The Gong in Ancient History Like many ancient inventions, no one really knows how or when the first Gong was created. We do know that it’s origins date back to some point in the Bronze Age, roughly 3-4 thousand years ago. Chinese literature from 500 BCE mentions Gong as being attributed to a nation called His Yu, located between Burma and Tibet, though there is some indication that the Gong was first invented in the area of Cambodia. There were four major areas where Gongs were made, Burma, China, Java, and Annam (what is now part of Viet Nam). Over time, the Gong spread into neighboring areas, including India. The making of Gongs was a ritual work, veiled in magic and mystery. The tradition of making Gongs was very secretive, with only a few families passing their knowledge down from generation to generation. It was thought that higher powers were needed to insure the proper manufacturing processes, and Gong makers were subject to these forces to a far greater extent than were ordinary human beings. In China, owning or even touching a Gong was considered to bring good fortune. It was a symbol of wealth, status, and strength, and was used in ceremonies to invoke ancestral forces, call down blessings, and to banish demons. The Gong was also used as a musical instrument, accompanying celebrations, funerals, ceremonies, in song, and in theater plays and operas. Ensembles containing up to 18 Gongs were not uncommon. In a more crass manner, it was used to get attention from passers by. The term “Gong” (originally Malaysian) is a great example of onomatopoeia, or a word that sounds like what it denotes. Truly, after hearing a Gong being struck with a mallet, what else could it be called? It is what it does. A Melding Occurs Just as the metals that compose a gong are melded together, there has been a melding of the culture of the use of the Gong as it entered Western society. While fine Gongs are still produced in China, most sound healers use gongs made by Paiste Corporation. Paiste Started making symphonic gongs around 1906. In the beginning they made cymbals and symphonic gongs, and later began developing gongs tuned to specific musical keys. In the 60’s 70’s Paiste began developing gongs with unusual shapes and properties which were initially called “Proto Gongs.” People involved in sound and music therapy people started using them and connected the archetypal characteristics of the gong to different emotional and healing processes. They were further refined and became the Sound Creation Gongs. In the 80’s the writer of the Cosmic Octave, Hans Cousto worked with Paiste. Cousto, through very complicated mathematical formulas calculated the exact sound frequencies of planetary orbits, chakras, day lengths and other cosmic occurrences and used these frequencies for healing. Paiste tuned their gongs to the frequencies and these became the Planet Gongs.
Gongs in Spirituality, and Healing As a tool of Spiritual awareness there is nothing save the transmission of the Knowledge of a True Teacher that approaches the Gong’s ability to change consciousness and create states of enlightenment. When a person with an open heart hears the sound of the Gong, magic occurs. Old patterns, thoughts, and emotions are brought to the surface for awareness, healing, and letting go. A form of exorcism often occurs where in old negative holding patterns are jarred loose and offered into the sound for release and healing. Some people experience states of synesthesia, where the sound of the Gong invokes images from this lifetime, past lifetimes, or from the collective consciousness that permeates all reality. Others experience waves of colored light, often blue, purple or white, the higher colors of Spirit. Moving mandalas of great complexity and beauty have also been reported. There are many ways of entering altered states of consciousness through the use of sound. The Gong played masterfully by Dr. Grossman produces an exquisite ethereal resonance so that a journey to other realms is easily realized. I simply did not want the experience to end.
-John Ketarkus - Journey to the Heart
Gong Ceremonies and Gong Masters What allows a Gong Ceremony to be successful is greatly dependent on the skill and wisdom of the person leading the ceremony. Playing a Gong for healing purposes is far more complex than just hitting it randomly with a mallet. Several different tools are used to invoke the healing and transformative sounds. It requires a great deal of spiritual sensitivity, emotional intelligence, musicality, and many years of listening to understand the sounds the Gong can produce and how to use them. Also critical is the Gong master’s Shamanic ability to sense and to deal with the possible negative energies that can be released during the ceremony. A successful Gong ceremony follows the same wave pattern that many events in life and literature follow. Beginning with soft, gentle sounds, the participants find themselves in a state of consciousness that is quickened as an initiatory process begins. Slowly the intensity builds. Then comes a healing stage where, for some people, unconscious negative patterns, images, thoughts, and karmic patterns may be brought to consciousness. Then, as these old patterns are released and healed, the hard work has been completed and it becomes possible to totally relax into pure and joyous Bliss. The Light of Illumination enters the field of consciousness, levels of Samadhi may be reached, and ecstasy and enlightenment fill the room. The Soul and Spirit dance in infinite joy. Finally, comes the gentle return to “normal” waking consciousness, the re-entry phase. My breath and my whole physical being became one with the vibrations of the music. I was transported beyond the small room into vast realms where my consciousness roamed unhindered.
-David Sonnenschein, Author, Musician, Healer
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