The Opal

[Oscen Occultus]

Let's talk about my often forgotten friend the opal. It's beautiful and so mysterious! How do you feel about opals? :)

[AmethystMoon08]

i've heard that it's bad luck to have/wear/have anything to do with Opals unless it's your birthstone.. lol

[SylverStar]

I've heard the same thing. It's actually one of the few superstions I hold. Not sure why though.

[Faery-Wings]

i've heard that it's bad luck to have/wear/have anything to do with Opals unless it's your birthstone.. lol

I was brought up with that superstition too. Then I heard it is safe only if you get it as a gift.

Does anyone know where that thought originated?

[VelvetBlade]

I was always told the same thing. It was my mother's birthstone (her bday was Oct 31st)....and before she passed, she told all the girls that she wanted to be wearing her ring when she was cremated because none of us had opal as a birthstone and she wouldn't leave it to us. I've always been leary of them because she believed SO strongly about it.

~AW

[Mithrea]

Opal is my birthstone too. I have a few. One ring, I bought for myself and one my mother gave me as a gift when I graduated from high school. My grandmother also gave me a pair of earrings that had belonged to her best friend. Since it's my birthstone, of course I'm pretty safe but I still think those superstitions are bunk. Someone explained where they came from to me once but I cannot remember for the life of me what it was. I know a few non-Libras who bought opals for themselves and have had no trouble :)

[SylverStar]

I want to say it orginated in Germany not too long ago but I'm pulling that out of no where. I really have no idea.

They are beautiful stones

[VelvetBlade]

Just some info I found.......

~AW





OPAL: Promotes love, joy, emotional balance.
http://www.heall.com/soul/symbolicmythicalcrystalmeaning.html



Opal: Opals were once said to bring good fortune because they possessed the colors and powers of all gemstones. Since they are very sensitive to the atmospheric conditions, their brilliancy varies and is determined by the temperature and moisture in the air. Many believers say that an opal has a soul of their very own, and it attunes it’s soul to that of the person who wears it. Long ago, some people believed that an opal could predict it’s owner’s death by emitting a fiery hue for a few seconds and then becoming dull. Because they have the ability to change colors, people soon began attributing certain myths to each color; for instance, bright colors indicated good fortune and success, while dull and lifeless colors symbolized a warning of disappointment and failure. People believed the opal to be a very valuable lucky stone... esp. the black opal. They say opals can make a person invisible which enables them to go unseen and unnoticed, anywhere, and at will. Many people of the theater prize the opal as a talisman.
http://www.charlenethompson.net/meanings3.html


Opal: Intensifies and encourages moment by moment "being-ness". Attracts flashes of inspiration, psychic insights, and clairvoyance. Opal surrounds the user with aura and mystery, intensity, charisma.Heals and clears eyesight, and balances the metabolism.

http://sweetmysticangel_as.tripod.com/lfstyltrdgpst/id26.html


OPAL -- Dates back to the Cretaceous period when dinosaurs roamed the earth. It was formed as Silica from decomposing rocks mixed with ground water, collected, and petrified in underground cavities.

In ancient times, opal had been regarded as the luckiest and most magical of all the gem's because of its' ability to showcase a multitude of colours. The Greeks of old believed the stone to give it's bearer the powers of foresight and prophecy. The Arabs of Mohammed's time were quite enamored of the gem, and were convinced they were carried to earth on bolts of lightning. One myth (probably of Greek origin) tells of a storm god throwing a bolt of lightning at the rainbow that ended his storm. The subsequent explosion of colours fell to the earth, embedding themselves in the rocks, creating the opal.

In the 1300's, opal was the most popular gem used for jewellery in Europe. When the Black Plague struck, people believed that a recently inflicted person's opal would flare up and then totally lose its' colour upon their death.

Apparently, Louis XIV of France even got in on the slandering of opal's good name by naming each of his horse-drawn coaches after gems. Opal's driver, known to rarely drive sober, would get into many accidents. It was viewed as an unlucky coach to travel in.
The final nail in the coffin came in the 19th century when Sir Walter Scott's novel, "Anne of Geirstein" depicted an opal as the sole reason to the protagonist's anguish. Although the "bad luck" incidences are later explained in the same writing, the opal's reputation stayed as being unlucky.
http://www.iorio.com/learning/myth/

[Oscen Occultus]

Such a wealth of information! I never knew opals were bad luck... I just knew that they are my favorite gemstone. :) I don't personally own any, I just admire the ones my mother has, lol. When I want to be left alone, I just imagine myself robed in an opalesque type robe, fading in and out of different colours. =)

[Mistiblue]

I too had heard that wearing Opals was bad luck if it wasn't your birthstone. Only in the version I heard it could be counteracted if you wore diamonds with it. ( a jewler probably thought that one up. LOL)

Anyway, I frequent a metaphysical shop and was wearing my opal bracelet. The lady behind the counter and I started chatting about Opals and she told me of another story version of how they got the bad rap.

