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The Legend of Vala

Introduction

In fact, for the benefit of the demigods and the universe, Vala had allowed himself to be slain.

The demigods then severed his various limbs which transformed into the creative seeds of precious gems. As the potent body of Vala was dismembered, a tumultuous roar sounded through the celestial regions, and all the deities, demons, mystics, and serpent-gods anxiously rushed to gather up the gem seeds.

The demigods clamored to secure the gem seeds, but the shock waves generated by their celestial chariots pushed some of the mystical essences down into the earthly sphere.

Some of these seeds fell into rivers, some into the oceans, and some into the forests and mountains.

There they germinated as mother lodes of the various gems, each one imbued with its own intrinsic potency.

All these gems posses talismanic powers. The fine, auspicious stones can counteract poison, snake venom, diseases, and other dangers. Poor quality, inauspicious gems act in the opposite manner.

Ruby, emerald, blue sapphire, cat’s eye, yellow sapphire, diamond, pearl, hessonite, coral, bloodstone, quartz, jade, and red garnet are the foremost species of gems, and they should be selected only

under the expert guidance of a learned gemologist.

The value of a gemstone is established by reference to the authoritative gemological texts. Quality is analyzed according to weight, cut, color, and clarity.

Ruby

Vedic Text

The blood of the high and mighty demon Vala was taken by Surya, the sun-god, who then fled into the blue vastness of space. Ravana, the great king of Sri Lanka, who was puffed up with his power and his victory over the demigods, attempted to block the sun-god’s flight in the sky like a solar eclipse. Appearing terrified of Ravana’s fearsome presence, the Sun-god dropped the demon’s blood, which fell down into the

deep pools of Bharata which were surrounded by forests of betel nut trees and scintillating with sunlit waves. (Bharata or ancient India, as referred to in the text, included Burma, Siam, Afghanistan,

Pakistan, Nepal, Tibet and of course, Sri Lanka.)

From that time on, these pools became as holy as the sacred Ganges River and were known as Ravana-Ganga. The banks of these waters became covered with precious gemstones, all sparkling with dazzling splendor. Beautiful and effulgent rubies, as well as other colors of corundum, possessing manifold

virtues, are the gemstones which originated on the perfumed shores of Ravana-ganga.

Exceptionally fine ruby, the gem for Suryadeva, hand-crafted in 21k gold with Arka-bhasma herbal ashes sealed within the tube frame.

The rubies from these fragrant lands are found in a variety of hues. Some are red like human blood, while others resemble the red of pomegranate seeds. Some rubies are vermillion red and others are yellowish-red like saffron or shellac dye. These should be evenly colored with light shining from their very

core. Being illuminated by rays of the sun, this crystal species shines forth with wonderful color and brilliancy, reflecting in all directions and spreading rays all around.

Kuruvinda rubies are not so purely colored as those rubies of the “top crystal” quality and are somewhat lacking in clarity and luster. (According to Apti’s Sanskrit/English dictionary, both kuruvinda and padmaraga are names for ruby. But in the context of this book kuruvinda refers to

rubies of inferior color and clarity while padmaraga denotes rubies that possess the finest (purest, unmixed) color and top crystal clarity. In this text, rubies of the finest quality are called padmaraga,

“lotus-hued” while poorer quality rubies are referred to simply as kuruvinda “corundum.” It may also be noted here that the English name for corundum was derived from the ancient

Sanskrit word kuruvindam).

The most important features of a “top crystal” quality ruby are: (1) purity of color; (2) heavy specific gravity: (3) coldness of touch; (4) flawless and transparent clarity; (5) brilliancy;

and (6) excellent proportions.

The value of a ruby is based primarily upon the purity of color and brilliancy. Any decreases in either of these qualities causes a proportionate decrease in value.

The potency of a high-quality ruby is such that even an ignorant person living a sinful life and surrounded by deadly enemies is saved by wearing such a gem. Anyone wearing such a naturally

effulgent ruby would be freed from diseases caused by any imbalance of the bodily functions.

Faults that characterize lower quality rubies are: A coppery tinge, silky inclusions, cloudy or oily appearance, dullness, off-color and excessive darkness around the edges (girdle) when the stone is held

between the fingers (covering table and culet).

A potential ruby of exceptional quality should first of all be tested for specific gravity against a known ruby of the same size. A specimen which proves to be considerably lighter than the genuine ruby

indicates that it belongs to another mineral species.

In a situation where the results of testing proved inconclusive, one should use the scratch test, scratching the specimen with a known ruby. No other mineral except diamond or corundum can

scratch a piece of genuine ruby or sapphire.

A genuine ruby possessing all auspicious qualities should not be worn together with a gem of imperfect or flawed features or one belonging to a species that is (astrologically) incompatible with it.

One is advised not to wear a gem of poor quality or that is incompatible even if it is set together with the divine Kaustabha jewel. For as a host of saints lose their status by association with a single

impure outcast, in the same way even one low quality or incompatible stone can spoil an entire setting of precious gems.