Get Rid of That Beeping Alarm Clock - Kiyonaga Torii, Beauties in September

Boulder, Colorado—an innovative company has taken one of life’s most unpleasant experiences (being startled awake by your alarm clock early Monday morning), and transformed it into something to actually look forward to. “The Zen Alarm Clock,” uses soothing acoustic chimes that awaken users gently and gradually, making waking up a real pleasure.  Rather than an artificial recorded sound played through a speaker, the Zen Clock features an alloy chime bar similar to a wind chime.

When the clock’s alarm is triggered, its chime produces a long-resonating, beautiful acoustic tone reminiscent of a temple gong.  Then, as the ring tone gradually fades away, the clock remains silent until it automatically strikes again three minutes later.  The frequency of the chime strikes gradually increase over ten-minutes, eventually striking every five seconds, so they are guaranteed to wake up even the heaviest sleeper.  This gentle, ten-minute “progressive awakening” leaves users feeling less groggy, and even helps with dream recall.

One of the ultimate Zen like experiences is waking-up from a great slumber refreshed and energized. Your mind and body are harmoniously one, both alert and focused. Having a refreshed mind and body are two keys to a natural and Zen lifestyle. Waking up in the morning should not be a loud and abrupt awakening, but rather it should be a peaceful positive experience.  The right natural alarm clock can transition your deep and tranquil sleep into a serene start to consciousness. Imagine a long-resonating Tibetan bell-like chime waking you up to a beautiful morning experience.

The right alarm clock can be the most beneficial investment for you. With our Now & Zen natural alarm clock you are awakened more gradually and thus more naturally. Now & Zen is focused on creating a naturalistic lifestyle, and our clocks are an example of our philosophy.

Soothing Chime Alarm Clocks - An Alternative to the Beeping Alarm Clock

Now & Zen – The Zen Alarm Clock Store

1638 Pearl Street

Boulder, CO  80302

(800) 779-6383

Sweetest Sounding Alarm Clocks with Persistent Singing Bowl Chime

Chime Zen Alarm Clocks with Tibetan-Singing Bowl deliver the Sweetest, Most Persistent Sounds that are Unique and Acoustic

What makes this gentle awakening experience so exquisite is the sound of the natural acoustic chime, which has been tuned to produce the same tones as the tuning forks used by musical therapists. According to the product’s inventor, Steve McIntosh, “once you experience this way of being gradually awakened with beautiful acoustic tones, no other alarm clock will ever do.”

Elegant Women. Courtesy of the Japan Ukiyo-e Museum

Now & Zen – The

Gradual Chime Alarm

Clock Store

1638 Pearl Street

Boulder, CO  80302

(800) 779-6383

Just Say No to a Snooze Button, use a Zen Clock

Just Say No to a Snooze Button

Zen Clocks are an Alternative to Snooze Button Clocks that Shorten Your Life!

Now & Zen

1638 Pearl Street

Boulder, CO  80302

(800) 779-6383

unique brass singing bowl alarm clock

The Zen Timepiece

As a result of ten years of product evolution at Now & Zen, we have created the world’s most exquisite alarm clock and multi-use lifestyle timepiece.  Our new Zen Timepiece’s acoustic brass bowl-gong fills your environment with beautifully complex tones whenever it strikes.  In the morning, its exquisite sounds summon your consciousness into awakening with a series of rich, subtle gongs that provide an elegant beginning to your day.  When the alarm is triggered, the bowl-gong strikes just once … then automatically, it strikes again in 3-1/2 minutes … then in 2 minutes … then in 1 minute …  As shown in the chart on the facing page, the gong strikes gradually increase in frequency over 10 minutes, eventually striking every 5 seconds until turned off. Once you experience the Zen Timepiece’s progressive awakening, you’ll never want to wake up any other way.  This aesthetically sophisticated product also serves as the perfect timer for yoga, meditation, bodywork, or any practice activity.  It can also be set to strike its bowl-gong on the hour as a ‘mindfulness bell.’  As beautiful to see as it is to hear, the Zen Timepiece makes an elegant addition to your home.

singing bowl alarm clocks

In addition to the beauty of its sound, the Zen Timepiece is also visually beautiful, serving as a decorative accessory that can be positioned with the digital clock display facing out, or with the bowl-gong to the front, as shown on the right. It is available in either a clear maple wood finish or a reddish-brown cherry wood finish.  The volume of the Zen Timepiece’s gong strikes can be adjusted over a wide range, from soft, subtle ring tones to loud, bold gongs that can be heard throughout the house.  But regardless of how you use it, we are sure that the Zen Timepiece will improve your life with the natural resonant tones of its rich acoustic gong.

