Saturday Special Stones - Amber

Amber compiled by Sarah the Swamp Witch

THE SCIENTIFIC

Amber is not a stone, but a fossil resin from pine trees (Pinus succinifera)of the Oligocene period 30 million years ago. Most amber is golden yellow to golden orange. Some amber has been found to contain red, blue, or green hues. Transparent to translucent it usually occurs as nodules or small, irregularly shaped masses, often with a cracked and weathered surface. Amber may contain insects, moss, lichen, or pine needles that were trapped millions of years ago while the resin was still sticky.

Amber can be found in the Baltic region of Poland and the former USSR. Amber has been found on the coasts of England, Norway, and Denmark. Other localities include the Dominican Republic, Mexico, France, Spain, Italy, Germany, Romania, Canada, Czechoslovakia, and the USA. The Baltic amber is considered by gemologists and mineralogists to possibly be the best of the ambers. True amber is pre-Jurassic, any amber that is younger than that is called Copal.

Beware of melted and artificially molded amber being sold as the original fossil amber. This is due the steadily "declining" size of pieces of amber found in the Baltic region, especially after the Soviet "mining" of the former Soviet occupied Lithuanian and Latvian shorelines. Be prepared to pay quite a bit for genuine, unprocessed amber. And if it has a bug in it, expect to pay even more.

HEALING

Amber is a powerful healing stone with a large amount of organic energy. Amber emits a sunny and bright soothing energy which helps to calm nerves and to enliven the disposition. The different colors of amber may be used on the appropriate chakras to facilitate opening and cleansing. Amber allows the body to heal itself by absorbing and transmuting negative energy into positive energy.

Amber is useful in healings related to purification; releasing fluids from the body; digestive track; memory loss; eccentric behavior; anxiety; inability to make decisions; thyroid; hepatitis; fertility, pregnancy and childbirth; inner ear; neuro-tissue; endocrine system; eyes; spleen; heart; nerves; depression; rheumatic fever; asthma and hay fever; tiredness; and infections. In ancient times, amber was ground into a powder and mixed with honey or oil of roses for various physical problems. They also at one time made pipe stems from amber in the belief that the gem did not retain germs and was antiseptic. Many people swore that wearing an amber pendant relieved arthritis, and fought infection and respiratory illnesses. Amber was thought to be especially good for all types of throat ailments, earaches, toothaches, and asthma, which were treated by burning Amber powder and sniffing the smoke. This also was said to stop a nosebleed.

Amber cleanses the environment in which it rests and is an excellent mineral for use in purifying birthing and re-birthing rooms. It also acts to purify one's body, mind, and spirit when worn, carried, or used as an elixir. Because it was thought to be purifying, in ancient times amber was used as a penicillin-type remedy, ground and ingested or soaked and subsequently drunk. Amber is an excellent detoxification and offers protection from radiation, especially x-rays, sun, computers, airport, planes and others' energies.

ENERGIES

Amber is dedicated to the connection of the conscious self to universal perfection. It helps one in the art of manifestation to bring that which is desired to a state of reality. It stimulates the intellect and opens the crown chakra. It also transmutes the energy of physical vitality toward the activation of unconditional love. Amber provides an energy to kindle the realization and subsequent response of choice -- helping one to choose and be chosen.

Amber aligns the ethereal energies to the physical, mental, and emotional bodies, providing for an even flow of perfect order to the requirements of the Earth plane while balancing the electro-magnetics of the physical body. Since it is Electromagnetic, Amber helps the body heal itself by absorbing and transmuting negative energy into positive energy, thus helping to calm the nerves and enliven the disposition. By the energy of its color, it aids in the making of correct choices - it aligns mental and emotional bodies via orange and yellow.

Amber can help restore energy and help one cast off negative energies. One way to do this is to surround yourself with an amber circle or put Amber in water and then soak in the water. Amber is electrically alive with solidified golden light. It stabilizes kundalini awakening and spiritualizes the intellect.

MISC. LORE

Only the pearl is older than Amber in use as jewelry and Amulets - Amber talismans have been found in Stone Age archaeological deposits. Amber was heavily traded by the Phoenicians. It is a sacred stone to both the Native Americans and Eastern Indians. Different cultures had myths about how Amber was formed. A Roman author said that amber was Lynx Urine. The Greeks said that amber was the juice or essence of the brilliant rays of the setting sun congealed in the sea. In Classical myths, Amber was said to originate from the tears of nymphs over the death of Phaeton (the child of Phoebus who drove the sun chariot out of control).

