Tibetan Singing Bowl

Upon discovering some of Tucson’s local thrift stores, I stumbled across this antique product at Goodwill. It is a Tibetan singing bowl which was probably passed on by many generations. This bowl is used to create a single note or sound by rotating a mallet around its rim to bring someone to the state of meditation. This singing bowl is a derivative of a standing bell, historically originating in China during the Shang Dynasty. However, I soon discovered that the Tibetan singing bowl is also of a Buddhist or Bon tradition (a Tibetan religious version of Buddhism) used for singing and other traditional performances. 

The bowl is made out of a thin metal, most likely copper. The object is very ornate in both its interior and exterior, but I also noticed that it included some form of calligraphy or Tibetan scripts. I predict that they are different words that mean something to the Buddhist religion or the scripts can symbolize some meditative practices. I would like to know more about why calligraphy exists on this bowl and their significance to the culture. 

Singing bowls and bells are also used in religious practices within different Asian cultures. For example, the qing in the Chinese Buddhist temples for chanting and prayer rituals. The Tibetan singing bowls also remind me of the Chinese gong which is used for similar purposes such as ceremonies, rituals, and meditative practices. This product has a lot of history and background itself, but I would like to investigate if there are other Asian cultures ( Japanese, Korean, etc) that use a similar product in their traditions.