Agate Meaning and Healing Powers

Introduction to Agate

Agate is a fascinating gemstone with a long and illustrious history that stretches back to the Ancient Babylonians, Greeks and Romans. It was named after the Achates River on the Mediterranean island of Sicily during the 4th Century BC and comes in every color of the rainbow.

From the very beginning it was appreciated as much for its spiritual power as its outstanding beauty with early cultures detecting its low frequency energy vibration and recognizing its grounding and stabilizing influence.

• Abundance
• Wealth
• Balance
• Protection
• Environmentalist
• Safety at sea
• Love and Security
• Courage and Strength

Agates come in a wide variety of natural colors, blue, red, lilac, pink, yellow as well as black, gray and white.

Agates appear in a number of different patterns too, often with two, three or more colors within the same gemstone.

Strictly speaking, Agate should be a banded gemstone but this gemstone has such a varied family that it also includes geodes, tree, leaf or moss-like shapes, solid colors, circles and iridescent color play.

Physically, Agate is a very versatile gemstone healer. Linked to its mental benefits, Agate is great for headaches and migraines. It will relieve all sorts of aches and pains all over the body, muscles, joints and bones all receiving a boost.

Agate is good for both the respiratory and the cardiovascular systems as well as the intestines and stomach. Eyes, skin and hair will also see an improvement in health with the presence of this powerful gemstone.

Mothers-to-be will benefit from the vitality and energy imparted by this crystal and following birth it will help with milk production and post partum depression.

All colors of Agate can help but certain ailments can be addressed by particular colors. For example the blue or lilac Agates are especially helpful for sore throats or swollen glands, green Agate can act as an anti-inflammatory and will help fight off colds and fevers, while the red or orange Agates can treat poor circulation and digestive issues.

Chakras are the seven energy centers in your body each influencing a particular physical, emotional or mental state. Each chakra is assigned a color of influence and a gemstone which has a particularly dominant color will be connected with that color’s chakra point.

Because Agate comes in all colors it is one of the rare gemstones that can be used to cleanse or unblock all the chakras – identify the problem and use the appropriate colored Agate.

Yes, Agate can help unblock Chakras – just get the right color for maximum effect.

For example you may feel as though you are having trouble communicating with friends, family or work colleagues. This could be an indication that your Throat Chakra is blocked. To unblock the Throat Chakra, you can use a Blue Agate.

Red Agates and the colorful Fire Agates resonate with the base or root chakra. A sign that your Root Chakra is troubled is a feeling of insecurity or general anxiety. Find a quiet place to lie down and place the Fire Agate at the base of your spine or bottom of your stomach, relax and let the gemstone do its work.

Yellow Agates can aid the Sacral or Solar Plexus Chakra.

Moss Agate, Dendritic Agate, Tree Agate, Onyx, Sardonyx are other well-known Agates in colors that link them to individual Chakras – although some come in such a mix of colors that they can help several Chakras at once.

See our article on Chakra Gemstones here

Agate is not an official birthstone. But . . .

Onyx is often described as a type of Agate – it has a very similar chemical makeup – and is an alternative birthstone for July.

Sardonyx certainly qualifies as an Agate (banded cryptocrystalline for the science buffs) and is a birthstone for August.

Agate is the Mystical birthstone for September.

Agate is the accepted gemstone for the 12th and 14th wedding anniversaries.

Agate is believed to be the middle stone in the third row in the breastplate of the High Priest, Aaron in the bible. This breastplate is often thought of as the origin of the idea of birthstones.

Agate is the birth stone for the Zodiac sign of Gemini.

See our article on Zodiac Gemstones here

Every now and then, our gemstones need to be cleansed and recharged – especially if they have had to deal with a particularly troublesome issue.

Cleansing can be done in a variety of methods including sunlight, the full moon, water or smoke. The power of the sun, moon, fresh spring or sea water and the smoke will not only clear the negative energy but then recharge them with renewed energy.

Certain gemstones prefer one type of cleansing over another – some may be damaged by the rays of the sun or the salt in sea water – but Agate is a durable gemstone which will appreciate any cleanse.

I like to refresh my Agate with natural sea water collected in the Gulf of Thailand not 10 miles from here but if getting water from the ocean is a bit difficult any water will do and you can always add some sea salt.

Just put the gemstones into a bowl or container and pour the water over them and allow to sit is the water for a few minutes. After it might be a good idea to rinse them and pat dry.

As with its health benefits or influence over the Chakras, Agate is a very versatile in its most beneficial placement within the home.

Agate can go anywhere you feel your house needs energy replenishment. The eastern part of the home is the area for health and some Blue Agate placed there would be perfect to benefit the whole household.

Fire Agate is a gemstone known for stimulating increased sexual stamina and physical energy so the bedroom could be the place for this type of Agate!

For knowledge and wisdom some brown or golden yellow agate in the north east part of the home would be ideal.

See our Agate for sale here

Agate can be used in several ways throughout the day.

The easiest way is to carry one or two gemstones in your pocket or purse, it can influence your activities and thoughts from there. If you are in need of its influence just reach for the Agate and use it as a touchstone for extra strength.

Just as simple would be a piece of jewelry. Any type would do as Agate is a very durable gemstone and they can make gorgeous and eye-catching pieces such as rings, pendants, bracelets.

Agate can be placed about the house or workplace, just simply put on a shelf or desk or used more decoratively in a display or with other crystals in a bowl.

Agate as a whole is not necessarily the go-to gemstone for wealth – I think Citrine or Aventurine are more obvious examples.

