A standing bell or resting bell is an upside-down bell held from the bottom with the top edge facing up. These bells are usually bowl-shaped and come in many sizes, from a few centimeters to one meter in diameter. They are often played by hitting them, but some, called singing bowls, can also be played by moving a soft cloth-covered stick around the outside edge to create a long, musical note.
Struck bowls are used in some Buddhist traditions during meditation and chanting. Both struck and singing bowls are used for making music, meditation, relaxation, and personal spiritual practices. They are also popular tools for music therapists, sound healers, and yoga teachers.
Standing bells first appeared in China. An early version called nao had the shape of a cup with a stem, placed with the top edge up, and struck on the outside with a mallet. The creation and use of bowls designed to "sing" are thought to be a recent development. Bowls that could produce musical notes began being brought to the West starting in the early 1970s. Since then, they have become a common instrument in a type of music from the US called "new-age," often referred to as "Tibetan music."
Nomenclature
Standing bells are called many different names in English. They may also be called bowls, basins, cups, or gongs. Some specific names include resting bell, prayer bowl, Buddha bowl, Himalayan bowl, Tibetan bell, rin gong, bowl gong, and cup gong. A bell that can make a long musical sound is sometimes called a singing bowl or Tibetan singing bowl.
In contemporary classical music, other names for these bells include temple bell, Buddha temple bell, Japanese temple bell, Buddhist bell, campana di templo, and cup bell.
In Japan, the name for a standing bell changes depending on the Buddhist group. It may be called rin (りん), kin (磬), dobachi, keisu, kinsu (きんす), sahari, or uchinarashi. Large temple bells are sometimes called daikin (大磬), while smaller ones used in homes are called namarin.
In Chinese, the term qing (磬, or historically 罄) was once used for a musical instrument called a lithophone in important ceremonies. Today, it is also used for standing bells. Earlier Chinese standing bells were called nao (traditional Chinese: 鐃; simplified Chinese: 铙; pinyin: náo).
Origins and history
There is evidence that metal bells first appeared in China. The oldest known bronze bells from the Shang dynasty (16th–11th centuries BCE) are among the earliest bronze objects found in China. Some experts think they may have come from grain scoops used to measure food, as the word "chung" or "grain measure" appears in many ancient texts to describe a bell.
Early bronze standing bells called nao show some of the most advanced skills of ancient Chinese civilization. These bells look like hollow-stemmed goblets with curved edges. They range in size from 8 to 50 cm (3.1 to 19.7 in). They were placed on their stems with the rim facing up and struck on the outside with a mallet. In southern China, nao bells were made as single pieces, while in the north, they were made in sets of three. Some were designed so that striking them in different places created different sounds.
Large bronze bells were being made in China as early as the 13th–11th centuries BCE. The spread of Buddhism between the 2nd–7th centuries CE encouraged the creation of large bells for religious ceremonies. Chinese tradition was unique because bells were made not only from bronze but also from cast-iron.
Some writers believe modern singing bowls may have come from bowls used for eating, but others disagree. They argue that food bowls would not be made with thick rims or designed for special sound qualities.
Although some say "Tibetan singing bowls" have roots in an ancient Bon-Po tradition before Buddhism, historical records do not mention singing bowls being used for music. Visitors to Tibet, such as Perceval Landon in the early 1900s, did not write about singing bowls. Missionaries studying Tibetan healing practices also did not mention them. Objects now called "Tibetan singing bowls" are often made in northern India or Nepal and are not truly Tibetan or used in religious rituals. They are sometimes called "dharma products" but are not connected to Tibetan traditions.
Operation
These objects are a type of bell. A bell is a hollow object that vibrates most strongly near its open edge. A gong, in contrast, vibrates most strongly near its center. These bells are often placed on a pillow to let the edge vibrate freely. Smaller bells may be held gently in the hand instead.
They are usually played by striking, which makes them produce a bell note as a struck idiophone (Hornbostel–Sachs classification 111.242.11).
Some bells can also be used as "singing bowls," which are a type of friction idiophone (Hornbostel–Sachs classification 133.1). To play them, a wooden mallet, sometimes called a wand or puja, is moved around the outside edge. This action creates continuous vibrations through a slip-stick mechanism, similar to the way water-tuned musical glasses produce sound. The loudness of the sound depends on how fast the mallet moves and how much force is used.
Singing bowls can be partially filled with water, which helps tune them. A Chinese version called a "spouting bowl" has handles. When these handles are rubbed with damp hands, water droplets jump upward due to patterns called Chladni patterns on the water’s surface. These bowls may have been made as early as the 5th century BCE.
