ACOUSTICS OF

CHANTS, CONCH-
SHELLS, BELLS AND
GONGS IN HINDU
WORSHIP SPACES
M.G. PRASAD AND B. RAJAVEL
INTRODUCTION
Worship is the pinnacle of communication between God and human beings in many religions. Worship can be
individualistic or communal. Individual worship can happen anywhere and anytime. However, the communal worship
usually requires dedicated spaces such as temples, gurdwaras, churches, synagogues and mosques.
Communication during the worship can take several forms. Praying mentally and contemplation can be silent
whereas other forms of worship such as chants, songs and music all will involve sound [1-3]. Acoustics plays an
important role in worship spaces in all cultures and religions of the world. This is natural as acoustics deals with
sound, one of the senses of perception [4]. In Hinduism, acoustics is of major importance in various aspects of life
namely spirituality, religion, culture, science, art etc. It is well known that sound plays a very important role in Hindu
worship spaces namely homes, community halls and temples. The Vedas, which are the foundational literature of
Hinduism, are the collection of mantras chanted with precise acoustical characteristics [5-8]. It is for this reason oral
tradition has been very efficient in transmitting the Vedic chanting from master to disciple [7]. The use of Vedic
chants in Hindu worship is well known. In addition to Vedic chants (vocal), conch-shells, bells and gongs are also very
commonly used to enhance the spiritual experience of the devotees during the worship [9]. This paper presents
acoustical studies of chants and of these instruments sounding individually as well as collectively. Figure 1 shows
typical Conch-Shell, Bell and Gong instruments used for the study. The paper also discusses the importance of these
instruments and their contributions to the acoustics of the Hindu worship spaces.
VEDIC PERSPECTIVES ON SOUND
Vedas are categorized into four namely Rig-Veda, Yajur-Veda, Sama-Veda and Atharvana-Veda. Vedas
refer to the body of the knowledge that deals with physical, psychological and spiritual aspects of life
and cosmos. The word “Veda” is etymologically related to a verbal root “Vid” meaning “to know”. In
addition it is interesting to know that Vedas are collection of very large number of “mantras”, which are
referred as Vedic chants. These Vedic chants have phonetic characteristics such as pitch, duration,
emphasis, uniformity and juxta-position [7]. These Vedic chants are orally transmitted with extraordinary
acoustic precision from master to disciples from ancient times to present times. It is well known that
the acoustic precision in the oral transmission of Vedic chants, music and speech cannot be surpassed
through writing [5, 7]. In 2003, UNESCO proclaimed that the oral tradition of the Vedic chanting as an
intangible cultural heritage of the world. The proclamation recognizes that “..To ensure that the sound
of each word remains unaltered, practitioners are taught from childhood complex recitation techniques
that are based on tonal accents, a unique manner of pronouncing each letter and specific speech
combinations”
The philosophical and spiritual aspects of
sound are also very much emphasized in
Vedic Hindu tradition. It is interesting to note
that the commonly referred five basic
elements in Vedic literature namely space, air,
fire, water and earth are related to
corresponding senses of perception [5, 11].
The subtle to gross order of correspondence
according to the Vedic tradition is shown in
Table 1. It is interesting to note that the
spatial experience is solely related to the
sense of sound perception
ACOUSTICAL ASPECTS OF
HINDU WORSHIP SPACES
Temples (devaalayas or mandirs) as worship spaces have been an integral part of Hindu religion
from ancient times. Hindu temples in India and around the world are marvels of art and
architecture. Hindu temples play a major role in not only performing various sacraments and
celebrating festivals but also a resource for spiritual development. In addition to Hindu temples as
worship spaces, Hindus also use spaces such as community halls and specified space in their
homes as spaces of worship. The worship practice in general consists of a priest performing the
worship on behalf of the congregation. However, at some stages of worship devotees chant
together mantras and recite prayers along with the priest. Devotees also sing together songs as
prayers and they are known as bhajans and kirtans. In addition to the mantras and bhajans,
instruments such as bells, gongs and conch-shells are also used in the worship
The dimensions of this chamber are based on the size of the deity. This chamber has
only a door and no windows. Only the priest is allowed in this chamber for worship through
chants and prayers. Generally the priest also rings a hand-bell during the worship along
with chants. Generally this chamber is built of walls made of stones. The interesting
acoustical fact is that this chamber is highly reflective and has a high reverberation time.
In addition, this womb-chamber is generally connected to another space through its door opening.
This attached second space is generally called as “Ardha-Mantapa” which means “half-chamber”
to indicate that this space is about half the floor size of the Garbha-Griha. The Ardha-Mantapa
is also made of stones and is highly reflective with high reverberation time. The scriptures
called Agama Shastras on temple design prescribe that the whole temple is designed based
on the size of the deity installed in the Garbha-Griha. The acoustical importance of Ardha-Mantapa
is that a number of priests in addition to the main priest in the Garbha-Griha chant in unison
and also the instruments such as conch-shells, bells and gongs are sounded. Generally the
Ardha-Mantapa leads to a “main hall” referred as “Maha-Mantapa”. It is in this Maha-Mantapa
where a large number of devotees assemble and participate in the worship [12-14].
