DIAMOND

Wherever Vala’s bone fragments fell, they geminated diamond crystals of various types. Consequently, diamonds are found in the following colors: slightly brownish, white as the full moon, blackish like a rain cloud, coppery-hued, dark yellow, bluish, greenish, pink, and light yellow.

Particular demigod preside over exceptionally fine diamonds of various colors. White diamonds of this standard are ruled by Varuna, lord of the oceans. Yellow diamonds are ruled by Indra, the heavenly king. The Maruts, the wind gods, rule copper-hued diamonds, the greenish diamonds are ruled by Surya, the sun-god. The fire-god, Agni, rules brown-colored diamonds, and blue tinged diamonds are ruled by the lord of ancestors, Aryama.

Flawless, high-grade diamonds confer good fortune upon their wearers, whereas flawed diamonds are invariably a source of misfortune.

Although a diamond may appear flawless internally, if any of its natural crystal edges appear fractured, or if it possesses an abraded, withered, or rough surface, it should not be kept within one’s house hold, for it can cause numerous ills.

Anyone wearing a seriously flowed or clouded diamond which refracts a reddish glimmer from defective facet edges, will surely be abandoned by the goddess of fortune. A diamond containing red spots will bring ruin.

A flawless diamond with an even out and smooth symmetrical facets, and a high degree of dispersion is rarely to be found even upon royal crowns.

Rough diamonds are generally hexagonal (cubical), octagonal, and dodecahedral, and exhibit external growth markings are sharply angled facets. If one owns a rough diamond with a well-shaped crystalline formation, high transparency and brilliancy, and devoid of any blemished or visible inclusions, he acquires the following virtues: prosperity, longevity, marital happiness, children and livestock, and a good harvests.

Auspicious diamonds help protect the wearer from attack by poisonous serpents, tigers, thieves, and deadly poisons. They protect his possessions from fire and flood and cause his complexion to become lustrous.

Diamonds should not be worn by women, because they possess a mystic potency that causes women to become unhappy.

Only a king is privileged to wear fancy colored diamonds of yellow, chartreuse, or pink colors. Their use by anyone in a lower station of life could prove harmful.

A king wearing a diamond that flashes rays of light like bolts of lightning will surely be able to conquer other rulers and gain sovereignty over their wealth and followers.

Because there are various diamond substitutes such as white topaz, zircon, hessonite, white corundum, chrysoberyl, quartz-crystal, and also man-made imitations like glass, it is important that all diamond specimens be tested for genuineness by qualified gemologists who are expert in the science of identifying and appraising precious gems.

Before purchasing a diamond it should be positively identified through such tests as hardness and specific gravity. a genuine diamond, the hardest of all elements, cannot be scratched by any other metal or gemstone.

The value of diamonds depends more on color and clarity than total weight. Diamonds, because of their high refractive index, have the greatest reflective luster of any gem. — Sri Garuda Puranam: Chap. 68-b