Gemstone Properties
Metaphysical Healing Properties of Gemstones
Alexandrite
It’s known to aid in astral travel or connecting with the spiritual world.
It will unlock your crown chakra and allow you access to the healing energy and loving support of the universe.
Alexandrite will also strengthen your intuition, boost your creativity, and unleash your imagination.
It’s a very good stone for people who have too much self-discipline.
Alexandrite will strengthen your creative abilities and promote a great imagination.
It will boost your intuitive abilities and help you find a way out of a bad situation.
It’s a stone of prosperity, luck, and longevity. It will balance your thoughts and emotions, as well as pacify your soul to encourage spiritual growth
AMAZONITE
A stone of courage and truth. Its powerful and bold energy soothes the spirit, calms the soul, and quiets the unsettled. It provides harmony & balance, making this a great alleviator of emotional trauma, worry, & fear. Amazonite helps one to see both sides of a problem or different points of view, assisting in manifesting universal love. Amazonite also empowers one to discover one's self and truths. It aids in the self-expression of one's thoughts and feelings and in setting clear boundaries.
Amber
Amber – AKA warrior stone. Fossilized tree resin. Amber can be used for balancing intellect and emotions, love, including self-love and acceptance, purification, and spirituality. Amber can also be used to help heal problems with the bladder, kidneys, and throat.
AMETHYST
A great stone to alleviate stress and help one to work out stressful situations. It is known as a stone of contentment, which helps to lower stress. Amethyst works with the Third-Eye and Crown Chakras and stabilizes the Aura. It is also used for deflecting and transmuting negative energies. As a meditation aid, Amethyst imparts a calm, peaceful and soothing vibe, allowing one to enter deeper states of consciousness.
APATITE
A deeply spiritual stone of manifestation. A motivational stone encouraging independence and ambition. It balances the physical, emotional, mental, and spiritual bodies and the chakras, removing blockages and congestion.
It stimulates both the throat chakra and the Third Eye chakra, making this a good public speaking or group communication tool along with memory, focus, and time management.
Blue Apatite, when worn, carried, or used as an elixir, has successfully produced hunger suppression.
AQUAMARINE
A stone of courage. Its calming energies reduce stress, quiet the mind, and soothe fears. It aids in sensitivity, as it can help one's tolerance of others and to overcome judgment. Clarifies perception by clearing confusion and strengthening the intellect. Useful for closure on all levels. Promotes self-expression. Sharpens intuition and opens clairvoyance, making it wonderful for meditation. Shields the aura and aligns the chakras.
Aquamarine is also a very protective birthing stone great for pregnancy to help guard both mother and baby against harm.
AVENTURINE
A stone of opportunity and good luck, especially in the areas of manifesting wealth and prosperity (and odds at winning a game of chance). Great for helping with new projects, interviews, new jobs, first dates, etc; It's known to be the luckiest of crystals. Aventurine helps one embrace change and bring on new opportunities by releasing old patterns, habits, and disappointments so new growth can take place. It also reinforces one’s decisiveness.
Wearing Aventurine also protects against environmental pollution. Taped to a cell phone, it protects against its emanations.
Blue Lace Agate
AKA water stone. Arthritis, broken bones, fingernails, pancreas, brain, eyes, nervous system, digestion.
CARNELIAN
Carnelian is a stabilizing stone that restores vitality and motivation and stimulates creativity. It provides courage, promotes positive life choices, and motivates for success. It is said to attract prosperity, new resources, and good luck.
Carnelian is useful for overcoming abuse of any kind, as it helps in trusting yourself and your perceptions.
Carnelian improves analytic abilities and clarifies perception. It sharpens concentration and dispels mental lethargy. Protects against envy, rage, and resentment. Calms anger, banishes emotional negativity, and replaces it with a love of life.
Carnelian also boosts fertility and stimulates sexuality.
CHALCEDONY
Chalcedony is in the Quartz family and is a nurturing stone that absorbs negative vibrations (dissipates negative thoughts, emotions, and bad dreams). It promotes goodwill and family ties and helps harmonize the heart and the mind.
Chalcedony instills feelings of light-heartedness and generosity, alleviates hostility, and transforms melancholy into joy by easing self-doubt, improving self-perception, and creating enthusiasm.