The Narayanaswami temple at Melkote, near Mysore city, Karnataka, India is a well-known
temple dated back to 11th century A.D. Figure 3 shows the floor plan of the temple.
The spaces noted as 1, 2 and 3 in Fig. 3 are the Garbha-Griha, Ardha-Mantapa and
Maha-Mantapa respectively. The dimensions of the Garbha-Griha are 7 ft 10 in. x 8 ft 2 in.
(2.39 m x 2.49 m) with a height of 10 ft (3.05 m). The dimensions of the ArdhaMantapa
are 13 ft x 6 ft 9 in. (3.96 m x 2.06 m) with a height of 10 ft (3.05 m) [15].
CHANTING THE MANTRAS
IN HINDU WORSHIP
SPACES
Vedas, the foundational literature of Hinduism refers to infinitely large collection of
mantras. These mantras describe the various facets of knowledge dealing with life
and cosmos [4]. The chants from Vedas are extensively used in worship and
sacrament rituals at homes and temples. Sounds of the Veda mantras chanted in
Figure 7. Spectra of Vedic-
Hindu worship spaces would carry the listeners to spiritual experiences. The
chanting (V) alone. (Note: All the
acoustical characteristics, in addition to the clear phonetic articulation of chants,
audio recordings were made at a
have deep impact on the devotees [4, 16, 17]. The Vedas are recited by a single
distance of 2 ft (0.61m) in the
priest or a number of priests collectively throughout the rituals or worship.
anechoic chamber, community
Sometimes devotees also join the recitation of Vedas. In this study, a single priest
hall; 15 ft (4.6m) in Temple
recitation is measured and sound spectral analysis is carried out for an anechoic
(Bridgewater) and 5 ft (1.52m) in
room, a community hall and an Ardha-Mantapa of a temple. The observed
Temple (Albany). However, all the
frequencies are given in Table 3. The measured sound spectra of the vocal (Vedic
graphs have been corrected for
chanting) are given in Fig. 7. It is noted that the observed fundamental frequency
the distance of 15 ft (4.6m).)
of the Vedic chanting spectra (V1) is 147 Hz. The recoded audio (.mp3) files of
typical Vedic chanting recorded in anechoic room, community hall and Ardha-
Mantapa of temple (Bridgewater,NJ) are also embedded in Fig. 7.
 SOUNDING OF CONCH-SHELLS
IN HINDU WORSHIP SPACES
Conch-shell (Turbinella pyrum or Indian Conch) is a musical wind instrument that is made from a seashell, one
of several different kinds of very large sea snail. It is also sometimes referred to as “conch-shell trumpet” and it
is thought to have been the original horn-trumpet. The clear and hauntingly beautiful sound when blowing the
conch-shell trumpet was an integral part of daily life in many societies, where it was used for communication
and religious rituals. The recent excavation of twenty conch-shells (Strombus Galeatus marine shell trumpets)
referred as chavin pututus in Peru was reported [18]. In Hindu religion, conch-shell is of great importance and
symbolizes luster, brilliance, purity. Its tonal sound provides auspicious beginning of an event. In many Hindu
temple rituals, conch-shells are sounded to announce the beginning and the ending of a worship and also
arrival of the deity. It is used both as a musical instrument and as a container for holy water. It is also used to
drive away the evil spirits [13]. It is interesting to note that sound from conch-shell has a loud and sharp tonal
quality that can be recognized while listening. Figure 8 (a) shows the X-ray tomography view of the conch-shell.
The Fig. 8(b) shows the equivalent horn of the conch-shell based on unwinding it with reference to the major
and minor axes of the elliptical cavity. It is seen from Fig. 9 that the conch-shell has a very high Q-factor
SOUNDING OF BELLS IN HINDU
WORSHIP SPACES

A well designed bell is an indispensable and an important part in most Hindu worship (pooja) and
prayers. the actual poojaIt is also observed that a well-designed bell would produce long strains of
the sound ‘OM.’ Usually the bell is sounded before begins. A bell is also rung in a Hindu worship,
during the waving of camphor light in front of the deity, while bathing the deity and while offering
food. The sound made from a well-designed bell is uninterrupted, reverberating, deep and sonorous.
The bells used in Hindu temples are usually made of five metal alloys or panchaloha. The five
metals used are gold (Au), silver (Ag), copper (Cu), iron (Fe) and lead (Pb). A typical hand-bell used in
Hindu worship rituals is shown in Fig. 1. The spectra of the hand-bell are shown in Fig. 11 and the
observed frequencies of the bell are given in Table. 3. It is noted that the fundamental frequency of
the bell analysed for the study is 1292 Hz and it also noted that the second higher tone is not an
integer multiple unlike conch-shell. The recorded audio (.mp3) file of ringing a hand bell in anechoic
chamber, community hall and temple (Bridgewater, NJ) is also embedded in Fig. 11.
