Tibetan singing
bowls are used for sound energy healing
Himalayan
Bowls - Antique Singing Bowls for Personal Well-Being
by Joseph
Feinstein
Authentic
antique singing bowls are like old friends: each bowl has unique
qualities we can appreciate and we bring out the best in each bowl.
Tibetan singing bowls play with a great deal of variety and there is
much to discover in each of these marvelous bells. You will hear
many different tones and qualities in each bowl depending on how you
play it and even on how you feel when you play it. If you tap a bowl
delicately you will get a very different tone than when you strike
it wildly. Each singing bowl is a unique creation so each also has
subtle individual characteristics. Each high quality antique singing
bowl offered by Himalayan Bowls is a joy to play and to hear.
High quality
antique singing bowls produce multiple harmonic overtones. Multiple
harmonic overtones give antique singing bowls their unique
complexity and warmth. In essence, the harmonics make them sing.
Every bowl from HimalayanBowls.com is individually hand chosen so
you are guaranteed a bowl with the perfectly balanced harmonics for
a pleasing and harmonious tone. I handle thousands of bowls and
choose only those that meet my rigorous standards of tonal balance.
I have helped people around the world choose bowls for meditation,
healing, professional use, personal enjoyment and musical
composition.
Each type of
bowl produces a characteristic tone. By listening to the sound clips
provided in our galleries you can quickly get a sense of your
personal preferences. Do you prefer a deep tone or a high tone? Do
you like the warmth of a medium bowl or the sharpness of a small
thick bowl? Some of us love them all and end up with a large
collection (that's how I started Himalayan Bowls).
Choosing
singing bowls starts with listening to yourself. Follow your
personal preferences rather than any preconceived ideas you may have
heard or read on the web. Theories about specific musical tones,
planetary tones or chakra tones are misleading and oversimplified.
Himalayan Bowls produce several tones at once, so there is no single
magic tone - you are getting many frequencies all together. The
complexity of the sound defies simple categorization. It would be
nice if we could have one note for a specific purpose, like one tone
for the heart, but life is much more complex than that.
My personal
favorite, from my large personal collection, is an 18th century bowl
which is very special to me. She loves to sing with the full moon.
Other people may find this bowl unassuming and unremarkable. It is
very special to me because of the way it resonates with me. The
vibration of this bowl touches me in a way that helps me to hear my
own inner song. At the same time, it quiets and calms me. This is
the power of singing bowls: to help us get in touch with ourselves,
our own vibration.
Have you ever
met an individual whom you felt instantly drawn to? Perhaps this
person became a good friend whom you just liked being around. Did
you ever wonder why you were so attracted to that person? Chances
are they did not have that effect on everyone they met, although
there are such magnetic people in the world. It is likely there was
something else at work in that invisible attraction.
Modern physics
and ancient wisdom have taught us that the universe is made of tiny
particles in the ocean of space. These dancing particles are in
constant motion. Motion can be thought of as vibration, as
oscillation. Our cells, and the smaller particles that make up our
being, vibrate constantly. Vibration can be measured in terms of
frequency, which we may think of as the size and speed of a
vibration. Our internal systems vibrate at certain frequencies which
scientists are beginning to measure. Technologies like ultrasound
work because different types of tissues vibrate at different
frequencies. My dentist uses sound to blast the plaque off my teeth.
Sound is regularly being used in many types of therapy to help
reduce pain and speed healing. Ancient wisdom has long understood
the nature of internal vibration. Traditional texts from India tell
us that the universe is sound. The Old Testament says the universe
started with God's word. In Australia, they sing the world into
existence. In cultures around the world, sound is part of spiritual
practice and everyday life.
There exists
within all matter the potential for certain vibrations. In very
complex organizations of matter, such as a human being, and in less
complex organizations, like a singing bowl, there exists the
potential for many different vibrations. In the case of a singing
bowl, factors such as the composition of the alloy, age of the
metal, the shape, thickness and size of the bowl will produce
various frequencies and tonal qualities. In a human being, there are
many types of tissues which vibrate at different frequencies. The
potential for vibration is activated when an outside force in
introduced and sets the vibration into motion. In other words, when
a bowl is struck, it rings. In the case of a human being, we are
always 'ringing' because we are always moving (think of movement not
only in terms of walking around, but also the subtle movement of our
heart beating, breathing, and even the activity of our nervous
system).
I believe that
each of us has certain unique characteristics, and therefore certain
unique vibrational frequencies. Just as our voices are different,
the vibrational qualities of our entire being varies slightly from
one person to the next. This subtle variety of frequencies is part
of our individuality. There is a lot of material on the internet
about the 'correct' tone for various chakras and organs. This
material is unfortunately the product of successful marketing and is
largely false and arbitrary. It is the kind of easy answer that
people tend to believe and also tends to be false. I believe it is
impossible to say that one frequency will have the same effect on
every person. It is not so simple as "F is a heart tone, B is a
crown tone." It seems more likely to me that each heart will vibrate
at a slightly different frequency. Perhaps this partially explains
why we fall in love with one person and not another; our hearts
resonate, vibrating together at a frequency which feels like
beautiful music.
Likewise, my
skeleton, liver, eyes, crown and other parts vibrate at slightly
different frequencies than those of someone else. I have various
potential frequencies within me and you have various potential
frequencies that are slightly different. When I pick up certain
singing bowls, one or some of my potential frequencies may be in
resonance with one or some of the frequencies in that particular
bowl. In other words, I may share some of the same tones with a
bowl. If my tissues and the metal vibrate at the same frequency,
when I play the bowl I am also playing myself. When the bowl is
played it vibrates at certain frequencies which displace the air
(that is the sound wave). The sound travels to me and will set into
motion any material that vibrates at the same frequency. In essence,
the vibration bounces off producing a slight echo and a sympathetic
vibration. This physical phenomenon of resonance is occurring all
the time. I work with certain bowls that vibrate with my spine and
skeleton and make me feel great. On the other hand, the vibration of
a bus outside rattles me and leaves me feeling very uncomfortable.
Both experiences are caused by the same phenomenon: the potential
vibrations within me are set off in sympathetic resonance by the
external sonic event.
I can take two
singing bowls which sound very similar - virtually identical - and
place them on the floor very close together. When I strike one of
the bowls, the other bowl will begin to sing without touching it.
However, only some of the tones will sing. The frequencies that sing
in the untouched bowl are the frequencies which the two bowls share.
Each bowl has the potential to vibrate at many frequencies, but only
common vibrations will sing through this sympathetic vibration.
Antique
singing bowls produce many frequencies at once. The complex tone is
delightful to hear and to feel. I believe the multiple harmonics and
the sympathetic vibration they induce are the main reasons we enjoy
the tone of singing bowls. Many people tell me that singing bowls
sound 'almost human.' To me, that means the listener is responding
to the complexity and warmth of the multiple harmonics. The human
voice also produces multiple harmonics. The most pleasing voices
also share some of the characteristics of a fine antique singing
bowl from Himalayan Bowls: warmth, complexity, variability, freedom,
multiple harmonics, and tonal balance.
Please visit
www.himalayanbowls.com for more information, videos and
sound clips of fine antique singing bowls.
About the
author: Founder of
www.HimalayanBowls.com and alternative healthcare provider
Joseph Feinstein is a lifelong musician, performing artist, antique
expert, voice teacher and movement specialist. In this article,
Joseph provides insight about the use of a remarkable sound
instrument: the antique singing bowl.
Instantly Meditate Like the Greatest Gurus -
Brain music power for instant
meditation, relaxation and stress reduction.
|
