Crystal in the conservatory

I have always taken pleasure in semi-precious stones – the sheer luminosity of their colours – and have accumulated quite a little collection of them over the years. I think it was Aldous Huxley who suggested that we value jewels not because of their monetary value but because they give us a glimpse of some higher archetypal realm. Certainly many scriptures and mystical writings, from Buddhist, Christian, and other traditions, describe higher worlds in terms of brilliant, jewel-like colours.

In the Realm of the Lotus, Windhorse Publications, Birmingham 1995, p.20. 

Most of Sangharakshita’s collection of rock crystals and semi-precious stones are currently stored in the archive at Urgyen House. He did, however, keep some of that collection in the living room and conservatory. He could recall the provenance of virtually every piece – where and when he had purchased it or who had given it to him. One or two of the pieces of rock crystal were purchased during his 1992 tour of India – they were on sale at a small stall at the entrance to the famous Ajanta caves in Maharashtra. In the last year of his life, Sangharakshita passed on many of these crystals and semi-precious stones as small gifts to the many visitors he received at Urgyen House.