However, Dendritic Agate is known as the Stone of Plentitude. It brings abundance and riches to all areas of life. It was once commonly placed in recently ploughed fields to ensure a bumper crop.

Another form of Agate that is connected to luck in wealth is the Geode, cut in half so the sparkling crystals are on show, they are known as Wealth Bowls.

See our article on Gemstones to Attract Wealth here

All types of Agate are good for concentration and mental faculties so lend themselves very nicely to meditation.

Fire Agate is especially good, the almost hypnotizing play of color on the gemstone’s surface can focus the mind towards ever deeper meditation.

Forms of Blue Agate with fragile swirls and bands are very relaxing and calming, encouraging the mind to higher thoughts and truths.

See our article about Gemstones for Yoga and Meditation here

Agate is a powerful gemstone but it has a very low energy vibration so it should not be a problem to wear one every day.

We all react differently to crystal energy so what may be uplifting to one person may not be so encouraging for another. Experiment a little with each gemstone, perhaps wear one every other day to begin with to tune your body to its vibration.

See our Agate for sale here

Agate is connected to several Goddesses. Most notably the Earth Mother goddesses, Gaia, the Greek goddess, and Bona Dea, her Roman counterpart.

Agate is also associated with the Roman goddess of the dawn, Aurora, and the Greek goddess of the night, Nyx.

Another interesting goddess with an affinity with Agate is the Welsh goddess, Cerridwen, whose has power over wisdom, inspiration and spiritual transformation.

This durable and versatile gemstone is ideal for pets.

Blue Agates have a calming effect on anxious or nervous animals and can keep noisy pets quiet.

Physically, Agate can help with inflammation, arthritis and throat issues.

See our article on Gemstones and Pets here

Once upon a time, powdered Agate was mixed with water to cure snake bites! We have come a long way since then but an Agate elixir can still work wonders.

Place a piece of Agate, the Blue, Dendtritic or Moss versions are especially effective, into a bowl of fresh water (spring or stream is best but make sure you know the source is safe otherwise any drinking water will do) and let it soak for a few hours. If you can, place it outside under a full moon for the night.

You now have some gemstone elixir.

Add it to a spray bottle for easy access to its gentle and soothing energy – I guarantee a few spritzes on a hot day will have you calm and collected in no time.

Put some in your bath water, use it to make tea, or just drink it cool from the fridge.

See our Agate for sale here

Agate is known to help fight insomnia and give sweet dreams.

In times past, colorful, banded Agates were placed under the pillow or at the head of the bed to inspire varied and interesting dreams.

If you dream about Agate gemstones it is a sign of upcoming success in business and is a symbol of power and ambition.

As members of the same mineral group, Agates, Jaspers and clear Quartzes make a great team.

As the name suggests Fire Agate is a fire stone and works well with other fire stones such as carnelian, fire opal and amber but is not so good with earth or water gemstones such as malachite and moonstone.

Blue Agate is a water stone and Moss Agate is an earth gemstone so you could use them together along Lapis Lazuli, Larimar or Black Tourmaline.

Much like its usefulness in meditation, the calming powers of Agate as well as its enhancement of your powers of concentration make it a good gemstone for yoga.

Its benefit to aching muscles and joints will also help you recover from a particularly tough session.

See our article about Gemstones for Yoga and Meditation here

Agate is not the first gemstone I think of when choosing one for the workplace in general but for specific issues they can certainly help.

For example, Blue Agate will open the Throat Chakra to help you speak your mind and articulate your ideas allowing for much clearer communication at work if that has been a problem.

If you are experiencing any form of artistic block, Fire Agate is a crystal of creativity and expression as well as ambition and high achievement so is very helpful in this situation.

Farmers used to place Agates in the ground with their crops to ensure a healthy and strong harvest.

A gemstone pendulum can be used to answer yes and no questions to reveal hidden truths.

A pendulum is anything solid such as a piece of metal, wood, glass or, as in our case, a gemstone connected to a string or chain.

Hold the pendulum in your dominant hand and let the gemstone hang freely. Ask your crystal show what ‘yes’ is. If the pendulum swings left to right, diagonally or round and round, then that is ‘yes’. Repeat for ‘no’.

Now you are ready to ask your pendulum any question, just relax and be ready to receive communication.

Any gemstone you feel comfortable with can be used as a pendulum and Agate’s calming presence and mental focusing can only help.

See our Agate for sale here

Electro-magnetic fields fill the modern world and unless you live in the middle of a forest or on an island with no phone, wifi or computer you cannot avoid their harmful waves.

Gemstones can provide some protection from this modern pollution but I think there are better gemstones out there than Agate to do the job – black tourmaline and amazonite come to mind.

Agate has a rich history intertwined with humanity, dating back to the earliest civilizations. These ancient cultures valued this gemstone not only for its beautiful colors and intricate patterns but also for its subtle yet impactful spiritual properties.

The influence of a gemstone on our lives, emotions, physical well-being, and those around us is a deeply personal experience, as each individual may respond differently to its energies. This uniqueness is reflected in the appearance of agate, as it is rare to find two natural gemstones that look identical. With its durability, attractiveness, and historical significance, adding an agate to your crystal collection would be an excellent choice.

Handy Guide to Agate

Category	Details
Nickname	Stone of Plentitude
Color	Multi-colored
Chakra	All Chakras
Birthstone	Mythical September
Zodiac	Gemini
Main Virtue	Harmonizing Energy
Health	Respiratory / Cardio
Gem Partner	Jasper / Quartz
Cleansing	Sea Water
Goddess	Gaia / Bona Dea