Rocks and Gemstones: Amethyst
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 Amethyst. It is a “Guard Dog” stone, “Creativity” stone and a “Psychic’s” stone.
GUARD DOG STONE
These gemstones have the capacity to ‘signal’ you that you’re in a situation that may be threatening to you–even if you don’t perceive it as such. Often, we are distracted and walk into a place or with a group of people that aren’t good for us on some level. It could be that there’s a “psychic vampire” (a very needy, victim-styled individual, the “poor me” variety), or there’s drugs, or a ‘coyote’ or potential robbery going to take place or you name the circumstance–all you need to do is read the newspaper to understand where I’m going with this). A Guard Dog gemstone’s whole reason for being is to “bark” a warning to you. To somehow get through your distracted lower mind, your left brain that is attached to this third dimensional reality and get your attention that something is WRONG. It helps you to see what is “out of place,” so that you can remove yourself before anything happens.
Some stones can do one or two levels of protection, but rarely are able to handle situations on all four levels that may arise. The physical, emotional, mental and spiritual are the four levels. For example, obsidian material (obsidian, mahogany obsidian, snowflake obsidian and apache tears) REFLECT back energy that is coming your way. Obsidian is glass and all glass reflects. Agate, Amethyst, Jasper, Turquoise, Malachite will ABSORB the hit coming your way, which is why it will change color (grows pale) over time if you are being attacked on any level. Or it will crack and break, indicating an attack. Topaz guards on the mental level only. Amber and Amethyst guards only on the physical level. There’s only one that can deal with any type of heavy energy on all four levels and that is Black Tourmaline.
CREATIVITY STONE
A Creativity Stone works with the right hemisphere of a person’s brain. This is the location of one’s seat of Creativity. These gemstones inspire ideas, plans and strategies that will help a person blossom into their unique skills and abilities. Amethyst is one such gemstone.
PSYCHIC’S STONE
Amethyst has a long and honored mystical and ancient past. A Psychic Stone is one that helps you to listen and act upon 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 AMETHYST
Not all Amethyst is nice, long three to six inch six-sided (hexagonal) crystals. In fact, much of this gemstone is found just like this. Getting a single terminated crystal of Amethyst is almost rare and if you do find one, they will cost some money.
A Greek myth involving Dionysus, the god of Wine, helped create the name of this gemstone. A mortal angered him one day and so the god sent tigers after him. Little did Amethyst, a maiden on her way to give gifts to the goddess Diana, know that she was in the direct path of these hungry tigers. In order to save her life, Diana turned her into a statue of quartz crystal. When Dionysus found out about it, he wept tears of wine, turning the stature into a purple wine-like color.
It comes from the Greek word, “amethustos” which means “not drunken.” Pliny, the Roman historian said the gem was so named because it look like the color of wine. It has from antiquity to today, been considered an antidote to drinking. There are carved amethyst wine goblets still in existence today. Back then, the Greeks felt if you drank from such a cup you would not end up drunk.
In ancient times, Amethyst had many qualities. Amulets were made from it to be an antidote against being poisoned, protection during a battle and it had the ability to make someone more clever and intelligent.
In the Bible, it is mentioned as one of the twelve stones adorning the breastplate of the high priests of Yahweh. The Catholic Pope got a hold of amethyst because legend had it that amethyst encourage celibacy and symbolized piety. So, it was an important gemstone during the Middle Ages. Catholic Bishops often wore an amethyst ring.
Catholic Bishops prized amethyst because they believed the gemstone encouraged celibacy and brought piety to the wearer. Amethyst adorns many Catholic churches across Europe during the Middle Ages. Bishops often wore rings carrying an amethyst. Much like ancient times, Medieval people also believed Amethyst could help them capture a wild animal for a meal.
In Tibet, Amethyst is considered sacred to Buddha and rosaries are fashioned from the gemstones as a result. Rulers in Europe liked it because purple was the color of royalty. Catherine the Great had them in her crown as did the British Crown Jewels. And the Egyptians also used them with the pharaoh’s household.
It was called “Rose de France” in Victorian times and the gemstone was often included in their jewelry. The great artist Leonardo Da Vinci wrote that Amethyst was able to dissipate evil thoughts and quicken the intelligence.
