Callie January, 2010

Onyx

Onyx is a member of the Quartz family.  It can have bands of layered color.  Black Onyx is most often dyed gray Chalcedony.  Ancient Greeks claim that Cupid cut Aphrodite’s nails and threw the pieces into the Indus River.   These pieces turned into Onyx.  Because of this connection to the Greek goddess of love, Onyx has the property to cool the ardors of love, but if you wear it for too long, it can cause the couple to part ways.  This could be because Onyx quells desire.  It can heal old wounds, grief, and sorrow.

The stone Onyx represents vigor, steadfastness, stamina, strength, and self-control.  It is a grounding stone; a connection with the whole is facilitated by Onyx through centering energy.  Indecision is overcome; it is replaced with peace of mind.  The decisions made help us learn lessons.  If you are feeling overwhelmed by stress, meditating with Onyx will help.  This stone is excellent for calming extreme stress.  It alleviates excessive fear and worry and brings intuitive guidance.  The proper support is given in stressful times.  This can help you be at-ease in your surroundings.

Teachers, students, business owners, lawyers, computer technicians could all benefit from using Onyx at work.  If you job calls for a high level of focus, perseverance, and discipline, Onyx can help with that.  It boosts the retention of memory and encourages attention to detail.

The self-control properties of Onyx can help you stick to an exercise or weight loss regime.  If you are trying to improve your health, Onyx can help.  Even if your goal is small, Onyx can help you stick to it and give you a sense of satisfaction when you reach that goal.  It also helps if you have an abundance of ideas, but lack the discipline to stick with it long enough to see it come to into being.  It teaches you that the most important control is self control and helps you keep grounded.

Onyx can absorb from the universe the energies that are required for its purpose.  It is said that Onyx holds the memories of things that have happened to the wearer.  It is important to cleanse Onyx often.  You should also not wear Onyx to bed or sleep with it under your pillow, it can cause bad dreams.  Onyx disperses negative energy so if you know you will be going into a negative situation you should carry it with you.  It also protects from psychic attack.  Onyx was thought to be a manifestation of a dream imprisoned in stone.

Tags: crystals, gems, onyx, stones

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Callie June, 2009

Amethyst

The Ancient Greeks believed that Amethyst was a beautiful pure maiden who refused to get drunk.  Dionysus wanted to show Amethyst the beauties of drunkenness and pursued her constantly.  Diana protected Amethyst by turning her into a Quartz crystal in his despair Dionysus spilled his wine onto the crystal turning it purple.  This led to the belief that Amethyst could protect you from the effects of overindulgence.  The Ancient Greeks would place pieces of Amethyst in their wine glasses or better yet, drink from Amethyst goblets.  Now Amethyst can be used to overcome addiction, blockages and keep thoughts in line with your goals.

Ancient Egyptians ambassadors carried Amethyst scarabs when traveling abroad.  They believed that the Amethyst could see through illusion and protect from treachery.  If a loved one is going on a journey send a piece of Amethyst with them, it will help ensure their safe return.  Amethyst is seeped in ancient magic and has even been said to change color when you are in danger.

Amethyst is a very mental stone.  It stimulates all the energy centers of your body, mind, and spirit.  If you hold while meditating it can enhance mental clarity and improve intuition.  Amethyst also brings the divine into your life and helps your soul feel grounded.

If placed under your pillow or next to your bedside it will ease worry and help you sleep.  It can help you remember and understand your dreams while overcoming your nightmares.  Amethyst is a natural tranquilizer and enhances serenity, which leads to feeling less scattered.

It calms fears, raises hopes, wards off guilt, bestows good judgment, cleanses, releases past hurts, and break spells.  If involved in a lawsuit it helps to ensure that right is done.  You can keep a piece of Amethyst with your divination to heighten their inner energies and even wear a piece during your divination to help bring wisdom and intuition to your readings.

Amethyst clusters can be used to cleanse other stones.  I have witnessed crystals change colors once placed inside an Amethyst cluster.  I use my cluster to cleanse stones if need be, divination tools like my Tarot cards and Pendulums, and even ritual jewelry.  An Amethyst cluster is a powerful tool to have.

Tags: amethyst, crystals, gems, stones

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Callie May, 2009

Fairy Cross Stone

There are two kinds of Fairy Cross Stones, Andalusite and Staurolite.  Andalusite has markings that resemble a cross; these stones are naturally long tubes with the cross on one or both ends.  Andalusite is oftentimes tumbled.  Staurolite resembles crosses themselves and is often found on a larger matrix.  Both stones have the same meaning and are often called Fairy Cross Stones.

