If quartz crystals represent perfection in the world of minerals, the transformative stones demonstrate the process by which perfection is accomplished. In Western terminology, this large group of stones is called chalcedony. It includes the interchangeable names of agate, chalcedony, jasper, and onyx. The stones are fundamentally the same—that is, a fibrous subcategory of quartz, all with similar hardness and all with a chemical composition of silicon dioxide. For the Chinese, however, who saw the natural world as being imbued by consciousness and spirit, the patterns, colors, and configurations these stones presented were indications of a process of refinement and evolution.
Most of the transformative stones form at the Source/Yuan or igneous level, but their appearance implies a process of metamorphosis. These stones are quartz, but they do not form perfect crystals. They demonstrate a very slow evolutionary process as the Earth adapts to change. They also represent a core tension of human life—the relationship between Water, our Essence, and its requirement to discover and express the deepest aspects of one’s self, and Earth, with its requirements of living in society. Looking at the agates, with their banded, speckled, or patchy appearances, we can imagine the struggles and conflicts the stones experience during their creation as they melt and solidify, compress and release, fuse and separate. Eventually the stones refine, displaying the strong, definitive colors of the jaspers; the translucent, homogenous colors of the chalcedonies; or the shining, intensely black onyx, which represents our deepest Essence: the Water energy of the Kidneys. The group as a whole matures to show its ultimate perfection in the subtlety and elegance of jade, a stone held in the highest regard since the earliest history of the Chinese.
Intrinsic to life is conflict. As we work to discover and express who we truly are, we must also accommodate society’s demands, confront the limitations we put upon ourselves by our own belief systems, and polish our rough edges by interacting with the circumstances imposed by life. The transformative stones reveal this process. The agates, with their bands and other patterns, show the coalescing of different minerals. Do they blend with each other, or do they maintain their separate identities? The bands or patches of color imply the digestive process of separating the clear from the turbid: “Will I absorb this and allow it to be me? Or will I reject it as not true to myself?”
When silica occurs in solution, as it does during the formation of these stones, it is in the form of colloidal silicic acid. This is a relatively mild acid, but an acid nonetheless. As it seeps into the Earth the acid encounters other minerals; it dissolves and reconstitutes them in an alchemical process that represents Spleen Qi’s ability to transform and transport.
Since these stones all form in the presence of water, they all conduct Qi effectively. Agate and chalcedony are involved with the dissemination of Source/Yuan Qi, bringing Kidney Qi to support Spleen Qi in its responsibility to transform and transport nutrients. The additional minerals contained in these stones help further define their therapeutic functions. For example, if an agate or chalcedony contains manganese, such as in pink agate, the stone supports Heart Blood as well as Spleen Qi.
When we are confronted by physical illness or emotional challenges, the transformative stones have the greatest capacity to help us take on life and its changing matrix. Their fundamental message is to see life struggles as opportunities to bring more consciousness to our personal evolution and refinement.
The Evolutionary Process
When we go through the transformative process of internal alchemy, there are several stages to the work. It begins with the actual determination to discipline ourselves and prove ourselves worthy to receive the secrets buried within. The first stage is an initiation toward our own self-discovery.
The second stage is purification and refinement. We cleanse the weight of physical, emotional, and mental “baggage.” Regenerative Qi begins to replace noxious Qi.
In the third stage, we become lighter in mind and body. Ascension lifts the heaviness of physical life.
As evolutionary, transformative stones, the agates, chalcedonies, jaspers, and jades can help us as we endeavor to accomplish this internal work.
Initiation—Separating the Clear from the Turbid
Agate is one of the stones listed in the Divine Farmer’s Materia Medica as “lower grade,” meaning it was used for physical illness and intended for short-term use only. It comes in many different colors. In the evolutionary model, where the goal is to transform our consciousness, agates begin the process of transformation by bringing our attention to the turbidity of mind that perpetuates habitual, destructive behavior. We become more conscious of our choices with regard to diet, friends, associates, and other aspects of life that might cause us physical or emotional discomfort.
The road to health is not straight and smooth. When we begin to change, many challenges arise. In a way, disease has its own life. Agates initiate the process of bringing a disease to completion. For example, in the alternative treatment of cancer, it is expected that tumors will grow and multiply before the cancer cells finally die. If our faith is weak, fear inhibits our determination to see the process through. Blue lace agate in particular supports the Will/Zhi, which is very important in this regard.
Agate’s Signature
Agates form near the surface of the Earth at low pressure and temperature, during the end stage of volcanic activity. Water containing high amounts of silica finds its way into vacant pockets and veins, typically in volcanic rocks after they have cooled, though sometimes in sedimentary rocks. The minerals in the water begin to crystallize, lining the cavity in the rock layer by layer—sometimes in concentric layers, sometimes in horizontal layers, sometimes with completely different colors, and sometimes with shades of the same color, as in blue lace agate. All of these banded agates include a Spleen affinity in their energetic description, giving them an association with the concept of separating the clear from the turbid that occurs during the process of digestion.