Chalcedony is known as the Speaker’s Stone, the stone of one who must measure his words, as it encourages reflection before speaking. Particularly blue chalcedony, a throat chakra stone, is good for public speakers, lawyers, politicians, and singers. Simply rub it to the tip of the tongue, drink water that's soaked in it, or wear it by the throat chakra. Blue chalcedony also stimulates the ability to learn new languages and improves memory.
CITRINE
Promotes prosperity, abundance, and success. Energizes and doesn’t hold onto negative energy, so does not need to be recharged (similar to Kyanite). Citrine raises self-confidence and stimulates the brain, in turn strengthening the intellect. Enhances concentration. Promotes creativity, individuality, and self-expression. It also releases negative traits like depression and fear.
Diamond
You could substitute an economically affordable Herkimer diamond in place of a real diamond. Prosperity, luck, success. Herkimer diamonds are specifically used for attunement, harmony, and clairvoyance.
Emerald
A powerful stone used for healing. It was also used for a variety of magical purposes. Meditation, memory, intelligence, psychic ability, harmony. Helps heal the spine, lungs, heart, muscles, and eyes.
Fossils
AKA ancestor stone. Use fossils as an aid to past life regression. Fossils can be used as a general negativity remover allowing one to continue on a positive path.
GARNET
Garnet is a sensual stone of purification and love. It is a stone of strong, intense feelings. Garnet cleanses and re-energizes the chakras. It revitalizes, purifies, and balances energy and inspires love and devotion. It also balances the sex drive and helps aid emotional imbalance. It activates and strengthens the survival instinct, bringing courage and hope. Strengthens one's perceptions of self and others. Garnet removes inhibitions and taboos. It opens the heart and bestows self-confidence.
GREEN ONYX
Onyx promotes strength, vigor, steadfastness, stamina, and self-confidence. It aids one in being at ease in one's surroundings. Onyx also helps rid of grief, improves self-control, and helps provide the power of smart decision-making. It also encourages happiness and good fortune.
Goshenite
Goshenite is thought to be a gemstone that encourages truthfulness in all words and actions. Metaphysical beliefs hold that goshenite promotes self-control, creativity and originality. Goshenite is a gemstone that is said to facilitate communication and resolves relationship misunderstandings.
JASPER
morrisonite Jasper
Blue Mountain Jasper
“Jaspers are the nurturers, the healers, and the spirit stones of courage and wisdom. They all carry a strong connection to the Earth’s energy, making the jasper healing properties very beneficial for grounding, stability, and strength.”
The unique color and pattern of Jasper illustrate mamma earth and resembles that of a small globe.
An elemental Earth stone, Jasper’s frequency is slow and steady, bringing gradual strength and renewed vitality. It allows us to be more conscious of Nature and our surroundings, as it’s aligned with the electromagnetic energies of the planet. It encourages one to celebrate moments of isolation to absorb, reflect, and connect with these energies and enhance awareness of the spiritual connection we hold with all living things.
Jasper is superb for healing both the physical and emotional bodies. Wearing Jasper helps alleviate stress and induce tranquility. Its cleansing effect eliminates negative energy, and it's a great stone for banishing nightmares or harmful thoughts.
Jet
Use for protection, calming, and grounding. A great healing stone for migraines, epilepsy, lymph nodes, and colds.
KYANITE
An incredible gemstone is known for its high vibration, strengthening intuition, and acting as a universal bridge (enhancing telepathic and psychic abilities). It doesn’t hang onto negative energy, so doesn’t need to be recharged or cleansed. It encourages self-expression and speaking one's truth. Aligns all the chakras and is particularly stimulating to the throat chakra (voice of the body).
Green Kyanite connects with the heart chakra regulating what we embrace vs. resist to help us keep balance within our energy and emotional relationships.
LABRADORITE
A stone of transformation, making it a helpful guide through change. It's also a stone of magic, a crystal of shamans, diviners, & healers as it helps awaken the inner spirit and raise consciousness. Labradorite strengthens intuition, psychic abilities, and telepathy. Helps strengthen faith in self and trust in the universe.
LAPIS
A stone of protection, a stress reliever, brings deep peace. Brings harmony and deep inner self-knowledge. Encourages self-awareness, allows self-expression, and reveals inner truth. Lapis brings qualities of honesty, compassion, and morality to a person. It helps aid one to confront and speak one's truth and inspires confidence. Lapis also bonds relationships, guiding the expression of feelings and emotions.