The Zen Timepiece runs on 2 “C” batteries (not included), it measures 4.5 inches high, 9.5 inches wide and 7 inches deep, and comes with a 40 page booklet detailing its many uses and its harmonic design.

unique soothing gong alarm clocks with singing bowl

Now & Zen

1638 Pearl St.

Boulder, CO  80302

(800) 779-6383

Gentler-Rousing Alarm Clocks

Get a Zen start to the day with this unique clock that has an acoustic chime to gradually ring you out of bed. Some testers found the chimes too subtle, so if you are a heavy sleeper this is not for you. The clock and chime sit in a small wooden box that can be easily stowed away. Also has battery backup. (now-zen.com)

Adapted from Good Housekeeping:  Read more: Gentle Alarm Clocks  – Good Housekeeping

Now & Zen

1638 Pearl St.

Boulder, CO  80302

peaceful wake up clock

Digital Zen Alarm Clock Testimonial

Customer Testimonial:

“My friends call me a Zen diva. I’ve made a lot of investments in calming equipment, and this is by far one of the best ones. The sound is so soothing, not overly loud, yet strong enough to wake you up. My house has children and pets and I try to avoid anything that’s going to cause chaos. Most loud alarm clocks are truly… alarming. This beautiful clock is exactly what my family needed. In Alaska we have dark throughout the entire day during the winter- so there’s no natural sunlight to wake up your system. An abrupt beeping is not necessarily a ‘bright and early make-you-feel-good’ sort of thing. This alarm is the complete opposite. You literally feel happier waking up to a peaceful chime. It starts your entire day off on the right foot.

I have birds in my bedroom that used to get spooked every morning by the sound of my other alarm clock. This clock allows them to wake up peacefully with me- not terrified. We also have a baby in the house and as anyone who has a child knows, even the slightest sound can startle the poor thing into a screaming cry. We quit using our old alarm clock but still needed something to wake us up in the morning. This was the perfect alternative.

calming alarm clock with chime

I personally like the walnut colored clock. It has more of a ‘cabin’ vibe to it. Looks very pretty in our darker colored interior décor. The lighted digital display is a plus for the naturally dark mornings in Alaska. It’s always nice to be able to conveniently check the time without turning on a bright light. It’s battery-efficient. I personally love that it works by batteries (no reprogramming after the power goes out).

All in all this clock is perfect for homes with children and pets. It’s also great for not-morning-people. The sound makes waking up a whole less stressful. The design is gorgeous. And the clock itself is an absolute darling addition to any home. I would rate this cute little thing 5 out of 5 stars.“

from loneakgypsy…

calming zen clocks come in bamboo, walnut, and maple

Now & Zen Headquarter Store

1638 Pearl Street

Boulder, CO  80302

(800) 779-6383

lavendar

The best herbs to relax after the holiday season.

Shopping, relatives, money—stress. The holiday season is supposed to be a time of joy, but it can also be exhausting. We asked some herbalists and health-care providers to suggest ways to relax after the holidays.

Relieve tension by filling a sachet with dried hops. Tuck it next to your pillow and settle down for a peaceful sleep. The aroma of hops is mildly sedative.

—Portia Meares, herbalist and author, Wolftown, VA

Unwind by soaking in a bath scented with a few drops of lavender oil.

Curl up with a cup of lemon-balm tea. Place 1 tablespoon of the dried herb in a tea ball, drop it in a teacup, add hot water.  Set your Zen Timer with Chime and steep for 10 minutes.

Escape to a sunny vacation spot where you can relax in seclusion. People should vacation in winter, rather than summer; sunny weather gives people stamina to juggle busy schedules, while cold, short winter weather depletes energy.
—Paul Bergner, clinic director at the Rocky Mountain Center for Botanical Studies, Boulder, CO

Nourish the nervous system with herbal adaptogens such as oat seed. This herb contains alkaloids, believed to protect and rebuild the myelin sheath surrounding nerve cells. Take 30 drops of the extract twice a day.

Inhale the calming scent of rosemary essential oil. Mix a few drops into hand lotion or place a drop or two on a cotton ball.

—Feather Jones, practicing herbalist and owner of Turtle Island Herbs, Boulder, CO

Zen Alarm Clock with Gentle Chime for Stress Reduction

Now & Zen

1638 Pearl Street

Boulder, CO  80302

(800) 779-6383

Outdoor Yoga

That most familiar of asana sequences, Surya Namaskar (Sun Salutation) is as rich in symbolic and mythic overtones as it is in physical benefits.

In many cultures, light has long been a symbol of consciousness and self-illumination. “The world begins with the coming of light,” wrote Jungian analyst Erich Neumann in The Origins and History of Consciousness (Princeton University Press, 1995). “Opposition between light and darkness has informed the spiritual world of all peoples and molded it into shape.”

