Sound of Singing Bells

Photos: Roni Sela

Thanks to the generous support of the ESRA Raanana group, this year the social club for young adults with physical handicaps will be enriched by outside experts and entertainment on a monthly basis.

Recently, they welcomed Dovik Gal and his partner Yael who came to demonstrate their set of Tibetan Bowls (that he actually bought in Nepal and not in Tibet). These bowls are also known as 'Singing Bowls'. The bowls are hand-made from a combination of metals and felt material. In addition, they brought various original musical instruments to show us, including bell harps and Tibetan bells that are used at prayer times.

They showed the participants of the group how the bowls, all differing in size and set out in a particular order, react to the touch of the various drum sticks with different sounds and vibration levels that each appeal to a different part of the body. The gongs themselves are made of different materials and are of varying thicknesses. They let the participants touch the bowls so that each one could actually feel through their own bodies the vibrations that were produced as a reaction to the tapping of the various mallets on the different size bowls. The water that was in one of the bowls "danced" with the energy that was produced from the playing and according to Dovik, the sounds made by the bowls have the same effect on the liquids in the body.

The bowls, with their gentle and relaxing sounds, aid in meditation and all the participants claimed that they felt relaxed after the demonstration and were sure they would sleep well that night.

If you know of anyone who could be of interest to enrich the lives of this wonderful group of young adults, please call Cathy at the ESRA office, 09 950 8371.