The Sacred Seven

This simple spell acknowledges the life force and the cycles of nature that give rise to our creativity.

On a Monday, light seven purple candles to represent the days of the week, and say aloud:

    We begin by honoring the sun;

    We begin by honoring the light.

    We light these candles for our friends, Our families, those we love.

    May the light of these candles draw the power of nature into our hearts;

    May the light of the candles inspire us to help and never harm;

    May each of the seven days be radiant with the Light from every start.

    Blessed be.

Lucky Wishing Charms

Many of us don’t realize that the classic charm bracelet is decorated with magical symbols representing the wearer’s wishes.

    * For prosperity, such as before a job interview, when asking for a raise, or if you find yourself in                   arrears, wear a coin.

    * For love, try a heart.

    * For creativity on a project, a pen or artist’s palette.

Don’t Worry, Be Happy: A Spell to Quell Anxiety

As the sun sets on a waning moon day, you can quiet the inner voices of worrywart that get in the way of life. When our moon ebbs, another grows forth, and so it goes for our creativity and renewal cycles.

Gather together

• 1 vanilla bean pod
• sandalwood incense
• amber resin
• a charcoal cake for burning incense
• a fireproof glass or clay dish
• 1 black or gray candle

Timing: As the moon decreases in size, cast this spell.

Set aside a small piece of the vanilla bean, then grind together a teaspoon each of sandalwood, amber, and the remainder of the vanilla bean using either the back of a spoon or your mortar and pestle. Burn this resin-based mixture on a piece of charcoal in the fireproof dish on your altar. Light the black or gray candle, for protection. Rub the reserved small piece of vanilla bean in your palm until the scent begins to waft up thanks to the heat in your hands. Concentrate on the flame and rub the same vanilla essence on your temples and place your hand over your heart.

As you meditate, think about how you sometimes doubt yourself, worry needlessly, and how you will begin to trust your innate wisdom and instincts. Visualize clearing all anxiety from your mind. Think about the wonderful aspects in your life, your bright future, and your potential as you chant:

    La lune, goddess of the moon,

    As you may grow, so do I.

    Here, tonight, under your darkest light,

    I embrace all within me that is good and right,

    and bid goodbye to all the rest. Blessed be.

Blow out the candle and throw it into a fireplace or your cast iron cauldron to burn away. You must completely destroy the candle because it contains the energy of your anxiety and fear. Now, go and worry no more.

The Secret to Thomas Edison’s Genius: Dream Crystals

Thomas Edison carried quartz crystals with him at all times and called the stones his dream crystals. He believed they inspired his ideas and inventions. Literary legends George Sand and William Butler Yeats also relied on crystals to help spark their considerable creativity.

Data has also been gathered to show the effectiveness of quartz in certain healing techniques, such as chakra therapy, acupressure, and light-ray therapy. However, the simplest way to promote healing with crystals is to wear a stone.

Quartz can take the form of great hexagonal stones or of crystals so small that only a microscope can see them. Quartz can appear in clusters or singly. It can also appear in every hue of the rainbow. The gorgeous and varied hues of quartz come from electrostatic energy, which now can be altered through technology. I, however, prefer the simple beauty provided by Mother Nature herself.

Quartz is the largest of the crystal families, and we can be grateful for that since it is such a powerful healer. Moreover, it is an energy regulator for the human body, affecting the vibrations of the aura, or energy field that surrounds all living beings.

Iron Pyrite

 

Fool’s gold! Some of my friends say I’m a magpie, because I am so attracted to shiny objects. Let’s count fool’s gold, or iron pyrite, among them. I don’t care if it is a hundred times less valuable than actual gold; it is very pleasing to my magpie eyes, and, every time I see it, I want to possess it. You’ll be happy to know that I have restrained myself (often with the help of friends) many times. Fool’s gold is usually the bright metallic yellow of its namesake but can also come in bright green and coppery colors, too. Found in North and South America, it is a crystal that has been mineralized and formed in shiny clusters.

Iron pyrite enables the skin to ward off contaminants. It is good for the respiratory system and is said to aid oxygen flow. It also has a strong connection to the iron levels in the blood and therefore benefits the circulatory system. Most people get relief from digestive aliments, too.

I treasure iron pyrite for its nearly unmatched support for personal mental workings. It boosts creativity, intelligence, logic, and the ability to communicate, while soothing fretfulness and angst. These crystal clusters radiate stability. Native Americans revered iron pyrite as a protective substance. This money-bringing and creativity- boosting stone is a must for the studios and workstations of artists, fashionistas, writers, and anyone whose artistry provides income.