Malachite
Transformation, spirituality, insight, the balance of the mind/body/spirit connection, instinct, intuition, and friendship. Asthma, arthritis, swollen joints, tumors.
MOONSTONE
A stone for new beginnings. It promotes inner strength and growth. It is a calming stone that eases stress and emotional instability. Moonstone strengthens intuition and also enhances inspiration, success, and good fortune in both business and love.
Moss Agate
AKA weather stone. Wealth, self-esteem, emotional balance, communication with the plant and animal spirits. Colds, flu, eyes, fungal infections.
MOTHER OF PEARL (SHELL)
MOP is the iridescent lining of the shell where Pearls grow. Known to attract prosperity. It is a stone of protection against negative energy and pollutants. It is known to strengthen imagination, intuition, and psychic ability. On a more physical level, it is known for helping with dizziness, vision/cataracts and aids in healing wounds.
Petrified wood
Grounding, past lives, meditation, new beginnings, transformation. Back, skeleton, hearing, hair.
Pearl
A stone of sincerity, it symbolizes faith, loyalty, truth, and innocence. It enhances personal integrity and provides one with a sense of centeredness and calm.
Pearls are strong symbols of feminine energy and help women connect with their inner goddesses.
Pearls also increase fertility and ease childbirth.
Paraiba Tourmaline
Paraiba Tourmaline also has a meaning and properties of releasing stress. The powerful electric energy will blow off negative things. It would release negative energy and recover your energy to a good condition. This gemstone is also suitable for people who are nervous or have intense anxiety.
PERIDOT
A powerful cleanser that releases and neutralizes toxins. Helps remove jealousy, resentment, spite, bitterness, irritation, hatred, and greed. Reduces stress, anger, and guilt. Peridot opens our hearts to joy and new relationships. It enhances confidence and assertion, motivating growth and change. Sharpens and opens the mind to new levels of awareness. Banishes lethargy, apathy, and exhaustion. Peridot enables you to take responsibility for your own life.
PINK CORAL
Pink coral is known to restore harmony to the heart. It quiets the emotions and brings peace to the inner self. Strengthens intuition, imagination, and visualization. Coral also expedites the transfer of knowledge and is known to be a stone of diplomacy.
Pyrite
Use pyrite for protection and to help shield you from physical danger. Used in intellectual pursuits, love magic, and as a friendship enhancer. Pyrite can be used to help heal bones, cells, lungs and fevers.
RED CORAL
“Sea’s Garden” Coral is a stone of transformation.
It balances emotions and brings inner peace within the self. It enforces diplomacy, dealing with people in a sensitive and effective way. It facilitates intuition, imagination, and visualization. Coral is also a protector against evil influences.
RHODOCHROSITE
Known as the stone of compassion and unconditional love, it soothes the heart, comforts the soul, and vibrates to frequencies of inner peace. It heals the heart Chakra creating emotional balance, forgiveness, and compassion. Restores one's sense of wholeness and confidence. Resonates with the inner child, so helps one reclaim feelings of joy, playfulness, and creativity.
Rhodochrosite can be used to call new love into one's life, either a friend or soulmate who can help bring one to the greater good.
ROSE QUARTZ
A stone of the heart, a crystal of unconditional love, circulates divine loving energy. Its energy helps with compassion and peace and attracts love, romance, and intimacy. It also inspires the love of beauty in oneself, others, nature, and that which stimulates the imagination.
RUBY ZOISITE
A marriage of passion and patience, fiery Ruby has been embedded in earthy Zoisite. Helps with empowerment and spirituality. Enhances one to maintain individuality while being present in the world around you. Also keeps one from overreacting in difficult situations and prevents mood swings as well as increases sexual activity. Ruby in Zoisite transmutes negative energy into positive energy. Helps the grieving process by releasing pain and regaining passion and compassion for others who may be going thru the same pain, so it’s good for trauma.
Sapphire
Sapphire – AKA stone of prosperity. Beauty, joy, peace, intuition, and prosperity. Sapphire can be used as a general healing stone and is especially helpful in alleviating problems with blood and circulation.
Shells
Fossilized shells such as ammonite work well as a tool of transformation as they have turned from a shell to a stone. Use shells to increase your intuition, sensitivity, imagination, adaptability, and insight. Shells can also be used for the healing ability to help with hearing and nervous system problems.
