The Garifuna tradition of Adügürühani is a ritual that takes place when a Garifuna individual becomes ill and must consult a shaman in the hopes of restoring their health. The shaman will consult with the ancestral spirits (gubida) that have inflicted the illness upon the individual. Drums are played during the dügü, which is thought to have a calming effect on the individual who is possessed by the gubida. The drumming is performed in triple meter and is accompanied by song and dance. Often there are two to three drums, and the ensemble of drummers is called dangbu. The drums are constructed using mahogany or mayflower wood and animal skins (usually deer, goat, or peccary). During construction, the drums are rubbed with a cassava wine and then subsequently blessed with the smoke of buwe—a sacred herb. These techniques suggest the presence of both African and Amerindian influences in drum construction, indicative of a fusion of African and Amerindian culture in Garifuna sacred music.