Scientists have studied how these bowls vibrate. Experiments show that when struck, bowls move in both radial and tangential directions. When played with a puja, the unstable vibration moves around the bowl at the same speed as the mallet, creating a beating sound even with perfectly symmetrical bowls. Rattling or chattering may occur with harder mallets, less force, or faster movement. Studies also examine how bowls filled with water behave, how their sound changes with temperature, and how water droplets are ejected from the surface. A 2011 BBC report included slow-motion videos from one of these studies.
Usage
Standing bells are used for religious activities, music, meditation, and to help people relax and feel better. They are popular with music therapists, sound healers, and people who practice yoga and meditation.
In religious settings, standing bells are often linked to Buddhist meditation and chanting, though they are also used in Taoist traditions. In Chinese Buddhist temples, prayers are sometimes interrupted by striking a qing, a hammered bronze bowl that is 10 to 15 centimeters (3.9 to 5.9 inches) wide. The qing is usually used with a muyu, a wooden block. In Japanese temples, a rin (a bell) is used along with a rei (a small hand bell) and two percussion instruments: an orugoru (a set of small gongs) and a kei (a stone or metal plate). The rin is also used in home worship. Buddhist rituals do not use the "singing" method of ringing bells.
A 1968 reference describes the "celuring-set," an instrument said to have been rare and found only in central Javanese regions. It included a large, decorated frame with bronze bowls shaped like halves of coconuts, struck with a small iron bar.
Bowls that can produce musical tones began to be brought to the West in the early 1970s. Musicians Henry Wolff and Nancy Hennings are credited with introducing singing bowls for music in their 1972 album Tibetan Bells, though they did not describe the bowls used. This was the first of five related albums: Tibetan Bells II (1978), Yamantaka with Mickey Hart (1983), Tibetan Bells III (1988), and Tibetan Bells IV (1991). These albums focus on spiritual journeys, with music as a guide.
After Wolff and Hennings’ recording, a style of American music called "Tibetan music" developed. This style remains popular in the United States, with many recordings labeled as World music or New-age music since the 1980s. As a result, "Tibetan singing bowls" have become a common symbol of Tibet in the U.S., often shown as bowls played by Americans.
Standing bells or bowls appear in several modern classical music compositions, such as Les Uns by Philippe Leroux (2001), Double Music by John Cage and Lou Harrison (1941), Total Eclipse by Taverner (1999), Marco Polo by Tan Dun (1995), Lè by Joyce Bee Tuan Koh (1997), and Eating Variations by Robert Paterson (2006). In Japan, they are also used in kabuki theater.
Longplayer is a musical piece for Tibetan bells by Jem Finer. It uses six short musical selections played at the same time, each at different pitches and speeds, so that no combination repeats for 1,000 years.
In the West, singing bowls are sometimes used in alternative medicine. Their popularity for this purpose may come from studies on vibrations called Cymatics, conducted by doctor Hans Jenny (1904–1972). They are also used in sound therapy and for personal spirituality by people who believe the sound affects the chakras. Western recordings of "Tibetan music" often connect the bowls with relaxation and claim they have healing powers or can create an "altered state" in the listener’s mind. Some argue that the idea of an altered state—whether meditative, spiritual, or related to drugs—is a key part of how "Tibetan music" is viewed in the U.S. and increases its value as a representation of Tibet.
Manufacture and composition
Standing bells are mostly made from bell metal, a mixture of copper and tin. Sometimes, other materials are added, and this can be seen in the different colors of the metal. These bells are usually shaped like bowls and come in many sizes, from a few centimeters to one meter in diameter.
Singing bowls are sometimes said to be traditionally made from a mixture of seven different metals, each linked to a heavenly body. These metals often include gold, silver, mercury, copper, iron, tin, and lead (or antimony). A study from 1996 by Concordia University found that two singing bowls were mostly bell metal, with small amounts of other metals like lead, zinc, iron, and silver. No gold or mercury was detected in the study.
Some singing bowls are also said to contain iron from meteors. Modern "crystal" bowls are sometimes made from crushed synthetic crystal that has been reshaped.
Standing bells are usually made by pouring molten metal into a mold and then shaping it by hand. Some modern bells or bowls may still be made this way, but others are shaped using machines.
After being made, bells or bowls are sometimes decorated with messages, such as words of goodwill, or with patterns like rings, stars, dots, or leaves. Bowls from Nepal may include writing in the Devanagari script.