My grandfather was an admiral. He was also a doctor. His father died shortly after his birth and his mother struggled to bring him up in the slums of Manchester, England. He got scholarships all the way to the university and learned to depend on his exceptionally keen and rational mind. His way of thinking was further endorsed by an extremely successful, lifelong career. He didn't take kindly to (what he considered to be) superstition or fanciful suggestion.

When he was in his eighties, he developed severe rheumatoid arthritis. My grandmother, who was in many ways his opposite, recommended that he get a copper bangle to wear to help his condition. He ridiculed her belligerently, saying the idea was nothing but superstitious hogwash. A few weeks later, however, the pain became so great that he was willing to try anything. He quietly and furtively went into the garage and beat a copper pipe with a hammer into a shape that could be worn as a bracelet. He wore it under his shirt so my grandmother wouldn't see it. A few weeks later after having taken it off and on several times he became convinced that the copper bracelet was ameliorating an enormous amount of his pain.

True to form in his military tradition, he proudly announced to the world (ignoring my grandmother's "I told you so's") that the copper bangle was a wonderful discovery for some arthritic sufferers. I was about ten years old when he told me this story at a visit to their home in the Southern English countryside.

I thought, "If a copper bangle can do this for arthritis, what can other metals do? What can gems do?" I had a deep fascination for gems at an early age, but this particular incident left an indelible impression upon me, because I knew the character of my grandfather. I admired his cynical intelligence and his stoic need for reason and empirical data. But in my grandmother, I saw the very contradiction. She was much more feeling orientated and passionate for things that were unorthodox in English 1960's; things like psychic pursuits and spiritualism.

Since then I've met many people who wear copper rings and copper bangles for arthritis. A large number have experienced major improvements in their conditions. And of course, I've met a few who haven't reported any benefit at all. My observation with the copper bangle is that often people don't wear a copper bangle that is heavy or pure enough. This is one of the criteria required. I suggest it has to be at least two full ounces of pure copper (any form necessary). It should preferably be a flat piece, with maximum skin contact. It is best worn near the site of the arthritic condition. And if the person has a larger body, then a heavier bangle may work better.

People wonder what arthritis is, and of course there are many different types, but I think overall it's a disease that's related to the electrical polarity of our system. The electrolytic aspect of whether we have an imbalance of negative ions or positive ions in our blood, just as in electroplating, will be indicative of whether we "plate" our bones with added calcium or not. The "scale" in a kettle and the calcium-lime coating in a water pipe are both the result of the electrolytic transfer of "like" attracting "like" from the water to the wall of the container.

It's the same situation with blood. Man has not yet designed instruments to prove this theory, but if you are the type of person who has low energy, health problems, or depression, I would think it's only normal to suggest that you may have, in the various systems of your body, an electrical imbalance that needs to be harmonized and probably strengthened. Gems and noble metals can bring into balance the inharmonious electrical conditions of the body which can be felt by the mind and thus assist the processes of recovery.

Copper bangles as lightning rods

Like the copper rod that protects the house from lightning, we need to be grounded from the electrical intake we attract from walking on carpets and electromagnetic environments, especially TVs and computer monitors. Some people hold in more electrical charge than others, and they especially need to wear a grounding copper bangle, or even one made of lead, silver or gold (or combinations thereof). The metals all conduct electricity, though pure gold, silver, copper and sometimes even a lead silver alloy appear to be especially useful for human use. What's important is that they have sufficient weight. Of course our electrolytic balance can also be thrown out by a toxic colon, pH imbalance, etc. My point is: it's the subject of our electromagnetic body that needs more recognition and research.

In 1984, I had an enjoyable conversation with the manager of a large, high-tech ceramic magnet factory in Temecula, California. He showed me a three-inch thick file containing the Japanese government's research on the benefits of ceramic magnets on arthritis and other health-related conditions. He wanted to manufacture ceramic magnets and market them as a health tool. In exasperation he told me the FDA had phoned him up and threatened to close him down if he tried to use the Japanese government's research to promote his case. Many hold the view that the medical business becomes political when the profits of the pharmaceutical industry are threatened.

If we look back over the last two centuries at the many different forms of electromagnetic energy that have been recently discovered (gamma rays, X-rays, radio waves, microwaves, etc.) it's logical to presume that we still haven't invented the instruments to discover many new as yet unknown energy forms. In light of this I feel one day the beneficial effects of gems will be verifiable with as-yet undiscovered technology.

