Damaru

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A damaru (Devanagari: डमरू) or damru is a small two-headed pellet drum from India and Tibet, shaped like an hourglass. The drum is typically made of wood, with leather drum head, or made out of human skulls.^[1] Its height ranges from a few inches to a little over a foot. It is played one handed. The strikers are typically beads fastened to the ends of leather cords around the waist of the damaru. Knots in the leather can also be used as strikers. As the player waves the drum using a twisting wrist motion, the strikers beat on the drumhead. The damaru is used by itinerant musicians of all stripes due to its small size. It is used in Tibetan Buddhism in a ritual manner, particularly with the trance sadhana of the Chöd.

Contents 1 Context 2 Sources 3 References 4 See also 5 External links

[edit] Context

The damaru is well known throughout the Indian subcontinent. Among Shaivites it is associated with the Hindu deity Shiva in his Nataraja aspect performing the cosmic dance of tandava. The sound of the damaru represents the primeval sound and rhythm from which, according to cosmology, the universe emerges and into which it dissolves before re-emerging. One legend has it that the sounds of the Sanskrit language arose from Shiva's drumbeats (see Shiva Sutra).

The shape of the damaru, which is a triangular upward representation, also symbolizes the male creativity of procreation (the Lingam), and the downward representation symbolizes the female creativity of procreation (the Yoni). Symbolically, the creation of the world begins when the lingam and yoni meets at the mid-point of the damaru, and the destruction takes place when both separates from each other.

[edit] Sources

[edit] References

• Dictionary of Hindu Lore and Legend (ISBN 0-500-51088-1) by Anna Dallapiccola

[edit] See also

• Udukai
• Tandava
• Skull (symbolism)

[edit] External links

• Damaru drum on Ancientworlds.com