Silver
Silver – AKA stone of the soul. Silver represents the moon’s energies and helps to bring added power to other stones, especially when used during new and full moons. Use silver on its own to help eliminate toxins and alleviate vision problems. Also used to bring power to speech, conversation, intuition, and as an aid to astral travel.
Sodalite
Self-esteem, logic, intellect, fellowship, solidarity, companionship. Use to heal problems with the glands, digestion, and insomnia.
Smokey QUARTZ
A powerful stone used as a guide in healing and meditation. It is known to protect and ground one physically and spiritually. Smoky Quartz also absorbs and transmutes negative energy, releasing it to the Earth to be cleansed naturally. It lifts depression and negativity, acting as a shield for emotional and environmental stress. It relieves tension and anxiety/panic attacks and wards off negative thinking and doubt when faced with confusing or chaotic situations.
Sunstone
AKA stone of the sun. Sunstone represents the healing light of the sun and god energy. Stress reliever, vitality, energy, independence. Use to heal sore throats, ulcers, and rheumatism.
Hawk's EYE
Hawk's eye is sometimes known as 'the falcon's eye', or as 'blue tiger's eye'. It is used for many metaphysical purposes. It is believed to help those with a fear of flying. It is thought to be good for sight and vision, enhancing our ability to focus, our psychic abilities and astral travel.Hawks Eye’s Stone’s meaning is Crystal Clear Vision, Soaring to Great Heights, Protection, and an increase of success in the material and spiritual world. In addition, Other Hawks Eye Stone meanings are Health, Mobility, Royal Courage, Flight, and Travel. The Hawks Eye is a very powerful stone.
Red TIGER’S EYE
The red tiger’s eye is a stone of stimulation and passion; Also called Dragon's Eye. Its properties are closely connected to human desire and sexuality. It is often used to help deal with sexual issues and frustrations. However, it is also known for its power to increase energy, and provide grounding properties. It also helps with psychic abilities and clarity of sight.
TIGER’S EYE
A stone of protection and good luck. Helps focus the mind and mental clarity, resolving problems unclouded by emotions. Particularly helpful in dispelling fear and anxiety. Balances yin-yang and emotions, stabilizes mood swings and aids with willpower, purpose, courage, and self-confidence.
Topaz
Creativity, love, happiness, meditation, health, and wealth. Topaz also helps to heal wounds and skin disorders.
Watermelon TOURMALINE
TOURMALINE
Rutilated TOURMALINE
Tourmaline aids in the understanding of oneself and others. It encourages self-confidence and reduces fear. It attracts inspiration, compassion, tolerance, and prosperity. It balances the right-left sides of the brain and helps treat paranoia. Tourmaline is known to aid in relieving stress, releasing the tension, increasing mental alertness, improving circulation, and strengthening the immune system. It is a powerful cleanser, helping to reduce toxin-related ailments. It balances male-female energy within the body, enhances energy, and removes blockages.
One unique and distinguishable property is its ability to be electrically charged by heating or rubbing it, so one end becomes positive and one negative. It has been used for tuning radio and tv frequencies!
BLACK TOURMALINE
Repels and protects against negativity. It is excellent for deflecting radiation energy. It enhances one's physical well-being by providing an increase in physical vitality, emotional stability, and intellectual acuity. When paired with pink tourmaline, it helps to lighten up obsessive behavior.
PINK TOURMALINE
A stone of the heart. A stone of shamans. A stone for emotional support. Links heart chakra with crown chakra to encourage compassion and sensitivity. Helps with the emotional imbalance and past trauma or life experiences of abuse, hardship, etc. Helps one to release negative feelings of guilt, worry, anxiety, and depression and transform them into self-love.
TURQUOISE
A purification stone that dispels negative energy and protects against negative influences and pollutants. Excellent for depression and exhaustion. Turquoise balances and aligns all the chakras, which helps mood swings and provides inner peace. It’s also a symbol of friendship and stimulates romantic love. Turquoise also aids in the absorption of nutrients, enhances the immune system, and overall body healing by detoxifying.
Unakite
AKA stone of mysticism. Spirituality, past lives, and past events help balance the body/mind/soul connection. Use to bring strength to the reproductive system and for a healthy pregnancy.
