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Gemstones and Healing: Lapis Lazuli

CATALOGING THE GEMS

I evaluate a gemstone in a number of ways. First, it falls into one of these categories: Heart Stone, Grounding Stone, Guard Dog Stone, High Energy Stone, Trauma Stone, Mental Stone, Stress Tone, Luck Stone, Psychic Stone, Money Stone, Arthritis Stone and Master Healer Stone. I created this system over the years because each stone has unique skills. Some, like the Master Stones, are diverse, multi-skilled and affect more than one chakra in our aura. With this blog, we’re going to look at a Guard Dog stone, the Lapis Lazuli family.

PSYCHIC’S STONE

Lapis lazuli has a long and honored mystical and ancient past. A Psychic Stone is one that helps you to listen to your intuition or hunches. In some cases, it can make a person clairvoyant, but the other indicators have to be there first. This is a stone that helps people who are usually not listening to their own inner ‘voice,’ get in touch with it via the stone’s help and support. It is also good to wear it while meditating, because it will deepen it.

THE HISTORY OF LAPIS LAZULI

Lapis Lazuli, gemstone of the Kings and the ‘sapphire’ of ancient times, is one of the oldest gems known to civilization. It was considered the gateway to Heaven. The name is international, from the Latin, “lapis”, which means “stone”, and from Arabic, “azul”, which means “blue”. Expensive forms of Lapis Lazuli are always cobalt blue and without white streaks or specks in it. Lapis is unique and distinctive with its varying colors of white or gray (calcite) purple or dark blue streaks (lazurite) and flecks of gold (pyrite). Lapis Lazuli is still mined at the deposits of the ancient world in Afghanistan. Lapis is also mined in Chile, Siberia, Colorado in the United States, and in Myanmar. It has been traded by ancient Mesopotamian civilizations for six thousand years.

Lapis Lazuli Chemical composition: Lapis lazuli is a rock composed mainly of the following minerals: Lazurite, Hauynite ,Sodalite, Noselite, Calcite and the gold flecks of Pyrite.

The color of Lapis can range from a very light blue to a purplish color. It has no cleavage. Lapis occurs in limestone formations as a result of contact metamorphism. If a jeweler cuts into the stone, it produces a rotten egg odor. The most expensive type of Lapis is dark blue with a field of spots of gold pyrite within it. This is the ‘field of stars’ look, or the ‘gateway to Heaven,’ symbology. Look deeply into this field and you will lose yourself into the greater Cosmos that surrounds and connects with each one of us.

Through the ages, lapis has been associated as a stimulant for psychic abilities. People who wear it feel more intuitive and more in touch with their inner knowing and voice. Well known for its ability to work with the throat chakra, this gorgeous stone is really about truth, and speaking one’s truth. It also helps a person gravitate to their own, personal belief system and find sustenance as well as inner journeying into the depths of it. It makes us more open in all ways, including openness to psychic experience. In healing, lapis is purported to alleviate fevers and diseases of the blood. Lapis lazuli represents the sixth chakra, the Throat Chakra.

The Ten Commandments were said, in some traditions, to be written on Lapis tablets. And Aaron’s Breastplate of Judgment was said to have contained Lapis, among other stones. Greeks and Romans used Lapis as a gift for those who were honored for their bravery and courage. It was also regarded as a stone of friendship.

The Egyptians knew the value of Lapis Lazuli, and used it in many ways throughout the thousands of years of their culture in Egypt. They used Lapis as a necklace, fetish, bracelet and earring adornment, crushed it into a powder and used it as a paint on their pottery jars, and to create beautiful works of art in the tombs of their kings who were gods passed on to the Land of the Dead. It was called the “eye of Truth,” by the Egyptian. They valued lapis as much as gold. Pharaohs had an eye carved from Lapis to symbolize Universal Truth and good judgment in all spiritual–and earthly–matters. Lapis was one of the most precious of all stones in Egyptian culture. The priests and priestess prized it and found it useful in contacting the gods and goddesses because it made them more psychic so that they could pierce the veil between the worlds, which enabled them to communicate clearly with them.

