Pearl
Pearl is one of only five gems derived from living things. (The others are Jet, Amber, Coral, and Ammolite.) As such, Pearl has a powerful connection to the all-pervasive life force which it conveys to its wearer in the forms of love, beauty, grace, and nobility.
Pearl is calcium carbonate, a common mineral. It is extracted from water and secreted by a mollusk in response to an irritant, such as a grain of sand, which gets into the mollusk's fleshy mantle. The mollusk wraps the foreign object in a bandage of smooth, soothing pearl. Likewise, in human lives great beauty often arises from great pain and suffering. Pearls are commonly harvested from oysters but other mollusks, i.e., clams, mussels, and even conchs, are capable of growing pearls.
Pearl is a relatively soft gem that scratches and crumbles easily. Yet a four-thousand year old pearl necklace worn by a queen of Persia can still be viewed today. Many ancient cultures believed that pearls were the tears of the gods. Pearl was once the rarest and most valuable of gems, symbol of enormous wealth and rare wisdom.
Pearl has been used as a cosmetic and beauty aid for thousands of years in Chinese and Middle Eastern cultures. It is said that Cleopatra drank an elixir of ground pearls each day to maintain her fabulous beauty. Chinese courtesans painted their faces with powdered pearl. Even today, some exotic toothpastes promise literally "pearly-white" teeth. Pearl is also said to relieve allergies, balance feminine hormones, and treat stomachaches, colds, bronchitis, and lung infections. Chronic headaches or migraines may be eased by wearing a pearl necklace on the skin.
Pearl is a stone ruled by the Moon, sacred to The Goddess; pearl helps one connect to one's feminine energies and intuition. Pearl is of the element Water, of course, and so is particularly soothing to the Water signs of the Zodiac -- Scorpio, Pisces, and Cancer. Pearl is the modern birth stone of the month of June.
White pearls incorporate all the colors of the rainbow; therefore, white pearl is attuned to all seven of the major chakras through their color vibrations. White is the color of purity, innocence, and completeness.
Naturally colored pearls range from golden brown to iridescent black, the rarest and most valuable of pearls. Many cultured pearls are dyed a variety of hues, and may be used to affect specific chakras more powerfully.