Collection: Black Obsidian

Protection  •  Releasing Emotions  •  Inner-Strength

Obsidian, or Tūhua, (the Māori word for Obsidian) is a form of volcanic glass and just like a volcano its energy is fast and powerful, it builds our own personal power and protects against fiery people and situations. Obsidian is the crystal we personally find most effective at bringing up suppressed emotions and trauma. If you would like to work with Obsidian in this way we recommend doing it with someone who can support you in this process as it can be very fast and overwhelming. 

Scroll to the bottom to choose your special piece of Obsidian  ♡


HISTORY, FOLKLORE and OVERVIEW

Obsidian is a natural occurring volcanic glass formed when lava rich in feldspar and quartz cool too rapidly for crystals to form.  It's often found on the margin of lava flows, known as obsidian flows.  

Obsidian is a natural glass, mineral-like but as it doesn't have a crystalline structure, it's not categories as a "crystal" but is sometimes classified as a mineraloid.

The first known archaeological evidence of usage was in Kariandusi (Kenya) and other sites of the Acheulian Age dated 700,000 BC.  

In the Stone Age, it was widely used to produce sharp blades or arrowheads in a process called snapping.  Like all glass and some other naturally occurring rocks, obsidian breaks with a characteristic conchoidal fracture. 

In Mexican culture, Obsidian was called Itzli "The God of Stone".  It has been used for thousands of years to make sharp weapons, axes, arrowheads and surgical blades.  

Obsidian is considered the stone of the Mayan and Aztecs. The volcanic rock was so abondant in the region that they used it for pretty much everything from utensils, to jewellery to weapons, it was considered more value than Gold.  When the Spaniards set foot for the first time in the Mayan lands, they were fascinated by this ancient civilization, which seemed so superior in their crafts and sciences such as astrology and physics despite having been unknown to outside world and existing in seclusion. Central to Mayan technology was the profound use of a special stone, known as Obsidian.

Obsidian is highly reflective, Mayan prophets used polished Obsidian as scrying mirrors.  

In the 1500's, the French prophet, Michel de Nostredame, Nostradamus Nostradamus used scrying as a method of to gain insight for his predictions about momentous future events.  

 

EMOTIONAL PROPERTIES

• Obsidian is strong and powerful and can be too powerful a crystal for some.  It will rush buried emotions and trauma to the surface.  This is an amazing opportunity to work through those suppressed emotions but the speed in which Obsidian can do this can also be extremely emotional and so we recommend having support if you would like to work with Obsidian in this way 
  
• Releases emotions, situations or people.  Obsidian allows anything that we're holding on to within to be released. Its razor sharp edges allows us to cut ties to past emotional trauma or anything that we're holding on to that doesn't serve our higher self. Close your eyes and see the tie or bond between you and the person or situation, imagine it as a cord between you and them/it, then when you're ready take your obsidian arrowhead and cut the cord, the bond or tie and let it go
• Draws out the source of stress and tension, bringing healing once it's been dealt with
• Grounds us
• Brings us strength in times of need, especially helpful for sensitive people
• Increases our personal power and inner-strength
• Reduces shyness
• Brings clarity

SPIRITUAL PROPERTIES

• Protection against fiery situations, anger, abuse, violence, road rage, (hang an arrow on your door downwards when no obvious danger or upwards for increased protection)
• Given its sharpness, it is considered to pierce into darkness to reveal the truth and cut emotional attachments or ancestral curses
• Extremely effective at soaking up negative energies and protecting against negative entities (needs regular cleansing)
• Removes energy blocks vitalising our soul purpose
• Useful for scrying

 
PHYSICAL PROPERTIES

Obsidan may be helpful for:

• Tension
  
• Stress
• Pain (arthritis, joint problems, injuries, cramps)
• Shock

ENVIRONMENTAL PROPERTIES

• Large pieces of Obsidian can soak up environmental pollution and blocking geopathic stress
  

FACTS

Appearance and Variations

APACHE TEARS: Small pebbles of Obsidian formed when small balls of molten lava are thrown up into the air then cool and solidify before hitting the ground.

BLACK OBSIDIAN: The most common form of Obsidian

BLUE OBSIDIAN:  

While Blue Obsidian is a form of naturally occurring volcanic glass it's extremely rare and expensive and would only be found in a highly specialised specimen store.  Blue Obsidian sold by retailers, including us, is a manufactured glass.

MAHOGANY OBSIDIAN:  Black with Dark Red - Brown formed by Hematite inclusions.  

SNOWFLAKE OBSIDIAN:   White blotchy or snowflake patterns are formed by inclusions of the mineral Cristobalite.

SILVERSHEEN or GOLDSHEEN Obsidian:  Formed by including of tiny gas bubbles from the lava flow.  

RAINBOW OBSIDIAN:  Rainbow colouring seen when sun or artificial light is shone on the Obsidian.  The rainbow-like sheen is formed by nano rods of Hebenbergite.  

DIAPHANEITY:  Translucent

CRYSTAL FAMILY:   Volcanic Glass

FORMATION:  

Obsidian is a natural occurring volcanic glass formed when lava rich in feldspar and quartz cool too rapidly for crystals to form.  It's often found on the margin of lava flows, known as obsidian flows.  

CRYSTAL SYSTEM:   Amorphous

CHEMICAL FORMULA: SiO₂

HARDNESS:   5 - 5.5 on the Mohs scale

ORIGIN:   Worldwide    

GENERAL

CHAKRA:  Root Chakra

BIRTHSTONE:  Scorpio Sagittarius 

ZODIAC:  -

ANNIVERSARY:   -

PLANETS:   Saturn, Pluto

CLEANSING:  Our favourite way to cleanse Obsidian is to place it on the earth close to a volcano, which is easy to do here in NZ.  Alternatively run it through a candle flame, sit close to an open fire.  As with all black crystals, cleanse your Obsidian regularly to release low vibrational energy it absorbs

CARE:  While Obsidian isn't the hardest of crystals it is razor sharp, take care not to cut yourself. 

ESSENTIAL OIL:  

Kunzea 

 
REFERENCES:
Adam Barralet – www.adambarrralet.com, ,  Judy Hall – The Crystal Bible,  www.geology.com,  www.en.wikipedia.org, www.americangemsociety.org

All information provided on this website is for educational purposes only. The products listed on www.hiahbymiah.co.nz and @hiah.bymiah are not intended to diagnose, mitigate, treat, cure, or prevent any disease. www.hiahbymiah.co.nz offers information that is provided for recreational and personal reference purposes only. It is not intended to be a substitute for professional care. 

Thankyou for visiting us today, we hope you have found our resources helpful, we appreciate your support. ⊹  ♡ 。⋆