Three Thousand Years of Mental HealingCutten, George Barton
History
Three Thousand Years of Mental Healing
Cutten, George Barton
Mental healing
"Jasper, hematite and hieratite stones were strongly
recommended for unusual sanative virtues, but the
sapphire excelled as a remedy for scorpion bites."
"The Bezoar stone had a great reputation in melancholic
affections. Manardus says it removes sadness and makes
him merry that useth it."
"Noblemen wore the smargdum attached to a chain, in the
belief of its potential virtues against epilepsy. The
sard prevented terrible dreams, and the cornelian worn
on the finger or suspended from the neck pacified anger
and provoked contentment. Onyx superinduced troubled
sleep, but fastened to the throat, stimulated the
salivary glands. Saphirs cured internal ulcers and
excessive perspiration, when taken as a potion dissolved
in lacteal fluids."
"Of the stone which hight agate. It is said that it hath
eight virtues. One is when there is thunder, it doth not
scathe the man who hath this stone with him. Another
virtue is, on whatsoever house it is, therein a fiend
may not be. The third virtue is, that no venom may
scathe the man who hath the stone with him. The fourth
virtue is, that the man, who hath on him secretly the
loathly fiend, if he taketh in liquid any portion of the
shavings of the stone, then soon is exhibited manifestly
in him, that which before lay secretly hid. The fifth
virtue is, he who is afflicted with any disease, if he
taketh the stone in liquid, it is soon well with him.
The sixth virtue is, that sorcery hurteth not the man
who has the stone with him. The seventh virtue is, that
he who taketh the stone in drink, will have so much the
smoother body. The eighth virtue of the stone is, that
no bite of any kind of snake may scathe him who tasteth
the stone in liquid."
Even as late as 1624, Sir John Harrington, writing in his "School of
Salerne," says: "Alwaies in your hands use eyther Corall or yellow
Amber, or a chalcedonium, or a sweet Pommander, or some like precious
stone to be worne in a ring upon the little finger of the left hand;
have in your rings eyther a Smaragd, a Saphire, or a Draconites, which
you shall bear for an ornament; for in stones, as also in hearbes,
there is great efficacie and vertue, but they are not altogether
perceived by us; hold sometime in your mouth eyther a Hyacinth, or a
Crystall, or a Garnat, or pure Gold, or Silver, or else sometimes pure
Sugar-candy. For Aristotle doth affirme, and so doth Albertus Magnus,
that a Smaragd worne about the necke, is good against the
Falling-sickness; for surely the virtue of an hearbe is great, but
much more the vertue of a precious stone, which is very likely that
they are endued with occult and hidden vertues."
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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