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Singing Bowls

Does anyone here use singing bowls -- either as part of their massage or for themselves? If you do, how do you use them? And has anyone received a treatment involving singing bowls or other sound healing?

A few years ago I did an exchange with someone who uses all sorts of sounds -- a singing bowl, tingsha, a drum, a rain stick -- as part of an energy session. The best part was when she put one bowl on my chest an another on my abdomen and rang them back and forth.

Before the exchange I already had bought one bowl, but wasn't sure what to do with it. This fall I bought a second bowl that was tuned at about a fifth below my first bowl. I've tried placing both bowls on a couple of clients and they loved the result.

Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by Darcy Neibaur on January 10, 2010 at 12:01pm

I have never heard of them.

Permalink Reply by Donna C. Agrinsonis, LMT on January 10, 2010 at 12:17pm

Sounds interesting! But I have never heard of it either.

Permalink Reply by Steve - Maryland L.M.T. on January 10, 2010 at 1:19pm

From Wikipedia:

Singing bowls (also known as Himalayan bowls, rin, medicine bowls, Tibetan bowls or suzu gongs in Japan) are a type of bell, specifically classified as a standing bell. Rather than hanging inverted or attached to a handle, standing bells sit with the bottom surface resting. The sides and rim of singing bowls vibrate to produce sound. Singing bowls were traditionally used throughout Asia as part of Bön and Tantric Buddhist sadhana. Today they are employed worldwide both within and without these spiritual traditions, for meditation, trance-induction, relaxation, healthcare, personal well-being and religious practice.

Traditionally, antique singing bowls were made of Panchaloha (literally meaning "five metals" in Sanskrit): a bronze alloy of copper, tin, zinc and iron and other metals. Antiques often include silver, gold, nickel and the most prized "sky-iron" (Wylie: thog chags) from meteorites and tektites (as did the Phurba, an accompanying tool).

New singing bowls are made from bronze just as the antiques were. However, the bronze alloy does not contain gold and silver as some of the antiques.

You play a singing bowl by striking it like a gong, or you can rub the mallet around the rim of the bowl to set of a harmonic vibration:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ek_7NSsNdYk&feature=related

Before I found this video I didn't know there was a difference between "female" and "male" tones. So I've learned something new already, and I'll have to try it myself when I go back to my office on Monday.

Here is a video of a demonstration of singing bowls being used in healing:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PvVS-VUt0vQ

Permalink Reply by Alicia Barrera-Warwick,HHP,LE on January 25, 2010 at 11:15pm

I haven't used the singing bowls as of yet but i do use sound healing with tools quite a bit (tuning forks, bells, rainsticks,music, and voice affirmations). Some clients love it and I think others are thinking, oh no, here we go!

Permalink Reply by noreen zakrajsek on January 26, 2010 at 12:27pm

I love hearing Singing Bowls. My yoga teacher has played them at the end of some sessions. I bet having them either at the end or beginning of a massage session would only be wonderful. I would like to experince that. Thank you Steve.

Permalink Reply by colleen fennessey on October 8, 2010 at 9:49am

I too experienced singing bowls during a yoga class- the bowls were 'played' throughout the yoga class but mostly during the ending meditation- I thought it was a great experience and i felt a little more rejuvenated than usual- the woman who played the singing bowls is Patricia Caldwell- she is in the Chicago area and has decades of experience with singing bowls and other auditory healing methods- she has traveled all over the world learning about them and the cultures that use them---

Permalink Reply by Mary-Margaret Mastin on March 28, 2011 at 12:46pm

I realize I'm about a year late getting to this discussion...but I just found the site. Anyway, I use a Crystal Singing bowl in the key of E...on the body...in all of my sessions. I do Polarity Therapy as the foundation of my work, so while the bowl is on the back (usually low back), I use my thumb and first finger of left hand to draw and direct the vibration up the spine. The vibration would go there anyway, but this is sort of an extra "umph". The singing bowl is a profound tool...people love it and drop right into a peaceful, blissful state of being. Often times I do this near the front of the session to get the client under faster, then the rest of the session is all Integrative Bodywork in whatever combination of techniques are called for. I love my job (*~*). I would like to hear from other practitioners who are doing similar things. I've NEVER had it done to me but am looking forward to it....even if I have to teach people how to do it in order to receive it (*~*).

Permalink Reply by Anja Martin on August 6, 2012 at 4:37pm

Hi Steve,

I just came along your post...and even it is over 2 years old...you might be interested. I am a sound healer...giving sound healing massages with planetary tibetan bowls. I am placing the bowls upon the back of your body. Step by step between 5-7 bowls.