Physicians of the ancient world regarded Lapis as a major remedy for the eyes. Placing the Lapis in a bowl of warm water, they would then use the essence of this water to bathe the person’s eyes. Lapis was used on swelling as well as on pain. The stone was warmed first. It was known as a remedy for Malaria, depression, neuralgia, spasms, leg cramps and blood disorders. This gem has been known since ancient times, where the Romans believed it was a powerful aphrodisiac, and in the middle ages, it was thought to keep the limbs healthy, and to free the soul from fear.

The Renaissance masters used crushed Lapis Lazuli as their “ultramarine” blue in their magnificent paintings. Oil was mixed with this crushed gemstone. Lapis was the ‘go to’ gemstone for this color up until 1834, when it became possible to create the color synthetically. Many Madonna paintings contain the dark blue color that is derived from this gemstone. The color is an intense blue and there was nothing else to rival it in the world of the Old Masters. Unlike other pigments that they used, the crushed Lapis Lazuli never paled or lost its beautiful deep blue color. When one of the Old Master’s paintings must be restored, crushed Lapis Lazuli is used once again.

The most famous Lapis Lazuli mines in the world are located in the Badakhshan province in the northeastern part of Afghanistan. These mines are located at an altitude of over 8,000 feet, and it can take over four days for the material to reach Kabul, where it is then sorted and prepared for export. Because of the adverse weather conditions, mining can only be carried out between June and November. Lapis lazuli from Afghanistan is considered the finest in the world. Some people prefer it with pyrite (gold color inclusions) and some people prefer it without any pyrite. As for value, the only difference is taste. Lapis Lazuli has a hardness of 5.5 to 6.

Lapis Lazuli is somewhat porous and should be protected from chemicals and solvents. Warm soapy water is the best way to clean it. Lapis is not very hard: Being only 5.5, it should be protected from other jewelry when stored to avoid scratches. Lapis Lazuli lends itself to any wardrobe. Quite popular with traditional everyday wear, it can also be worn in more formal settings. The rich royal blue color blends magnificently with most colors.

Expensive forms of Lapis Lazuli are always cobalt blue and without white streaks or white specks in it. Lapis is unique and distinctive with its varying colors of white or gray (calcite) purple or dark blue streaks (lazurite) and flecks of gold (pyrite, which is known as “fool’s gold”). The ‘gold’ in Lapis is said to be representative of our ability to reach for the stars or ‘heaven.’ And the pyrite found within the blue stone represents the higher spiritual realms or the Creator.

lapis lazuli dragonfly necklace
The Dragonfly necklace I’ve created consists of a Lapis Lazuli dragonfly, blue lapis beads, light blue Angelite beads, abalone ovalis along with rainbow moonstone. This necklace was created for someone who is ready to transform. The dragonfly is about going from the waters of our emotional home to the air to fly, just as it does. This transformational process is supported by the lapis lazuli. The rainbow moonstone rondelles are about working through our emotional wounding and releasing it. Angelite is a stimulant for the Throat chakra, just as Lapis Lazuli is, and helps us to ‘speak our truth.’

THE ASTROLOGY OF LAPIS LAZULI

The primary ruler for this stone is Neptune. It is a Psychic’s stone and that falls under Neptune’s rulership. However, Saturn is a secondary ruler because Lapis grounds a person back into their body (so they can take advantage of the intuition they receive). Neptune is about being ‘out there’ and connected up from a fractal level upwards to the rich soup of the Cosmos. This ability to feel the subtleties of energies around us is enhanced by Lapis. Given that Lapis lazuli is a ‘rock’ (I know you think all gemstones are rocks, but in Geology, that’s not true) and Saturn is about ‘rock,’ is another reason to have this as a secondary ruler of this beautiful gemstone.

ASTROLOGY TRANSITS AND PROGRESSIONS  WITH LAPIS LAZULI

Any time a person’s natal Neptune has hard aspects from transits or progressions, wearing Lapis Lazuli will have a good effect on them. Neptune, when “under fire” tends to make a person feel spacy or they aren’t fully locked into their body. Because of the Saturn quality of Lapis Lazuli, this stone can take the positive nature of Neptune and keep the person grounded. This is a good thing. When we’re in our body, we make better, more sound decisions. It’s a win-win with this particular gemstone. One often things of Neptune and Saturn being at odds with one another. Yet, within the energy of Lapis Lazuli, it works for us, not against us.