Our primary source of light is, of course, the sun. When we look at our closest star, we may see nothing more than a big yellow ball. But for thousands of years, the Hindus have revered the sun, which they call Surya, as both the physical and spiritual heart of our world and the creator of all life itself. That’s why one of Surya’s many other appellations is Savitri (the Vivifier), who, according to the Rig Veda, “begets and feeds mankind in various manners” (III.55.19). Moreover, since everything that exists originates from the sun, as Alain DaniŽlou wrote in The Myths and Gods of India (Inner Traditions, 1991), it “must contain the potentiality of all that is to be known.” For the Hindus, the sun is the “eye of the world” (loka chakshus), seeing and uniting all selves in itself, an image of and a pathway to the divine.

One of the means of honoring the sun is through the dynamic asana sequence Surya Namaskar (better known as Sun Salutation). The Sanskrit word namaskar stems from namas, which means “to bow to” or “to adore.” (The familiar phrase we use to close our yoga classes, namaste—te means “you”—also comes from this root.) Each Sun Salutation begins and ends with the joined-hands mudra (gesture) touched to the heart. This placement is no accident; only the heart can know the truth.

The ancient yogis taught that each of us replicates the world at large, embodying “rivers, seas, mountains, fields…stars and planets…the sun and moon” (Shiva Samhita, II.1-3). The outer sun, they asserted, is in reality a token of our own “inner sun,” which corresponds to our subtle, or spiritual, heart. Here is the seat of consciousness and higher wisdom (jnana) and, in some traditions, the domicile of the embodied self (jivatman).

It might seem strange to us that the yogis place the seat of wisdom in the heart, which we typically associate with our emotions, and not the brain. But in yoga, the brain is actually symbolized by the moon, which reflects the sun’s light but generates none of its own. This kind of knowledge is worthwhile for dealing with mundane affairs, and is even necessary to a certain extent for the lower stages of spiritual practice. But in the end, the brain is inherently limited in what it can know and is prone to what Patanjali calls misconception (viparyaya) or false knowledge of the self.

The eight basic postures, in order of performance, are Tadasana (Mountain Pose), Urdhva Hastasana (Upward Salute), Uttanasana (Standing Forward Bend), Lunge, Plank Pose, Chaturanga Dandasana (Four-Limbed Staff Pose), Urdhva Mukha Svanasana (Upward-Facing Dog Pose), and Adho Mukha Svanasana (Downward-Facing Dog Pose).

The transition from posture to posture is facilitated by either an inhalation or an exhalation. As you move through the sequence, watch your breath closely. Slow your pace or stop and rest entirely if your breathing becomes labored or shuts down altogether. Always breathe through your nose, not your mouth: Nasal breathing filters and warms incoming air and slows your breathing down, thereby lending the sequence a meditative quality and reducing the risk of hyperventilation.

To perform the sequence, start in Tadasana, with your hands together at your heart. Inhale and lift your arms overhead to Urdhva Hastasana, then exhale while lowering the arms down and fold your torso into Uttanasana. Then inhale, arch your torso into a slight backbend with the fingertips or palms pressed to the floor or blocks, and exhale while bringing your left foot back into a lunge. Inhale forward to Plank, then exhale and lower yourself into Chaturanga Dandasana. On an inhalation, arch your torso up as you straighten your arms into Upward Dog. Exhale back to Downward Dog; step the left foot forward on an inhalation into Lunge. Swing the right leg forward to Uttanasana on an exhalation, then lift your torso and reach your arms overhead on an inhalation to Urdhva Hastasana. Finally, lower your arms on an exhalation and return to your starting point, Tadasana.

Remember, this is only a half-round; you’ll need to repeat the sequence, switching left to right and right to left to complete a full round. If you’re just starting out, it might help to work on the poses individually before you put them together. (Visit www.YogaJournal.com for more how-to information.)

adapted from Yoga Journal, by Richard Rosen

Use our unique “Zen Clock” which functions as a Yoga Timer.  It features a long-resonating acoustic chime that brings your meditation or yoga session to a gradual close, preserving the environment of stillness while also acting as an effective time signal. Our Yoga Timer & Clock can be programmed to chime at the end of the meditation or yoga session or periodically throughout the session as a kind of sonic yantra. The beauty and functionality of the Zen Clock/Timer makes it a meditation tool that can actually help you “make time” for meditation in your life. Bring yourself back to balance.

Yoga timers from Boulder, Colorado

Now & Zen – The Yoga Timer Store

1638 Pearl Street

Boulder, CO  80302

(800) 779-6383