Sound Bowl Meditation

How do you meditate with a Tibetan Singing Bowl?

Disclosure: The practice using a Himalayan singing bowl described below is NOT an authentic method taken from any ancient meditation teachings. This exercise came to me intuitively and after an extensive period of practice, I noticed the effective results.

For this exercise, you will need a singing bowl that has at least two noticeable overtones (in addition to the fundamental tone) and a mallet with a medium firmness to strike the singing bowl (choose the mallet that will bring the lowest tone of the bowl along with at least two higher-pitched tones). I recommend choosing a hand hammered Himalayan singing bowl (also called Tibetan singing bowl) of a medium or large size. 

• Bring the rim of the singing bowl to the level of your forehead approximately three to four inches away from your forehead. You can hold the bowl on your fingertips or on an open palm. Also, you could sit in front of the bowl that is rested on a surface aligned with your forehead.
• Strike the singing bowl and listen to the polyphonic accord of all sounding tones simultaneously.
• Highlight one tone. It could be any tone you want. Now become fully aware of this tone, isolate it from other singing bowl sounds. Focus on the tone you choose until it dissipates.
• Repeat the exercise as many times as you want. After practicing this routine, choose another tone from the same singing bowl. Repeat the second routine also as many times as you wish. 
• Finally, practice the same exercise with the third tone.
• Please note: the more sustained is the singing bowl sound, the better chance you will have to concentrate and meditate without redirecting your focus on striking the bowl. 
• Usually, singing bowls have more than two distinguishable overtones. After you get familiar with this exercise, you may want to expand your practice by choosing additional tones of your singing bowl.
• After practicing this technique for a few days, expand your focus by holding in your attention all sounding tones simultaneously. 

More information and comprehensive tutorials about this topic are offered in my online courses "Singing Bowls Art Lab" and "Sound Healing Teacher Training".

PLEASE USE YOUR HEADPHONES FOR THE FOLLOWING VIDEO

This exercise with Himalayan singing bowl helped me to enhance attention, and also to separate the energies within myself and to be able to choose which are suiting me the best. It also, helped me to understand the meaning of the words "Happiness is a choice".

We are vessels that transfer all kinds of energy through ourselves every day. Like singing bowls have many distinguished sound partials, our lives have a lot of different aspects. The ability to focus on each of these aspects with your heart and your mind without distortion and full familiarity with the whole sound of your life is the way to wholeness!

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