Feeling overwhelmed by the constant barrage of noise in our lives?
The cure may be a sound that vibes with your chakras in a gently healing space.
That’s the claim behind sound baths, which date back to the ancients — think Tibetan singing bowls — but are a wellness trend that’s been growing in the past few years.
So what are they like and how do sound bath leaders create a sound and space experience that takes you out of yourself and the city?
Reporter Kate Mishkin went to find out. She joined 45 other people at a sound bath held in a ballroom at 1 Hotel West Hollywood, led by Roxie Sarhangi.
Along the way she meets devotees of sound baths and finds out why they are so popular now. “We're in a time when there's a lot of anxiety and people are really looking for ways to unwind in a very deep way,” says Sarhangi.
Mishkin, the daughter of composers, conquers skepticism to give in to an experience that proves that “not all sound is created equal.” Sarhangi uses a mallet to rub the insides of small crystal spheres, eliciting a vibration that emanates throughout the room and is “tuned to a frequency of nature,” she says.
“It's a beautiful sound,” says Mishkin. “It feels like the elements. There's a little bit of fire and ice and earth… I love the idea of curing sound with more sound.”