RUBY

Ruby – the word itself is synonymous with red. Red is the most corrupting of colors, the very symbol of desire. For red is fire, blood and passion, and without these there would be no life.

According to ancient Hindu mythology, gems were created following the God, Bali’s selfless sacrifice of his own body. His body and limbs became the purest manifestation possible, the seeds of gems. As these seeds began to grow on Earth, the nine heavenly bodies each laid claim to a gem. The most important of these is the sun, the very life giver itself. Thus it was appropriate that ruby became the gem of the sun.

But what gods are these who created such a stone? Not only did they grant the ruby an inborn glow to match its scarlet skin, but such was their benevolence that they also gave us silk — slender remnants of the birthing process — gossamer threads that banish the darkness besmirching the rest of the mortal gem world. Such tiny inclusions scatter light onto facets that would otherwise be dark. This provides the ruby with softness, spreading a smile of scarlet joy across its entire face.
(Chapter from the Book “Gemstones. Terra Connoisseur” by Vladyslav Yavorskyy)