The bands of color in agate suggest that different materials are pushing down and constricting each other. By the law of signatures, these stones help hold things together. Agate “consolidates,” and it is appropriate for use with conditions of Rebellious Qi, such as vomiting or belching.
Regardless of color, the banding pattern we see in many agates has a strong association with breaking up and expelling phlegm. The more prominent the bands, the more they manage phlegm.
Sometimes other patterns form as the material hardens. These can take on the appearance of plant material, as in dendritic or moss agate. According to the law of signatures, these stones have the ability to treat pathological Dampness, just as mossy plants absorb excessive moisture.
Agate geodes often contain a center of pure quartz crystals—the result of hollow areas created as the silica solution cools. These crystals are known as the Ling, or Soul, of the stone. Stones that include these hollow crystallizations at their center have more impact on the Spirit.
Based on their origin in the volcanic activity initiating from the core of the Earth, the law of signatures suggests that agates address pathogenic factors from the interior manifesting on the exterior, such as rashes resulting from Heat in the Blood. They are also important for accessing the lymphatic system and the deep level of the marrow, to begin drawing pathogenic factors out of the body, especially in combination with stones that release to the exterior. This is particularly the case with the blue and green colors of agate, which directly affect the Curious Organs of the Bone (including the teeth), the Marrow, and the Brain.
Agates are protective stones. They are most effective when contacting the skin. Many of them, especially moss agate and blue lace agate, tonify Qi to protect, or secure, the exterior. In general, agates are useful for deficiency conditions, especially where weakness results in exuberance, such as deficient Liver Blood causing Internal Wind. They also have a relationship to the Lower Burner.
The “Agate-Jaspers”
The patterned stones called “jasper” by the stone industry are considered agates by the Chinese. They form differently than the banded agates. These other “agate-jaspers” form when silica-rich watery solutions percolate into the veins and cracks of cooling volcanic rocks. The silica solidifies, but with further tectonic movement it shatters. With repeated movement and heat, the masses of hardened silica shatter, melt, and mix with other minerals. The new solution again finds its way to fill voids in the surrounding rock. These movements can go on for a long time, shattering and melting the stone repeatedly. Brecciated, ocean, rainforest, and leopardskin “jaspers” are all examples of patterns that show this process of repeated shattering and reforming with surrounding chalcedony or quartz of different colors, yielding diverse, multicolored designs. The interactive nature of their formation makes them useful in supporting the effects of metamorphic stones.
Although not formed during eruption, these stones are nevertheless based in volcanic dynamics, giving them a strong affinity with Kidney Yang, the root of Defensive/Wei Qi. They are pushed upward in the Earth, combining with surrounding materials in the crust along the way, giving these patterned agate-jaspers a strong affinity with surface energetics. Just as Defensive/Wei Qi instinctually responds to external factors, agate-jasper is like a chameleon and can blend in with its environment.
The patterned agate-jaspers usually have a strong emotional connotation, although leopardskin, snakeskin, and rhyolite are very invigorating. Do not use them when cancer, human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), or other viruses are part of the health history.
Once the initial separation process is complete, there are no more bands, specks, or other patterns. The stones refine into definite, single colors, whether dark or pale, opaque or translucent. The solid, dark, opaque colors are called jasper. They break up the accumulations resulting from excess conditions. The pure, often translucent colors are called chalcedony. They are strengthening and treat conditions of deficiency.
Purification—Releasing What We No Longer Need
Jaspers for Detoxification
Like agate, jasper comes in many colors, but from the Chinese point of view it is a solid color with no patterns. Jasper lacks the translucency of agate and chalcedony and represents the turbid aspect of the separation of the clear from the turbid.
Solidly colored jasper forms in the same process as the agate-jaspers, continually shattering, melting, and reforming, but its surrounding environment is uniform. Relative to the agates and chalcedonies, jasper is more invigorating, with a stronger relationship to Blood. It is popular to use for breaking up accumulations, especially in the Mu points on the front of the body. With its wide variety of color, jasper is also useful for chakra treatments. By using colors appropriate to the chakras, the stones break up stagnation in different energy centers of the body.
The solid colors of jasper are invigorating in breaking up physical stagnation—red for blood stagnation, for example, or yellow for Food Stagnation. Jasper is relatively slow in its action. Using it both internally and externally will cause its effect to be felt more quickly. Externally, the general recommendation is to apply the stone to areas of stagnation (or their related Mu points) three or four times a day for one to three months to affect Blood, or for three to six months to break up substantial masses. It exerts its effect on the middle region. It is an excellent choice for the initial stages of detoxification.