Creating Your Stone Shrine

To begin using your magical powers, you must first set the stage, the perfect environment in which to incubate your ideas. You’ll do this by building a stone shrine, your touchstone for daily conjuring and contemplation. By preparing your home and sparking your inner flame, you can clear away personal blocks and invite in the friendly spirits who will aid and abet your supernatural pursuits. It is of the utmost importance to have in your home a shrine or altar, a power center, where you can keep your stones and perform rituals and spells. This is your energy source where you can renew yourself and your spirits every day. The more you use your altar, the more it will build up energy, and the more effective your spells will be.

On a low table, place a white scarf and candles from each of the colors of the spectrum: white, violet, blue, green, yellow, orange, pink, red, and black. Place them in the miraculous arching shape of a rainbow. Take amber incense and place it in a quartz crystal bowl at the center of the rainbow. Amber is good for creativity and healing and also contains crystalline grains of rock resin from Mother Nature. Keep a wand of sage or a smudging stick in a fireproof bowl or seashell on your altar and use it to clear the energy and sanctify the space every day.

Next, place symbols on the altar that reflect your personal power and spiritual aspirations. I keep fresh wildflowers in a vase beside a statue of a young goddess pouring water of wisdom, symbolizing Aquarius. I also have abalone shells, which represent my Piscean nature, aligned with a magnetite obelisk and a rock-crystal ball. Let your imagination run wild! Use religious icons and images or photos that have special meaning—whatever expresses your innermost spirit. If you have an obelisk or pyramid on your altar, you can use it for manifestation by placing your desires and wishes on paper beneath the crystal.

Keep the basic principles of feng shui in mind and put prosperity stones in your far-left money corner, and romance rocks in your far-right love corner.

The crystals you select should be a completely personal choice. Browse your favorite lapidary or New Age shop and see what you are drawn to and resonate most with. Here are some crystals you can choose for specific spell work and energy you want in your life and environment:

• For creativity: amazonite, aventurine, carnelian, chrysolite, chrysoprase, citrine, green tourmaline, malachite, yellow fluorite
• For intuition: amethyst, azurite, celestite, lapis lazuli, moonstone, selenite, smoky quartz, sodalite, star sapphire, yellow cacite
• For love: amethyst, aventurine, magnetite, rhodochrosite, rose quartz, twinned rock crystal
• For prosperity: bloodstone, carnelian, citrine, dendritic agate, diamond, garnet, hawk’s-eye, moss agate, peridot, ruby, tiger’s-eye, topaz, yellow sapphire
• For self-assurance: azurite, chalcedony, chrysocolla, green tourmaline, hematite, rutilated quartz, tiger’s-eye
• For serenity: amber, aventurine, blue jade, dioptase, Herkimer diamond, jasper, kunzite, moonstone, onyx, peridot, quartz, rhodonite
• For success: carnelian, obsidian, quartz, selenite, sodalite, topaz
• For vigor: agate, aventurine, bloodstone, calcite, chalcedony, citrine, dioptase, emerald, garnet, orange calcite, ruby, topaz
• For wisdom: emerald, fluorite, Herkimer diamond, moldavite, serpentine, yellow calcite

Crystal Shrines: Altar Crystals

The following is a comprehensive overview of different crystals and what their presence on your altar will mean.

CREATIVITY

Amazonite, aventurine, carnelian, chrysolite, chrysoprase, citrine, green tourmaline, malachite, yellow fluorite

INTUITION

Amethyst, azurite, celestite, lapis lazuli, moonstone, selenite, smoky quartz, sodalite, star sapphire, yellow calcite

LOVE

Amethyst, magnetite, rhodochrosite, rose quartz, twinned rock crystals

PROSPERITY

Bloodstone, carnelian, citrine, dendritic agate, diamond, garnet, hawk’s-eye, moss agate, peridot, ruby, tiger’s-eye, topaz, yellow sapphire

PROTECTION

Amber, Apache tear, chalcedony, citrine, green calcite, hematite, jade, jet, smoky quartz

SELF-ASSURANCE

Azurite, chalcedony, chrysocolla, green tourmaline, hematite, rutilated quartz, tiger’s-eye

SERENITY

Amber, aventurine, blue jade, dioptase, Herkimer diamond, jasper, kunzite, moonstone, onyx, peridot, quartz, rhodonite

SUCCESS

Carnelian, obsidian, quartz, selenite, sodalite, topaz

VIGOR

Agate, aventurine, bloodstone, calcite, chalcedony, citrine, dioptase, emerald, garnet, orange calcite, ruby, topaz

WISDOM

Emerald, fluorite, Herkimer diamond, moldavite, serpentine, yellow calcite

Taking the Waters—a Releasing Ritual

Sarasvati is a Hindu goddess of the arts, and originally a river goddess. She is invoked by individuals seeking to improve the flow of their creativity and self-transformation.

