anything physical as an offering, you can also sing a song as a gift.
Watch the video to see us gathering beater sticks for our Drum Beaters, which is the same as we might gather sticks for our Shamanic Rattle handles.