Amethyst is actually a member of the quartz crystal family. It is SiO, silicon. And like all quartz, it is piezo electric, emitting a flow of electrons, a natural electrical power charge when pressure is applied to it (holding the crystal, as an example) or if it is place on something warm, such as a person’s skin, it begins to emit its unique energy. This is its pyro electric ability. And only the Quartz Crystal family has both of these skills in place.
Amethyst is widely available, which is a good thing. It gets its color from Iron. And it’s found all over the world, including Brazil, Uruguay, Russia, Bolivia, Mexico, Namibia (South West Africa), Tanzania, USA and Zambia. Its color ranges from a very pale violet to a deep, dark violet color. The most expensive Amethysts are always the very dark colored ones. It is translucent and clear.
This gemstone will fade and lose color if placed in direct sunlight, so always, when not wearing it, keep it in a darkened and protective jewelry box. When Amethyst is heated up, it turns yellow and then it is Citrine, another of the quartz crystal family. It is a 7 on the Mohs hardness and can take a lot of wear. As beautiful as it is, it’s tough as nails.
In one of Oh Shinnah Fast Wolf’s workshops, she spoke highly of Amethyst. She related a story of a woman who came to her. The woman had an alcoholic husband. Giving her a small crystal of Amethyst, she told the woman to put it into the bottle of liquor he was drinking out of. She did. Later, she reported that he was drinking less and less. (I would suggest you NOT do this because if the Amethyst is too small, someone might choke on it or accidentally swallow it).
Amethyst is ruled by Neptune. Considering it helps those who are addicted to drugs and alcohol, this is a natural choice for this gemstone. Unless you have ADD symptoms, Amethyst can help you go to sleep at night. (Just put a tumbled stone piece between your pillow and slip case).
ASTROLOGY TRANSITS AND PROGRESSIONS WITH AMETHYST
Amethyst, when faceted or in bead form, is beautiful.
Transits of Neptune to any natal planet in the person’s chart that causes stress (hard aspects) the wearing Amethyst should be considered.
NORTH EAST DIRECTION
North energy is Earth element energy. It is ruled by the great white Buffalo. North direction is about plodding forward, step-by-step toward one’s goal. There is practicality, common sense and hard work here. This is also the direction of physical manifestation, the place where dreams do come true–with a lot of consistently hard work, discipline and organization. The earth energy is about being completely grounded and in your body at all times. Gemstones that reflect this energy aren’t flashy, well known or wanted by the vast majority of the population. It’s the shy kid in the back of the classroom. However, for sheer honesty, being responsible, reliable, on time and doing the right thing, nothing beats the North direction energy.
The East direction is where the sun rises. This is the point of LIGHT for all of us metaphorically speaking. Obsidian has the energy of light within it. This direction is the position of birth and about creating new ideas into the light of day. It is our infant and baby stage where we are open to all possibilities. Our trust has not yet been broken by the world at large and we are still connected to the greater Cosmos that feeds our newly minted physical body. As adults, the East direction can aid us in rebirthing again and again on every level. It can shed light on an outdated or outmoded attitude. It can make us feel reborn on an emotional level once we get rid of an old wound. Consider this the rich soil of ourselves and the seeds of Being on all levels is planted here. A seed holds all possibilities and so will you.
This energy brings “light” bulb time to our jammed up/clogged up and constipated right hemisphere of our brain. It ‘sheds light’ so that we figure out another way to overcome a hurdle and get on with our lives. Or with an idea or project. You might say that Obsidian is the lightning of the gemstone world; it unclogs the debris in our right hemisphere so that we’re flushed clean with new possibilities. When the psychic channels of the right hemisphere are cleaned out, amazing new ideas, intuitions and hunches can once more flow with ease.
When you combine North and East energy, you are working with the Snake and magician energy. This is the most powerful position of the minor directions. People who invoke the use of particular gemstone with this direction, can create physical manifestation. Their desire, their heart and mind have to be focused, however. This ability to bring a job to fruition, or a vision of your future finally come true, are posited with this minor direction. The creativity of this direction is tenfold because the East energy is always about creation of some THING. It could be getting pregnant/having a baby, or it could be a ‘brainchild’ or any other type of creative skill in any of the arts. This is the position of ultimate power. People here learn the use and abuse of power. It’s the most responsible position for use of clairvoyant talents. And indeed, honing one’s ability to work with fire, earth, air and water and successfully combine them, is found in this direction. Amethyst with its Neptunian aura, fits beautifully here and since it rules over the Brow Chakra, our third eye, is qualified to work with this ultimate energy of manifestation. What you dream or visualize can become reality.