Cleansing and Charging Gemstones
Gemstones may pick up and absorb negative energy or be drained of their energy after being used for a while. You should periodically cleanse and charge your stones to ensure they can be used efficiently for healing purposes. Cleansing and charging are especially important for any stones that are not found by you in their natural environment.
For example, gemstones purchased from New Age stores may have been handled by a multitude of customers before you purchased the stone. Cleansing will remove any build-up of unwanted energy that may have accumulated from previous handlers of the stone.
Cleansing your gemstones:
A simple and magically potent method for cleansing gemstones is to present each of your stones to the four elements. You may also cleanse any of your other magical implements using this method, such as rune stones, chalices, athames, boreens, cauldrons, and magic wands.
Air – present your stone to the east and pass the object through the smoke of burning incense or a smoldering bundle of smudging herbs. Or take the stone outside on a windy day for at least a few minutes or longer if you have the time.
Water – present your stone to the west and pass the object through salted water. If you have more time, take the stone to a river or sea and wash it in the freshwater.
Fire – present your stone to the south and pass the object through the flame of a candle or small fire. If you have more time, let the stone stand overnight in the light of the full moon, or if you are really pressed for time, take the object outside for a few minutes or longer during the heat of the noonday sun.
Earth – present your stone to the north and wave a preciously charged rock or crystal over the stone that is being cleaned. Or, if you have more time, you may bury the object overnight in the ground or in a cauldron filled with salt.
Gemstone charging charm:
After your stone has been cleansed as described above, you will need to recharge it with positive energy so that it can be put back into service for healing purposes. Hold the stone in your dominant hand while it is being charged. I am left-handed, so I hold my stones in my left hand while I am charging them. Visualize the stone being filled up with healing energy while reciting this charm three times.
• This wonderful stone is a precious gift
• From our great and powerful mother earth
• May this stone be imbued with energies of old
• So it may be used for healing and giving one's spirit a lift.
As most people are drawn to bright and shiny objects such as gemstones, I often place baskets of stones that are not used for healing purposes in strategic locations throughout my house. Anyone is free to pick up and handle the stones in these baskets without my having to worry about them being drained of energy, as all of my healing stones are safe and secure in a separate location.
When your stones are not being used for healing purposes, they should be placed in a secure location away from curious hands. You don’t want the time and energy you placed in the cleansing and charging or your stones to be neutralized by the energy of other people. I place each individual stone in a muslin, draw-string bag. I place the bags in a large basket which is then placed in my closet along with all my jars and containers of healing herbs. My healing stones are used for healing purposes only and never as decorations.
Crystal Healing Methods
Crystals store heat, cold, moisture, and light energy and are thought to be powerful healing instruments. Thus every stone and crystal contains a representation of each of the four elements within it, namely:
• Heat = fire
• Cold = earth
• Moisture = water
• Light = air
A common method of using gemstones to heal is to place gemstones representing the name of the person to be healed into an amulet bag or healing pouch. This pouch can be carried with you or worn around your neck as a magical healing talisman. Use one gemstone or crystal for each letter of a person’s first name or for each initial of their name. For example, my name is Lynn Ellen Smythe (LES), so I could use labradorite, emerald, and sodalite in my own personal crystal healing bag.
If you are married and have taken your spouse’s surname, you may want to use your maiden name when choosing the particular crystals to utilize. The initials of your birth name may be used if they differ at all from your maiden and/or married names.
I suppose I could get really fancy and use my birth name when performing maiden-based rituals, my maiden name when performing mother-based rituals, and my married name when performing crone-based rituals, but this seems a bit too complicated for my needs.
Collect a wardrobe of fashionable gemstone rings and tap into the healing properties of magical gemstones.
Zodiac Healing Stones
Each sign of the zodiac is thought to govern a certain part of the body. When performing any type of healing magic, you may want to wait until the moon is in the appropriate sign according to what part of the body is being healed.
Here’s a great tip: consult an annual Farmers Almanac to help you determine what sign of the zodiac the moon is in on any particular day.
There is a myriad of gemstones that have been associated with the twelve signs of the zodiac. I have listed gems and minerals that some associate with each sign of the zodiac.
Aquarius – January 20th through February 19th. Governs all problems and illnesses associated with the calves, ankles, and blood. Aquarius gemstones
include garnet, hematite, mica, and silver.