The name Fairy Cross Stone gives hint to the stone’s power.  These stones are thought to attract fairies and therefore they represent the four elements and their power.  They help you balance these elements.  Fairy Cross Stones also help you see past illusion.  Using the power of the fairies they attract, these stones can be a gateway to mystery, helping you understand events and dissolve illusion.  By connecting different planes it can facilitate communication between these levels of existence.  It is even believed that these stones first formed as a result of the tears the fairies cried at the crucifixion of Jesus.

Fairy Cross Stones are also protective and healing.  They can dispel negative thoughts and feelings.  It is a very creative stone that can help transmute conflict into harmony.  With their problem solving properties, you are able to see the problem more rationally and se the various sides allowing us to remain strong.

If you have a tendency to over work or over commit yourself, Fairy Cross Stones combat these negative personality traits.  This property also makes the stone helpful if you are trying to quit smoking.  They aid in healing the affects of these bad habits and alleviate depression and stress, even helping us understand death.

As a good luck talisman they were used to war off ill wishes and curses, which helped overcome the feeling of going mad.  They represent devotion, change, and power.  Fairy Cross Stones tend to be a little more expensive, but their usefulness in ritual makes them an excellent addition to your collection.

Tags: andalusite, crystals, fairy, gems, staurolite, stones

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Nyna Shtern January, 2009

New year, New Beginnings

Tags: correspondence, Correspondences, crystals, gems, stones

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Nyna Shtern December, 2008

Love and Warmth

During this time of year everything all around is decorated cheerfully in red and green.  This is to bring happiness to our  hearts during the dark winter season.  We find earthly reasons to celebrate, bringing good cheer to one another with the joy of fun winter activities, and gift giving.  Done properly giving is as wonderful as receiving.  A stone which teaches us about both sides of this coin is rose quartz.

With happiness and good cheer already in the air, rose quartz is a wonderful stone friend to share it with.  Its lovely soft pink color is warming and pleasant to the eye.  Its energy very much matches this color in that it is soft and cuddly.  It gives us a feeling of gentle love and soft well-being when we hold, carry, or wear this kind but powerful stone.  Among its many lessons are:
1.  Universal love.  In rose quartz’s expansive good will, it is easy to open our hearts to the greater love when we are in the presence of  this wise stone.  Its warm energy helps us to feel niceness and good will for the entire world.
2.  Self-love.  Rose quartz gives us its own loving energy.  In seeing that we are loved by this giving stone, we are strong enough to look into ourselves and find reasons to love the person we see there.  Having rose quartz about can soften self-judgments and assist them to be more constructive.
3.  Drawing love.  Rose quartz’s soft love is often felt as romantic by those seeking to find new romance or to strengthen an old one.  Therefore working with rose quartz and asking it for help in these matters can assist in drawing positive results.

With all this in mind, not only is rose quartz a fitting stone to have for the season of love and good cheer, it is also a very fitting gift.  Passing the love on to someone else is a wonderful gesture.  When gifting someone with a stone, it is always beneficial to tell that person about the stone so they  can better understand the new friend you’ve kindly gifted them with.

Another wonderful stone for sharing the joy of the season is carnelian.  This lovely orange or red stone is a very bright and cheerful soul.  It is another  to add to the good cheer of the season, and share it  with those in its presence.  As we’ve the winter solstice coming up, Carnelian is fitting for it is a fire stone, that can be found to come in shades similar to the sun when it appears orange.  Carnelian teaches us about the warmth of a bright cheerful fire that warms our cold hands from the winter chill.  It works with the second chakra, and thus with the freedom of expression of our creativity and sexuality.  As creativity and sexuality both stem from a passionate center, carnelian helps to  keep these in a healthy balance.  If anyone on your holiday gift list could use work in these areas, they’d likely love a new carnelian friend in  their stocking.

May you have much good cheer and love in this bright/dark season of winter festivities. Happy stoning!

Tags: crystals, gems, rose quartz, stones

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Nyna Shtern November, 2008

Beating the Blues

In early November the veil between this world and the world of spirit which opens wide during late October, shuts itself tightly once again.  This often leaves  we sensitives with feelings of depression and loss.  We feel overly grounded due to the loss of excessive magical energy, and just end up wanting to sleep.  We’re drained of energy, and find ourselves understanding why bears have a want to hibernate.  Hello Winter!

To shake this feeling, regain our energy and get back on a good magical track once again, we need to more closely connect with self.  When we reconnect with our own magical energy, the power from within us serves to make up for the  loss of the external magical  power the open veil provided.  Luckily Mother Earth has provided us with some very helpful stone friends for this time of year.

