get gonged
Posted on 26. Jun, 2010 by Katherine in dine
words > JESSY CLONTS
Upon arriving at Wakarusa last Thursday morning (after a six and a half-hour road trip and three-hour wait to get will call tickets) my agenda for the weekend was simple: kick off summer camping season with a bang, dance to Bassnectar, and have a great time with the Naked City staff. The following day however, the agenda expanded to include one more must-do action item: Get Gonged.
We spent our first day wandering the festival and feasting on the sights before catching bluegrass band Mountain Sprout. I heard the gongs before I saw them, an almost-comical reverberation that conjured images of silly game shows and old ninja films. When we reached the sound we found not one but several gongs placed in a circle under a shady tent, plush with carpets. Within the circle sat about six people shoulder to shoulder, eyes closed in a meditative state. Two pretty women in scarves and sandals walked slowly around the circle, softly pounding the gongs with padded mallets in a continuous ring. Interspersed with the deep baritone of the gongs they chimed in with tiny bells and Tibetan singing bowls. The group called themselves The Conduit, and they were encouraging meditation through vibration. Here in the middle of a raucous human circus was a magic carpet of perfect tranquility. I had to try it.
My gong experience took place two days later after 48 hours of roasting in the sun, swimming in the creek, meeting countless psychadelic entrepreneurs, and stuffing my soul with music shows upon music shows. The sun was going down and it was still a million degrees out. I entered the gong circle and leaned back against the shoulders of the five others sharing in the experience with me and closed my eyes. For the next five minutes I heard nothing but soothing metal vibrations. I felt the breeze flow off the back of the gong sitting fifteen inches from my face and had to keep myself from slumping over in a state of REM. When they were finished and appealed to us for donations (the service, or gift, was free), I walked out of the circle feeling cleansed, like my brain had just received a Swedish massage. The word Gong had officially just become a verb, and I wish I could get gonged every day.
The sonic guides from The Conduit play Tibetan singing bowls and gongs to put people into deep states of meditation and relaxation through vibrational alchemy. They are currently on a nationwide festival tour with the intent to eventually be paid for their services. Find out more about the Conduit at www.gongtheplanet.com
