stones Archives - Vivian Lawry

*Stone lingam and yoni pedestal found in Cát Tiên, Vietnam, circa 8th century*

I recently bought a smooth, elliptical stone in shades of mahogany and taupe. Since I was in pre-school, I’ve been picking up stones, and I have several plates and bowls of them around the house. Larger stones decorate my garden. I could not resist such an interesting looking and fabulous feeling stone.

This is the second stone I purchased at Crafts Without Borders in Connecticut. This time, I was moved to learn more about it.

*Zarwani Waterfall on the River Narmada*

Shiva Lingam Stones

These are Shiva Lingam stones, natural stones from the bed of the Narmada River, one of the seven sacred rivers of India. These stones are river-tumbled to a smooth surface. No two stones are alike.

Also known as Namadeshwar Lingam, these stones are said to have sprung from the body of Lord Shiva. According to Britannica, “lingam, लिङ्ग (Sanskrit: “sign” or “distinguishing symbol”) also spelled linga, in Hinduism, a votary object that symbolizes the god Shiva and is revered as an emblem of generative power. The lingam appears in Shaivite temples and in private shrines throughout India.” People bring offerings of milk, water, fresh flowers, young sprouts of grass, fruit, leaves, and sun-dried rice.

My stones are shaped like elongated eggs. The egg represents the female and the male principle.

*Lingam from Angkor period on display at the National Museum of Cambodia. Discovered in Battambang Province (Cambodia), made of bronze, quartz, and silver*

This stone is jasper, which consists of chalcedony, opal, and quartz. It provides protection, grounding the body and boosting overall energy.

Meaning of Shiva Lingam

These stones first caught my attention because of the way they look and feel, but they have a much deeper meaning and history than that.

According to mystonemeaning.com, “People involved in finding water and springs can carry this stone. Shiva Lingam Stone brings courage to resolve conflicts and problems with determination. It helps us think faster, organize better, and turn ideas into action. In this way, we manage to fulfil our obligations.

“When in a relationship, this stone can enhance a sense of intimacy and closeness. Shiva Lingam Stone provides support if you are suffering from a chronic illness or are hospitalized. This stone is great for all those who have problems with blood circulation, digestive tract and reproductive organs. It can balance the mineral content of our body.

*Eight faced Shivlingam in Pashupatinath Temple at Mandsaur, Madhya Pradesh*

“Shiva Lingam Stone is associated with Earth. It helps us connect with our environment and raise awareness about ecology. Thanks to this stone, we can meditate deeply and discover the karmic causes of all the problems in our lives. Shiva Lingam strengthens the immune system and cleanses toxins from the body.

“Unlike other stones that act on individual chakras, Shiva Lingam acts on all chakras equally. This stone can awaken kundalini energy. We can find kundalini energy in the root chakra, at the base of the spine. The kundalini is wrapped seven times and runs upward. When we stimulate kundalini energy, the chakras gradually open and release through the crown chakra.”

*Sphatika (quartz) lingams in the Shri Parkasheshwar Mahadev Temple, Dehradun*

Incorporating Shiva Linga in the home is auspicious and virtuous to the family. I’ll keep you posted!

Bottom Line: If you believe in the power of stones, Shiva Lingam’s got you covered.

The Book of Stones is a guide to the world of crystals, minerals, and gemstones, and their metaphysical energies. Many people believe that stones are useful for spiritual awakening and self-healing. Each entry in the book includes the mineral’s scientific properties, history, lore, elemental energies, chakra correspondences, and which stones work best together.

So why am I bringing this to writers’ attention? For one thing, you could have a character who believes in the spiritual awakening and/or self-healing powers of stones.

For example, I relied heavily on this book when I wrote a magical realism story, published in 2015 in Clare Magazine, about a woman who turned to many non-traditional methods to heal herself after treatment for breast cancer left her with radiation poisoning. In this story, the character turned especially to stones reputed to ameliorate cancer, pain, nausea, and low energy. Among others, these stones include jasper, unakite, snowflake obsidian, green tourmaline, diamond, serpentine, and aragonite star clusters.

aragonite star clusters — Aragonite star clusters [Source: Energy Muse]

snowflake obsidian — Snowflake obsidian [Source: Amazon]

You might create a character who needs to be informed about stones and their properties for business/work purposes—a store proprietor, museum curator, or geologist.

One of my favorite stores is The Mystic Jewel in Corolla and Duck, on the Outer Banks of North Carolina. Every piece of jewelry one buys comes with a small card with a brief description of the stone’s properties.

Maybe you just want your character to have an unusual worry stone or favorite piece of jewelry. For example, green onyx.

Everyone is familiar with black onyx, some know about white onyx, but green onyx is more of a statement stone.

Last but not least, consider that your character might have an attachment to a particular stone or stones for personal reasons: each month has a birthstone, many anniversaries have stones attached to them, etc. Unakite is the state gem stone of Virginia. I have a special fondness to vivianite for obvious reasons! Not so obvious, vivianite’s key words are compassion, love, inner peace, gentleness, refreshment, inspiration, and mystic awakening; the elements of earth and water; and the heart (4th) chakra. What’s not to love?

vivianite — Vivianite [Creative Commons]

Bottom line: You can add a little pizzazz to your writing in many ways by bringing in stones.

Vivian Lawry

Writer

stones

A SACRED STONE

Shiva Lingam Stones

Meaning of Shiva Lingam

Beauty With Benefits