Video #4: Rare and Unique Singing Bowls

Each of our genuine antiques and hand-hammered new singing bowls produces multiple harmonic overtones. Multiple harmonic overtones give singing bowls their unique complex and beautiful tone. In essence, the harmonics make them sing. Every antique and hand-hammered new bowl we offer 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, musical composition and performance.

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. In fact, when my antiques and hand-hammered new bowls are measured with an audio device, they are shown to produce many, many frequencies. Each frequency can produce a subtle vibrational effect right down to our cells. 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 pictured below. This 18th century bowl 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.

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. This movement 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 is 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 specific vibrations. In very complex systems, 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 determine the various frequencies and tonal qualities. In a human being, there are many types of tissues which vibrate at different frequencies. A vibration is activated when a force is introduced to set matter 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. Living tissue is pulsing, coursing, vibrating, moving, sounding like a symphony.

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 chakra tone idea is unfortunately the product of successful marketing and is largely false and arbitrary. I believe it is oversimplified to think 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 harmoniously at the frequency that feels just right.

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 your own. When I pick up certain singing bowls, one or more of my potential frequencies may be in resonance with one or more 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 vibrational 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 test of 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 singing bowl from Himalayan Bowls: warmth, complexity, variability, freedom, multiple harmonics, and tonal balance.

Please see our pages on choosing an antique and singing bowl shopping for more on bowl selection and please enjoy our informative videos.