Turquoise Revealed

Turquoise Revealed

by | Energetics

In several cultures, December has been associated with the crystal Turquoise.  From geologists to jewelers, miners to healers, ancient cultures to modern collectors, people from all over the world have long been captivated by Turquoise. This name originated in medieval Europe, where traders from Turkey introduced the blue-green gemstones as an exotic luxury. Although the stones were obtained from the mines in Persia (now Iran), medieval Europeans associated the stones with the Turkish traders who supplied them.  They called them “turceis” or in later French, “turquois“. English speakers adopted the later French word and added an “e” to the end,  “turquoise” while Spanish folks called the stone “turquesa“.  Until the late 1800’s,  it was known for centuries by the Navajos and other peoples in the Western Hemisphere by its Nahuatl name, “chalchihuitl”.

Scientifically, Turquoise is classified as a semiprecious opaque mineral composed of hydrated copper and aluminum phosphate. It has a triclinic crystaline structure and a hardness value of 5-6 on the Mohs scale. It is a secondary mineral derived from original, primary copper deposits that usually consist of chalchopyrite (a common yellow metalic mineral made up of sulfur, iron and copper)  and pyrite (contains only sulfur and iron).  In general, stones with more copper content appear more blue, while stones with more iron content are greener. Colour and character of its matirx will also be influenced by the other minerals found with it.  Currently, the best quality Turquoise comes from Iran, Afghanistan, Australia, Tibet and Southwestern United States.

Robert Simmons, in his book entitled, The Book of Stones, relates these historical uses of Turquoise:
“Beads dating back to 5000 B.C. have been found in Iraq.  The Egyptians were mining Turquoise in the Sinai in 3200 B.C.  … About a thousand years ago, Native Americans began to mine and fashion Turquoise;  the gem has been found in burial sites from Argentina to New Mexico. … To the native peoples of the American Southwest, this “sky stone” is an ancient talisman for health and happiness and for centuries it has been incorporated into both ceremonial and everyday jewelry, sculpture and pottery.  In both Hindu and Persian beliefs, seeing a Turquoise and the New Moon at the same time would lead to good fortune, protection from evil and/or an increase in wealth.  The Navajo used Turquoise to bring needed rain by throwing a stone into a river while praying to the rain god.  Apaches thought Turquoise could enhance the accuracy of their weapons and the Zuni  believed it could protect them from demons.  In central Asia, the belief that Turquoise could keep riders from falling led to the use of Turquoise in decorating horse trappings.”

Other uses of Turquoise include using it to help dispel fear, especially if it grips the solar plexus and help maintain balance if used around the spleen and pancreas.  In some Native American teachings, Turquoise is said to symbolize spirituality, the sky, the heavenly Father.  It was regarded as a spiritual stone to help put people in touch with the divine and holy reality. It is considered by many as a stone for finding wholeness and truth and to aid in the communication and manifestation of these qualities.  It is a stone of overall well-being and balanced mood and emotions.  It teaches the wisdom of compassion and forgiveness.

Turquoise combines Water, Wind, Fire and Earth energies, making it a complete Storm element stone.  According to crystal healer, Naisha Ahsian, “… Turquoise represents the wisdom that comes from all of life’s experiences.  It is an ancient Grandfather ally, counseling one that all experiences are valid and that mistakes are simply another experience. …. Turquoise is a stone of self-forgiveness, self-acceptance and the release of useless regrets.  It encourages one to honour oneself as a creation and a tool of the Divine.”

As you take time this month to reflect and revise your dreams and plans, use the gifts of Turquoise to help set the course for a New Year meant to bring you abundance on all levels, loving kindness in all your relations (including you with you!), extreme joy and steady confidence in all you do.  You deserve nothing less!

