When One Becomes Many, and Many, One

This is a simple story about a woman, a common gourd and a loving lesson they shared about how one can become many, and the many, one.

As part of her shaman training class, I asked Rachel to make a rattle from a gourd I gave to her.

She did as instructed and produced a BEAUTIFUL rattle, indeed! But she wasn’t finished. Like the smart woman she was (and still is), she planted the seeds she extracted from the gourd. Take a look at what happened:

One became many!

In the case with this photo, the seed from Rachel’s rattle in the middle gave rise to a new generation, then another. So, it was from the second generation that she made the rattle on the right for her daughter, DeMaris. And the next year, from the third generation of her gourd patch came her Mother-In-Law Loretta’s rattle on the left. Three generations of gourd rattles for three generations of Rachel’s family.

Here’s what Rachel wrote about Loretta’s Rattle:

A feminine rattle, she came to me a few months ago. She truly is multi-generational, home grown, 3rd generation on my property. DeMaris added her expression by choosing three items that were added inside the rattle. So we are all multi-generational. Grandmother, daughter-in-law, and granddaughter.

The handle on the rattle is from wood gnawed by a Beaver.

She, the rattle, is a natural beauty that is proclaiming her strength and power. Her voice matches her beauty– not overpowering but beautiful. She has extensive range, delicate highs and big powerful lows. She will be a powerful Ally to all that know her. She was born from deep love and reflects the energy of divine feminine. She represents all that is good, including expressions unsaid because there are no words to convey it all. This is a recognition of true authentic divine power. She is recognized and deeply honored.

This is so meaningful on many levels, but ever evident was the love of family, from the choice of the beaver-gnawed handle— the beaver leading its life in total service to the family— to the symbolic significance of waiting to choose a gourd from the third generation to honor Loretta, the grandmother. It is like a spiral coming from a circle when you think about it. Ongoing, never ending.

But this isn’t the end of the story.

Above is another beautiful example of Rachel’s work, a rattle which was given to a friend. It’s easy to see that, by now, Rachel is becoming a master rattle maker. I’ve asked if she may be interested in someday opening her own online shop to sell them. She tells me that’s a possibility!

But meantime, it is easy to imagine the three generations of Rachel’s family and friends gathered in the sacred circle shaking their rattles together in unison to honor All That Is.

That is when many become one.

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Thank you for the loving lesson, Rachel.

Aho & Namaste,
Bob

More Articles About Making Your Own Gourd Rattle:
Here, Here, Here