She said that centuries ago when opals were first discovered there was a tribe of some sort in the same area who considered the stones sacred. As more people found out about opals the demand increased. To stop the rapid mining of the opals the natives who lived there started the rumor that they would bring bad luck.

I have no clue if there is any truth to it or not but it makes an interesting tale. :)

[ChandaM]

Let's talk about my often forgotten friend the opal. It's beautiful and so mysterious! How do you feel about opals? :)

I personaly think opals are an amazing stone. So much color, and fire, yet so delicate and breakable.
I also believe, that depending on our attitude, it mirrors the positive and negative, giving strength to our own qualities.
In standard tarot it represents the 2 of Swords =)
~C

[LorienGaia]

Opal - quartz Colorless or white. High quality pieces contain flecks of fiery color.
Found in the US., Australia, and Bohemia.
The flashes of fire within the opal aids in the release of anger. It can invoke faithfullness and loyalty in a relationship and bring oppurtunities for growth. Also, it's used for psychic ability and awareness.
It enhances love, passion, faithfullness, emotional expressiveness, warmth, spontinaity, peace, consciousness, and dramatic ability, sometimes considered unlucky. This is because modern people fear their emotional side.

[banondraig]

so is opal the birthstone for libra or scorpio? those cheezy jeweler things say october, which i would interpret as libra, but could also be scorpio. as a libra, i have a vested interest. :)

[MoonRaven]

Birthstones are month-by-month.

My mom's got an opal ring, but she never wears it. Probably better that way - she's got enough bad luck as it is!

[Saleheim]

I also found opal scary for a long time and never had one, probably because of all negative stories going around. But suddenly I got very interested in the stone and bought a boulder opal pendant. And now I think so differently about opal, what it seems to tell me is to embrace life and dare to be happy. That life holds endless posibilities. It's a very positive stone and I wouldn't want to miss it for the world.

[Mercedes]

Opal - quartz Colorless or white. High quality pieces contain flecks of fiery color.
Found in the US., Australia, and Bohemia.
The flashes of fire within the opal aids in the release of anger. It can invoke faithfullness and loyalty in a relationship and bring oppurtunities for growth. Also, it's used for psychic ability and awareness.
It enhances love, passion, faithfullness, emotional expressiveness, warmth, spontinaity, peace, consciousness, and dramatic ability, sometimes considered unlucky. This is because modern people fear their emotional side.

Ah, that's very interesting! Go figure. 'Bad luck', my arse...

The opal is one of my favourite stones. :) I don't own one, and no one in my family does either, which makes me sad, but I would love to own a ring. My mother's boss collects jewellery like mad, and he once wore a necklace with a large opal in the centre; it was beautiful!

Oh, and by the way, I've heard that wearing other birthstones other than one's own is bad luck, too. That's obviously ludicrous. I wear a topaz, and it has done nothing to me.

[CzechWoods]

so is opal the birthstone for libra or scorpio? those cheezy jeweler things say october, which i would interpret as libra, but could also be scorpio. as a libra, i have a vested interest. :)

opal is connected rather to Libra.

besides the story about opals being a bad fortune stone

some european royal houses still cling to the myth, and it is not allowed to wear such jewelry there

there are two theories why opal has such a bad believe attached to it.

the first theory is that, opals do need a lot of caretaking, and must be watered regularly (fresh water only). If you dont do this, they will dry out, and become porous (sp?) meaning fragile. - destroying their worth

assuming the royals had a lot of jewelry destroyed because of this fact could have lead to the legend, it was an unfaithful = unlucky stone


lore has it, that opals are worn by people who are two-faced or even thieves. This could be coming from the opals looks. It first appears to be white (or whatever its main colour is) and looking closer you discover there is a lot of a weorld secluded, you never will be able to gasp


plus of course, opal is known fore its capability to get lost, if it does not fit or belong to its "owner" as well people who dont treat it right or dont care well enough for it as people who wear it/own it only for vanity reasons or false pride, will be taught a lesson, when their opals suddenly get lost and cannot be retreived

you can imagine, that after having invested a lot in those stones, when they show you their diapproval by getting lost, people started to sticking 'bad/unlucky' stuff to teh stone, rather than accepting their (the peoples) own wrongs

It is far easier, blaming the stone

[Willow Rosemerta]

I love opals! My mother's birthstone is Opal, and I've been given opal as a gift from her and my grandma. They are such wonderful stones, I don't feel personally that they are bad luck. I feel surprisingly calm when I'm around them.