NORTH – WEST DIRECTION

Lapis Lazuli has earth (Saturn) and water (Neptune) contained within it. The NE direction is ruled by Grandmother Turtle. If you stop and think about it, a turtle is a land and water dweller, therefore combining these two energies within itself. This is a minor direction, but that term is misleading. The minors are a combination of TWO major directions, which makes them twice as powerful as a ‘major’ direction like north, south, east or west. The word ‘minor’ shouldn’t be taken lightly here. Twice the power means a lot of intense and different energies that are being harnessed into one. And Lapis Lazuli is the perfect stone to utilize this direction and all that it stands for. Like the turtle, things are slow paced. Consider it a Type B direction. And yet, the ‘slow but sure’ routine gets us where we’re going and usually better than when we race ahead. The North is ruled by Earth. The West is ruled by Water. You get a lot of ‘mud’ when you combine these two! And yet, mud can be handled, shaped and molded into anything you want it to be. Or think of adobe bricks; a combo of mud, straw and water. This direction is about laying a foundation. Slow but sure. A lot of ‘empire’ builders have this energy prominent in their lives. You might say that we build our connection from Self to Cosmos in order connect up with it. A person who yearns to connect deeply within themselves and therefore, the Cosmos, can find Lapis Lazuli a wonderful support and teacher for such powerful spiritual realization.

lapis world pendant
The “eye of Truth,” as seen by the Egyptians is symbolized in this beautiful piece. The dark blue inspires us to look deeply into it.

WHO SHOULD WEAR LAPUS LAZULI?

Anyone can wear this necklace. If you are going to have to speak in front of people, Lapis Lazuli is always a good stone to wear for such occasions. Anything having to do with creating or speaking the written word, is under Lapis Lazuli’s domain. Writers have long used this stone when they are on deadline. It lends endurance but also stimulates the creativity of the Throat Chakra. If you have a compelling desire to connect more deeply into your sacred self and all that means, this will be a gemstone guide who can lead you there.

If you are going into a meeting, a confrontation, a court room, or anywhere that your Truth needs to be spoken, wearing this gemstone will help you succeed in speaking up. Few people realize that by speaking UP, it actually GROUNDS the energy into this third dimensional world of ours. SOUND is vibration. And it has a profound effect upon us, those around us, and our world in general. By speaking up, speaking your Truth, you make this world a better place because you’ve anchored it into this third dimension.

SPIRITUAL CONSIDERATIONS

Lapis Lazuli stimulates the sixth or Throat Chakra. It is about speaking up, speaking the Truth and utilizing words/sound vibration to change the world around you. It will help stimulate one’s psychic abilities, as well. And it will ‘give voice’ to old, buried emotions from long ago, so that they can finally be discharged, once and for all. And only by healing our own, internal wounds, can we move upward into the upper chakras where enlightenment occurs. Does your wounding make you feel battered or instead, has it triggered you into healing yourself from it? For some, the wounds stop and imprisons us. For others, it is a way to transform, change and grow into that butterfly we all yearn to become. The wound then becomes a door that flies open to lead us out of our imprisonment.

world of stars and galaxies in lapis lazuli
Simply gazing at this beautiful Lapis Lazuli cabochon, we can easily see the stars, galaxies and universes that surround us. This inspiring gemstone urges us to Ad Astra–reach for the Stars of our own human Selfhood and become fully Human, not just living a half-life as most of us do now.

Although the Heart Chakra is the gateway to the higher spiritual functions within ourselves, it is the Throat Chakra that actually triggers movement into the auditory sensorium. What do we hear? When you listen to a voice, do you sense/hear the undulations of it? Do you know what is really being said behind the words being spoken by another? If we can move through the gateway via the Throat Chakra, the higher chakras of the Brow (middle of the forehead our “third eye”) and our Crown chakra at the top of our head, become available to us. This is when we stop being ‘local beings’ living the drudgery of everyday life on Earth and start turning into a more complete, realized being who is connected to the Ethers (our archetypal and mythic regions) and to the Cosmos both seen and unseen.

