Love Birthstone

Love Birthstone

Taurus Astrology And One Of Their True Birthstones: The Apophyllite

Happy birthday for all members of the Taurus Tribe! We are moving on from Aries energy to feeling more grounded and willing to take care for our physical reality and well being. Making practical plans and then following through with it step by step is the Taurus' way of life. Of course the coloration of self expression of different Taurus people are due to what else they have going on in their chart. The house position and the aspects to your Taurus Sun will make a significant difference in how you might express yourself as a Taurus.

A Taurus is not like any other Taurus

For example: I have a late Taurus Sun in the 12th house as well as my Mercury who rules my Gemini Ascendant. For me this Sun position helps me to condense spiritual concepts, like astrology, and make them applicable and useful. I always had a way with words, even if it is definitely more of a challenge for me to write in English then in my mother language German. And I am a meditation teacher and healer which all relates to the 12th house. For me things always have to have some practical application and value.

I think that is also the reason why I love to work with the healing properties of gemstones so much, because they are a very concrete manifestation on one hand but very transcendent in their connection to the non physical realm on the other hand.  They can balance and imbue us with their essence. They can uplift us to higher states of consciousness if we use them for our meditation. Or they can alter our frequency if we wear them in our jewelry with us.

I also love beauty in all its forms: in nature, art, design, people, animals, gemstones and crystals, jewelry. Taurus is ruled by Venus and my Venus is in my first house which makes it double important for my life. Everything has to be beautiful for me. My room has golden yellow walls and red accents everywhere and every piece has a special meaning and beauty for me. How does that work out for you? How important is beauty in your life?

The Late Spring Sign of Taurus

By the end of April the Northern Hemisphere is free of its winter snows and it is time to attend to caring for the Earth and planting crops. In general you can say that Taurus people are very much in tune with the Earth. Due to the influence of Venus, they have a great love for beauty found in things such as art, jewelry, and the natural landscape. They are loyal, patient, and deliberate in working toward their goals, just as farmers must be in tending their crops from planting through harvest. When a Taurus person undertakes a project, it most likely will be completed! Grounded in reality and the physical world, they excel at professions such as artist, farmer, the financial sector, and politics.

Taurus likes to be comfortable and often likes to stay at home and make it their castle. My husband is a Cancer Sun with Taurus Ascendant; he almost never leaves the house. Physical comfort, health, good food, sex and everything that helps to enjoy the world through their senses is important for Taurus.

How Gemstones Can Enhance Your Taurus Experience

Taurus is a feminine earth sign. What better way to celebrate the Taurus love of beauty and the Earth than with beautiful gemstones, the hidden treasures of the Earth?
Gemstones have both physical and metaphysical qualities that can enhance all aspects of your well-being. The perfectly aligned crystal structure of gemstones creates an energy field that interacts with our own when you meditate with it, hold it or wear it on your body. In this way, the gemstone can be used to calm you, bring you mental clarity, increase your energy, enhance your creativity, and much more.

The Signature of Gemstones

Each gemstone has its own personality depending on their planetary composition. We call this the personal "signature" which is specified by the chemical composition, hardness, the color, translucency and reflection and crystal structure. Like for example if we know a gemstone has iron in it we know this is a good stone for all Mars related issues. So whenever Mars has hard aspects that stone would help to balance that friction.

You can learn more about the metaphysical properties of gemstones through my book Jewelry and Gems for Self-Discovery:Choosing Gemstones that Delight the Eyes & Strengthen the Soul. In my book I teach you how to find your true birthstones based on your horoscope and the individual planetary signatures of 67 gemstones mostly used in jewelry design. Below you will find a description of the Apophyllite, one of the true astrological birthstones for Taurus taken from my book.

This time I want to introduce you to a very special and rare gemstone you might not have heard about yet.

Apophyllite (Moon, Venus, Jupiter, Neptune, Chiron)

Apophyllite is a very rare, light green, four-sided, diamond-faced crystal found in only one place on the Earth, in Poona, India. The Poona mine was closed after some years of operation due to the objections of citizens to the dynamiting in the middle of their city; thus this is a very rare stone and good pieces are hard to find nowadays.

