Sodalite

Sodalite (SOH-duh-lite) is an opaque, royal blue stone, often with veins or patches of white running through it. It often resembles the colors found in denim. Sometimes it looks almost black in places, while other times it can be quite vibrant. The vibrant sodalite is sometimes confused with lapis lazuli; in fact, sodalite is sometimes a constituent of lapis. However, lapis is usually a more royal blue, can have specks of gold in it, and is heavier than sodalite. Some people refer to sodalite as ‘poor man’s lapis’ due to its comparatively lower price and its similar appearance to lapis. There is also a pink variety of sodalite known as hackmanite.

This stone was first discovered in Greenland in the very early 1800s, but it wasn’t popularly used as a gemstone until massive deposits was discovered in Ontario, Canada in 1891.

Sodalite exhibits a bright orange fluorescence under UV light (black light).

It has a Mohs hardness of 5.5 to 6 and a monoclinic crystal structure.

Location:  Sodalite is mined in Canada, Bolivia, Brazil, Greenland, India, Myanmar (Burma), Namibia, Portugal, Romania, Russia, and the United States. The largest deposits of fine sodalite are found in Canada (Ontario and Quebec) and the United States (Maine and Arkansas).

Properties: Sodalite is a third eye chakra stone, meaning it is very useful for mental abilities. More specifically, it improves observation, analysis, intuition, and insight. It is an excellent companion for those who work in fields that are mind-oriented, such as teaching, writing, psychology, or business. Additionally, sodalite can be of great value to those who are exploring expansion of the mind, particularly as it relates to meditation, understanding life lessons, dream work, shamanism, or trance states. Sodalite is especially useful for self-exploration, encouraging an open, accepting analysis of one’s own motivations, fears, weaknesses, desires, strengths, and talents. It increases pattern recognition, which is what makes it so helpful with insights and analysis, as this is the means by which we achieve moments of clarity and integrate our inner and outer experiences. Whether focusing on the inner world or the world around us, sodalite can help to make things make more sense.