Pink Tourmaline: The October Birthstone
History
Tourmaline was first discovered by Dutch traders off the West Coast of Italy in the late 1600's. The name tourmaline comes from the term "turmali,"" which was the name given to all colored crystals.
At one point, pink tourmaline was thought to be a ruby and green tourmaline was thought to be an emerald. Pink tourmaline tends to be pinker in color than ruby though and green tourmaline tends to be clearer than emerald.
For centuries, various cultures have had different beliefs about what virtues the tourmaline can bring to the wearer. The Chinese have engraved and carved figures with tourmaline for many centuries, and ancient examples are still displayed in museums, a testament to the durability of the stone. Ancient ceremonies in India included the use of the gem as a tool to bring insight and help in the discovery of good vs evil.
This gemstone was also highly valued by alchemists who believed it to be related to the philosopher's stone. This was said to be the substance that would grant enlightenment, immortality, and change base metals to gold.
Qualities
Pink tourmaline is also known as "rubellite," which is the Latin word for red. At one point, there was a different name for each color of tourmaline, but now they are all generally referred to as simply tourmaline. Pink tourmaline is the rarest member of the tourmaline family because of its color. Much tourmaline occurs as beautifully formed, elongated crystals with a distinctive rounded triangular shape in the cross section.
Tourmaline is usually found in granite pegmatites or in segments adjacent to such granites. It can be found in Northeast Afghanistan, Tanzania, Sri Lanka, Greenland, Bolivia, Mozambique, Nigeria, Burma, Russia, India, Southeast Brazil, central Madagascar, Italy, California and Maine.
Special Properties
Pink tourmaline represents a love of humanity and compassion. It is worn to promote sympathy towards others and is an excellent stone for healers, therapists, and counselors as it allows them to actively listen. It carries the virtue of unconditional love and friendship as well. In fact, it radiates the highest amount of love of all the different colored tourmalines.
Pink tourmaline is also of great value to people that have difficulty with fear. Those who have panic attacks use pink tourmaline as a heart protector. It teaches that it is safe to love and therefore instills confidence.
Tourmaline also has many positive attributes in the spiritual realm. It is what is called a "receptive stone," which means it is soothing and calming, which promotes meditation, spirituality, and wisdom. It creates peace and promotes communication between the conscious and unconscious minds, allowing psychic awareness to bloom.
Final Thoughts
Pink Tourmaline is an incredibly deep gemstone that attributes healing energy, compassion, and love to the wearer. This birthstone is at its highest peak of power during the month of October. Its value carries great weight in ethical mining and uniqueness as well.
Click here for the October Birthstone Collection!
Have more birthstone questions? Checkout the blog post here!
Check out Part 1 here to find out more about October’s Birthstones.
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JSL Team :)
