Martian Blueberries or Moqui Marbles
These unique mineral balls go by many names. Moqui marbles (sometimes spelled Moki), Navajo cherries, Navajo berries, Kayenta berries, Entrada berries, Hopi marbles, Moqui balls or Shaman stones. Geologists call them iron concretions. Largely ignored apart from the Hopi native people of North America whom believed they were sacred objects.
Moqui marbles vary from very small to typically walnut sized brownish black balls with a sandstone centre wrapped in iron oxide which are formed underground in flowing groundwater. An unusual characteristic is that being round, they move around and hence are often found in rock crevices or “puddles” in southern Utah near outcrops of Jurassic age Navajo Sandstone.
They are also called Martian Blueberries due to their blue hue in false colour images released by NASA which were discovered by the Mars rover Opportunity at Meridiani Planum in 2004.
Researchers from the University of Utah explored the similarities between the blueberries and spherical concretions discovered within “Jurassic Navajo Sandstone”. So close are the two sources, they concluded Mars must have had similar ground water activity to form the blueberries. A team of researchers from Japan found evidence that the concretions found in these locations are first formed as “spherical calcite concretions” in sandstone. Acidic water rich in iron then dissolve the calcite leaving behind the iron rich (hematite) spherule.
Moqui is the original name of Hopi Indian until their name was officially changed to Hopi in the early 1900s. The Hopi have a legend that their ancestor’s spirits return to Earth in the evenings to play marble games with these iron balls. In the mornings the spirits leave the marbles behind to reassure their relatives that they are happy and content.
These spherical iron concretions commonly range in size from pea size to larger than a walnut, although some can be as large as grapefruits. The other main shape is the UFO or “flying saucers,” they can be found as buttons, pipes, corrugated sheets, plates, or doublets and triplets (two or three joined balls).
The host rock for the marbles, the Navajo Sandstone, was originally deposited around 180 to 190 million years ago as a huge sand dune field like the modern Sahara, that covered parts of Utah, Arizona, Colorado, Wyoming, Idaho, Nevada, and New Mexico. A very thin, microscopic layer of hematite (an iron oxide mineral) coated the sand grains, giving the sand its red colour. The sand was later buried by other sediments and eventually cemented into sandstone, during which time the hematite coatings continued to spread over the grains, ultimately giving us some of the most spectacular red sandstones visible in southern Utah.
Spiritual Properties
Shaman Stone comes in two shapes, a small, round stone, which is considered female, and a larger, acorn, or disc-like stone, which is male. These pairs can be used to balance the polarities of our energetic system and align and attune the Chakras to facilitate inner harmony. Place the female stone in the left hand, and the male stone in the right
These are wonderful stones to use for inner transformational work, as they offer psychic protection for inner journeys, or out of body travel, and help us make connection with our guides. Shaman Stone provides protection for the body and mind by shielding us from negativity. When placed on the Third Eye Chakra, it enhances our spiritual abilities.
Shaman Stone is a miniature Mother Earth, nurturing, warm, and reassuring. It is very grounding and absorbs stressful, negative energy. This Stone assists in raising our personal energy by stimulating the Chi. Associated with Root Chakra, it offers a greater sense of belonging, either with people or the earth itself, without feeling stifled. It is used for the protection of the home to guard against burglary, troublemakers, and natural occurrences such as lightning, fires, and floods
Moqui Marbles Properties
Moqui Balls are most effective when used as one male stone and one female stone. These high-vibration stones help you harmonise your masculine and feminine energies. The best way to do this is to put the female stone on your crown chakra and the male stone on your root chakra or under your feet.
The Moqui balls have specific energies depending on their size, the bigger ones possess a slow and deep energy while smaller ones have a faster and more vibrant energy. Either way they have an energy that makes you want to hold them for a long time especially in your hands while meditating. These stones can help revitalize or reboot your energy flow after a long day at work. You can place a female stone in your left hand and a male stone in your right to correct the energy flow. For some people, it can work the other way around.
To improve your psychic abilities, place them on your third eye chakra to attune you to your astral and etheric bodies. Keep them close to your body if you want to be protected, centered, or grounded.
Healing and Health
Moqui Balls are excellent stones to use in healing and protection because they support healing in all levels and to protect yourself from any kind of negative entity that wants to attach itself to you.
Moqui Balls can be placed on your solar plexus chakra and sacral chakra to help you with your digestive problems. It can also benefit your adrenal glands as they can be programmed to help in the healing of your thyroid or throat chakra.
Moqui Marbles can help you deal with any kind of physical pain or discomfort.
You can also just hold your Moqui Marbles in your hands and just allow your body to heal itself.
Wealth
Moqui Marbles can be used to improve your business relationships and help you prevent losing money as they will enhance your creativity, self-confidence and encourage you to stay on course and complete your tasks. They will also bring you good luck in lots of unexpected ways.
Moqui Marbles will also get rid of your self-destructive tendencies, leading you to more success and stability in everything that you do.
Love and Relationships
Moqui Marbles will help remove the obstacles that are keeping you from finding love or keeping love in your life so you can overcome the hurtful memories that are preventing you from being happy, secure, stable, or content in your relationship.
They will support you in bringing all the lessons to light so that you can truly learn from them. Moqui Marbles will remove all traces of self-doubt and highlight your true spiritual power.
They have an extraordinary connection to the earth that will also help you release all traces of darkness in your heart.
Moqui Marbles will also protect you from people who have bad intentions for you. They will keep you safe from false friends who secretly want to see you unhappy with your life.
The energies of these stones will inject more life and happiness into your relationships. With the help of these stones, you will find more reasons to enjoy life and love.
They will help you become more trusting and open with the people in your life. They will remove the feelings that you have that you are bound to something or someone.
Moqui Marbles will also give you a strong feeling of belongingness so that you will not stray or feel isolated.
How to Use the Best Results?
To take advantage of the energies of Moqui Marbles, lie down and make yourself relaxed.
Hold a Moqui Marble in each hand. If you’re receptive to their energies, you will start to feel a warmth traveling up your arms.
Depending on what your intentions or desires are, your mood will start to lift, and then interesting things will begin to happen!
The Best Combination to use with Moqui Marbles
To support you in your shamanic journeying, you can pair Moqui Marbles with Iolite to help you access information from the higher realms. Similarly, pairing with Fulgurite will help you retrieve the lost parts of your soul and use Baryte to have that extra layer of protection so that you can safely return. Shamanite combines with Moqui will help you with your spiritual journey. You can be taken to the higher realms by using high vibration stones like Scolecite, Phenacite, and White Heulandite.
Moqui Marbles work well with Boji Stones and Ascension Stones because they are also stones that are used in pairs.
Moqui Marbles can also be paired with Nuummite, Covellite, and Merlinite to release past life trauma.
To attract more spiritual light into your body use with Astrophyllite, Sacred Light Stone, Prophecy Stones or Cryolite.
You can also combine them with Turquoise to help you access the memories of your past lives.
If you want to harmonize your male and female energies, you may combine Moqui Marbles with stones like Marcasite, Amesite, Magnetite, Sphalerite, Iolite, and Aventurine.
You can also use them with Amazonite, Nephrite Jade, Hematite, Lapis Lazuli, and Golden Yellow Labradorite.
Care
Unlike most crystals or stones, Moqui Marbles don’t require special treatments or care like cleansing or charging under sunlight or moonlight.