Fluorite, be it green, purple, blue, or rainbow, is a wonderful stone to assist us in connecting to our own power. It is also a wonderful stone for meditation.  Meditating is another wonderful way of reconnecting with the magic of ourselves and our guides during this dark and sleepy time of year.  Which type of fluorite is best for this exercise of reconnecting depends on which feels best to you.  Holding or wearing this lovely opening stone will do wonders for your energy level as well as serving nicely to lift winter depression.

Amethyst, a lovely form of quartz that comes in shades from light purple to almost black, is another wonderful stone to assist in lifting the haze of winter depression.  It resonates with the 6th and 7th chakras, and is a powerful mental healing stone.

Moonstone is another wonderful stone for this time of year. It works with the 7th chakra.  It works with different energetic methods than fluorite, but it is also a stone very good at connecting a person to his/her own personal power and higher self.  It is also a stone of magic, and perfect for helping us to reach the magic within to overcome the heavy winter blues.

Tags: crystals, depression, gems, stones

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Jane Maati Smith August, 2006

Crystals carry energy vibrations, and can subtly help to bring the energy vibrations within your body and aura into a healthy and vibrant balance. Quartz, in particular, is uniquely potent and useful- have you ever wondered why quartz crystals wind up in everything from inexpensive wristwatches, to the most advanced technology? The electronics industry is based on the properties of silicon and quartz crystals; these amazing natural minerals organize and regulate electrical energy. Metaphysically, the quartz crystal can be ‘programmed’ to help clear away negative energy from the aura and re-align the chakra energy centers of the body. Magickally, crystals can be programmed to hold the energy of your desire, and they can charge your spell

work and magickal charms with the energy necessary to manifest into physical reality!

Clearing and Programming Crystals

Crystals are a tool, and can act as a storage battery for positive energy. Crystals can be ‘programmed’ with our thought energy, and act on our subtle energy fields. They also to help to create situations in our lives that will lead us in directions that allow for positive growth and healing.

Clearing a crystal or gem stone is a simple task, and it is a way to insure that there are no left over negative energies from the person who owned it before you. It is a way to personalize your crystal, and create a new energy bond between you and your new gem stone partner. There are many ways to do this, but this is a simple and effective way – make sure you will not be disturbed. Hold your new crystal under running water, and as the water pours over it, close your eyes and imagine all the negative energies are washed away down the drain and out to the vast ocean to be purified by the cycle of life. You can also leave them in the warm Sun, and allow the power of its light purify to the crystal with fire.

To program your new crystal, simply hold it in your hand, close your eyes, then in your imagination, create an image of what you want your crystal or gem stone to help you create. Keep your crystal close to your skin, and when you can not wear it, store it in a special box or bag, which has also been purified and blessed. Fill your crystal companions with love, and you will receive it back threefold!

     

Tags: crystals, gems, stones

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Administrator August, 2006

     Since the earliest times, crystals have been revered as a scared gift from the Goddesses and Gods. They are sacred magical tools, which have been used for psychic powers, healing, spiritual development, protection and divine guidance. Their use is intimately connected with religion, ritual and magick. Both Pagan’s and Non-Pagans believe in the power that the crystal possess. In this article we will look at a small history about crystals, how they are used and why we are drawn to them.

     Seeing people wearing rock crystal or amethyst points hung on chains and earring or set in rings is not uncommon anymore. Usually when some people hear or think of crystals, they think back to the ancient Egyptians or medieval times when in fact crystals have been used long before the ancient Egyptians back in 1352 B.C.E. Archaeologists have discovered that people back in the Upper Paleolithic Period (25,000 – 12,000 B.C.E) were doing this as well. Between the 7,000 and 2,000 B.C.E, cultures in Mesopotamia, ancient Indus civilization, Afghanistan, and the Phoenicians used crystals for jewelry, tools, healing, and protection. And we have continued to use them for jewelry, ritual tools, healing, and protection all the way to our present time. Crystal’s have been a valuable resource that has helped aid us in our search for betterment of our lives on all levels.

     Energy is all around us, and using crystals is a one of the ways to tap into that energy. Crystals transmute and transform, attract and repel energies. As described in the history above, they use-to-use crystals for protection, healing, attract abundance, and create love. Which is how it is still used today by some practitioners, but it has evolved to more then just that. Now and days there is some kind of gadget that you use in day-to-day life that is being aided by a crystal. If you don’t believe me, look around. Do you see a Crystal Quartz watch, Computer, a FM/AM Radio or some type of radio-controlled device? Modern Science has recognized the crystals ability to hold energy, transmit energy and how certain energies will allow a crystal to send and receive signals. This is just a small list of some of the modern way on how we are currently using crystals.