A bath blessing that will both relax and purify you is a rare and wonderful thing. To prepare yourself, place 1 quart of rough sea salt or Epsom salts in a large bowl. Add the juice from 6 freshly squeezed lemons, 1⁄2 cup of sesame oil, and a few drops of rose and jasmine oils. Stir until the mixture is completely moistened. You can add more sesame oil if necessary, but do not add more lemon because it will make the mixture overly astringent and potentially irritating to your skin.

When your tub is one-third full, add one-quarter of the salt mixture under the faucet. Breathe in deeply ten times, inhaling and exhaling fully before you do this recitation. You may start to feel a tingling at the crown of your head. The water should still be running when you proclaim:

Sarasvati, O Harmonious One,
Goddess and mistress, I ask your guidance.
Remove from me any impurities
Of heart, spirit, and mind. I open myself to you.
My wish is to once again become whole,
Free of pain, sadness, and all that is better in me.

When the tub is full, it is time to step inside and breathe deeply ten more times. Repeat the prayer to Sarasvati, and use the rest of the salt to gently massage your body. Rest and rejuvenate as long as you like, allowing yourself to feel refreshed and renewed by the ministrations of this Hindu goddess of harmony and artistry from whom eloquence, inspiration, and blessings flow. 

Setting Your Intention

A well-defined and focused intention is the key to success in a life-enhancing ritual. Good results depend upon clarity. If your intention is not crystal clear, you are likely to fail. You must approach your ritual with a definite concentration. If a nagging worry is hovering in the back of your mind, you are not properly focused. You may even want to perfect an image of your intention and desire with creative visualization.

Part of your preparation should also include using ritual correspondences—the phase of the moon, the day of the week, the color of the candles you use, and much more. These things add to the depth and meaning of your ritual. Do you need to clear the energy and refresh your altar with some housecleaning and smudge? Do so and continue to focus on your intention as you create the foundation for a successful ceremony.

While you are clearing energy in your space, you must also clear out the clutter in your mind. If you are in a state of inner chaos, the outcome will simply not measure up to your expectations. Perhaps it will help you relax if you play CDs of instrumental music or sacred chants. Conscious breathing or stretching will also help you make yourself ready for ritual.

Constructing your inner temple is a marvelous process that can aid in your journey deep inside yourself. Sit or lie down in a position that is comfortable enough to relax you, but not so comfortable as to allow you to drift off to sleep. As you breathe slowly and rhythmically, imagine a peaceful, beautiful place specific to your desires. It could be a white marble temple in a lovely sculpture garden under a still blue sky. It could be a mirror pool by a sacred grove. It must be pleasing to you, a place you can visit frequently in visualization. It can be any size or shape but should have certain aspects:

• The Center: Your inner temple should have a single center from which you can access all areas of the temple. This center is a representation of your personal power center.
• Reflective Surface: Here is where you can take a look at yourself spiritually. The reflective surface can be a scrying mirror, a crystal ball, or even a pool of water. You can also use it to look at the past, present, and future.
• Water: Your inner temple can have any number of water sources, such as a waterfall, a well, a stream, or an ocean. Water represents our deepest levels of consciousness. Commune with your deepest self here. 
• Earth: Here is where you ground yourself, and create manifestation. Take stock of your deepest desires and goals here in a garden, forest, meadow, or wherever your imagination guides you. 

Ideally, your inner temple has four doorways or gates, one each for the four directions and elements. Once you have created your ideal inner temple, you can now use it to perform ritual, as you have created permanent sacred space inside and outside this temple through visualization. 

Banishing Creative Blocks: Nature as Altar

To overcome any blocks of fear obstructing your creative output, you can dispel the negative energy by going for a walk in the nearest park. Find a round, flat rock, six to ten inches wide. This will become an altar supplied directly to you by Mother Nature, and it will have the purest energy. Begin by charging this stone on the full moon at your home altar. Light a white candle for purification, and then place your hand on the stone and chant three times:

Goddess of Night, moon of tonight,
Fill this stone with your light,
Imbue it with all your magic and might,
Surround it with your protective sight.
So mote it be.