COMPARISON OF HAND-BELL AND
HANGING-BELL
In Hindu worship spaces especially in temples, there
are large bells suspended at the entrance and in
some temples also inside the Ardha-Mantapa. When
the devotees enter or leave the temple premises they
ring the bell. Also in temples, hanging (suspended)
bells are rung when the pooja is offered. In this study
the sound spectrum of hanging-bell (the same hand-
bell was suspended) is measured and analysed in an
Anechoic chamber. The frequency spectrum shown in
Fig. 12 indicates that fundamental and second higher
tones are coincides with the hand bell spectra.
However, the measured sound pressure level of hand-
bell is higher than the hanging-bell. The observed
higher value in hand-bell is due to the pendulum
striking at two places in very short time period
compared to the hanging-bell. The recorded audio
(.mp3) files of striking the hand-bell and hanging-bell
are embedded in Fig. 12. The spectral plot of time-
decay of a hand-bell is shown in
SOUNDING OF GONGS IN HINDU
WORSHIP SPACES
A gong is a musical instrument that takes the form of a flat, circular metal disc which is struck with a mallet. Gongs are
broadly of three types. Suspended gongs are more or less flat, circular discs of metal suspended vertically by means
of a cord passing through holes near to the top rim. Bossed or nipple gongs have a raised centre boss and are often
suspended and played horizontally. Gongs are made mainly from bronze or brass but there are many other alloys also
in use. Gongs are fabricated by a metal (iron) or wooden hammer after repeated intervals to get sound of same pitch.
Sharavage et al [24] studied in detail the vibrational properties and the modes of vibration of the gong. They [24]
carried out the spectral analysis and time‐average holography on the gong. They also [24] observed that the
vibrational properties of gongs will depend on the point of actuation and found the modes of vibration and its
mathematical equation. In Hindu temples, gongs are sounded during the worship and they are sounded along with
other musical instruments such as conch shells and bells. The sizes of the gongs are usually small and they are
sounded using wooden mallets. They are made of brass and circular in nature. A typical gong used in Hindu worship
spaces is shown in Fig. 1. For this study the gong is excited at the center and spectral analysis is carried out. The
measured fundamental frequency is 392 Hz. It is noted that unlike the conch-shell, the higher frequencies observed in
gong are not exact integer multiples. The measured sound spectra are shown in Fig. 14. It is also observed that the
fundamental frequency and its higher tones are not shifted when the measurement is taken at reflective room which
is similar to the observation made for Bell ringing. The recorded audio (.mp3) files of gong struck at center in an
anechoic chamber, community hall and in Ardha-Mantapa of Hindu temple are also embedded in Fig. 14.
 EFFECT OF STRIKING THE GONG AT
DIFFERENT PLACES
In this study the gong is hit at three
different places and the
corresponding sound spectra are
analysed. The spectral analysis are
carried out for striking the gong at
the center (r=0), middle (r=R/2)
and at the edge (r=R). The spectra
are shown in Fig. 15. The spectra
indicate that the striking at three
different places does not have any
effect on the fundamental
frequency. The audio (.mp3) files of
striking the gong at three different
places recorded in anechoic room
are also embedded in Fig. 15
 SIMULTANEOUS SOUNDING OF
CONCH-BELL-GONG AND CHANTING
IN HINDU WORSHIP SPACES
In worship rituals at a Hindu temple, in a community hall and in
a worship room at individual homes, usually all the instruments
described above are simultaneously sounded along with Vedic
chanting during the pooja. In this study we have measured the
sound spectra of all the three instruments played along with
Vedic chanting. The measurement was carried out in anechoic
chamber, community hall and Ardha-Mantapa of a temple. The
measured frequencies are given in Table 3 and the sound
spectra are shown in Fig. 16. It is observed that the measured
spectra of all the three instruments and vocal chanting are
combination of individual frequencies of the ConchShell, Bell,
Gong and Chanting frequencies. The recorded audio (.mp3)
files of playing three instruments and Vedic chanting
simultaneously in an anechoic chamber, Ardha-Mantapa and
community hall are also embedded in Fig. 16
CONCLUSIONS
In Vedic Hinduism sound has received major emphasis through mantras, music, religion and
spirituality. It is well known that sound plays a very important role in Hindu worship spaces
both at homes, community halls and temples. It is observed that both Garbha-Griha and
Ardha-Mantapa significantly contribute to the acoustical enhancement of the spiritual
experience of the devotees. The effects of Vedic chants in Hindu worship are well known. In
addition to Vedic chants musical instruments such as conch-shells, bells and gongs are also
very commonly used to enhance the spiritual experience of the devotees during the worship.
It is known that sounds of these instruments along with Vedic chanting during the prayer
would enable the wandering mind of the devotees to focus on the worship rituals. In this
study, evaluations of acoustical characteristics of these instruments have been carried out by
sounding individually as well as collectively. Measurements are carried out in an anechoic
chamber, community worship hall and temple. The observed sound spectra indicate that the
measured frequencies are collection of all individual frequencies. Also the frequencies are
distinct and are spread across from low to high frequencies in the active hearing range,
which contribute to the spiritual experience of the devotees.