Posts tagged with “stones”
Posted on . Filed in . Tagged with , , , , , , , .

Rocks to Mark the Traveler's Path

I'm interested in rocks and art made with rocks, stones or pebbles: buildings, bridges, cairns, Inukshuks, and rock balancing. The old stone farm houses are my favourite to see and photograph in rural Ontario.

Rocks are used as a way to mark the path of travelers, to tell others they had passed that way. It's not just a romantic notion. There are good, practical reasons for wanting people to know where you have gone and where you might be found. Hikers get lost, have accidents and run ins with wildlife.

I like the custom of putting little pebbles on graves to mark that you were there, still remembering and still visiting.

Posted on . Filed in . Tagged with , , , , , , , , , , , , , .

Geomancy

Geomancy interests me because I especially like rocks, stones, and even pebbles (rocks you can hold in your hand or put in your pocket). Stone is like a hard, cold fact with a very long history, by our human standards. You can find rocks, or stones, in a lot of good places: the beach, the forest, the side of the road. You know, you've seen them. I don't pick up rocks/stones which belong somewhere, like someone's yard. Is it silly to feel they have a home there and shouldn't be taken? Maybe, but that's how I feel.

I haven't tried geomancy in an official way, not to read the future. I just enjoy stones. I keep them around, in my bedroom (give them a little clean up if you bring them indoors), outside in the yard and the garden we have a lot of rocks. They make great pets, if you feel the need for dependable companionship with few needs, like grooming or feeding. You can make a little house for them, if you like. I like just having a few good rocks around.

At most, I use a stone to point me in a new direction. Just warm it up in your hand for a bit and see where it falls as you turn around (slowly, give the stone a little time and don't make yourself dizzy).

You could find other ways to use stones as a do-it-yourself divination. I think you need to have some connection to the stones, at least liking them for their history, their shape, colour, usefulness, connection to the Earth... something. Otherwise you may as well be completely random. I think divination works due to at least some belief in fate. Some idea that outside things can influence you, the world in general.

Geomancy is divination using stones. I find most divination has a lot of rules but essentially the whole thing is about how you feel looking at the cards, entrails (not for me) rocks, etc. At least that's what it used to be. People do have a way of taking something simple and making it a huge complicated knot they can make some money out of.

A system of divination that employs the scattering of pebbles, grains of sand, or seeds on the earth and then the interpretation of their shape and position.

I especially like this description, from The Mystica site. The site has been taken over and just posts click bait now. No sign of the original post I read this from.

Geomancers are spiritual ecologists. (Found on a group no longer online).

It's not feng shui, and it doesn't have anything to do with ley lines or dowsing. It's been called earth astrology, a Western equivalent of the I Ching, and the forgotten oracle of the Western world. It was one of the most popular systems of divination in the Middle Ages and Renaissance, and stands at the center of traditions of magic, philosophy, and initiation deeply relevant to today. What is it? Geomancy.

Geomancy is a traditional art of divination that uses the sixteen geomantic figures – patterns of single and double dots – to explore the mysteries of past, present and future. As a branch of the Hermetic tradition, an ancient Western system of spiritual transformation and magical philosophy and practice, it relies on the fundamental Hermetic law, the unity of the macrocosm (the universe around us) and the microcosm (the universe within us) to open up hidden potentials for knowledge, wisdom, and power and, in the words of the legendary Hermes Trismegistus, “perform the miracles of the One Thing.”

Quote Source - Collegium Geomanticum

Geomancy, a compound of Greek roots denoting "earth divination", was originally used to mean methods of divination that interpret geographic features, markings on the ground, or the patterns formed by soil, rocks, or sand. Its definition has expanded over time (along with the recognized definition of the suffix -mancy), to include any spiritual, metaphysical, or pseudoscientific practice that is related to the Earth. In recent times the term has been applied to a wide range of other occult and fringe activities, including Earth mysteries and the introduction of ley lines and Bau-Biologie [de].

Geomancy was a common, and cross cultural, forms of divination in premodern times. In regards to Africa and Europe, it was considered a forbidden practice by various Christians and Muslims across the medieval era. In other regions and cultures, geomancy practices include Sikidy and Ifá (found in Africa), I Ching and Feng shui (found in China), Kumalak (found in parts of Central Asia), Vastu shastra (in India), Kahuna kuhikuhipu'uone (in Ancient Hawai'i).

Quoted from Wikipedia.

All of that should give you a starting point, if you want to learn more about the 'rules' for geomancy as a method of divination. Or, you can just enjoy having more rocks around.

Posted on . Filed in . Tagged with , .

Red Jasper

Some stones radiate high levels of energy, such as quartz (especially in smoky or rutilated form). Others work much more slowly. One of these is red jasper. In some Native American cultures red jasper is considered to be the symbolic blood of the earth, and it's generally thought to be one of the best stones for connecting with the deep, stabilizing energies of the earth.

In the chakra system red relates to emotions, and of all the red stones it is the least volatile. Jasper is a stone which makes its effects known slowly and gradually.

It is considered an emotionally calming stone, and can be an excellent stone for either those who are hypersensitive to crystalline energy and find it difficult to work with, or for those who like change to be a gradual, unfolding process.

In this context it is particularly recommended for gem essences. It's also a very good stone to use when someone is upset, and needs to be calmed down.

Found at: Our Glass Wire - http://ourglasswire.com/LORE/REDJASPER-LORE.htm

I had a red jasper stone wired into necklace a couple of weeks ago. I really liked it. But then I lost it for a few days this week. Things went a bit bad this week. I don't give a stone credit for causing a bad week but for some reason I feel it was connected. Maybe because I choose the red jasper as a stone for myself, giving myself space/ permission to make life changes, accept some things and change others. Anyway, it was on my mind a lot while it was missing. Tonight my Mom found it. I had left it with a work shirt, it must have come off when I took off the shirt.

Anyway, it's back now.