Kyanite
Also Disthene, Cyanite
Translucent to transparent blades of blue, paler at the edges and deeper along the central streaks; also grey, green, orange and near-black. It grows in flat, splintery fans.
- Crystal system
- Triclinic
- Hardness
- 4.5-7 Mohs
- Handling
- Unusual, and worth knowing: its hardness depends on direction. About 4.5 along the length of the blade and 6.5-7 across it, so the same crystal is soft one way and hard the other, and will scratch lengthwise against something that cannot mark it crosswise. It has perfect cleavage and splits into splinters. Rinse briefly, dry at once, and store it where nothing can bend or lever the blade. No elixirs.
- In water
- No
What it is held to be for
Kyanite's old name is disthene, two strengths, for the plain fact that it is soft along its length and hard across it. The lapidary tradition likes a stone that admits to being two things at once, and gives kyanite to people who must hold a difficult position and stay flexible about how they hold it.
Named disthene, two strengths, by Haüy; folk tradition since
Correspondences
These are the tradition's ascriptions, not properties of the mineral.
- Planet
- Mercury, Saturn
- Element
- Air
- Signs
- Gemini, Libra
- Chinese phase
- Water
- Year animal
- Dragon, Rat
- Centre
- Throat Vishuddha
- Sephirah
- Tiphareth
How it is used
Kept as a raw blade rather than a polished stone, laid along the edge of a desk or held flat between the palms. Not for rings or bracelets; the blades splinter when levered.
Today
Lay the kyanite blade flat on your palm. Name the position you are keeping and the thing you will bend on. Both, out loud.
A longer working
Before a negotiation, set the kyanite blade on the table where you will sit. Write two short lists: what you will not give up, and what you will. Keep the first to three lines. Read both aloud with a hand on the stone. Fold the second list into your pocket and leave the first at home, memorised. Take the stone with you, in the pocket holding the list you can spend.
Works with
- Herb
- Lemon balm
- Incense
- Juniper