WHO SHOULD WEAR AMETHYST?
So many people are drawn to this gorgeous violet colored stone. Because it has magical qualities, there is subtle power radiating from the gemstone. Many are drawn to such power. The calmness that Amethyst bestows upon the wearer makes just about everyone in the world who is stressed out, wanting to bring these energies of soothing calm into their aura. People who want to increase their intuition voice or further develop any other clairvoyant skill such as healing, seeing auras, being able to hear and talk with spirits, should wear Amethyst.
WHO SHOULDN’T WEAR AMETHYST?
Oh Shinnah warned all of us that if a child or adult had ADD, they should not wear amethyst. The energy of the stone sets them off and they become even more restless or are likely to ‘act out.’
SPIRITUAL CONSIDERATIONS
Amethyst is feminine energy. It works exclusively with the brow chakra, our third eye. It helps us to develop our right hemisphere of our brain where all creativity and our clairvoyant, 6th sense skills are located. It is also the hemisphere of compassion. Wearing this gemstone ups our energy and increases that level so that we may see or perceive people/places/situations a lot more CLEARLY than before. Also, when the brow chakra is stimulated like this, people frequently begin to see some of another person’s aura. In the Middle Ages, witches wore this gemstone because it protected them. What was good then, is good now. You don’t have to practice witchcraft to wear this when you feel you need some extra protection. And, if you wear the Amethyst, there is a deepening of consciousness, a more refined understanding that you are connected to a grid work of energy that is worldwide and includes all living things.
HOW TO WEAR AMETHYST
If you are in a bad mood, irritable or stressed out, put on your Amethyst necklace and watch some of this chaotic energy dissipate. If you want to deepen your meditation, wear the necklace. If you want improved sleep, buy a tumbled Amethyst (available at www.medicinegarden.com) and place it in your pillow inside the case.
IN SUMMATION….
This is where Amethyst comes into play and strikes such a deep chord with so many people. The spiritual aspects of this gemstone are broad, deep and far ranging. Because it is a member of the powerful Quartz family, it has real “tools” to help us with its piezo and pyro electric qualities. Both of these are healing to us and our chakras. A person who wants to develop their ability to see more deeply into people in order to understand them will find Amethyst a willing coach and teacher for them. Amethyst helps all of us move into compassion simply because it triggers the brow chakra, which is above the heart chakra. This is truly a stone of compassion from that standpoint. The Tibetans got it right thousands of years ago and understood the finer, higher qualities of Amethyst.
There is a soothing and calming quality to Amethyst that few others possess. In the stress of our lives, which is considerable, Amethyst behaves like an oasis in our turbulent day. It has the ability to quiet us. Center us. People who have seen too much shock and trauma often have their brow chakra blocked with energetic debris. Amethyst can remove this, thereby allowing them to start down a healing path to cure their wound created by this trauma or shock.
If a person wants to ‘lift’ their auric vibration, Amethyst will help them to do it. This put them into a more compassionate state of mind and emotions. Amethyst does not allow someone to continue operating out of their lower three chakras. It lifts the person and makes them better for it. The kindness that is inherit in this gem spirit has few peers. It works on the human to make them kinder as a result. This “lifting” that Amethyst bestows upon the wearer can be quite noticeable at times. At other times, it’s more subtle.
People who are on a specific spiritual path will always do well with wearing Amethyst. It makes a rugged road a little less rocky. It also subtly reminds the wearer to remain in his or her heart and not go any lower. Whenever a person wants to bestow a smile, kindness or an act of selfless generosity, these are all Amethyst traits. And it does infuse the person’s aura with this specific energy. Amethyst is called “The Psychic’s Stone,” and if you are in the business of tapping in to your sixth sense constantly, this is a workhorse gemstone for you. Doing a lot of readings can tire you, but if you wear Amethyst, it continues to feed and support the sixth sense skills and you won’t be as exhausted as before.
Amethyst simply lifts an individual out of the mire of every day dross/stress/demands and helps support them to a higher level and as a kinder, more compassionate human being.
IMAGES:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amethyst
Copyright Eileen Nauman 2010.