Because Amber often contains plant and insect parts, many of the ancient cultures gave it special magical properties. In Denmark, pieces found with depressions in them were thought to be the resting place of spirits. In most cultures, Amber was thought to possess life due to the inclusion of insects and its warmth to the touch. In ancient times, Amber was sacred to Mother Goddess worshipers, because of its animating principle of containing the essence of life. The relationship between magic and Amber continues today. In some contemporary Wiccan covens women (usually the HPS) wear necklaces consisting of amber and jet, with the two stone representing the Goddess and the God, the feminine and masculine principles. Because of it being once a part of a living substance, Amber is often associated with Akasha, or Spirit, the fifth element of the pentagram that binds the other four elements together.

GENERAL MAGICKAL PROPERTIES

Amber’s high electrical charge for positive energy makes this a very effective stone for use in magic. Even having a piece of amber on the altar can increase effectiveness of magic and spellwork. In Norway, it was thought that amber carved in the shape of animals improves its power. Amber has these Magical Attributes:

• Protection
• Love, fertility, and Community harmony and peace
• Beauty, joy, inner peace, healing, strength, and mental clarity
• Luck, money, and success
• The Sun and Fire

SPECIFIC MAGICKAL PROPERTIES

* PROTECTION: Amber has been highly prized as a protective substance since prehistoric times. It has often been made into amulets to protect against witchcraft, sorcery and poisons. Amber was also burned, beginning in the medieval days, as a fumigant and as an incense to clear the environment of negativity and to protect the area. Amber absorbs negative energy, and helps to ground you to the earth plane thereby providing good protection for a sensitive person. Amber is considered protective when worn, especially in safeguarding children. Amber is also a favorite among many Magical people for necklaces, to symbolize the sacred circle and to provide the protection of that circle. If an Amber talisman is shaped as a phallus, it is said to be especially good against the evil eye and evil spirits. If you feel you are being subjected to heavy negativity, light a white candle and place it on the ground or floor. Sit before the candle with a handful of small amber beads or pieces, and using them, create a circle around yourself. Sit within the circle while restoring your energy and closing yourself to any and all outside influences. Repeat as necessary. Another method of using Amber for protection is to place nine small beads or pieces of amber into a bath of very warm water. Soak in the tub until the water cools, then retrieve the amber, towel off, and carry or wear one of the beads or pieces until your next bath. This will also protect you from negative magic.

* LOVE, FERTILITY, AND COMMUNITY HARMONY AND PEACE: Amber is a sensual, warm to the touch, magnetic stone that attracts love. Wear amber to attract warm, loyal, and generous people into your life; especially if that amber is worn near the heart. Amber can be worn to bring a soul mate. Amber has been used as a symbol for renewal of marriage vows and to assure promises, and it facilitates family bonding. Amber is also a stone that can be used in fertility magic. In the East, amber amulets were worn in the shapes of lions, dogs, frogs and fish in order to increase fertility. It was also believed that amber helped woman in labor. On a more worldwide plain, amber can be used to bring about harmony and to encourage world peace.

* BEAUTY, JOY, INNER PEACE, HEALING, STRENGTH, AND MENTAL CLARITY: Amber can be used for beauty spells - both the kind for outer beauty and also those for inner beauty. Carry amber on your person to lend logic or wit to a difficult situation, to make your mind clear and to give you inner peace. Amber can be used in spells done to calm hyperactivity and stressed nerves, and to help you find humor and joy in your life. Because amber has a high electrical charge of positive energy, it can be used to harmonize yin and yang. Amber also can be used to enhance artistic qualities, help overcome obstacles, relieve grief and melancholy, bring greater awareness of inner self, provide strength, and convey harmony. Mixed with turquoise, amber is reminiscent of Sky Father or the sun in the sky, and this combination of stone energies may be used successfully to quiet the mind and calm the nervous system. Amber is a very powerful stone to use in healing rituals. Since it is actually fossilized tree sap, many folk healers fell amber is the best stone to lay against an afflicted area of the body to entrap sickness.

* LUCK, MONEY AND SUCCESS: Amber is considered a bringer of good luck - it has even been said to bring good luck to warriors before battles. Amber has magnet like qualities and can be used to draw money, power, and success. If you knock on wood three times with a natural piece of amber you can call on the spirits of the trees for special favors. To increase your prosperity, sew amber and turquoise along with several coins in a coyote skin pouch and bury the pouch in the earth. Amber also can be used to have success in judicial matters.

* THE SUN AND FIRE: Amber is a stone of the sun and the fire. It has long been used in the fire ceremonies of ancient tribal healers. The golden color of amber is associated with the sun, and with the solar plexus Chakra. In Middle Eastern belief the Chakras are the connections of the soul to the body, and the main "entry" point is the solar plexus Chakra. As such, the Higher Self connects to the physical self through this Chakra, and the wearing of amber will strengthen this connection.

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