A measurement of our emotional refinement is how peaceful we feel as we go through life. Emotionally, jaspers challenge us. Can we transcend our habitual emotions? Do we experience chronic frustration, anger, irritability, fear, or grief? These emotions are clues to our issues. Chronic emotional states affect the circulation of energy. Physical blockages form as the emotion lodges in our bodies, causing complaints such as chronic sinusitis or visual problems. Serious conditions of heart disease or cancer may have their roots in a chronic emotional disposition. The proof of our emotional evolution is when we no longer choose to victimize ourselves with habitual negative responses to life’s challenges.
Chalcedonies for Strengthening and Refinement
Chalcedony is the name for relatively translucent stones with homogenous color and few, if any, bands. These stones help in the process of refinement. As compared to agate, chalcedony’s relative uniformity of color and translucency represents coming to know ourselves more clearly. It is the clear aspect of the separation of the clear from the turbid, as we allow ourselves to become lighter.
Generally, chalcedony is more nourishing to Yin than agate, which has a stronger relationship to Qi. It accesses the Source/Yuan level of energy to address chronic conditions. Chalcedony can be used for longer periods than agate.
Onyx for Consolidating Source/Yuan Qi
From a Chinese medical point of view, true onyx is black in color. It has a very strong relationship to Source/Yuan Qi. Onyx is very slow in its effect, but it is also very lasting. It resonates with the lower region of the body.
Ascension—Cultivating the Spirit
Jade
The use of jade in Chinese culture dates to the Neolithic period, when ancient populations considered the nephrite jade they were able to mine locally to be inherently more valuable than gold or silver. They used the stone to shape ritual objects and tools, and the quality of the carving is evidence of a highly sophisticated civilization. Nephrite jade is extremely durable, as demonstrated by the many jade artifacts unearthed that date back to more than one thousand years before the Common Era.
In the nineteenth century, a beautiful jade from Burma became very popular among the royalty and Confucian scholars. It had clearer and bolder colors than the indigenous nephrite jade, and the bright emerald green color, called imperial green, was much sought after. This is jadeite. It has a different chemical composition than nephrite jade, but this difference was unknown until later in the century.
Jade forms in regions of the planet that have subduction zones. Subduction occurs when two of the Earth’s plates collide and one plate dives under the other, moving toward the depths, pressures, and temperatures necessary for the formation of both varieties of jade.
The Chinese character for jade translates to “conquering the Earth,” meaning to be comfortable with the Earth. The character contains the radical for king. A true king governs the realm and its people with respect, graciousness, compassion, loyalty, and kinship. If humans are comfortable with the Earth and behave as a king to the realm, the Earth will reward us with jade.
Fine jade has a beautiful ringing sound when struck. It comes in many colors and it polishes to a high sheen. With the influence of Confucius and his emphasis on the social order, jade came to be associated with the virtues to which the scholars aspired. For centuries, jade represented the loftiest of examples of human behavior. Different colors are associated with different virtues, such as righteousness, loyalty, and benevolence.
Jade is associated with the upper dantian. We use agates, jasper, and chalcedony for treating illness, but jade is an aspirational stone. It represents the possibility to ascend out of petty, selfish concerns and to exhibit qualities of behavior that benefit all humans. In this model of the transformative stones, jade represents the completion of the transformative process begun with the Chalcedony family of stones. The ancient Chinese had no awareness of chemical composition; they were not concerned that jade contains different minerals than the silicon dioxide of agate, jasper, and chalcedony.
Treatment Considerations
A First Choice for Elixirs
The stones included in this group of transformative stones are among the most popular to use in the form of elixirs. Except for jade, all of these stones are silicon dioxide. They have a simplicity that enhances our intention. In creating combinations of stones, for topical or internal application, they play the role of transformer, addressing the root of an illness and motivating us to make a shift. Their therapeutic actions regulate or invigorate Qi to break up accumulations, as compared to quartz crystals, which are harmonizing and/or enhancing stones.
The oxide component of their chemical composition is analogous to Qi. The silica has a strong relationship to structure and substance and is supportive to the Kidney/Essence level of the body.
Jade can be an enhancer for elixirs, especially if the intention is to support spiritual evolution.
Topical Application
When placing agates, chalcedonies, and jaspers topically, treatment needs to be frequent. Oxides have a quick effect, which lasts only a short time. These stones absorb and release Heat quickly and need consistent application. The exceptions to this guideline are tiger eye and bloodstone—these stones contain iron, which efficiently absorbs and retains Heat. These iron-containing SiO2 stones are similar in effect to blowing on moxa—that is, dispersing Heat with heat.
All of these stones, whether used for emotional or physical issues, are transformative. Even as they strengthen the Internal Organs or break up accumulations, they are supporting our evolutionary aspirations. They are trying to become jade.