Drums tell a story. Drums develop an atmosphere.
Drum rhythms can be taught, but rhythm comes from deep within.
Everyone has their own. It’s like a heartbeat. So unique to each person, yet others can set their heart to beat with yours just by quietly sitting and meditating on that rhythmic flow. Yeah, kinda ‘New Age’, but of scientific truth.
There are many different types of drums representing cultures all around the world. Each type of drum really has specific rhythms that will set the backbone for the style of music typical of the culture where the drum originated.
There are some great sites that teach basic technique and rhythm structure for hand drums.