Sound healing with Himalayan singing bowls have been embraced throughout the globe for decades, and these recent years they have been recognized by the mainstream Wellness fields. There have been numerous studies on their origins, their materials, their frequencies and vibrations, as well as their effects on human. Although there are many amazing Himalayan singing bowls practitioners out there, as of now (2024) I feel that these studies and research on these bowls haven't yet quite widely accessible. Simply put, there are dedicated researchers on this topic, information is out there, but the majority of us (practitioners and non-practitioners) have not tapped into that yet, for many different reasons.
The benefits that these bowls offer are so profound and nurturing. The experiences that me and my clients have with them can be felt with such depth that sometimes I don't know how to express in words. However, I dare say the myth and commercialized "stories" around these instruments are overwhelming. Quite a number of these come from the bowl sellers in the Himalayan regions, maybe for economic reasons. And when it come to metaphysics and holistic healing, the Westerners looove cool and interesting myth rather than diving into truth 😬
I like myth too. Tell me any stories along the line of astral travelling, psychic abilities, telekinesis, mermaids, UFO, etc. and I can listen all day. But sprinkling facts with nonsense myth for money-making purposes is no bueno. Let's briefly break down a few of those:
These bowls being called "Tibetan bowls": Historically, the bowls have been used in shamanic and religious practices all across the Himalayan regions. However, they aren't made in Tibet. The majority of them are made in Nepal, then India and China also join the party. Nothing is absolute, there might be a Tibetan bowl maker somewhere out there, but most artisans and factories are in Nepal.
These bowls being made of seven sacred metals: A lot of resources on the internet state that these singing bowls are procured with some secret alloy like Iron, Copper, Tin, Mercury, Lead, Silver, Gold. This is not a myth, this is a New age fraud if a seller or a practitioner tell people this. Sadly, this is told by quite a few bowl makers and merchants, knowing it's no where true. Researchers have been conducting tests on various bowls, and they can attest that this alloy claim is false. Again, nothing is absolute, there might be a bowl out there made of these metals, yes and including the poisonous lead and mercury. But NOT all bowls are. The tests find that most bowls are made from bronze, a copper and tin alloy (about 80-20 ratio). The bowl makers have their own unique alloy, but you can visit the factories and see them putting in a mix of copper and tin, and a tiny ratio of some other metals.
These bowls matching with the 7 chakras: I can say that this one and the one above deserve their own long write up to demystify, as these gimmicky "facts" are kinda everywhere out there now. Nowadays you can find singing bowls sold in shops with their own assigned chakra. Interestingly enough, there are different note systems assigned to chakras, not just with Himalayan bowls but also with crystal bowls. Some F note bowls would label "for heart chakra", and some would label "for root chakra".. This is one fact: there are more than one chakra system/philosophy out there, and they can all be correct depends on their corresponding practices. Tibetan Buddhism, which has been largely practiced across the Himalayan regions, works with 5-chakra system and sometimes 6. Yoga practices work with a few, 4-chakra, or 7, or 9. The 7-chakra system are brought to mainstream by Western theologists in 1880s, based on one of the Indian chakra systems. Not only different practices work with different chakra system, they assign different colors, sounds, attributes, etc. to them too. The frequencies do play a part in healing and tuning, but the Western musical scale of C D E F G A BÂ does not correspond to 7 chakras. Any decent Himalayan singing bowl maker, with proper family traditions of craftsmanship, would know this. The Western researchers have done studies against this claim as well. One singing bowl can work well for any chakra, if we really want to talk about chakra. Different frequencies and vibrations can bring out different healing effects though. What more important than the bowl's material, maker, size, frequency, etc. is the practitioner's intention. Where attention goes, energy flows.
The above are only the mainstream myth, there are more. Health and wellness can be utilized by spiritual frauds and turned into the Feel good industry. In a world full of baseless information just for social media attentions and trends, we need to be discerning. If you genuinely seek healing and growth, you need to be resourceful and do your due diligence. Out there, there are offerings that look nice for social media sakes, and there are true offerings from the heart. They all coexist beautifully together like Yin Yang. It is your intention that will guide you to what you seek. The thing about Himalayan singing bowls is, before anything spiritual, please understand it through a lense of physics. They are made of metals, so they generate strong vibrations. The alloy, mostly bronze, is decided by different masters to serve different healing purposes. Additionally, elements such as tones and shapes are considered so that these bowls generate specific frequencies, overtones, and vibrations. The masters have their own bowl-making techniques to optimize healing benefits as well. These bowls bring positive effects to our physical health as well, such as regulating blood circulation, improving internal organs' performance, and relieving muscle tightness.
I find that working with authentic Himalayan singing bowls is such an honor, as they carry the ancient wisdom beyond time and space. Since my offerings are the continuation of this, I hold the responsibility to share the truth and contribute to the ripple effect. As such, I deeply appreciate the researchers who make so much efforts in tracing this practice's origin and healing benefits. May we all be true with our nature and the nature of all phenomena. Om mani padme hum 🪷
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