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Ch. 7: Religious Use of Gemstones

Ch. 7: Religious Use of Gemstones Page of 467 Ch. 7: Religious Use of Gemstones Text size:minus plus Restore normal size   Mail page  Print this page
244 THE CURIOUS LORE OP PRECIOUS STONES
cut diamond, amethyst, and carbuncle take the place of the jacinth, pearl, and cat's-eye.
Instead of uniting the different planetary gems in a single ring, they have sometimes been set separately in a series of rings to be worn successively on the days orig­inally named after the celestial bodies. We read in the life of Apollonius of Tyana (first century a.d.) by Philo-stratus: " Damis also relates that Iarchas gave to Apollonius seven rings named after the planets, and the latter wore these, one by one, in the order of the week­days."30 Although it is not expressly stated that the appropriate stones were set in the rings, the custom of the time makes it probable that this was the case.
Among the Burmese the value for occult purposes of the nine gems composing the naoratna, or navaratna, is strictly determined in the following order : first, the ruby ; second, the diamond, or rock-crystal; third, the pearl; fourth, the coral; fifth, the topaz; sixth, the sapphire; seventh, the cat's-eye; eighth, the amethyst; and ninth, the emerald.31 That the ruby, diamond and pearl should occupy places of honor is quite natural, but the rele-
30 Philostrati, " De Vita ApoIIonii," lib. iii, cap. 36.
31 Personal communication from Taw Sein Ko.
Ch. 7: Religious Use of Gemstones Page of 467 Ch. 7: Religious Use of Gemstones
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