1. Silent Mind Tibetan Singing Bowl: Best Choice of Tibetan Singing Bowls
This singing bowl is 4 inches, so it’s a decent size. The hand-hammered surface and antique-inspired design are intended to produce the clearest and best sound possible, and it’s sold as a musical instrument as well as a meditation aid.
It has a simple mallet and cushion and is easy to play and designed for beginners. The Silent Mind Tibetan Singing Bowl isn’t as elaborately decorated as some, but it produces beautiful sound and is a great choice for those with little experience with singing bowls.
2. Ohm Store Tibetan Singing Bowl Set: Best Tibetan Singing Bowl for Travel
This Ohm Store Tibetan singing bowl is very small, at just 3.5 inches, but produces big, clear, resonant sound that is surprising for the sound.
Also, it sings at D, the frequency of the sacral chakra, which is important to help travelers remain flexible and open to experience, forming new and deeper connections with the world around them, and maintaining a sense of well-being. This set includes a cushion and a wooden mallet and is small enough to travel anywhere.
3. DharmaObjects Singing Bowl: Best Tibetan Singing Bowl for Giving as a Gift
The singing bowl set from DharmaObjects is already packaged as a gift, making it easy to give to yourself as well as others. This extraordinary 5 inch singing bowl is traditionally made and hand hammered.
The set includes the singing bowl, a suede cushion, and a 2-in-1 wooden mallet. It also has a 100% money-back guarantee.
Singing bowls are beautiful objects even for those who don’t meditate, and this one is attractive, easy to play, and produces lovely sounds, making it a welcome gift for all kinds of occasions, large and small.
Tibetan Singing Bowl Buying Guide
There are many types of Tibetan singing bowls, which singing bowl to buy?
In the buying guide we list some key features you should keep in mind when making a purchasing decision.
Bowl Size
While it may seem intuitive that a smaller bowl produces a higher sound, that isn’t always true.
Tone has as much to do with the thickness of the bowl as with the size.
Today we are looking at small bowls that can fit in the hand. The hand is an excellent surface for a singing bowl, as it absorbs enough vibration to prevent rattling or buzzing but allows the sides and rim to sing freely.
Also Read: 5 Best Large Singing Bowls
Cushion
The role of a cushion is to prevent the bowl from moving when struck, and from vibrating or buzzing on a hard surface when it rings or sings. Ring-shaped (or donut-shaped) cushions are preferred for providing stability without impeding any sound from the bowl.
However, square cushions and felt pads will do the same thing, provided that the cushion isn’t too deep and doesn’t touch the sides of the bowl.
Mallet/Striker
The mallet is used two ways: to strike (or “awaken”) the bowl, and also to circle the rim and produce the distinctive singing sound the bowls are prized for. Mallets are traditionally made of wood, which produces a nice clear sound when striking.
However, when singing, wood can make an unpleasant sound rubbing against the rim of the bowl, so many mallets have a second end that is covered with suede or felt.
The wooden end of the mallet will produce a higher overtone, while the fabric end will produce the lower (or fundamental) tone.
How Do You Make a Bowl Sing?
The most common challenge for those who are first using a Tibetan singing bowl is that it is difficult to get it to sing. Often this is described as a defect of the bowl, when in fact it’s just flawed technique.
To begin, it is helpful to first strike the bowl to begin its vibration. Then run your mallet around the outside of the rim in a smooth, even motion. You need to press the mallet against the bowl, not simply skim it.
You will hear the frequency deepen and change. Continue to circle the bowl with the mallet to prolong the sound. The length of time that a bowl rings or sings after you remove the mallet is a sign of good craftsmanship.
A wooden mallet is preferred, because over time the wood will get a slight worn groove at the place where it meets and rubs on the rim of the bowl.
This groove is a sign of your own consistent practice as you master the body mechanics, but also over time helps guide and reinforce the proper positioning.
However, a wooden mallet can also slide and rub against the rim, making an unpleasant sound while you are still learning.
