STONES FOR LIFE KAKO KOMATSU, G.G., MATCHES CLIENTS WITH GEMSTOMES

TO GIVE THEM PEACE OF MIND AND BODY

By Emily StegmanG.I.A Loupe MaganineSummer 2006 issue

There are no good or bad stones, spiritually speaking. Kako Komatsu, a self-proclaimed stone deliverer, first realized this

while she earned a Graduate Gemologist (G.G.) diploma at GIA Hong Kong in 1997.

“One day, when I was studying Gem Identification on campus, I put one stone on my left hand and suddenly felt its energy,” Komatsu says. “I experimented more after that by trying to feel all the stones I was touching and realized that every single stone had a different character and energy.”

She says her ability to sense the nature of different gemstones has given Komatsu a successful career in stone readings and personal jewelry crafting.

Komatsu first came to GIA because she wanted to know gemstones “academically.” Her previous jewelry creations involved papier-mâché and oven clays and she decided it was time to use gemstones and precious metals in her craft.

“It was also a question of respect for the customer,” she says.“People are interested in the physical properties of stones and my

G.G. skills are a good balance to the spiritual aspect of my work. Also, on a practical point of view, what I learned at GIA allows me to appraise the stones more efficiently. I don’t want my clients to pay too much for a stone just because I was not knowledgeable enough to have paid the right price for it.”

Edward Johnson, director of GIA London and Komatsu’s former instructor in Hong Kong, remembers her drive to take the course material in a new direction. He describes her as a “very diligent student” who asked a lot of questions about the character and emotional properties of stones.

“It was something I had not thought about before,” Johnson says.. “I’m happy to see what she’s achieving in her designs and her

creativity because she’s doing exactly what she wants to do. She is taking what we taught her in the classroom and taking it to a new level – a really personal level,” Johnson says.

Komatsu says she did not expect to venture into stone reading after

graduation until a friend offered her a crystal card deck. “I began using this crystal card deck on friends to practice and have

fun, and I realized that my card readings were quite accurate, so I started using them for my career,” she says.

The set of 44 crystal cards is Komatsu’s first tool when performing a stone reading. Her clients are asked to choose four of the tarot-like cards, which she says reveal the balance of the person’s energy in relation to his or her chakras – points of physical or spiritual energy in the body.

“Balance is the most important aspect of stone healing,” she says. “If you get sick mentally or physically, it could mean that you are unbalanced. The card readings will help me to see this unbalance and adjust the person’s energy.”

The client then chooses the three gemstones that most appeal to them from a set of 50 to 70. These show Komatsu which stones will help reclaim that person’s spiritual and emotional balance.

Lepidot, for example, contains large amounts of lithium, a chemical element known to calm nerves. Komatsu says a person who chooses lepidot is most likely irritated and is in need of this gemstone’s calming effects.

“Malachite is the healing stone and usually fits anybody, even very young people,” Komatsu says. “On the opposite end, the diamond has a very strong vibration that could overwhelm the energy of the person wearing it.”

Andrew Nash, an airline pilot living in Hong Kong, met Kako through a mutual friend and found her passion for life and her profession intriguing. He says she accurately read his instinctual nature.

“Smokey quartz and amber were two stones I chose during my reading. They’re very earthy type stones. Kako said my choices mean I’m a grounded, yet passionate person and also that I have a need to stay in the moment and not worry too much,” Nash says.

Komatsu typically takes the three selected stones back to her design studio in Doha, Qatar to make a piece of jewelry that suits her client’s current state of mind. She says her designs are very down-to-earth and always reflect their future owner.

Susan Yee, a Hong Kong banker who is eagerly awaiting a personalized piece, says her reading with Kako gave her a better understanding of gemstones and inspired her to learn more about their healing abilities.

“There is a lot to learn, but I think the energy from stones is similar to the situation where there is a sound in the background, like a ticking clock – you become used to hearing it so you don’t actively hear it anymore and have to recalibrate your hearing,” Yee says.

Komatsu recognizes the unusualness of her profession and knows some people are prone to cast doubts on things that can’t be seen with the naked eye – but it’s what she loves.

“It’s a field that not a lot of people speak about and not a lot of

people get involved with, but Kako believes it to its full extent and I admire her for that,” Johnson says.

Komatsu’s belief in the power of gemstones, coupled with her strong gemological knowledge, has helped her discover a livelihood that brings a happy balance to the people around her.

“I am sometimes surprised to learn from [my clients] how much I have helped them improve their well-being,” Komatsu says. “It is what keeps me doing this career.”

THE PHOTO ON THE RIGHT:This necklace is centered on a deer horn purchased by one of Komatsu’s clients from Japanese Indians (Ainu) in Hokkaido. Komatsu says animal bones and horns give the wearer the ability to sense danger and protect themselves. The amber and coral beads, she says, give extra physical and mental energy, while the jasper guides people on their right path.

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