Did you know ……

  • December’s message: To endure; to die; to be reborn
  • December’s activities: Introspection and renewal
  • Universal event at this time of year: The revitalizing of the waters. Until Winter Solstice at the end of the month, night continues to increase and dominate. From that moment onward, we celebrate the Birth of the Light
  • Lights of all kinds are important during these darkest days as they hold the promise of the Light to come;  holiday lights, candles, fires, stars, crystals and twinkling things are used to remind us that within the darkest days, there is Light
  • And where there is Light, there is Hope
Emotional Alchemy

Emotional Alchemy

by | Energetics, Psycho-Spiritual

In 2001, the term “emotional alchemy” was used by Tara Bennett-Goleman to describe a way of helping reframe and release negative and disturbing emotions.  She brought together the practices of Buddhist psychology and mindfulness with insights from cognitive therapy, psychotherapy and brain science to help people release themselves from mental and emotional habits that prevent them from being happy.  Let’s take a quick look at the components of Emotional Alchemy.

Mindfulness is a meditative awareness that increases our ability to see things as they are from moment to moment and without judgement or attachment.  It is resistent to the distractions around us, which is why we can use sustained attention to the movements of the mind itself.  It is a new way of paying attention to the world around and within us.

Buddhist psychology views our emotional problems as temporary and superficial.  It emphasizes what is right with us, instead of fixating on what is wrong with us.  It acknowledges that we have disturbing emotions but sees them as covering our essential goodness.  Our darker moments and most upsetting feelings are an opportunity for uncovering our natural wisdom, if we choose to use them that way.

Alchemy is a metaphor that Bennett-Goleman uses to explain the process.  Traditionally, alchemists sought to use the philosopher’s stone to transmute lead into gold.  In the more philosophical schools of alchemy, lead and gold were metaphors for the internal states.  Through psychological and spiritual transformation, the alchemist transformed the psyche’s lead into its golden nature.  It is an internal, not external process.

Cognitive Therapy is used in many settings to help people change negative thinking patterns into more useful ones. Thoughts and emotions are connected;  by changing one, you can often change the other.  Sometimes it is our limiting, self-defeating thoughts that prevent us from working through and releasing disturbing emotions.  Habitual thoughts that hold a negative emotion in our psyche need to be recognized and then transformed into something that is more positive and helpful.  A thought that no longer holds a disturbing emotion captive allows that emotion to be acknowledged and released from its bond.

Psychotherapy involves going within to recognize patterns of thinking, feelings and reactions.  it strives to uncover the internal workings and connections between thoughts, feelings and behaviour so that those preventing our health and happiness can be replaced with more effective ones.  There are many approaches used in psychotherapy – too many to list here. Yet the end result of all approaches is for the person’s health and happiness.

Neuroscience has proven that the brain stays plastic throughout life, changing itself as we learn to challenge old habits. It has also shown that there is a crucial Choice Point – a quarter second – during which we can reject a self-defeating emotional impulse.  But one must notice the impulse in order to reject it!  Otherwise, it continues to be our “default setting” and our automatic response.

Putting this all together means finding the time and space to allow for self-reflection and appreciation, practicing mindfulness meditation and learning to recognize our  impulsive, self-defeating messages quickly so we can choose a calmer, more positive approach and reaction.  Although it can seem overwhelming at first, remember that this is ultimately for your health and happiness. And this shines brightly to those around you. When health and happiness are intact,  your inner and outer worlds can become calm, compassionate, and joyful.

So why wait?  Time to just be…..

 

Crossroads and Choice

Crossroads and Choice

by | Energetics, Life Reflections

Blame it on doing the year-end inventory count this weekend!  I had to stay alert, so I cranked up the music.  And there he was, Eric Clapton, with his song Crossroads.  Which got me thinking of the crossroads we face in our lives.  Which then got me thinking of how we all must make choices when at the crossroads.  And then, the goddess Hecate came to mind.

Hecate is considered a Thracian moon goddess by some and an ancient pre-Greek goddess by others. As a moon goddess, she is said to bestow abundance, protection and success. She has been associated with midwifery, birth, fertility, magic, the dark of the moon, wealth, education, ceremonies and the Underworld. Some also refer to her as the Queen of the Crossroads.