     Crystals will either attract or repel, if a crystal is meant for you, it will find it’s way to you. It will come to into your possession as a gift from someone, or it will catch your eye while you are browsing through a crystal store, or while on a walk. It will attract you to it where you just get the feeling that you have to have it. Sometimes you can idly dip your hand into a tub of stones and one will stick to your fingers. This is one crystal that is meant for you whether you know it or not, but it’s letting you know it. Even if you see a crystal and a person comes to mind, you might feel that it is a beautiful gift or that the person might benefit with this crystal in their life. So follow that instinct and get it for them.

To sum it all up, we are not only attracted to them, but they are also attracted to us as well and will come to our aid in a time of need. They have aided mankind for thousands of years and continue to aid us in present times.

***

author bio:

Chronos

chronos@paganlore.com
www.paganlore.com

Tags: chronos, crystals, intro

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Nyna Shtern June, 2006

Our true essence, or soul is not limited to the mere confines of our fleshly bodies. It actually expands for quite a ways out from our body for several feet. This expansion is called our aura. Most healers agree that illness begins in the aura. At the very least, the aura is affected by illness, so treating it, along with our body itself, is very important and necessary. In taking care of our aura as well is our body, we can insure that many illnesses don’t happen in the first place, then they’ll not need to be healed. One easy way to do this for yourself is to incorporate the natural healing energy of stones in to your life.

A few examples of this are as follows:

1. One of the greatest functions of the stone hematite is its ability to do wonders for the immune system. In keeping it on my body in the form of jewelry all year, I have kept myself from getting a cold or other types of nasty virus’s for years!

2. One of the greatest functions of red garnet is to strengthen the aura. A strong aura is a well protected and healthy aura, so I’m sure you can understand why garnet is my favorite stone to put with hematite for a lovely healing combination. Of course there are many other healing stones. Quartz crystal is quite the diverse stone, and it is a very adaptable and powerful source for healing on many levels. It works well with most other stones to enhance what they do as well as adding its own cleansing and healing benefits to the mix. When you channel your intent to heal in to a crystal who’s energies feel attuned to healing, the sky is the limit! I’ve used a good healing quartz to cure a hang over by allowing it with mental guided imagery, to draw the toxins from my body. In the same way I’ve gotten rid of headaches.

Stones do their healing work in our aura and this result carries over in to the fleshly body. Think of the energy of stones as working like a patch designed to aid smokers to drop the habit. Their energy is soaked into our auras and thus into our skin. I’ve helped several clients to come off unwanted medications by using stones to treat the symptoms instead.

A few examples are as follows:

1. I’ve often prescribed amethyst to treat depression and to aid in over-coming addictions. Amethyst is a powerful healer that works more on the mental level for healing of the mind.

2. I’ve often prescribed serpentine and citrine to aid in the releasing of anxiety. These two stones work extremely well together or can be used alone. While both have many functions, I’m only speaking of those that I specifically use in healing else this article could go on forever! Serpentine has a sedative and calming affect that helps to dull and then deaden feelings of anxiety, leaving a person to deal with situations without that feeling getting in their way. Citrine works to banish anxiety by cleansing it out of the aura and thus the mind. Citrine is a very powerful cleanser. I always call it the stone version of sage, and sometimes use it in its stead. When one is cleansed, negativity is gone, and that includes feelings of anxiety and anger.

3. I’ve often prescribed amber for insomnia. Raw quartz held in the hand works nicely as well, though I find amber more powerful. The two together can work wonders, though.

4. I’ve often prescribed tiger eye to ward off nightmares for a good safe sleep. Remember the very important connection of body, mind, and spirit/aura. If our mind is taxed from sleep full of bad dreams, we’re not going to face the new day at our best. Sleep is where the body, mind, and spirit do a lot of healing work among other things.

5. I’ve often prescribed hematite or quartz crystal for a quick way to get rid of a headache. I allow the hematite’s energy to sink in to my head, doing its healing work there. I suggest using the quartz along with mental visualization to draw out the headache from you into the crystal. Then allow the crystal to release it into the universe where it will dissipate. This usually takes several minutes of relaxation, and focus, but always works well.

I’ve only included a few healing stones here for the sake of space. There are many, and some prefer one to another. I’ve chosen my personal favorites to write of here in hopes that it encourages others to begin to partake of the wonderful healing energy that stones have to give. It is a natural and safe way to treat most things. Of course I’m not suggesting at all that anyone stop seeing a doctor or diagnose oneself, but there are many common ailments that we can treat at home.

Tags: crystals, gemstones, healing, stones

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