Ideally, you’ll want to perform this spell three times on three consecutive full moons before you begin drawing upon its energy. Like your altar, your stone will be a reservoir you can turn to any time you feel stuck or uninspired. Make a pilgrimage to it when you require creative rejuvenation. 

Keep Your Muse Close

 

Any time an imaginative person feels her creativity is blocked, or if she feels uninspired, she can call upon a muse. Whether you’re passionate about growing plants, painting, or writing music, you can stay in touch with your muse by using a special tool that will draw her to you with sweet-smelling smoke of sage.

Sage is hardy and sun-loving, so keep a pot of it on the windowsill. There are very simple steps to take to create a sage wand to use when you need inspiration. First, you will want to create a tight braid of materials. This braid will consist of a long fennel stalk, a twisted bundle of sage, long sticks of incense (I prefer cinnamon), and purple (for power) and gold (for money) string or thread. When you are about to embark on an artistic activity, simply light one end of your wand and gently wave it around your head to clear your environment. Your mind will be cleared in the process, freeing the way for creative ideas. A little sage smoke goes a long way, so you will not want to burn the entire wand at once. Keep a cup of water or a small bowl of earth on hand to extinguish your wand when you are done.

Citrine—Cairngorm Quartz

This is the orange or yellow kind of quartz and is actually rather rare in nature. The citrines you are seeing in the marketplace are quartzes that have been heated—low-grade amethysts or smoky quartzes cooked at high temperatures to make them more valuable in the jewelry stores. You can tell if you try by looking for the more reddish orange shades these faked citrines have. On the other hand, real citrine may have started its natural life as amethyst but then got heated by Mother Nature herself in seismic or volcanic activity. Ametrine, one of my absolute favorite stones, is half amethyst and half citrine.

True citrine is found in France, Brazil, Russia, the United Kingdom, and North America. Citrine is quite often mistaken for topaz, a gem higher in monetary value. There are dealers who have taken advantage of naive collectors and sold them citrine as topaz. Citrine’s sisters in the quartz family are amethyst, the purple color; milky quartz, a cloudy white; rock crystal, the clear variety; rose quartz, a pretty pink; and smoky quartz, which ranges from gray to brown. Citrine, also called cairngorm, is a birthstone for November and helps with stomachaches. It is a crystal that helps to heighten mental clarity and creativity, increase powers of concentration, and overcome a poor memory. Citrine is an aura protector, touching the chakra system and even helping to repair holes in the aura. It opens the sacral and solar plexus chakras and kindles the crown chakra. Citrine is especially wonderful if you wear it as a jewel in rings while you are working and handling your money.

You should keep a chunk of citrine in your place of work because it will allow you to hear and accept constructive criticism. Tradesmen in India kept citrine in their shops and bazaars to attract money and abundance. An immediate feng- shui cure would be to place a cluster of citrine crystals in your wealth corner. Citrine is also terrific to have on hand in your home, as it is a cleanser of the environment as well as the etheric body. Citrine can help maintain equilibrium between the yin and yang energies—the female and male.

Citrine is quite simply an essential to have; it promotes calmness and brings out a feeling of well-being and happiness. Citrine makes anyone want to be more active and is a strong motivator. So, greater success, better health, and more money? Give me citrine anytime! 

Tips ’n’ Tricks: Creativity Crystals

Two stones that benefit artists and musicians the most are amethyst and aquamarine: absorption of the color rays or vibrations of these crystals stimulates the centers of the cortex that create.

Topaz

Topaz is a teacher crystal, showing us how to love. This is the stone of true love and success and is fantastic for confidence and creativity. Topaz is an aura cleanser and helps overcome negativity, replacing it with a sense of joy, abundance, and love. From its facets, topaz even has a charge, both negative and positive; you can see and feel the charge if you rub the stone. Topaz occurs naturally in a golden yellow but can also come in blue, reddish blue, brown, green, light pink, and clear. It is found in many parts of the world, including Zimbabwe, Ireland, Russia, Burma, South Africa, Brazil, and California. Topaz is often discovered as worn water pebbles downstream from an underground cache of ore.

