Charmstone

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A charmstone is a mineral specimen that certain people believe has healing, mystical or paranormal powers. The mineral specimen may either be naturally occurring or honed from a natural stone; in some cases, the specimen may be entirely manufactured as in the case of certain Mayan pottery finds. For example, the Miwok and Pomo tribes of Northern California have left thousands of charmstones in the bed of Tolay Lake in Sonoma County.^[1] Charmstones are evidenced by the Shalagram and lingam in the Hindu tradition and by maban in the indigenous Australian tradition. Jigme Lingpa in the Vajrayana tradition wrote a treatise on charmstone usage which Namkhai Norbu mentions. Charmstones were used in prehistoric Native American cermonies for broader spiritual purposes including securing of productive harvests.^[2] Today it is popular among certain countercultures within Western society such as the new age movement, but is regarded as baseless by scientists and medical professionals.^[3]

1 Criticism
2 See also
3 References
4 Notes
5 External links

[edit] Criticism

Crystal healing is considered to be pseudoscientific, since there is no scientific evidence that healing can be achieved by 'crystal power'. The placebo effect, cognitive bias and memory biases are strong possible explanations for any examples of healing that occurs in the presence of a crystal.^[4] Even some crystal healing practitioners have cautioned that crystal healing should be used as a supplement to and not a replacement of conventional medicine.^{[citation needed]}

It can also be classified as a pseudo-science under a number of Stephen Carey's criteria. Carey explains that the "respectability" of science and scientific concepts comes from the experiments and the manner in which they are performed.^[5] He goes on to assert that the difference between pseudo-science and science includes the "self-correction" of science, where incorrect conjectures have been reversed by further investigation, and the publication and reversal of reviewed journals. Thus far there are very few to no reviewed journals or published experiments regarding the use of crystal healing, further strengthening the argument for it as a pseudo-science. Moreover, scientific findings are "open to revision" where seldom do the declarations of pseudo-sciences change, as illustrated with the old theory of the planets and sun revolving around the earth, whereas the claims of crystal healing are based on historical beliefs.^[5]

[edit] See also

Azeztulite

[edit] References

A Charmstone Discovery in the Redwood Forests of Mendocino County, California by: Susan M. Hector, Daniel G. Foster, Linda C. Pollack Gerrit L. Fenenga, and J. Charles Whatford of the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection , Archaeology Office. November 30, 2005
Campbell, Dan, Edgar Cayce, on the Power of Color, Stones, and Crystals, Warner Books Edition, New York, NY, 1989.
Helwig, David, Crystal Healing in Encyclopedia of Alternative Medicine, 2006 [1]