This is why the heavenly attributes of Lapis Lazuli are so important for each one of us. All of us yearn to be connected to our deeper selves because they, in turn, are connected to the mythos of the Universe, the archetypal keepers of the deepest and most sacred of knowledge, and then they in turn, they connect us to our Creator. This gemstone spiritually raises our vibration, challenges us to be better than the three dimensional being who we are right now. It supports us into going into that wondrous inner journey to really learn who and what we really are. And, from my own person experience, I can assure you the discovery of yourself in your many facets/fractals will be an ongoing delight and surprise. Lapis helps us move into this locus of Self as a sure and steady guide who will open the doors of the Cosmos to all of us.

This is why Lapis Lazuli is ruled by Neptune. This is the planet that ‘thin the veils’ of ourselves so that we can truly see we are gods and goddesses, although we still haven’t ‘got it’ yet, that we are already operating on this level right now. Wearing Lapis will encourage you to act globally as well as locally. It will encourage humanitarian service to “all our relations,” and will not allow us to dive into the entropy of selfishness and personal greed. Only when we can bridge from the local to the global self, can we be all that we can be in this lifetime. And Lapis Lazuli is one of those ‘bridge’ gemstones that can trigger this transformation and help you expand into the upper chakras. By doing that, you truly become an enlightened, compassionate being who is so much more…and then, truly, you are a god or goddess in human form.

HEALTH RAMIFICATIONS

Since ALL our dis-eases come from our fouled and toxic emotions (either dragged in from past incarnations into this one or we’ve created a new batch in this present lifetime….), then it stands to reason that Lapis Lazuli can be of help. This is where the Saturn energy of it comes into direct play. Saturn is our boundaries, i.e., the physical body we live within. Saturn rules the bones and the structure that holds our body together. Add to this Neptune’s involvement is the immune system. Throat ailments may occur because the Throat Chakra is in this location. Hoarseness can be lessened by wearing Lapis Lazuli.

Health problems crop up when we cannot “speak our Truth,” whatever that is. When we choke down, gag on or stop the words from leaping from our mouth out into the external world, we are harming ourselves. A little diplomacy never hurts, but you are entitled to speak your Truth at all times. The old adage I coined, “Better out, than in,” is true here. If your do not give VOICE to your TRUTH, then sickness can follow. If you cannot ask for what you need, then you remain in spiritual poverty. By not speaking up, you imprison yourself and also stop your growth as a human being.

Frequently, people who don’t speak their Truth end up with a lot of throat related ailments such as laryngitis, hoarseness, thyroid, calcium deficiency, larynx or other voice box related issues. And it also spreads down into the lungs as well. Bronchitis, pneumonia, allergies that affect the lungs, are all about not getting out whatever emotions or Truths that you need to express and thereby, release. As soon as you start speaking your Truth, it’s amazing how these ailments will just gradually disappear. The more you speak up for yourself, the more healthy you will become. This is also about BOUNDARIES. I find people who can’t say “no” are the ones who are choking down and not speaking their own, personal Truth. When one can speak up, say “no,” or draw the line in the sand about what they will or won’t do, then health issues dissolve.

lapis lazuli pendant and small beads
This necklace has a dark blue Lapis Lazuli pendant and dark blue beads. The light blue Angelite triggers the Throat Chakra just as Lapis does. There are blue Swarovski crystals and silver spacers to complete this necklace.

At the other end of this is not being able to ask for what we need. (There is a difference between WANT and NEED, and in my opinion we should be looking at NEEDS first). If we can’t give voice to our needs, such as survival, a job or way to make money to pay our bills and put food on our tables, this is a mundane and important example of it in action. And sometimes, we are our own wall to reaching for what we need. When we can’t be honest with who and where we’re at, then nothing else can happen before we understand this. How did we get to where we are? If you’re feeling imprisoned, if life refuses to cooperate with you, then you have walled yourself off from energy that is ‘out there’ to help you dissolve those walls and grow. It can be as easy as sitting down and writing out what your needs are. And then, finding a quiet, uninterrupted place, to speak these needs. In doing this, you’re sending out a physical vibration that can help change things up.

