People have long believed that gemstones have the power to influence people and events. They also believe they can be used to enhance our consciousness, emotions, health and spiritual growth.
All gemstones connect us with nature and with the past and the future. Almost all of them were formed under the earth’s crust millions of years ago. They were at one time gas and/or liquid and are now frozen in our time and space. Gemstones and the metals we put around them in jewelry have existed long before us and will exist long after we and our descendants are gone. This, along with their beauty and rarity, is part of their enduring and universal appeal.
The Energy of Gemstones
The term metaphysics refers to subjects that are beyond the physical world. The word derives from the Greek words meta, meaning beyond, and physika, meaning physical. In other words, metaphysical refers to inquiries that are unanswerable by scientific observation, analysis or experiment.
Those who study the metaphysical attributes of gemstones talk about a gemstone’s “energy.” These energies, which are characterized as the elemental forces of nature, are divided into five categories: earth, fire, water, wind, and storm. The systems of the body, mind and spirit are also grouped into five categories: physical, energetic, emotional, mental and spiritual, and they correspond to the five elemental forces of nature. For example, sunstone is considered to have an influence over the fire element of nature and the energetic aspect of the human body.
Gemstones and Chakras
Gemstones are also associated with chakras.
Chakra (pronounced SHOCK-raw) is a term meaning circle or wheel. There is a wide range of literature on chakra models, philosophy and lore that underpins philosophical systems, spiritual energy practices, religious observances, and personal disciplines.
Theories on chakras fit within systems that link the human body and mind into a single unit sometimes called the bodymind. The philosophical theories and models of chakras as centers of energy were first codified in ancient India.
Most chakra theories describe seven centers of energy that are located along the center of the body from bottom to top. Each chakra corresponds to different colors, sounds and characteristics. This is why certain gemstones have been assigned to particular chakras. For example, sunstone is believed to influence the 2nd and 3rd chakras, which correspond to the colors orange (2nd) and yellow (3rd) and are associated with the characteristics of creativity and energy.
