The meaning of the musical instruments in Buddhist rituals

Bells, Drums, Gongs, and Plates are Buddhist instruments. “Brahma Bells and Drums” are common nouns used to refer to the great bell and the large drum, which are usually placed on the left and right sides of the main hall, in the manner of “ta chung, huu co” (left side of the bell, right side of the drum). Many pagodas also build towers to house the bells and drums, so the place where the bells and drums are placed is called the bell and drum tower; the bell tower (chung lau); the drum tower (co lau)…

Sound of the Dharma Instrument

To have the sound harmonized in a rhythmic way, high and low, to increase the solemnity and spirituality of the ceremony, it is necessary to have the dharma instruments to act as supporting means in the ceremonies such as: bells, drums, wooden fish, wooden clappers, cymbals, gongs, wooden clappers, conch shells, cymbals, gongs, clappers, and clappers. In addition, the octave music (erhu, moon lute, flute, drum, trumpet, lute, clappers) is also used in the grand ceremonies. In which:

Bell:When hearing the bell, people feel a sense of peace and relaxation, because the bell has the power to bring joy to the living and deliverance to the dead. "The alarm bell": leisurely, warm, if it is too loud and makes the mind agitated, it is not a temple bell.

Drum:The sound of the drum represents the majesty and bravery of Buddhism. The Buddha's teachings are likened to the sound of thunder breaking through ignorance and delusion, like the sound of endless ocean waves reverberating throughout the nine levels and down to Avici Hell.

Wood:The sound of the sutra blends with the sound of the wooden fish, with a deep, warm tone, to stop all delusions and delusions, to open the eyes of wisdom to look straight into one's inner self to transform evil karma into good karma, to transform suffering into happiness, to transform the world into Nirvana.

In addition, other Dharma instruments such as: tanh, linh, and khanh also have the same nature as a means to express Dharma sounds to help practitioners develop their spirituality towards liberation...

The voice of the temple

The main tone of chanting is the low tone. We can say that all Buddhist traditions are based on that. In their practice, the Tantric, Pure Land, and Zen traditions have thoroughly developed the methods of chanting and formed a rich Buddhist ritual music.

The basic melody of the chants still uses a deep, warm tone as the basic sound and a steady rhythm following the heartbeat and breathing for the purpose of calming the mind. Occasionally, the celebrant sings in a high voice, but that is only to increase the power of the ceremony. When it goes high, it does not cause the mind to be disturbed or confused.

In short, there is a basic melody in the chanting methods of Vietnamese Buddhism that the technical term calls "meditation breath" or "meditation flavor"; that is, a warm, rhythmic breath with a liberating tone, causing the listener to awaken and develop a good heart.

To achieve good results, the temple needs to practice diligently: the tone of the voice and the breath. It requires a long-term effort from you. It is best to chant the sutras every day.

The master of ceremonies, depending on the level of understanding of each congregation, will choose and chant appropriate pieces for the congregation, thus harmonizing the sound and tone to achieve satisfactory results.