About Beaten Hammered Singing Bowls:
Beaten or hand hammered singing bowls are made by complete hand hammering process. In beaten singing bowls, every single singing bowl are carefully hand beaten which requires several processes to finish up and shaping into a perfect hand hammered singing bowl.
In the making process, first the various composition of metals as raw materials (Copper, Tin, Zinc, Iron, Lead, Gold and Silver) are melted into furnace depending on manufacturing needs such as for bronze singing bowl or for seven metal singing bowl making. The hot melted metal are taken from furnace and poured into a Gulli Cup or Dice to prepared metal mould for the various size and weight. Then, the round metal gulli or moulds are taken to make rolling and turn into round metal sheet in needed size and thickness. After that, the sheet are brought for the hand beating or hammering process after precise measurement and categorized for weight and sized bowls.
Regarding hand hammering process of singing bowls making, 4 -5 round metal sheets are piled up one upon another and then heated to red hot burn. The red hot burned metal sheets are hammered from a group of expert artisan till the heat remains in metal, and again processes to red heating for continuous beating for the singing bowl shaping. This heating and beating process with the bundled and piled up metal sheets continues until a desired shape and size forms from a metal sheet. (That is why the hammered or beaten singing bowls will get proportionately difference in a size centimeter with each individual singing bowl).
In hammering process of these singing bowls, the metal sheet must hammer and beating on the time of red hot only which remains softness and flexibility on the metal, this is because as the metal getting colder, will loose its softness and flexibility which in turns tampered and gets hardness on metal, and thus breaks metal or bowl if done hammered. The reason behind this working process is the metal content Bronze or Seven Metal mixture is very sensitive to heat and gets harder if it looses it hot temperature and will have cracks and breaks if works. So in this shaping stage of hammered singing bowls, the makings are done with the duration of hot metal only.
After completion of gaining desired bowls shaping, the individual works start with the making process. At this making stage, every bowl is brought into uniform shape and size and it should also be done by red burning and heating process and then beating. After finalizing the shape and size, hammering is done for final fine tuning and shaping of singing bowls. Then individual singing bowls are then chiseled and made turning the rough surface of singing bowls for fine finishing and looks from inside and outside surface according to finishing needs.
After this process, the hammered singing bowls are processed for cleaning and smoothening process for giving the finish touch either by hand sanding (matte finish) or by buffing or polishing for glossy finish, and finally singing bowls are produced and ready to sell and release for the market.
As per needed, these singing bowls are again sent for other process like hand carvings, antique finishing, colorings, paintings and engraving with various arts works and designs.
Therefore, the makings of hand beaten or hammered singing bowls are very labor intensive work and require very skillful artisans with highly experience and dedication.
The hand hammered or beaten singing bowls are widely popular for meditation, charka balancing, sound therapy, sound massage, healing, water therapy, space clearing and feng shui. It produces a very special rimming and distinct sound and vibration than other types of singing bowls. But the sound and vibration produced will be different with the shape, size, weight and thickness of the singing bowls.
These singing bowls also can be decorated with various carvings and paintings which reflects religious beliefs and values like the hand carving of Buddha Images, Buddhist Deities and Motifs, Eight Auspicious Symbols, Om Mani Padme Hum tibetan mantra, Dragon design, Double Dorje Carvings, Various Mandalas, Louts Designs with various colors and hand painting and etching for better looks and decorations.
