Skip to content

Music & Mood: Effects of Singing Bowl Sound Meditation on Mood, Tension, & Well-being: An Observational Study

Authors: Tamara L. Goldsby, PhD, Michael E. Goldsby, PhD, Mary McWalters, BA
Published In: Journal of Evidence-Based Integrative Medicine September 30, 2016

Objective:

This study examined the effects of sound meditation (singing bowls and sound healing), specifically Tibetan singing bowl meditation, on mood, anxiety, pain, and spiritual well-being to further advance research in this area and to lay the foundation for a future more formal randomized control trial.

Method:
Sixty-two women and men (mean age 49.7 years, 9 males, 53 females) participated in 3 locations.

Findings:
As compared with pre-meditation, following the sound meditation participants reported significantly less tension, anger, fatigue, and depressed mood (all Ps <.001). Additionally, participants who were previously naïve to this type of meditation experienced a significantly greater reduction in tension compared with participants experienced in this meditation (P < .001). Feeling of spiritual well-being significantly increased across all participants (P < .001). Tibetan singing bowl meditation may be a feasible low-cost low technology intervention for reducing feelings of tension, anxiety, and depression, and increasing spiritual well-being. This meditation type may be especially useful in decreasing tension in individuals who have not previously practiced this form of meditation.

Join ISTA News Updates & Announcements

Name(Required)
Please prove that you are human by entering this code (case sensitive): ISTASNDS