Topaz works through the laws of attraction and manifestation. Creative visualization and meditation with topaz on what you really want and believe is right for you is very potent. Set in a silver wand, topaz is a tremendous abundance tool, connecting to the great source of life, energy, and love. You will find that topaz makes you more sure of your intuitions. The bushmen of Africa used topaz ceremonially for sending their brethren to the next world and for healing.

When meditating with topaz, imagine that you are holding the very energy of the sun—warm, healing, and benevolent. If you are tapped out, burned-out, and at your lowest ebb, topaz will generate rays of replenishment to recharge you and get you back up to a good energy level. Topaz relaxes at the same time that it refills; it “coats” your nervous system so you feel comfortable and ready for anything. Topaz will help you see your real goals in this life and will even illuminate the path to getting there. Topaz is a generosity generator, and you will want to give unto another with no expectations of getting anything back. Yellow topaz attracts advantageous people into your life if worn on the ring finger. Blue topaz stimulates the throat chakra and helps with speaking abilities if worn as a necklace.

Selenite

Here we have an angelic stone, one that can help you tune into your guardian angels and discover the real reason you are here on Earth—the divine purpose for your existence. Named for the moon, this white, glowing lucky stone is gypsum and must be handled carefully, as it is partially water soluble. Egyptians favored this white stone as an amulet. This is a great calmer and is magnificent for mental focus. As a chakra healer, selenite helps rid unhealthy and negative thoughts, yours or others’, from your mind and etheric body. This stone can also be placed over the third eye to access stored information about your past lives. Selenite, with its white swirls, can give an enormous boost to creative visualization. In the same way this crystal retains, it is good for letting go and helps you forgive. Selenite can also be used for healing of the nerves, reproductive organs, and spine, lending flexibility. It is a record-keeping stone and carries information from the centuries on Earth it has witnessed. it can be a most auspicious crystal ball for gazing. A rare kind of selenite is gold selenite from Australia. It is good for grounding.

Tips ’n’ Tricks: Cover-All-The-Bases Crystal

If you are keeping yourself on a strict budget, get one piece of jewelry that will help you in nearly every area of your life—health, wealth, love, family, career, travel, friendship, and creativity. Go to the nearest Chinatown, where the prices are right, and get a bracelet featuring multiple hues of jade. One-stop shopping to a better life now!

Tips ’n’ Tricks: Polish Your Perceptions

So what do you do if you are attracted to all the wonderful qualities I just stated are inherent in the mysterious, water green malachite but are afraid of the negativity-amplifying aspect? Go for this fairly commonplace natural merging of malachite and azurite becoming popularly known as azur-malachite. It is a similarly lovely green blue and a real helper crystal. Azurite has the incredible ability to help us all integrate unacknowledged beliefs, and malachite is a creativity crystal, so when these two stones occur together, their combined power enables us to handle the hardest truths about ourselves.

Whereas malachite is so powerful by itself that it can cause heart palpitations among more sensitive souls, the combined stone is very gentle and peaceful. What Aldous Huxley wrote about, cleansing the doors of perception, can happen with azur-malachite!

Malachite

I received a beautiful malachite heart from my mother and father for Christmas this year—how I treasure it! Malachite has always been a connection to the Divine, especially divine inspiration. Malachite, named for the Greek word mallow (green herb), is formed from copper ore and frequently occurs in conjunction with chrysocolla and azurite. Malachite is a lovely green blue in color and has endless patterned bands. No two pieces of malachite are ever alike. Malachite was associated with royals and high priests and priestesses in ancient times. They loved to adorn their bodies, their homes, and their temples with this special stone. They would have entire tables and chairs and altars. One would certainly feel like a king of queen when dining from a malachite table! Even still, some of the largest sheets found in South Africa, Zamia, Zaire, Russia, and Romania are fashioned into small boxes, bowls, and obelisks.

Malachite can help you connect to your place in the Divine Plan. Malachite draws out old patterns and thoughts. It will aid in clearing away the deadwood from your life and your psyche. It offers psychic protection, too. This green grounding stone will also get you more in touch with the earth and more grounded as a person—more stable. As with most green stones, it has to do with prosperity, abundance, and money. Malachite will awaken your creativity. If you are allowing others to benefit from your creativity, this stone will help stop that draining in its tracks. Malachite requires extra care in its use because it amplifies whatever energies are already there. If anger, suffering, and deceit are present, these qualities could inadvertently be increased by malachite. Basically, malachite is really useful only for people who are typically helpful and happy. It is best for children, really. One theory is that malachite is still evolving and is becoming a master key for the future.