She was worshipped at places where three roads crossed;  people left offerings at the crossroads for her.  She was said to walk on nights when the moon was dark, attended by a pack of hounds. She carried a torch to illuminate the shadows. Hecate had the ability to move easily between the seen and unseen worlds. Some renderings show her with three heads signifying Past, Present and Future – all aspects to consider when making choices.

Author, film maker, theatre producer and counselor, Amy Sophia Marashinksky, has written many articles and books on feminine awakening. In her book and card deck, The Goddess Oracle, she has this to say about Hecate and choices:

“Hecate meets you at the crossroads when you must make a choice.  Times of choice are not easy times. The challenges presented by choice necessitate a leap of faith from the person doing the choosing.  Hecate says to let go of the idea that there are wrong or right choices:  there is just choice.  Have you been putting off making a choice because it seems to be too overwhelming or a “no win” situation?  Does the choice bring up fear of the unknown? Does it seem better and/or easier to remain with what you know? …
“Sometimes a choice must be made, yet you are not ready.  In such cases, the way to nurture wholeness is to acknowledge where you are and let it go.  Trust that you will be able to make a choice when the time is right.  Give yourself time and space.  Don’t press, berate, or blame yourself. You need nourishment here. When you let go, suddenly clarity comes to show you what you need.  Hecate urges you to embrace the Unknown. Know that whatever you choose will bring you something invaluable that you can use on your path to wholeness.” 

Some people hesitate and procrastinate making choices because they don’t want to make a “bad choice”.  “What if ..” and “Yes, but ..”  are some of their favourite phrases and stalling tactics. Perhaps they lack confidence in their ability to evaluate the choices being asked of them. Perhaps they have given over their personal power to others to make their choices for them.  Or perhaps not making a choice holds others hostage while they wait for an answer and this feels powerful to them.  None of these approaches help foster personal wholeness or healthy, balanced relationships.

Learning to make choices needs to start early in life.  The more practice one has the more capable one becomes. And when life’s crossroads appear, one has faith in one’s ability to choose wisely.  Should you need help, just ask Hecate.

Lightly In The World

Lightly In The World

by | Life Reflections

Quote to Ponder:

This came across my desk from a friend.  It is entitled, “Lightly”.

Aldous Huxley was the renowned 20th-century intellectual who wrote the book, “Brave New World”, a dystopian vision of the future.  Later in his life he came to regret one thing:  how “preposterously serious” he had been when he was younger.

“There are quicksands all about you, sucking at your feet, ” he ruminated, “trying to suck you down into fear and self-pity and despair.  That’s why you must walk so lightly.  Lightly, my darling … Learn to do everything lightly.  Yes, feel lightly even though you’re feeling deeply.”   Aldous Huxley

Reading through this quote, I was struck by how Aldous Huxley was able to take a step back from himself and truly examine his thoughts, feelings and behaviour over time.  After such scrutiny, he was able to admit to himself and others that he was way too serious about life!  Any of you who have read, “Brave New World” know that it isn’t a walk in the park.  There is no glimmer of hope or light to be found.  I always thought it odd that our high school insisted upon this book as Required Reading. What did they think we were in for after graduation?  (They also insisted on Dostoyevsky’s book, “Crime and Punishment“, but we’ll save that one for another time!).

To admit to the world that your approach was wrong (or at the very least, not helpful), speaks volumes.  Intense self-examination and exploration PLUS a healthy dose of life experiences often finds us questioning earlier beliefs, behaviours and motivations. It is all information – but what we choose with this information is what really matters. To decide to take another approach means we are prepared to try for a different result – a different way of being.  Nothing will change unless we start with ourselves.

What stops people from taking the plunge into intense self-exploration and examination?  Several factors might play a part.  Fear of what they might find is often at the top of the list.  If you find something that isn’t in your best interest or for the highest good for all, then you have choices:  continue on as you have been and get the same results you’ve always had or admit your part in this and begin to set a new course towards something more healthy and helpful.  This might intensify the fear, because change itself creates anxiety.  And anxiety is fuel for fear!  So this is where the old adage, “Feel the fear – do it anyway” can help get you started.