I love this stone because of its unique generous qualities for the heart. In its natural crystallized form it can be set into beautiful pendants and worn right over the heart. This is a stone for the heart chakra and connects us to the Christ consciousness and love in its highest form.

This energy is focused in our heart and connects us with the quality of compassion as a result of realizing who we really are: eternal spiritual beings of love, experiencing ourselves as humans on this earthly plane.

The light color of Apophyllite is soft and gentle, almost like a fragrance, and its energy very subtle, soothing, and expanding. The heart's longing is to experience communion and oneness with God, with life in all its facets. It is the longing of the soul to melt the shell around the heart and heal its wounds, and compassion is the natural outcome of this process.

The planet Chiron represents the wounded healer. Chiron shows us our deepest hurt on the astrological chart.   He shows us where we need to heal ourselves and where we can become a healer for others as a result of our own experience. Chiron and Neptune are hand in hand, joining their energies together to help us experience the highest truth of love and compassion: this is what we call "Christ consciousness."

Apophyllite also may bring up emotions that are not in line with the Christ consciousness or oneness consciousness. It may work as an accelerator of spiritual growth by helping us to cleanse ourselves of grief, anger, jealousy, and fear— all the so-called negative emotions—by realigning ourselves with the truth that we are divine consciousness.

This crystal is one of the most powerful healers for the heart and thus it is a stone for healers. It is very beneficial to wear this beautiful, unique gem over the heart, or for meditation you may put it on your third eye or on your heart chakra. It goes very well together with the Ruby or Spinel, which add other aspects of the heart.

Gemstones Can Offer You the Highest Potentiality They Carry

Reading about the qualities of the Apophyllite you might not have imagined this to be necessarily qualities of Taurus. But Taurus is a deeply loving and caring being and can be truly centered in their heart in all their physical actions. For all of us wearing a pendant with Apophyllite over our heart can lift us up into the higher consciousness of oneness and unconditional love, helping the heart to flower. And I believe that is our deepest longing.

If you enjoyed this article and my perspective on things, you can sign up for my free weekly newsletter on my Astrological Signs Weather Report & Healing Gems Blog where I discuss the actual universal astrological forces and the special powers of gemstones and inspire you to use them wisely for a more successful and joyful life. I would love it if you feel like passing it on to some of your friends.

Aloha and many blessings, Shakti.

Shakti Carola Navran: astrologer, jeweler and author
1135 Makawao Ave. Suite 310
Makawao, Maui, Hawaii 96768
Phone: 808.878.8182

About the Author

Shakti Carola Navran is originally from Germany, living in Maui, Hawaii, is a professional jeweler, astrologer and author with a lifelong spiritual journey; she has been crafting personalized Soul Jewelry since 1977. In her book Jewelry and Gems for Self-Discovery: Choosing Gemstones that Delight the Eyes & Strengthen the Soul she teaches you about how to read your personal horoscope and blue print for your life. You will be able to balance yourself in your most important areas with your 12 main healing gemstones; you could call your true birthstones. Jewelry and Gems for Self-Discovery is a treasure chest of ideas on how to select, purchase, and wear jewelry that will enhance your body, heart, mind, and soul. You can sign up for her free weekly Astrological Weather Report.

Does my stone have to be my birthstone in my engagement ring?

I found a beautiful sapphire/diamond ring that I wanted for my engagement ring. My fiancee insists it has to be my birthstone. Is he right? Or am I right in insisting to him that as long as I love the ring, it doesn't matter what color the stone is?
To clarify---the ring I picked out DOES have diamonds in it...1/4" princess cut on either side with a 1-1/2" karat sapphire in the middle...18k white gold...he thinks the center stone should be amythest

Actually, most engagement rings are diamonds (regardless of one's birthstone).

It can be whatever you like though, or something other than a ring even...all it is, is a symbol. ☺

Monthly Birthstone: January - Garnet