{Bonus article from the 28 Day Meditation Challenge}
The week three meditation in the 28 Day Meditation Challenge includes the ringing of a Tibetan singing bowl – a meditation bell.
People on the course often report how vibrant and almost physical the sound feels.
Here’s a bonus article, to explain what’s going on – and how you can use meditation bells and singing bowls to help with your meditation and mindfulness pracitce.
Have you noticed how the sound of the bell in this week’s meditation can resonate through your body? Some people find it a physical sensation, rather than just sound.
What’s going on?
Here’s an attempt at putting it in layman terms. I hope it makes sense for you!
Sound is a vibration, just like light. And much like the human body. Our body isn’t solid. It is, in fact, made up of many millions (trillions / gazillions!) of elements, buzzing around. But they’re so fast and so tiny that our experience of our body is that of it being solid.
Sound vibrates at a much lower frequency than light – much closer to that of the human body (though still pretty fast). So, sometimes, when a sound resonates (i.e. the pattern of its vibration is very strong), it can interact with the vibrations in the cells of our body. We experience this as a semi-physical sensation.
The bell used in the meditation is a special Tibetan singing bowl. This means that the sound it produces has a strong resonance and is more likely to be perceived physically than, say, a tinkly bell or a door bell.
When you’re in a deeply relaxed, but alert and mindful state, you’re more likely to become aware of these resonating vibrations. There are less distractions around you. It can feel as though the bell has ‘shaken something loose’. This allows us to drop more deeply into the silence and the stillness, after the bell has rung. It can help us reach a profound state of calm and peace, if that’s where your practice is taking you.
All of this is part of the reason why sound is often used in holistic healing. It is believed by practitioners (and reported by clients) to realign the cells of the body, helping them to release whatever has built up and is ready to go. If you’d like to find out more about sound healing, there are some excellent resources out there:
Jonathan Goldman is a real expert, whose work I recommend.
And here is a beautiful book on Tibetan Sound Healing:
But going back to your experience of your meditation, you can quickly become anchored in to the sound of the bell taking you back to that place of calm. In fact, it doesn’t have to be a bell. With practice, any sound could be used to take you back to that still place – even the sound of the kids screaming. Though it does take dedication and patience!
If you’d like to discover more about this and aren’t already taking the 28 Day Meditation Challenge, here’s where you can get started today.
Wow I never knew half of this info about singing bowls! IThanks for the great article.