On Opal Inspirations

I had no mystical dream on this process of how to call my work, or re-brand. Some aspect I honestly can’t quite remember, some others are more personal, aesthetic or even intuitive. So what I share here now is more on my reflections after.

As a therapists my previous “name” was Calma Balance, qualities I aspire to bring to my sessions, as well as the fact that it carried my own initials. However after a while I realised it is utopia, some times I am neither calm nor balanced. Homeostasis, peace, are but moments that we can cultivate, yet when they are not there. other lessons are to come. And there is wisdom in other feelings and states of being.

My fascination with crystals and their healing power is intrinsic in my work now for quite some time. And although not something I think works for everyone nor for every moment, I do find my self very drawn to them. So it comes to no surprise to look to their kingdom for inspiration.

As a multimedia artist I sought variety and that child like nature. My first ever domain name was livinginabubble.net, and it was gifted to me at a time I indulged in the ephemerous colours of bubbles and related them to emotional states of beings. Now I feel a little too grown up and cynical to cherish the same fascination for something I can find in spilled gasoline or excess soap. However I am still a believer in magic, and innocence, and iridescence carries this for me as a tone, colour or quality.

When it came to movement, either expressing it or facilitating it, it all got a bit personal. you cant hide behind an object, project or on someone else’s reality very easily. Your identity becomes a different mission. And what best place to look for than in your ancestry. Here Surname status becomes arbitrary. And so the concept of being a fusion, of ancestors from various places became more apparent.

And so Opal came to mind! an iridescent crystal that in a light, calming and playful way brings though willingness to heal, to trust one self, and that is also of very amorphous nature. This is what comes to me when I meditate with an opal, it finds those hard edges, and shows where our boundaries are blocking us from progressing and bring through multifaceted self acceptance.

Interesting facts about Opals:

-They are not Crystals

-They have ancient water inside them

-Their name originates from the word Jewel in Sanscrit Upala (उपल) and later in greek Opállios (ὀπάλλιος)

-The big majority come from Australia and Ethiopia but they are also present in other places such as Hungary, Mexico and USA

-it is considered the birthstone of people born in October.

Ethimology

-Their name originates from the word Jewel in Sanscrit Upala (उपल) and later in greek Opállios (ὀπάλλιος) menaing “to see a change of colour”.

The science:

They are formed through the solidification of silicic acid gel by the loss of water. This forms small globules of silocon dixide, and inbetween these, 20% of water and gas are still enclosed. and here, the bending of light creates the iridescencent tones. Thesewill vary according to what elements are in their specific formula.

So opal’s nature as an iridescent amorphous sedimentary rock, with miniscule amouts of ancient water molecules, can be written as chemical formula of SiO2 + H2O + C,Ca,Fe, Mg. It is classed as a mireraloid as its atomic structure is too disorderly to be a crystal.

They have a hardness of 5.5-6.5 on the Moh’s skale, so they can break if subjected to extreme weather changes as it will impact theirs water molecules, and need to be treated with care.

We can now find artificially made “opals”, thanks to the use of the Gilson Process, which mimics how they are formed in nature, takes around 18 months and makes harder artificial opals thanks to them not having water in them. We can also find Slocum stones which are made of glass, or Opalites which are made of plastic. It can be hard to recognise a true Opal, I have definitely made that mistake.

Opal’s mythology and history folklore:

In greek mythology, after Zeus defeated the titans he cried tears of opal joy, while in India it was considered the goddess of Rainbows turned to stone when escaping unwanted advances from other gods.

Then in the middle ages it’s broad spectrum of colours was said to bring qualities of all other stones bringing good luck. And if you wrapped a bay leaf and healed it, it could provide invisibility, making this the charm of thieves.

Then in 1829, Sir Walter Scott published “Anne of Geierstein”, in which an opal talisman gets wet with holy water, looses colour and its wearer dies shortly after, so it then got associated then with bad luck and death.

Australian aborigins , consider opal sacred and it it features in various stories. One in which the creator comes to the earth on a rainbow, and when in touched the ground it formed the first opals. Another one on the formation of fire from when a Pelican picked on the stones.

The more I look the more I find on us humans trying to make sense of this stone through the ages.

Crystal interpretations there are many, even more so according to the type of opal, I gave mine above as : “In a light, calming and playful way brings though willingness to heal, to trust one self. It finds our hard edges, and shows where our boundaries are blocking us from progressing and bring through multifaceted self acceptance”.

I have read many and today I am listing my simplest find from the book “Love is in the earth” by Melody:

Healing properties of opals:

-Amplifies ones traits, providing an impetus to overcome the lesser attributes.

-Helps recognize and feel the creativity within providing inspiration and imagination.

-Cleans true and spontaneous action allowing the release of inhibitions.

-it can strengthen memory and instill faithfulness and loyalty in all relationships.

So there you have it, In serendipity with the beginning of October, Here are my reflections on this process, on opals and their processes and stories and my new companion on this journey of my work.

https://opalsdownandunder.com.au

https://pubsapp.acs.org/cen/whatstuff/stuff/8104sci3.html?

https://www.symbols.com/symbol/opal

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Opal

“Crystal Power,Crystal Healing” Michael Gienger, 2005edition, pg 336

“Love is in the Earth” Melody, 1998 etition, pg 452