The more you understand about crystals, the more effective they are! Crystals were created as the earth formed and they have continued to metamorphose as the planet itself has changed. Crystals are the earth’s DNA, a chemical imprint for evolution. They are miniature storehouses, containing the records of the development of the earth over millions of years, and bearing the indelible memory of the powerful forces that shaped it. Some have been subjected to enormous pressure, others grew in chambers deep underground, some were laid down in layers, others dripped into being–all of which affects their properties and the way they function. Whatever form they take, their crystalline structure can absorb, conserve, focus, and emit energy, especially on the electromagnetic waveband.
THE CRYSTAL LATTICE
Because of chemical impurities, radiation, earth and solar emissions, and the exact means of their formation, each type of crystal has its own specific “note.” Formed out of an array of minerals, a crystal is defined by its internal structure–an orderly, repeating atomic lattice that is unique to its species. A large or small specimen of the same type of crystal will have exactly the same internal structure, which can be recognized under a microscope.
This unique geometric crystal lattice is how crystals are identified and means that some crystals, such as Aragonite, have several very different external forms and colors, which at first glance could not possibly be the same crystal. However, because the internal structure is identical, they are classified as the same crystal. It is this structure, rather than the mineral or minerals out of which it is formed, that is crucial to crystal classification. In some cases the mineral content differs slightly, creating the various colors in which a particular crystal can be found.
While a number of crystals may be formed out of the same mineral or combination of minerals, each type will crystallize out differently. A crystal is symmetrical along an axis. Its regular external planes are an outward expression of its internal order. Each matching pair of faces has exactly the same angles. The internal structure of any crystalline formation is constant and unchanging.
Crystals are built from one of the seven possible geometric forms: triangles, squares, rectangles, hexagons, rhomboids, parallelograms, or trapeziums. These forms lock together into a number of potential crystal shapes, which have generic names based on their internal geometry. As the name suggests, a hexagonal crystal is formed from hexagons built into a three-dimensional shape. A collection of squares forms a cubic crystal, triangles a trigonal, and rectangles a tetragonal crystal, while rhomboids form an orthorhombic crystal, trapeziums a triclinic, and parallelograms a monoclinic crystal. The outer forms of the crystal will not necessarily reflect its inner structure.
At the heart of a crystal is the atom and its component parts. An atom is dynamic, consisting of particles rotating around a center in constant motion. So, although a crystal may look outwardly serene, it is actually a seething molecular mass vibrating at a certain frequency. This is what gives a crystal its energy.
THE EARTH’S CRUST
The earth began as a whirling cloud of gas, out of which was created a dense dust bowl. This contracted into a white-hot, molten ball. Gradually, over eons, a thin layer of this molten material, magma, cooled into a crust–the earth’s mantle. The crust is relatively about as thick as the skin on an apple. Inside that crust, the hot, mineral-rich, molten magma continues to boil and bubble and new crystals form.
Some crystals, such as Quartz, arise from the fiery gases and molten minerals in the earth’s center. Superheated, they rise toward the surface, propelled by stresses caused by movement of huge plates on the earth’s surface. As gases penetrate the crust and meet solid rock, they cool and solidify–a process that may take eons or may be fast and furious. If the process has been relatively slow, or if the crystal grows in a gas bubble, then large crystals can grow. If the process is fast, then the crystals are small. If the process stops and starts, effects such as phantom or self-healed crystals are possible. If the process is exceptionally fast, a glass-like substance, such as Obsidian, is formed rather than crystals. Crystals such as Aventurine or Peridot are created at high temperature from liquid magma. Others, such as Topaz and Tourmaline, are formed when gases penetrate adjoining rocks.
Yet other forms arise when magma cools sufficiently for water vapor to condense into a liquid. The resulting mineral-rich solution lays down crystals such as Aragonite and Kunzite. When it penetrates fissures in surrounding rock, the solution is able to cool very slowly and lay down large crystals and geodes such as Chalcedony and Amethyst.
Crystals like Garnet are formed deep in the earth when minerals melt and recrystallize under intense pressure and enormous heat. These crystals are known as metamorphic because they have undergone a chemical change that has reorganized the original lattice.
Calcite and other sedimentary crystals form from an erosion process. Rocks at the surface break down and mineralized water dripping through rock or traveling as a river lays down weathered material as new crystals, or the minerals become cemented together. Such crystals are often laid down in layers of a “bedrock” and tend to be softer in texture. Crystals are often found still attached to the bedrock on which they formed or cemented together as a conglomerate. This bedrock is known as the matrix.
Occult Aspects 