The History of the Rain Stick

Creating the sound of falling rain was once believed to bring about a storm, thus the magic powers of a rain stick. Made from a long, hollow tube--traditionally from cacti that was hollowed by drying in the sun--the tube is filled with beads or beans. When the stick is turned over, the beans fall through the tube. A sound like that of falling rain occurs when the beans bounce off the thorns inside.

Aztecs

One theory about the origin of the rain stick is that the Aztecs invented it and spread its use throughout Central and South America. This story is unlikely, however, because no rain sticks have been found in archaeological digs and there is no mention of the instrument in the Spanish accounts of interactions with the Aztecs.

Peru

The rain stick could have originated in Peru, where wooden stick rattles have been found in archaeological digs along the coast. These sticks were filled with seeds or pebbles and may have dated to the Incas or earlier. The sticks were made from whole reeds and closed on both ends. Palm needles were stuck in the walls of the reeds, similar to the thorns in rain sticks today. The Huichol people of Mexico use the rattles in ceremonies to bring rain.

Chile

Another account is that the Diaguita Indians of Chile invented the rain stick and used it in ceremonies to bring rain to the Atacama Desert. The Diaguita make many of the rain sticks that are sold today. However, there is no mention of rain sticks in the early history of the Diaguita.

Africa

Another theory about the origin of rain sticks is that they were made by African slaves in North America and mimicked the tubular rattles found in West Africa. The native people of South and Central America may have encountered the enslaved Africans and seen the rattle instruments, adapting the concept and creating a similar instrument that evolved into the rain stick we know today.

Mexico

Some musicians say the rain stick was introduced in Mexican music in the 1960s in the area of Cuernavaca. These rain sticks may have begun as tubular rattles; they were being made in northern Mexico at the beginning of the 1900s.

References

• Rain Sticks
• Make Your Own Rain Stick
• The Rain Stick

Resources

• Read this Article in Spanish