Zen Alarm Clocks for a Gradual Awakening

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.

Our natural alarm clocks begin your day with grace. When the Clock’s alarm is triggered, an acoustic chime in our clock is struck just once, and strikes again in 3-1/2 minutes, and again in intervals of 10 minutes. The combination of calming chimes and intervals creates a serene start to your day. “Now & Zen natural alarm clock, wake up peacefully.”

Ukiyo-e Madame Print

Being startled awake by a buzzer alarm, or awakened by the unpredictable noise of a clock radio, is certainly less than ideal.  We fall asleep gradually and it is only natural to wake up gradually.  The Zen Alarm Clock’s gradually increasing 10 minute sequence of gentle acoustic chimes or gongs makes waking up a graceful and soothing experience. 

Zen Clocks “gently summon your consciousness into a waking state” in a way that helps preserve dream memories and is easy on your psyche.  It also helps you replicate the gradual process of waking up naturally when your body is ready, even while adding the assurance of an alarm clock to get you up on time. 

When you have a Zen Alarm Clock, you actually look forward to the morning “alarm.”  Moreover, the visual and sonic beauty of the Zen Clock adds to the aesthetic beauty of your bedroom, which is another important aspect of a holistic sleep environment.  Every Zen Alarm Clock comes with a 40 page booklet that describes how it can be used for dreamwork, affirmations, and meditation.

Black Lacquer Zen Alarm Clock

Now & Zen

1638 Pearl Street

Boulder, CO  80302

Zen Clocks by Now & Zen

It would be nice if we could wake up every morning without an alarm.  We fall asleep gradually, and it seems only natural that a gentle awakening is best for our physical and mental well-being.  Some people wake up naturally at the same time every morning without any outside stimulus.  But for most of us, an alarm clock is essential.  The natural desire for a gradual awakening accounts for the popularity of “snooze buttons” on alarm clocks.  But even the minimal effort required to push a snooze button can disrupt the experience of waking up gradually.

Gentle Awakening

The benefits of a more natural “progressive awakening” include better dream recall, prolonged alpha brain wave activity (in which you can make powerful suggestions to your preconscious mind), as well as a general feeling of being refreshed after a good night’s rest.

Well-being

The Zen Alarm Clock’s chime strikes become gradually more frequent over a ten minute period.  The chimes progress according to a “golden ratio progression,” which is an ancient formula of sacred geometry used as a formula for beauty and harmony.

wake up naturally

I recently taught my students about chronobiology—the study of cycles in organisms. We talked about the importance of a good night’s sleep, which is greatly aided by allowing sunlight and moonlight to synchronize our internal cycles. This means gradually awakening to morning sunlight and allowing our bodies to relax before bedtime by avoiding bright light.

Taylor had been troubled by insomnia. After this class, she was ready for a change. A few hours before bedtime, she turned off bright lights around the house and wrapped up her computer use for the day (the light from a monitor can throw off your biological clock). An hour before bedtime, she lit candles and turned off all electric lights. By candlelight, she bathed, got into her night clothes and meditated before falling into a deep, peaceful sleep. In the morning, she was awakened by the gradually increasing sunlight and her chime alarm clock with progressively increasing natural acoustic sound by Now & Zen. She came to class glowing with refreshment and a new sense of empowerment. Now Taylor understands that her body needs a relationship with natural cycles of light and dark. “I’m not nearly as groggy as I used to be,” she says. “Light really is stimulating!”

adapted from Natural Home Magazine, September/October 2009 by Carol Venolia

Carol Venolia is an eco-architect and co-author of Natural Remodeling for the Not-So-Green House (Lark Books, 2006). She teaches in the Sustainable Communities program at Dominican University of California.

Gentle Chime Clock to help you Naturally Wake-Up

Now & Zen

1638 Pearl Street

Boulder, CO  80302

(800) 779-6383

zen appreciation

If you have been browsing on-line you may have seen a Google Ad-words for the search term “Buddhist alarm clock” that leads to our website www.Now-Zen.com.

“Buddhist Alarm Clock” is not a product name or search term we created, but instead one that people have been using on their own.  We are the makers of the world famous “Zen Alarm Clock” and although we are using the word “Zen” as part of our trademark, we are not trying to associate directly with Buddhism or any other organized religion. We have no control over “Buddhist Alarm Clock” being used by Google.

The founders of our company have great respect for the spiritual teachings and the aesthetic achievements of Buddhism, but we also respect and appreciate a wide variety of other spiritual paths as well. Zen is the name of an ancient form of Japanese Buddhism, but ever since Robert Pirsig’s famous book, Zen And The Art of Motorcycle Maintenance, was published in 1974, the word “Zen” has come to have a larger meaning within American popular culture. Zen also connotes a sort of nondenominational metaphysical quality that transcends any particular spiritual forms or teachings. The word evokes the image of a beautiful rock garden or a weather beaten pine tree on a windswept mountainside.

The timeless aesthetics of Zen Buddhism did provide inspiration for our Zen Alarm Clock, but the design also arose from other influences, such as the sublime patterns of sacred geometry.  We thus use the word “Zen” in the name of our product as a kind of lighthearted tribute to progressive spiritual culture.  But, as we have been careful to explain over the 15 years we have been in business, we make products for both spiritual and non-spiritual people and we are not directly associated with Buddhism or any other specific form of spirituality.

Our motto is “quality of thought, stillness of being” and we hope that this is the kind of spiritual message that everyone can appreciate.

We apologize any confusion that the Ad-words search term “Buddhist Alarm Clock” may have caused. If you continue to have any questions at all, please contact us or visit www.now-zen.com for more information.

Awaken gradually

How you awaken each morning can also influence how well you sleep. Some experts believe your body is naturally designed to awaken gradually with the rising sun and should not to be jarred awake by a screaming alarm clock. Dawn simulators recreate a natural sunrise by slowly increasing the intensity of light in the room. A study in BMC Psychiatry found that dawn simulators improved the quality of sleep during winter months for a group of about 80 randomly chosen people.

The right light can also help you fall asleep more easily. Studies have shown that exposure to 2,000- to 10,000-lux light (the equivalent of gazing at the horizon on a sunny day and up to 20 times brighter than normal room lighting) can improve overall sleep quality, says psychiatrist Daniel Kripke, MD, of the University of California, San Diego. This is most beneficial for about 20 to 30 minutes in the morning and a few hours prior to bed. More specifically, light therapy has been used to reset body clocks for those with sleep-timing problems and to correct erratic sleep habits caused by depression. A recent study in the journal Sleep found that evening exposure from a light box effectively treated people who often woke up too early and were unable to fall back to sleep. Exactly how light therapy improves sleep for people with depression remains unknown, Kripke says, but one popular theory is that bright light increases sleep-aiding serotonin levels.

adapted from Natural Solutions Magazine, December 2005 by Matthew Sloan

Natural Awakening, Digital Zen Alarm Clock

Now & Zen

1638 Pearl Street

Boulder, CO  80302

(800) 779-6383