One of Sarah’s early forays into sound healing was an extensive sound healing training in the US with Jonathan Goldman where as part of her training she was introduced to the use of Peruvian Whistling Vessels. She will never forget her first experience of these Whistling Vessels, but as the bulk of her training consisted of vocal work she filed them under a memory enjoyed but possibly not to be repeated. Several years later she was conducting her daily sonic meditation where she plays the gong, drum, singing bowls or uses her voice for around 20 minutes for her own wellbeing and healing and she distinctly heard the words “Peruvian Whistling Vessels”. She wondered why they had come in and then went about her daily business as always, including checking for messages on the Facebook business page. Scrolling down her feed, she saw an esteemed teacher in the US had put a set of the Whistling Vessels up for sale on his page. Not just any old set either, they were one of the original sets made by the artisan Donnie Wright who has specialised in creating these amazing vessels since the seventies. Synchronicity being what it was, she knew she had been given a message to procure them, and so it was. She had to be patient for them. They finally arrived some months later, and their inauguration was held at Stonehenge with a small group of people amongst the stones.
Sarah has had many opportunities to work with the Whistling Vessels in a ceremonial context since that time. She facilitates small closed group experiences. Participants often have profound experiences and lots of heart centred spirit communication where they are drawn back to the space of the heart in all that they do. It is for that reason Sarah incorporates the Whistling Vessels into the Munay-Ki training she offers (Peruvian Shamanic Initiations centred on the energy of love and the heart). The effects can be quite astonishing for many on either a physical, mental, emotional or spiritual context. After suffering a physical injury to her shoulder from a serious accident, the first time she used this particular set of vessels she could feel energy moving around the damaged joint seeking out imbalanced thought and emotion and bringing it to the surface for teaching and letting go… powerful stuff!
So hopefully after two paragraphs you are asking yourselves, what are these Whistling Vessels?
The Whistling Vessels were originally created by an ancient civilisation known as the Chimú who lived between the 12th & 15th Centuries in the area which is now Peru, South America. The Chimú created ceramic bottles which made a whistling sound when blown into. When they are played in a group as a collective ceremonial experience, they create a unique sound, likened by some to the sound of a hummingbird in flight. It is considered that because there is such little information available as to the use or the origins of the vessels, that perhaps they were used in secret by the High Priests of the time, to create altered states in a spiritual ceremonial setting only. The Chimú were succeeded by the Incas. When the Spanish invaded the area in the 1500s, there was an attempt to stamp out any Indian spiritual traditions, and the knowledge and usage of these vessels would have been lost like many of the other indigenous sacred practices of the time.
Although it is profoundly moving being in the same room when a group are playing the Whistling Vessels in ceremony, and an opportunity to journey does exist, the same altered states cannot be achieved as when using the Whistling Vessels directly. If when playing collectively one stops whistling, it has been likened to unplugging from the vortex, so access to the altered states can be more easily controlled. Journeying with the drum or receiving a gong bath can be greatly enhanced after a session with the Whistling Vessels due to the already altered state the participant will find themselves in. Because of this, we often include them in many of the special ceremonies we conduct throughout the year. We also incorporate them into our Ancestral Resonance Process™. For those embarking on the Professional Diploma in Ceremonial Sound, you will receive experiential tuition in working with the Whistling Vessels in group ceremony.
The Whistling Vessels were tuned within a specific range of frequencies, and a unique auditory phenomenon takes place within the ear of the listener whilst playing. The tones interact together in such a way that can only be perceived by the brain through a person’s auditory circuitry. In fact, these Whistling Vessels are considered to be pyscho-acoustical instruments (as opposed to musical instruments) having a profound effect on the person playing them. The set of eight vessels we currently use have been created to maximise the psycho-acoustical interaction between each of the vessels. The clay itself used to create the modern day vessels goes through a true alchemical process and the creative process is still conducted in a sacred and ceremonial way.
Playing the Whistling Vessels singly on their own has little effect, and although one can start to enter an altered state, the sound is merely a high pitched shrill whistle emanating from the vessel. It is when they are played as a collective when the magic takes place as they create specific frequencies known as binaural beats, which make the hummingbird flight sound, heard by those playing. We believe the Whistling Vessels also hold the vibration of a sacred object (known as Huaca; a term from the Quechuan language) and we are particularly mindful that many different groups including healers, monks and spiritual seekers have worked with the particular set of which we are the Guardian, and the high vibrational energy of the Whistling Vessels is tangible when one is merely holding them.
Like many transcendental experiences, it is hard to describe on paper. Some have tried to record and video the experience, but one just cannot demonstrate through media the powerful effects the Whistling Vessels have when being played. We liken it to a drug-free shamanic experience where participants can receive higher consciousness guidance, a clearing of mental chatter and a variety of other expanded states and altered consciousness experiences. People describe many different experiences whilst whistling. Many feel the interconnectedness of all things; Oneness, others feel that time stops still in that moment. Some journey into an altered state where they meet Beings from other realms such as Ancestors or other forms of consciousness and others have a physical experience which also evokes mental/emotional releases.
It is a true honour for us to be the Guardian/Keeper of these vessels at this time and we hope to be able to share with lots of groups in ceremony over the coming years. Please enquire at info@sacredsoundinspirations.co.uk for further information or to attend a future ceremony.
Please be advised if you would like to attend a Whistling Vessel ceremony the vessels do create an internal sound and it is not unusual for people to hear the whistles for hours and sometimes days afterwards with the sound eventually disappearing. There are no contraindications as such, but those with severe tinnitus or perforated ear drums are advised to use with caution and at their own discretion. There is a sensitivity issue that should not be ignored, but generally most people do not have issues, and I myself personally despite playing the whistles many times for up to 30 minutes at a time have not experienced any side effects in this way. Please enquire if you have any questions relating to this.
