"Iron direction balls"/Chinese chime balls/thingies...

[Sylvan]

I bought these "Iron Direction Balls" a while ago.. You know, they come in an Asian silk covered box and sound like chimes when you roll them around...
http://www.momentum98.com/chx2.jpg

Other than helping in hand flexibility/mobility, I can't figure out what the heck they're actually for. Mine didn't come with an instruction booklet. They clang together too jarringly to use in meditation...

Anybody have any idea on these? I'm confrused... :huh:

[lunachic420]

The first answer is easy...you are supposed to roll them around in one hand without the clanking/jangling...only a smooth, pleasing and harmonious ringing. The other answer is that they can be used to strengthen the kegel muscles.

Blessed Be and Namaste!

[nighstar]

oooo, i have a set of those right next to me now. ^_^ aside from helping you relax, i think you can use them for meditation too.... whatever you'd like to use them for, really.....

mine came with a tiny booklet in chinese & english.... i'll copy it:

BAODING IRON BALL

Baoding Iron Ball, famed as one of the "three treasures" of Baoding, China, is a traditional product renowned at home and abroad. The production of Baoding Iron Ball dates back to the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644), and it has been being made meticulously by Baoding handicraftsman through the ages.
Originally, the Baoding Iron Ball was a solid ball, and afterwards it is designed hollow with a sounding plate into it. Of a pair of balls, one sounds high and one low. It is a teasure necessary for the aged to build up physical strength and remove diseases.

Function: According to the Chinese traditional medical theory of "jingluo" (jingluo refers to the main and collateral channels, regarded as a network of passages, through which vital energy circulates and along with the acupuncture points are distributed), the ten fingers are connected with the heart, that is to say, by means of jingluo the ten fingers are connected with the cranial nerve and vital organs of the human body, including heart, liver, spleen, lungs, kidneys, gallbladder, stomach and intestion, etc. On plucking the iron balls with fingers, the ball can stimulate the various acupuncture points in the hands, resulting in the unimpededness of circulation of vital energy and blood in the body. It can cause the jingluo (channels) unblocked and thorough, the vital energy and blood to function in harmony, the muscles nimble, the bones strong, the mind sober, can invigorate the circulation of blood, and can pervent and cure hypertension and various chronic diseases. If you keep on taking exercise everyday for months and years. You can get the fine results of keeping your brain in good health with high intelligence and good memory, relieving your fatigue, drowning your worries, and moreover, prolonging your life.

Usage: When taking exercise, put two iron balls on your palm, and crook and stretch the five fingers in sequence to cause the balls to rotate and revolve, either clockwise or counter-clockwise. In so doing, all the joints of the hand are always in motion; and with the crooking and stretching of the fingers, the forearm muscles are contracted and relaxed harmonically. At first, you may select balls of small size for exercise; and when skilled, you can select balls larger and larger in size. Your two hands may practise in alternation, and three or four balls may be put on the pall at the same time for showing a variety of figures.

Maintenance: The ball is made of metal, which should be kept dry and clean and prevented from violent collision. If it is to be put unused for a long period of time, coat it with wax or grease for sealing and preservation

Baoding City Hebei China

....not the best english translation, but still useful. ^^;;

i hope this helps! :]

[Sylvan]

Thank you very much! :) Guess I'd better practise more to keep them from "violent collision".. :lol:

[Faeawyn]

The other answer is that they can be used to strengthen the kegel muscles.

Blessed Be and Namaste!:foh:

[mothwench]

Thank you very much! :) Guess I'd better practise more to keep them from "violent collision".. :lol:
that's the trick. :graduate: good luck with them, and have fun! i had a pair a couple of years ago, i must have lost them during a move. i think i'll get meself another pair. i miss them. :lol: thanks for reminding me.

:)