The Spiritual Meaning of Purple

The Price of Purple

In the ancient world purple dye was made from the secretions of sea snails, particularly the murex, and it took thousands of snails to dye a single garment. The most famous source was the Phoenician city of Tyre, whose name became attached to the color: Tyrian purple. Because of its cost, purple became a mark of rank, and in Rome only emperors and senators were allowed to wear certain shades. Born to the purple still means being born into royalty.

Royalty and Priesthood

The Bible mentions purple as one of the materials of the tabernacle and the priestly garments, and Lydia of Philippi in Acts is described as a seller of purple. In the Passion narratives soldiers dress Jesus in a purple robe to mock his claim to kingship. In Christian liturgy purple is the color of Advent and Lent, seasons of preparation and penitence, so the color is associated with both royalty and humility.

The Crown Chakra

In chakra teaching violet or purple is associated with the crown at the top of the head, the seat of spiritual connection and the sense of unity. Meditators visualize violet light to quiet the mind and deepen insight. Whether or not one accepts the chakra system, the link between purple and the sense of something beyond the ordinary is consistent across modern spiritual writing and is reflected in the colors of many meditation spaces.

The Violet Flame

In the Theosophical tradition and later in the I AM movement, the violet flame is a spiritual energy said to transmute negative energy into positive. Its devotees practice visualization and recited decrees. This is a modern tradition, and it is not part of older religious systems, but it illustrates how purple has been used as a symbol of alchemical change: the transformation of what is heavy into what is light.

The Color of Mourning and Memory

In some cultures purple is associated with mourning. Queen Victoria wore purple in the later years of her widowhood, and in parts of Latin America purple is worn during Lent and for the dead. In Thailand widows traditionally wore purple. The color's blend of warm and cool makes it suitable for subdued, reflective states in which sorrow is held within a larger frame of meaning.

Amethyst and Sobriety

The word amethyst comes from the Greek for not intoxicated, and the stone was believed to guard against drunkenness. Bishops wear amethyst rings, and the gem has been used as a symbol of clear thinking and spiritual sobriety. The connection between purple stone and a clear mind is a long-standing one, and many people keep amethyst near their beds or desks.

Purple in Modern Movements

Purple has also become a color of social movements: it was used by suffragettes, together with white and green, to represent dignity, purity and hope, and it is associated with several causes related to dignity and equality. Its use for such purposes builds on its history as a color of authority claimed by those who had been denied it, a reversal of its imperial origin.

Imagination and Creativity

Purple is often called the color of imagination. Artists, mystics and dreamers have claimed it, and in children's drawings and fantasy stories it appears frequently. Because it is not a color that we see commonly in nature, it feels slightly otherworldly. For those drawn to creative work, purple can be a color that suggests permission to explore the unusual.

Purple in Dreams

In dreams purple may be associated with mystery, spirituality, royalty or an emotional state in between two extremes. A purple sky might mean a threshold such as dusk or dawn, and purple flowers could suggest intuition or memory. As with other colors, your own associations and the emotional tone of the dream matter most.

Shades of Purple

Lavender is gentle and soothing, violet more intense and spiritual, plum and aubergine deeper and more sensual, and magenta lively and compassionate. Each shade shifts the emphasis of the color. Paying attention to the particular shade that draws you can tell you more than the general category about what you need.

Balance and Caution

Because purple has such strong associations with spirituality and power, it can be used to signal specialness. The healthier relation to the color is as an invitation to depth rather than a badge of status. The long history of purple as a marker of rank should remind us that the most authentic spirituality is often found in humility.

A Practice With Purple

One practice associated with purple is a few minutes of quiet at dusk, when the sky often takes on purple tones. Sit or stand outside, watch the colors change and allow your thoughts to slow. It is a free, accessible way of meeting the color in its natural form and of letting it work on you without a theory.

Purple and the Search for Meaning

Many people report a pull toward purple in periods of life when they are asking large questions: after a loss, in mid-life reassessment or when reconsidering their beliefs. The color sits between warm red and cool blue, and psychologically it can feel like a space between two states. If purple draws you, you may be in a threshold time when you are neither the person you were nor yet the person you are becoming. The color does not resolve the question, but it offers company in it.

Purple in Hindu and Buddhist Contexts

In some Buddhist traditions purple and violet robes are worn by senior teachers, and in Tibetan Buddhism deep purple-maroon robes are associated with monastic life. The color also appears in Hindu iconography as a sign of the third eye and of spiritual wisdom. While there is no single doctrine about purple, in each case it is used to mark depth of practice and a movement beyond ordinary perception.

Natural Purple

Purple is relatively rare in nature, which is part of why it feels special. Lavender fields, irises, amethyst geodes, the dusk sky and certain mountain ranges at the end of day show it. Seeking out these natural purples can be a gentle practice: a walk at dusk, a visit to a garden, a look at a gem collection in a museum. The color's rarity encourages attention, and attention is the first step of any spiritual practice.