The mind-body connection

There's a constant ebb and flow of energy required for a harmonic balance in the mind and body. The human mind can obviously trigger the body to manifest various conditions, just as certain body conditions will stimulate the mind to certain mental states. In turn, negative conditions of the mind and body can be couteracted, eliminated or obstructed by using the influence of positively charged beneficial materials touching the body. Samuel Hahnemann, the great father of homeopathy, with his extraordinary perception and foresight, was able to state as early as 1842:

People wonder why these diseases exist in this modern age. The self-realized yogis, whom I consider to be the most advanced thinkers of our time, say that all disease is created by living against natural spiritual laws. On a more mundane level, we constantly absorb, record, and emit all forms of environmental influences in our evolutionary or devolutionary life style.

Materials can be found to counteract the negative pull on our composite being and gems are included among these materials. Every material has a rate of vibration, a "consciousness", if you like. Every thought that enters into our mind and body influences our energy, magnetic tendencies, hormones, and chemical reactions, etc. Repetition of these mental habits, if negative, bind us into ruts that soon become our consistent way of thinking. In turn, this creates a magnetic pull towards negative circumstances, which are simply self-predetermined events that we lacked the ability to predict.

We need to go to the source and stimulate our minds to be more attuned to a higher vibration, to a higher level of consciousness. Then we will feel more at home expressing noble thoughts and actions. Interestingly, this condition has to emanate from within, but it can obviously be stimulated by external environment as well. Beautiful parks, inspiring books, spiritually attractive personalities, philosophical truths, and religious appreciation all benefit our consciousness. All these forms of influence have a rate of vibration, or consciousness that will penetrate and influence us.

Quantum physics is essentially the study of energy waves. We know it's basically the study of forms of energy that are constantly ebbing and flowing and acting with predictability. Quantum scientists will essentially say matter actually isn't there; it's just energy. And they will prove it with their brilliant theories.

Why gems are so unique

Gems, you could say, aren't really there; they are just condensed energy. What makes them so unique and extremely interesting is that their energy wave units are designed in such a way that their atoms line up unerringly by the trillion. These symmetrical geometric alignments allow for an evenly regulated and unusually potent unencumbered energy flow, much more influential than the vast majority of natural materials. In the inorganic kingdom they are unique in this way. Their extraordinary homogenous physical structure allows for an extremely stable and potentized rate of emanating atomic frequency.

Of course, I am talking now in terms of theory, because man has not yet designed instruments to prove or disprove this conjecture. But testimonials over the millenniums have supported the theory that specific gems have the ability to counteract an enormous array of problems for the people who wear them. They have a rate of electromagnetic vibration that can greatly lessen and help dissolve the negative rates of vibration that lower types of thought give off. The gems cause our rate of vibration to change, which in turn changes the way we think. It can be a very surprising experience. It is even more convincing when something seemingly inanimate, like a set of Ayurvedically recognized high-vibration gems, appears to the wearer to be the cause of such a phenomenon.

Of course, so many people who read this will say, "What is he talking about when he says negative thoughts relate to rates of vibration?" This kind of bio-feedback logic is totally foreign to what we learned as children. But as a great author once said, "There is more in heaven and earth than is dreamed of in your philosophies, Horatio."

It's unfortunate that in this so-called "new age" there are so many words written by different theorists that try to express themselves in vague terms (Energy field, aura, radiation, channel, vibration, etc.) These words, in the way they are used, open themselves up to ridicule from the scientifically minded. This is an understandable fact. There is too much supposition and fallacy promoted without testimonial or feedback in the new-age movement of today. I often cringe when I read some of the books that make such dramatic and seemingly contradictory claims about crystals or gems. Unfortunately suppositional fallacy is here to stay, and we'll have to live with it. But the damage it does in closing down the more empirical thinkers who investigate this science, is the same type of thing that happens in religion when fundamentalist believers blindly push their faith without calm reason predominating.

Purveyors of mantras, pujas, Bach flower remedies, essential flower oils, homeopathy, and a host of seemingly subtle vibration mechanisms have been making dramatic claims for years. Gems are just another item on the list. However, they endure the investment of time, unlike the other more transient mediums. A gem investment not only generally gains in monetary value, but can be used daily for the rest of your life, and can travel on for generations.

Their are many scientific laws for a happy and healthy life. Gems have a way of helping us to strengthen our resistance to past negative karma returning to us in this life. There are many healing mechanisms for an infinite variety of problems; gems, however, are not invasive of any combination of approaches. The wise will select all that is simple and practical for them to attain their goal. Gems may not be for everyone. But if you have read this far, it is reasonable to suspect that you have a deeper than average understanding of the benefits of these wonderful friends that Mother Nature has provided for our use.

Nick Hodgson