Lapis Lazuli ⎆ Wisdom ・ Healing ・ Love
The name "Lapis Lazuli" means "blue stone". It has been prized for its bright color & used in jewelry, as well as for pigments. During the Renaissance, artists ground the stone to make ultramarine, a blue pigment used for skies & seas.
Archaeologies have found Lapis beads, jewelry, & carvings at various sites dating as early as 6,000 BC.
Lapis legends are among the oldest in the world. In the myth of Inanna, the Sumerian goddess of love, the goddess was said to have entered the underworld bearing a lapis necklace & rod as some of the insignias of her rank. The legend may date from as early as 4,000 BC.
In ancient Persia & pre-Columbian America, Lapis was a symbol for the starry night & favored by the Islamic Orient for protection from the Evil Eye. In medieval Europe, Lapis it was thought that it believed to "counteract the wiles of the spirits of darkness & procure the aid & favor of the spirits of light & wisdom."
ANCIENT EGYPT
In the dry, desert lands that make up Egypt the deep blue color of Lapis was in such contrast to the arid desert hues it felt spiritual. The gold flecks throughout the stone symbolized the stars in the sky. Through meditation on the stone & its colors, the Egyptians felt life altering supernatural forces. Priests & royalty would dye their clothes with Lapis to indicate their status as gods themselves.
Lapis Lazuli was among the most highly paid tribute to Egypt. They believed the Lapis lazuli stone could ward off evil ailments, both physical & mental. The sarcophagus of King Tut was inlaid in Lapis, as were other burial ornaments of Egyptian kings & queens. It was used extensively in scarabs, pendants, & other jewelry, & ground into powders for dyes, eye shadow, & medicinal elixirs. It was thought their eye sight would improve by wearing Lapis in powder form around their eyes.
Michelangelo processed the stone into powder to produce the intense ultramarine color.
Buddhists recommended Lapis as a stone to bring inner peace & freedom from negative thought.
During the renaissance, Catherine the Great adorned an entire room in her palace with Lapis walls, fireplaces, doors, & mirror frames.
For many ancient civilizations Lapis had religious significance & reflected the high status of rulers. Today, Lapis is associated with wisdom, love, & healing.
HEALING POWER
Lapis Lazuli stimulates good judgement & wisdom in the practical world, making it an awesome stone for executives, journalists, & psychologists. It aids in intellectual analysis in archeologists, historians, problem-solving for lawyers, & creates new ideas for inventors & writers.
Lapis is powerful, activating the higher mind & enhancing intellectual ability. It stimulates the desire for knowledge, truth, & understanding, as well as helping with the process of learning. It is exceptional at enhancing memory.
Known throughout history as a stone of wisdom & truth, Lapis encourages honesty of the spirit, & in the spoken & written word. It is also a stone of friendship & brings harmony to relationships. Wearing Lapis will encourage deeper communication.
For fame in a creative or public performance related area, wear or carry Lapis to auditions. In the workplace, it attracts promotion success, & lasting recognition in your field.
PHYSICAL HEALING PROPERTIES
Lapis is beneficial to the throat, larynx, & vocal chords. It helps regulate the endocrine & thyroid glands, as well as helping to overcome hearing loss & other problems with the ear & nose passages.
The stone enhances circulation & improves cardiac rhythm. It reduces vertigo, lowers blood pressure, & can alleviate insomnia.
EMOTIONAL HEALING PROPERTIES
As a crystal for truth in all aspects, Lapis reveals inner truth & promotes self awareness. It provides relief of things that may have been suppressed as it allows them to be surfaced; helping to diminish uncomfortable feelings or repressed anger, & allows for self expression without holding back or compromising.
As a stone of friendship it promotes social ability. It encourages qualities of honesty, compassion, & uprightness when dealing with others. It provides one's motivations & beliefs, giving a clearer perspective of one's whole life. It reveals one's limitations, as well as the opportunities for growth & to utilize one's gifts & abilities.