EMERALD

Emerald has a hydrothermal origin. Its intense green color, due to chrome, is symbolically linked to spring and the rebirth of Nature. The value of this gem is based on color and transparency. It has infinite therapeutic, psychological and propitiatory properties. It is called "the stone of love". The natural element Water is linked to the emotional and feminine sphere, therefore to feelings such as love, empathy, intuition. The name of this gem in ancient Greek is σμάραγδος and in Latin smaragdus but its first source is izmargad, a Semitic term or Marakatam, a Sanskrit word, which means "green stone". For the Indians the Emerald represents nature and everything that grows. Eastern tradition also considers it the "stone of things that grow". Already six thousand years ago this stone was sold in the markets of Babylon, worshiped by the Incas, considered by the Chaldeans to be the home of a goddess. In Egypt it was considered a gift from Thoth (Mercury), the god of wisdom and knowledge. Furthermore, legend has it that it was Cleopatra's favorite jewel. For the Egyptians the emerald was the symbol of eternal life; it was, in fact, placed around the neck of the mummy, as a sign of youth and afterlife. For the Incas it represented the incarnation of a Goddess. The Greeks dedicated it to Aphrodite, the goddess of Love and Beauty. It is associated with the Phoenician goddess of fertility, war and love, Astarte, and with Annapurna, Hindu goddess of food, and like all green crystals with Persephone, goddess of spring. In the history of Christianity it is attributed to Saint John and is a symbol of Resurrection. In the New Testament this gem is compared to the rainbow around the Throne of God. On an emerald tablet, Hermes Trismegistus engraved “As above, so below”, considering this gem a magical stone, capable of uniting spiritual and earthly life. Due to its symbolism and its transparent green color, the emerald is associated with the sign of water and air. It represents a state of evolution. Just like a cycle, water heats up and becomes steam and then rises towards the sky, then cools and falls back to the earth in the form of dew. The green color of the emerald was taken up in the comics, as an imaginary mineral called kryptonite, deriving from the explosion of Krypton, the home planet of Superman and Supergirl, for which it can be fatal or harmful: together with magic, in fact, constitutes the Man of Steel and the Girl of Steel's only weakness. Thanks to Superman's great fame and the effect the mineral has on him, kryptonite is sometimes used as a metaphor in common parlance, similarly to Achilles' heel, to indicate someone's weak point.  The word derives from the Greek term kryptòs, which means "hidden". In nature, krypton is a gas  considered a non-toxic asphyxiant. It has a narcotic potential seven times higher than that of atmospheric air: if breathed in large quantities it can therefore induce narcosis, a deep sleep, similar to the stress of diving at great depths, nitrogen narcosis.  This stone is associated with Hades and Proserpina, the Roman version of the Greek goddess Persephone or Kore from the Greek meaning girl. The name may derive from the Latin word proserpere meaning "to emerge" signifying the growth of grain. In fact, originally, she was undoubtedly a rural goddess. She is also identified with the goddess Libera. This stone represents a personality that tends to hide, to close in on itself. In fact, Proserpina was the daughter of Ceres. As in the Cinderella story, this stone remains hidden in the woods secretly waiting for its Prince Charming. The emerald has a close link with  the sense of guilt, which is nothing else than a human feeling that arises as the result of an action or an omission that identifies those who manifest themselves in self-reprobation, generating emotions of remorse and regret with a consequent state of voltage. Mourning and melancholy In naturopathy, emerald is associated with the heart chakra and, therefore, is seen as a fundamental element for the well-being of the heart and nervous system, helping to improve the relationship with the surrounding world. Western cultures have always seen emeralds as having particular abilities to detoxify and relieve physical and psychological stress.