Lapis helps us to assess where we REALLY are; not where we THINK we are. There’s such a huge difference: reality versus illusion. And isn’t that the gist of Neptune? At one end, Neptune can enlighten us if we are honest with ourselves at every juncture–not only with ourselves but all those whom we come into contact with. Or, it can pull a veil of illusion over our eyes and we have this distorted view of ourselves. It is when we cling to the old, outmoded distortion of Self, that we become trapped and our life becomes dull, disillusioning and such things as fatigue, depression and despair ensue. I would suggest a book to read if you find yourself in this position. THE SEARCH FOR THE BELOVED by Jean Houston, may well help you unstick from this imprisoned position. It won’t hurt anything to wear your Lapis Lazuli necklace as you read it, either. Lapis LIFTS us into our higher, better, more compassionate self. And once we can do that, then the world opens its many doors to us and we can live as a rich and fully realized human begin.

HOW TO WEAR LAPIS LAZULI

Lapis Lazuli is something that can be worn at any time by anyone except children twelve and under. Those who work in careers where the written and spoken word will do well by wearing this gemstone. Speakers, teachers or anyone who is speaking to share information find this gemstone of help and support. Those seeking to work out of the upper chakras, should also employ this gemstone’s energy.

IN SUMMATION….

If we could look back six thousand years, we would realize just how important Lapis Lazuli was to the Cradle of Civilization. There wasn’t one, whether Chaldean, Hittite, Assyrian, Egyptian or Roman, that wasn’t using Lapis on a daily basis. They used it as a fetish, a personal archetypal symbol of the god or goddess they communicated with, who helped support their life, who inspired and healed them. And later, in the Renaissance, Lapis Lazuli was crushed into a powder (the Egyptians also did this), mixed with oil and became the ultramarine blue color on so many celebrated works of art, particularly the religious themes and the Madonna, Herself.

When we realize that all of this, we can see how Lapis Lazuli has fallen out of favor in the last few centuries. It deserves a comeback. Civilizations before us used it as official seals on the most important correspondents, used it in art, in science and sacred ceremony. If you are to hold a piece of Lapis Lazuli in your hands, unfocus your eyes, you will truly see and feel and being communion with the “vault of heaven,” as it has been extolled by so many before us. 
The deep blue reminds us of the mysteries of the sacred that are within each one of us. The pyrite gold flecks are said to symbolize the stars, planets and galaxies that are not only ‘out there’ in our external world as we look up into the night sky, but also within us, as well. Spiritually speaking, there is a Universe within each of us. Lapis has some remarkable features and only if we take the time to wear it, will we begin to realize how much of it SHIFTS us into our greater (and better) Self, the unseen and yet waiting worlds within us. This may sound grandiose, but it isn’t, really. Gemstones have always had the ability to subtly affect us toward our better selves.

lapis lazuli murano pendant
This necklace has a Murano glass pendant. The dark blue beads are Lapis Lazuli. There are clear quartz crystal beads along with gold Czech glass beads. This necklace is about increasing the vibration of the Lapis, thanks to its friend, Quartz crystal that is strung along with it.

We are made up of more than just a human body. Within us lies the Lapis Lazuli worlds yet to be explored by all of us to a minor or greater degree. And at no times is Lapis Lazuli needed than right now. As the world goes through a huge “Jump Time” (another great book by Jean Houston, that I highly recommend) right now, the only anchor during this chaos is to move deeply into our own core being. Only there can we weather this major, catalytic storm sweeping our world on every level right now.

And what does this all mean? Our core is composed of stars, planets and galaxies. As above, so below, is the saying. And it’s true. By wearing Lapis Lazuli, it connects us to our greater selves, our greater possibilities, our skills and talents yet to unfold and all waiting there for us to discover. As the outer world spins out of control and falls into utter chaos around us, Lapis Lazuli, when worn, reminds us that everything is really all right. The world has gone through such paroxysms of rebirth before. We just happen to be born at a time when its going through a major shift from local to global energy. And the stone that has always shown the global, the heavens, the earth, the stars, is Lapis Lazuli.

When worn, this gemstone connects us not only to our inner being that is rich with treasure, knowledge, many skills and talents, but also connects us to the Universal mind of god/goddess whether we know it or not. It is like a sacred electrical conduit that makes us better than our local self in this third dimensional world we struggle to survive within. Lapis pulls us out of the local and makes us global and inter dimensional. It raises us up, it calls to us on a greater platform of service to all, whether human, animal or plant, to come from the heart with deepened compassion for “all our relations.”

The civilizations before us knew all of this. That is why Lapis Lazuli was revered as sacred.

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