Rare & Extraordinary Antique Mani-Lingam Singing Bowl – C5 & F6

Antique Mani-Lingam Singing Bowl.   Notes: C5 & F6 (Root & Heart Chakras)

Weight 2 lb 11 ½ oz. (1.24 kilos).   Size 15.5 x 9 cm (6 ¼ x 3 ½ inches)

This extraordinary antique Mani-Lingam Singing Bowl is only the second of its kind I have come across in over 30 years of collecting.  It is a 50/50 amalgamation of the Mani shape with that of a Lingam, both physically and sonically, and the result is truly wonderful.

This medium size bowl is not quite as heavy as one might expect were it simply a Mani, as the walls are finer than usual.  Viewed from above and in profile it has the typical ancient Mani form with conical walls that taper towards the rim, and a flat inward facing smooth lip.  There are incised bands forming a typical decorative collar below the outer rim and a little further down its bulbous belly.

Thus far, it looks like a Mani bowl!  But take a look inside and there is a lovely mounded breast-like nipple…a beautiful lingam defined and surrounded by concentric circles.  Turn the bowl over and it has, as expected, the wide flat bottom of a typical Mani bowl…except that at its centre is the characteristic depression, yoni or navel, one finds on virtually every Lingam bowl!  This bowl is a perfect fusion of both bowl forms.

The struck note is a beautiful fifth octave C with a frequency of 520Hz that is quite close to concert pitch (a high note like most Mani bowls, and unlike most Lingams).  The played rim note is, like a typical Mani, the same C5 but with a harmonic that one rarely finds in a Mani…a fifth octave F (1431Hz).  This rim note is very special in that it combines the sonic properties associated with both bowl forms…the unique and powerful beat of the Mani with the characteristic sweetness and purity of the Lingam.  This is a very responsive bowl and easy to play; the rim note sings readily with a wooden ringer.

The condition of this wonderful bowl is excellent…structurally sound, clean, and blemish free, and quite remarkable for a bowl that could be 200 or more years old.  A Tibetan silk brocade bowl cushion, a padded striker, and a teak and suede ringer are all included in the price.

Note: Audio clips coming soon.