When I selected the gem that would be my keystone corresponding
to fire, I considered many attributes that would make it an empowering symbol. My
fire keystone plays a strong role, with a power so great it can easily overtake
those who attempt to control it. I was intrigued by rubies from the moment I
learned those gems have long been known as hardened drops of blood from battling
dragons.
The gemstone ruby has held a regal position in
myth, legend and lore for thousands of years. Rubies are said to respond magically,
warning of danger by changing their color. Catherine of Aragon wore an infamous
ruby, rumored to have turned dark and dull the day before Henry VII announced
he was divorcing her. Rubies engraved with fantasy animals, like dragons and serpents,
have been popular for attracting wealth and enhancing magical energies. A ruby
was considered to be an important gift to honor Buddha and Krishna because the
Hindu people believed the gemstone's red glow came from an internal flame which
no human could possibly extinguish.
Many believe the gems possess energy
to help overcome forces of darkness, protecting wearers from malicious spirits
and evil spells. As a shielding stone, it can send out protective energies to
surround the wearer at all times. This is an especially good way to help
prevent psychic attacks. It is a stone of authority, excellence, but also of
vanity. It brings to its wearer happiness and love. A ruby can strengthen the
heart, restore lost forces, drive away melancholy, awaken passion and sexual
desires. Its energy is intense and vivid, helping you see your own strength to
encourage leadership and increase concentration and intellect.
The power of ruby may help you know
and follow your dreams and bliss, to change your world. To help improve
your ability to enter a lucid dream state, wear or carry a ruby during your sleep.
The gem is thought to help you to remain lucid while entering the dream state
and increase your ability to control the dream without slipping into a normal
sleep pattern.
With all this power, I had no trouble
selecting the ruby to be my fire keystone. Throughout the Enchanted Bookstore
Legends series, Lyra comes upon the forces of this special stone. In
Heritage Avenged (book#2), she is drawn to a ruby displayed by
the Dark Alchemist, Tarom. Lyra is born under the Aries fire sign and cannot
resist the powers of the fiery ruby which are like her own. He knows this and
tempts her with a taste of what the ruby’s energy can do to multiple her own
powers, eliciting dark qualities of greed to pull her off her path of what is
noble and good.
In Lost Volumes (book #3), Lyra
travels into the underground world of Terza and learns how the first Scribe also
fought against the seductively powerful Emtori Ruby she was expected to remove
from the collection of the Black Dragon. Lyra discovers a startling fact—the
ruby was hidden rather than destroyed as most thought. It still exists!
In Staurolite (book #4),
Lyra learns how the first Scribe worked hard to control the Emtori Ruby and
avoid allowing its powers to overtake her own. Lyra wonders if she will be able
to control the valuable keystone when she must locate it and return it to the
Alliance.
Staurolite: Enchanted Bookstore Legend Four
Lyra McCauley, current Scribe of
the Alliance, is the only one who can decode magic hidden in the recently
retrieved ancient texts written by her ancestors, the first four Scribes.
Information in those writings can help Lyra locate the four missing keystones,
which will restore power to the Alliance and allow overthrow of the Dark Realm.
With peace restored, she and her beloved, Cullen, could finally marry.
Time is short with the Black
Dragon’s Dark Realm increasing attacks to avenge the death of his heir. Many
innocent lives are lost. Alliance residents are forced into hiding. Magicals
and blue dragons follow leadership of the Imperial Dragon and the other three
Guardians into battle to defend the Alliance.
While Lyra unlocks the ancient
magic, she opens herself up to scribal powers from her ancestors. She alone can
fight the deadliest of the Dark Realm’s forces—the cimafa stealth dragons—but
at a cost. The energy flux threatens her health and ability to learn where to
find the missing keystones. Can Lyra overcome this shrewd tactic of the Black
Dragon to decimate the Alliance?
Other references to rubies in fantasy
fiction come to mind. I’m a big Harry Potter fan and remember rubies showing up
several times throughout that series. Godric Gryffindor’s sword was adorned
with egg shaped rubies. Rubies filled the Gryffindor house hourglass. Also,
goblins in Gringotts wizarding bank kept busy weighing piles of rubies.
What other works of fantasy do you know that use rubies in mystical or magical ways?
Photo credit: Rob Lavinsky, iRocks.com – CC-BY-SA-3.0
[CC-BY-SA-3.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0)], via Wikimedia
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2 comments:
Thanks for sharing all this interesting ruby lore, Marsha. It's no wonder you used the gem in your series. I'm so excited to see the next book!
Thanks lots, Ella!
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