Give rose quartz as a special Valentine’s gift to loved ones. Rose quartz is known as the heart chakra stone, and it is especially nice to give a rose quartz stone that has been tumbled and cut to the shape of a heart.

I have a large heart-shaped rose quartz sitting on a rock at the entryway to the path up to my front porch, and I can’t tell you how many people have touched it as they pass by. They just naturally reach out to it.

A friend put rose quartz at their entryway and I was always touched and inspired by his gesture and followed his idea. The stone seems to say, in a gentle, kindly, and welcoming way, that the house you are about to enter is a heart-based home.

The energy of rose quartz is known as a heart healer for the emotional wounds of the heart, helping a person to receive and give love. Its rays beam into the heart chakra and dissolves the trauma that has shut down the heart from giving and receiving love.

The healing from rose quartz won’t happen overnight, but working with the stone will slowly but steadily permeate the pain to release it and transform it.

Many women I know will tuck a rose quartz into their bra, to let the stone work its wonders for a few hours at a stretch. Rose quartz pendants will also reach the healing energy to the heart chakra, and are ideal jewelry pieces to help you be close to the energy of the stone.

Forgiveness is a traditional light associated with the rose quartz. People are urged to hold the stone and feel the pink light of forgiveness heal themselves and be sent to others. An example of a meditation with a rose quartz would be to mentally hold yourself and others in your mind, and to tell them and yourself that you forgive them and that you forgive yourself, too, and then release each other and yourself from the emotional bondage of resentment, pain, and hurt.

Healing the heart chakra is vital to our spiritual growth, so why not get and give some help for that from a beautiful rose quartz?

You can also use rose quartz to give yourself an introduction to feeling “chi” energy. Sit quietly and hold the stone in your hand and sense how it feels. Soft? Loud? Like a lullaby?

Heaven and Earth is one of my favorite crystal stores. They offer a number of heart-shaped crystal necklaces and more. Healingcrystals.com is another good site with interesting companion information.

–by Annie B. Bond, bestselling author of five books, including Home Enlightenment (Rodale, 2007).