The Curious Lore of Precious Stones: Being a description of their sentiments and folk lore, superstitions, symbolism, mysticism, use in medicine, protection, prevention, religion, and divination. Crystal gazing, birth-stones, lucky stones and talismans, astral, zodiacal, and planetaryKunz, George Frederick
Religion
The Curious Lore of Precious Stones: Being a description of their sentiments and folk lore, superstitions, symbolism, mysticism, use in medicine, protection, prevention, religion, and divination. Crystal gazing, birth-stones, lucky stones and talismans, astral, zodiacal, and planetary
Kunz, George Frederick
Gems; Gems -- Folklore
According to Garcias ab Orta (1563), the diamond was not used for
medicinal purposes in the India of his time, except when injected
into the bladder to break up vesical calculi. He notes, however, the
prevalent belief that diamonds, or diamond dust, when taken internally,
worked as a poison. As a proof of the falsity of this belief, Garcias
adduces the fact that the slaves who worked in the diamond mines
often swallowed diamonds to conceal them, and never experienced any
ill effects, the stones being recovered in a natural way. The same
author notes the case of a man who suffered from chronic dysentery and
whose wife had for a long time administered to him doses of diamond
dust. If this did not help him, neither did it injure him; finally, by
the advice of the doctors, this strange treatment was abandoned. The
man eventually died of his disease, but many days after the doses of
diamond dust had been discontinued.[221]
The Hindus believed that a flawed diamond, or one containing specks or
spots, was so unlucky that it could even deprive Indra of his highest
heaven. The original shape of the stone was also considered of great
importance, more especially in early times, when but few, if any,
diamonds, were cut. A triangular stone was said to cause quarrels, a
square diamond inspired the wearer with vague terrors; a five-cornered
stone had the worst effect of all, for it brought death; only the
six-cornered diamond was productive of good.[222]
The Turkish sultan Bejazet II (1447-1512) is said to have been done
to death by a dose of pulverized diamond administered to him by his
son Selim, who mixed the diamond dust with the sultan’s food.[223] It
is also related that the disciples of Paracelsus (1493-1541) spread
the report that he died from the effects of a dose of diamond dust.
Ambrosius[224] conjectures that this was only an excuse to explain the
demise of the master in the prime of life—he was but forty-eight years
old at the time of his death—although he had promised long life to all
who made use of his medicaments.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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