And a wooden mallet can also leave a patina of dirt on the rim of the bowl; some people like this patina, as it indicates age and use, while some prefer to clean it off periodically.
While you are playing with your bowl and learning to make it sing, experiment with tipping it towards and away from you, to hear how the sound changes.
Hold it near your mouth and make shapes with your mouth, hearing how the sounds alter as the inside of your mouth resonates with the bowl. Many people make this part of their meditation and healing practice.
What is a Tibetan Singing Bowl Used For?
Traditionally, singing bowls are used in a variety of religious and spiritual practices throughout the far east, and are deeply tied to Buddhist traditions.
In the West, while many people use Tibetan singing bowls simply as attractive sounds or chimes to note the time or gather the attention of a group of people, they are most strongly associated with the practice of meditation.
How to use a singing bowl to begin and guide your meditation
Set the bowl on a cushion or pad on a stable surface near you. Strike the bowl once. Concentrate on the sound as it diminishes, letting yourself focus on the sound until you can’t hear it any more.
At that point, you are released from the external world. If you like, you can chime it once more at the end of your session to bring your awareness back to the present.
How to use a singing bowl to deepen your relaxation
This activity takes a little practice, so that you can engage in it without splitting your attention. In your meditation posture, hold a small singing bowl in your hand, either resting just on your fingertips or in the open palm.
With your other hand, strike the bowl with the mallet once, and then run the mallet around the rim of the bowl to make it sing. Use your whole arm in this motion, not just the wrist. Try to produce a single, even tone from the bowl, and allow the vibration to penetrate your body and your thoughts.
Using singing bowls in meditation allows your brain to more quickly reach the theta brainwave state, which eases stress and promotes healing and creativity. Over time, a Tibetan singing bowl can help “train” your mind to more quickly and easily access this state.
Adding a singing bowl to a meditation practice has been shown to lower blood pressure and heart rate more effectively than meditation alone.
Tibetan Singing Bowl Tuning and Frequencies
The truth is, Tibetan singing bowls don’t produce a single, pure note; they resonate at multiple frequencies at once, producing multi-layered intervals. Larger, deeper bowls will produce more harmonics.
These complex sound structures are often used to balance the 7 chakras. The sound waves produced by the bowl form sine waves that resonate in the body, opening and balancing the chakras. The tuning for each chakra is as follows:
• Root chakra: C
• Sacral chakra: D
• Solar plexus chakra: E
• Heart chakra: F
• Throat chakra: G
• Third Eye chakra: A
• Crown chakra: B
Every bowl has a tendency to naturally resonate at a slightly different note, affected by the size and shape of the bowl, the material it is made of, the thickness of the metal, and inconsistencies or impurities in the manufacture.
Also Read: 4 Best Crystal Singing Bowls Chakra Set
How to Find out What Frequency Your Bowl Is Tuned To
Many manufacturers are aware of this aspect of Tibetan singing bowls, and deliberately tune them as they are made.
However, if you don’t know what tune your bowl is singing at, the easiest way to find out is to download a musical instrument tuning app for your phone. There are a number of apps designed for tuning guitars and the like that will help you determine the dominant note of your bowl.
Can You Tune a Tibetan Singing Bowl?
The tune of a bowl is determined by its manufacture and can only be changed by removing the amount of metal in the bowl, as with sandpaper. You can temporarily change the sound of a bowl by adding water (only use distilled water, and never leave water in the bowl), but most people do not try to alter a bowl to sound the way they prefer.
Instead, the best practice is to listen to the bowl as it is, allowing its frequency to resonate in your body, and choosing the bowl that literally “speaks” to you. When people want to activate different chakras, they use the bowl that speaks to that need.
Hi..iam chamuel..
Reiki master..
Received a beautiful Tibetan chakra singing bowls set from nepal.
Hand made.. Attuned by monks. Nd beautiful resonance..
Can change the Colour..
They are traditional Nepali prints..
I like gold colour
Please teach me best home method to remove paint Nd paint again gold..
Or can i paint gold Colour over existing Colour..
Looking forward to hear from you..
Regards.. Chamuel..