Pisces – February 20th through March 20th. Governs all problems and illnesses associated with the feet and toes. Some of the gemstones associated with this sign include aquamarine, coral, fluorite, and turquoise.
Aries – March 21st through April 20th. Governs all problems and illnesses associated with the eyes, face, and head.
Gemstones associated with Aries include aventurine, bloodstone, diamond, and emerald.
Taurus – April 21st through May 20th. Governs all problems and illnesses associated with the ears, larynx, neck, throat, and tonsils.
Gemini – May 21st through June 24th. Governs all illnesses associated with the arms, hands, lungs, and shoulders. Gemstones associated with this sign include copal, howlite, and snowflake obsidian.
Cancer – June 24th through July 22nd. Governs all problems and illnesses associated with the breast, chest, diaphragm, ribs, and stomach. Some of the gemstones associated with Cancer are calcite, marble, moonstone, and pearl.
Leo – July 23rd through August 22nd. Governs all problems and illnesses associated with the back, heart, and spine. Gemstones associated with the zodiac sign Leo include amber, carnelian, cinnabar, citrine, gold, jasper, platinum, pyrite, and tiger iron.
Virgo – August 23rd through September 22nd. Governs all problems and illnesses associated with the bowels, intestines, and nervous system. Amazonite, moss agate, peridot, and sapphire are a few of the gemstones associated with this sign.
Libra – September 23rd through October 22nd. Governs all problems and illnesses associated with the appendix, kidneys, liver, and lower back. Libra gemstones include granite, jade, opal, sunstone, and tourmaline.
Scorpio – October 23rd through November 22nd. Governs all problems and illnesses associated with the bladder, colon, and reproductive organs. Scorpio gemstones include flint, labradorite, malachite, rhodochrosite, unakite, and turquoise.
Sagittarius – November 23rd through December 21st. Governs all problems and illnesses associated with the hips and thighs. Gemstones associated with Sagittarius include alabaster, Herkimer diamond, iolite, lapis lazuli, obsidian, sodalite, and topaz.
Capricorn – December 22nd through January 19th. Governs all problems and illnesses associated with the bones, knees, joints, and teeth. Some
Capricorn gemstones are galena, jet, pumice, smoky quartz, and tiger eye.
Healing chakra crystal pendants – a wire wrapped bullet shape gemstone necklaces.
Using Jewelry to Heal
Wearing jewelry that is adorned with magical gemstones and healing crystals can be used to help heal a particular region of your body. These healing crystal necklaces and amulets are not only functional, they also make a wonderful fashion statement.
• Necklaces – for problems associated with the neck, throat, chest, and lungs.
• Rings – for problems associated with the fingers, hands, and circulation.
• Earrings – for problems associated with the ears, face, mouth, and nose.
• Bracelets – for problems associated with the arms, shoulders, and back.
• Barrettes – for problems associated with the head and brain.
• Navel rings & belly chains – for problems associated with the internal organs, stomach, and digestion.
-Crystals and their ability to heal
An older study presented at conferences in 1999 and 2001 but not published in a peer-reviewed journal suggested that any healing benefits associated with crystals were most likely a result of the power of suggestion.
For instance, research from 2005Trusted Source from the University of Waterloo in Canada found that a person’s mind may have much more healing power than it’s given credit for.
Still, some people believe it goes deeper than that.
“Crystals are made up of different elements or compounds, which our bodies react to in different ways,” says Sonali Saujani, a crystal master healer. “Crystals are minerals that hold energy, and as we as humans are made up of energy, we can exchange energy with the crystal when we work with it.”
Saujani points out that crystals are used to improve the function of many everyday objects, like watches, plugs, hospital equipment, and lasers.
She cites a 2008 study that states that “quartz can act as a flint to start a fire or generate electricity.”
“If a crystal can be piezoelectric [contain electric charge], I am sure it can do so much more. They balance out electric currents and keep equipment from exploding,” says Saunjani. “In the same way, when it comes to crystals and our body, all they’re doing is balancing out the frequency of the electromagnetic currents in our body.”
Prayer Beads
Crystal prayer or mala beads are worn against the heart or on the wrist to inspire positive feelings, whether it be hope, courage, or peace. They’re a great way for anyone to carry around the healing powers of crystals.
Prayer beads can also be used during meditation to count repetitions of a mantra or sacred chanting. Practitioners use the main, or guru, bead to keep count.
