Crystal of the month: OPAL
OPAL
Chemical Makeup: SiO2·nH2O
Crystalline structure: Amorphous
Colors: Colorless, white, yellow, red, orange, green, brown, black, blue, pink
Hardness: 5.5-6
Localities: Australia, Ethiopia, Nevada, Mexico, Czech Republic, Canada, Slovakia, Hungary, Turkey, Indonesia, Brazil, Honduras, Guatemala, Nicaragua
Birthstone: October
Astrology: Represents the planet Venus
Associated Chakra(s): Solar Plexus & Third Eye & Crown Chakras
Metaphysical properties: Amplification, Creativity
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Encourages flashes of intuition and insight, guiding you toward beneficial action in the physical and spiritual realms.
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Stimulates vitality and enhances psychic perception.
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Magnifies your character traits for the purpose of re-patterning those habits that are not beneficial and strengthening those that are healing to you and the planet.
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Energizing and positive, promotes happy dreams and changes within the self, promoting creativity and imagination.
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Encourages pure, spontaneous action and releases restrictive inhibitions.
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Provides protection by shielding you from view in situations that are dangerous in some way, providing an energy of blending into the background if that is necessary.
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Awakens your connection to the sacred nature of your life’s work and brings joy and appreciation for the dedication and discipline required to do that work in the world.
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Treats infections, purifies the blood and kidneys, and regulates insulin production.
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Can be used to treat disorders of the eyes, clarifying and strengthening eyesight.
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Assists in treating Parkinson’s disease and provides comfort and ease during childbirth.
History:
Opals were prized by Arabs, whose legend says that opals fell from the sky in bolts of lightening, and by Australian aborigines who believed that the creator came to earth on a rainbow and left opals where his feet touched the ground.
During the Middle Ages, opals were prized as very lucky stones because of the powers of each individual gemstone whose color appeared in the shimmer of an opal.
Opals were first synthesized in 1974, a decade after the discovery of natural opal’s spherical silica structure.
Interesting facts:
Opal is created from rain--specifically through the process of rain seeping down into crevasses in the rock, evaporating to leave behind silica which dries and hardens into opal. The play of color is due to the millions of tiny, different sized spheres of silica refracting light.
In 2015, NASA confirmed that they had discovered opals on Mars. Opal is the only gem besides peridot ever discovered off-planet.