Malachite helps with maintaining boundaries and comes highly recommended for that purpose by many healers. Malachite can help restore anyone who is suffering from burnout. Those who do psychic work and healing are among those who are affected by this most severely, so they need to keep malachite nearby for rejuvenation. Malachite opens the heart and throat chakras and rebalances the solar plexus, enabling realignment of the psychic and etheric bodies. Malachite is best used as a ring on your right hand. Malachite is used to ward off insanity and has been used both as an eye remedy and as a cosmetic by the unstoppable Egyptians. I shudder to think of the Egyptian elixirs involving malachite, many recipes for which they left behind on papyrus; they are likely extremely toxic. Please avoid any malachite elixirs!

Iron Pyrite

Fool’s gold! Some of my friends say I’m a magpie because I am so attracted to shiny objects. Let’s count fool’s gold among them. I don’t care if it is a hundred times less valuable than actual gold, it is very pleasing to my magpie eyes, and every time I see it, I want to possess it. You’ll be happy to know that I have restrained myself (often with the help of friends) many times. Iron pyrite is usually the bright metallic yellow of its namesake but can also come in bright green and coppery colors, too. Minted in North America and South America, it is a crystal that has been mineralized, forming shiny clusters.

Iron pyrite enables the skin to ward off contaminants. It is a plus for the respiratory system and is said to aid oxygen flow. It also has a strong connection to the iron levels in the blood and therefore benefits the circulatory system. Most people get relief from digestive aliments, too.

I treasure iron pyrite for its nearly unmatched support to personal mental workings. It boosts creativity, intelligence, logic, and the ability to communicate and soothes fretfulness and angst. These crystal clusters radiate stability. Native Americans revered iron pyrite as a protective amulet. This money-bringing and creativity-boosting stone is a must for the studios and workstations of artistry provides income.

Hematite

Hematite takes its otherworldly metallic sheen from the iron oxide of which it is made. Even way back in the “Stone Age,” when I had my rock tumbler, I could quite easily come up with a silvery pebble after tumbling and polishing hematite. Occasionally, hematite has a reddish color or red speckles on the surface. This may be why hematite is named thusly: the root of the word, haima, is the Greek word for blood. Hematite has long been associated with blood, blood rituals, and medicine for treating nosebleeds, menstruation, heart disease, anemia, kidney disease, hemophilia, birth, surgery, insomnia, lung problems, and fever. Native Americans use hematite in dentistry and to treat wounds and substance abuse. Ancient Egyptians ground hematite up and put it in medicines and unguents. Egyptians loved this glistening rock, and every person could have one (which wasn’t the case with emeralds). They frequently wore hematite as an amulet, believing it could render the wearer invincible.

Hematite is most frequently found in North America, Sweden, Britain, Switzerland, Italy, and Brazil. Hematite is almost like the “Magic Metals” previously discussed (see chapter two) because it contains high levels of iron, driving its blood-cleaning capabilities. It is also a protective rock and fortifies tissue regeneration. Hematite shores up self-image and self-belief. It also transforms negative energy into positive. Hematite is considered to be yang, a more male energy. My preferred aspect of this shiny wonder is that it assists with both legal problems and astral projection. Hematite is a creativity crystal and a marvelous mental enhancer, increasing the ability to think with logic, to focus, to concentrate, and to remember more clearly and completely. Hematite draws anxiety out of the body and creates calm. In addition to all of these aspects that project outward, hematite contributes to inner work: self- knowledge, deeper consciousness, and wisdom. Like the iron in the earth from which it is formed, hematite grounds. If you feel spacey or disconnected, you should wear hematite.

You now know that hematite can be found fairly commonly in North America and parts of South America, but you may not be aware that it can be found in plenitude on Mars! Yes, Mars has a bad case of “rust” dust due to the gray hematite in a massive patch on the surface near the Martian equator, proving that Mars had water or at least water vapor at some point. This has led to tantalizing theories from scientists about possible hot springs that were once active on our red neighbor planet. I discovered this while cruising the NASA Web site. How do they know it was hematite? Through an infrared-imaging system known as THEMIS (Thermal Emission Imaging System) I also discovered a quote by Victoria Hamilton, a planetary geologist at Arizona State University, explaining that “all materials vibrate at the atomic scale...each mineral has a unique infrared spectrum that identifies it as surely as the fingerprints of a human being.” Fascinating!