Listen, enjoy, relax
I think I'll pick up right away. Only the heavy shell on my lower back seems to keep me on the couch. Each time it is gently struck, a deep, warm tone spreads from there, a circular, tingling vibration floats through my body. Soon my muscles become soft and warm, the thought carousel in the head stops turning, I come to rest. The therapist does not touch me - at least not with my hands. The relaxing effect is created by the sounds of several bowls, cymbals and gongs of up to twelve different metals. They are placed on the body or struck next to it.
The pleasant sounds are rich in overtones, which resonate in harmony with the basic tone of the shell at different heights. This mixture is wonderfully relaxing. Many sounds also have a very low frequency. Studies at the Poznań University of Technology have shown that this puts the brain in the alpha and even the theta range, ie in deep relaxation similar to sleep or meditation. "The sound of the singing bowl brings every single cell and the soul to vibrate", says the educator and graduate engineer Peter Hess, who developed this method on the basis of ancient knowledge from Nepal and Tibet and his own experience. Just as concentric waves spread in the water when a stone falls into it, the soothing vibrations are transmitted throughout the body. "This releases tension, stimulates the circulation of all tissues and organs, mobilizes the self-healing powers and releases creative energies," explains Hess. Particularly receptive: the reflex zones on the feet and hands, the solar plexus in the upper abdomen, the area of the heart and the point between the eyebrows, the "third eye".
A sound massage makes the soul swing
For every part of the body, there are bowls with different high or low tones, which can be varied by striking with different bobbins. Especially for neck and shoulder tension, headaches, circulatory and sleep disorders, disc, joint, abdominal and digestive complaints and chronic pain help the gentle vibration of the healing sounds. But also in the birth preparation, in hyperactive children and in the rehabilitation after strokes therapists achieve good results. Initial studies on individual complaints show that the deep relaxation leads to a state of complete relaxation and inner emptiness. Instead of pain and tension the soothing vibrations are perceived.
And that feeling works, I realize. Although I have now turned on my back and bowls now sound on the chest and collarbone, my lumbar vertebrae continue to vibrate gently each time. I have not been so calm and relaxed for a long time! And even as I stand firmly on my feet again, I still feel how it vibrates in me.
Good to know: A sound massage lasts about an hour and costs 40 to 50 euros. The statutory funds do not reimburse the costs. There are therapist addresses and seminars on sound meditation for the home at the Peter Hess Institute, Uenzer Dorfstr. 71, 27305 Uenzen, Tel. 042 52/93 98 09, www.peter-hess-institut.de. The European Association Sound Massage Therapy e. V. www.fachverband-klang.de, is currently establishing a system for quality assurance, information on therapy also at www.klangkongress.de.
Recommended reading: Peter Hess: "Singing bowls for health and inner harmony", Südwest- Verlag, 2004, 10,95 Euro
