Nowadays, crystals, a kind of quartz, are widely used in producing oscillators in computers and communication systems. To many people, however, crystals are for decoration and making accessories due to their attractive appearance.

     According to Mr. Wayne Chan, spokesperson of Quartz Rights (International) Company, natural crystals originated from the Atlantic culture about 15,000 years ago.

     "At that time, the healing power of crystals had already been widely known and adopted," said he.

     Mr. Chan said that ancient people believed the human body can be divided into seven big energy centres called "Chakras". These chakras of different colours act as health monitors and reflectors of the body.

     According to Mr. Chan, some illnesses are caused by the weakening of vibration frequency of magnetic field inside the body. "When the frequency decreases, energy of that part of the body falls and toxin accumulates and illnesses result. The corresponding chakra then sends a signal to indicate the problem.

     "By using crystals that release corresponding vibration frequencies, energy can be restored and so illness is removed," he explained.

     However, according to Dr. K. K. Cheung, Honorary Assistant Professor of the Department of Chemistry at the University of Hong Kong, crystals are only crystalline quartz that cannot release any vibration frequency without an external supply of energy.

     "For instance, quartz in a quartz watch needs batteries to make the watch work," he illustrated.

     While Mr. Wayne Chan claimed that colours of crystals define their scopes in curing illnesses, Dr. Cheung said that the colour of some valuable crystals can be changed permanently by heat.

     Professor David Tong, Head of the Department of Physics at the University of Hong Kong, shared the same opinion with that of Dr. Cheung.

     "For me, crystals are only the solid forms of any molten matter after cooling.

     "There is still no scientific evidence about the healing power of crystals. Experiments and researches are needed to prove this."

     Other than its healing power, many people buy crystals due to their alleged effect on increasing one's fortune.

     Mrs. Tam Li Ngun, a 42-year-old housewife, said that she bought crystals to improve her health and enhance her fortune.

     Yet, she thought that her health condition still fluctuated from time to time.

     "But my wealth has increased quite a lot," she said.

     She added, "I used to buy crystals for my daughter and my unemployed son. Afterwards, my daughter passed an exam and my son found a job."

     But still, Mrs. Tam was not sure if it was the magic of the crystals that changed her children's fate.

     "Maybe the crystals have boosted my daughter's self-confidence."

     According to Dr. Mandy Hoi, instructor of the Department of Psychology of The Chinese University of Hong Kong, the so-called "magical power" of crystals is more likely to be a psychological effect called placebo.

     Under this effect, if people believe that something is useful and helpful to them, they may get benefits from it, no matter if it really works or not.

     Professor David Tong agreed, "Crystal therapy is similar to fungshui. If users believe in it, it may be beneficial to them though we cannot prove it's effect scientifically."

Implication of Colours

By Phoebe Lam

According to Mr. Wayne Chan, crystals of different colours have different magical power, here are some examples:

Blue (e.g. Aquamarine):
May cure respiratory diseases like sore throat and
enhance the ability to communicate.