Another reason why someone doesn’t look at themselves objectively might be that they see it as being critical of themselves.  This can negatively affect one’s self-esteem and self-worth.  The thing is to not be critical or punitive with yourself, but to be observant and lovingly honest with yourself.  This is a gift you give yourself in order to improve your world and increase your joy!  If there is a thought, feeling or action that is impeding your joy, why wouldn’t you want to remove it and replace it with something wonderful for yourself?

One other factor could relate to Ego.  The Ego says, “How dare anyone suggest that I am not perfect?  Or that my thoughts, feelings and actions are not perfect?”  Rigid or inflated Egos make it difficult for a person to enter into honest self-exploration. These Ego types do not want to acknowledge that there could be personal flaws or mistakes. If there is a problem, it will not be with them! Although these types of Ego structure and function might find short-term happiness and relationship harmony, it will not be sustained.  There needs to be more softness so that the flow of life changes can be made successfully.

Go Lightly in this world so that seriousness does not overwhelm you.  Remember these words from “Desiderata” by Max Ehrmann:

“Take kindly the counsel of the years, gracefully surrendering the things of youth.  Nurture strength of spirit to shield you in sudden misfortune.  But do not distress yourself with imaginings.  Many fears are born of fatigue and loneliness. Beyond a wholesome discipline, be gentle with yourself.”

Lightly, gently and with joy.  You deserve nothing less.

Careful What You Wish For

Careful What You Wish For

by | Energetics, Psycho-Spiritual

Birthday cake and candles, four-leaf clover, first star at night, turkey wishbone and Harry Potter’s magic spells are just some of the ways in which we have learned to cast our wishes and hope that magic brings them into reality.  People wish for all sorts of things – for themselves and others. Some wishes are for good things, some for not-so-good things.  And some are for downright nasty things to come to fruition! What is it about  the “wish” that has sustained it all these millenium?

Perhaps the wish is something that helps us connect to our deepest truths and longings. Walt Disney was famous for saying, “A dream is a wish that your heart makes.”  If our heart makes  a wish, then it must be important to us!  A wish directs our attention and thoughts towards something that we want, believe in, and hope for.  In terms of energy theory, we could describe this as a focused intention. As with all intentions, the feelings connected to this intention will add power to the wish. Is this focused intention or wish about peace, love, acceptance or forgiveness – basically for the highest good for all?  Or is  it about revenge, restitution, anger or hurtfulness?  If the intention is for harm to others, then what is this really saying about our deepest truths and longings?  At our core, are we really harbouring negativity and spite?  If so, why?

The image that comes to mind is that of someone who feels broken or beaten.  Life has dealt them a difficult hand to play;  the deck feels like it is stacked against them. From this place of personal misery may come feelings of resentment, hurt and jealousy.  These feelings have a negative energy surrounding them – and if used when casting wishes, they will send those wishes out to the universe with this energy attached.   The idea of energy dynamics and our focused intentions or wishes reminds us that we need to be mindful of the feelings, language and imagery we use. These get projected out into our future energy field, which will then come back to us later to become our present.  Is this the wish, we truly want for ourselves and others?

There is a saying, “Careful what you wish for, because it may come true.”   Some have wished for fame and fortune for themselves, only to discover that these have their own sets of difficulties to overcome.  Some people have wished for accidents, death and destruction towards others, only to find the judgements they’ve used are later used against them.  This is sometimes referred to as, ” It comes back to bite you in the a _ _”.  Or put another way, “What goes around, comes around.”

Humans have been casting wishes forever – just remember that your intentions, thoughts and feelings are all part of the package. Wishes can, and do, come true.  Be sure you wish for the best for all and watch the magic unfold.

Did you know ……
We can find pearls of wisdom in the strangest places.

  • Consider this quote from a recent “superhero” movie:  “Darkness is not the absence of Light.  It is the belief that the Light will never return.”
  • In an interview with comedian and actor Bill Murray:  “Social Media is training us to compare our lives, instead of appreciating everything we are. No wonder everyone is depressed!”
  • Not sure who this is attributed to:  “Life isn’t about how you survive the storm, but how you dance in the rain.”