Tibetan Singing Bowls

A Tibetan singing bowl is a very old musical instrument in the shape of a bowl, with wide musical, therapeutic and spiritual uses. It first appeared in Nepal in the first half of the 3rd millennium BC and was already used for healing purposes at that time.

The bowls come in many shapes and sizes, and each one has its own specific tone. You can get a large temple bowl or a small travel bowl. Even a small bowl will bring you a lot of joy in the form of beautiful and unique tones.

What type of instrument is a Tibetan singing bowl?

Although it is called a bowl, a Tibetan singing bowl is a type of bell. To make it ring, we need a mallet, which we slowly run around its rim, thus creating vibrations. We then hear these as the pleasant tone of the bowl. To allow the bowl to vibrate, it must be placed on a cushion; smaller bowls can be held in the hand, but only lightly.

How are the bowls made?

The way a Tibetan bowl is made has a big effect on its tone – there are hammered bowls (traditional, the most expensive and at the same time the most popular among professionals), cast and lathe-turnedbowls. Decoration is not unusual, but it is not the rule either – an undecorated bowl does not mean a poor-quality bowl.

The material is usually an alloy of seven metals, but there are also bowls made of a five-metal alloy, the so-called "panchaloha". This is a sacred alloy intended for casting temple statues.