Reflecting on... Crystals

It has been a long time sit I sat to think about the vast level of diversity in all of my tools and so I am doing that today… starting with crystals; vibrational, energetic and magickal, the gifts of the planet enhance our spiritual experience in subtle and profound ways. My personal relationship with crystals was not strong when I began my journey into witchcraft but I discovered Samantha Valens on YouTube (https://www.youtube.com/user/SamisSpirit/videos) and her enthusiasm was infectious. From then on, crystals were a part of my practice as much as I was. I keep them on window sills, in my bra, in my handbag, at work, and more traditionally, in jewellery.

So, here I have listed the myriad of ways I have used crystals in my practice over the years and I am taking this opportunity to thank Samantha too for that boost of inspiration.

·        Décor

I’ll start simply with home décor; a rose quartz in your home will promote a loving environment; obsidian or black tourmaline at your threshold will deter unwanted visitors (including spiders, I’ve found); citrine sitting on my desk, inspires me to write. So even if you do not practice energy work, crystals are pretty and can still assist you in living harmoniously.

·        Baths

I shall be posting soon about ritual bathing and crystals play a large part in that practice for me but just having them in the bathroom can be soothing.

                                    i.        Bath Meditation is a very relaxing practice for me… I like to keep a piece of Aquamarine on the side of my bath tub gaze into it and drift to the ocean when I have a soak.

                                  ii.        Direct Infusion: Many crystals can be placed in the water itself which will infuse the water and so envelop your whole body with its energy. I like this method to cleanse my aura and use seven black crystals.

not all crystals are water-safe so please do your research when choosing them for this purpose.

                                iii.        Pre-made Infusion: You can find recipes in books and online for infusions combining botanicals and crystals which make up approximately a litre of something magickal which can then be added to bath water.

·        Spell Bags

I love how making a spell bag makes me feel so very in touch with my inner-witch. Something about the collection of ingredients and the binding them all together to create something which actually affects the energetic levels speaks to me in a way that very few other magicks do. Crystals are an excellent source of power for spell bags because many of them are their own power source, capable of sustaining their own power without assistance from us mere mortals. They can be charged before and after they’re put in the bag; they can be combined with botanicals, petitions, personal items for a more potent spell; if you consider every crystal as a personality, and you are equipping your spell with that personality by adding a certain crystal, then crystals can achieve anything in a spell bag.

·        Crystal-infused Oils

Oils are as much an essential (pardon the pun) part of the craft as crystals and have wonderful properties all of their own but if you wish to combine these properties with those of your crystals, for powerful ends, then a crystal-infused oil is a great way to go for later annointments, etc. The very talented Tequila (Lady GraveDancer) has a great video on her channel for Amethyst Oil which I highly recommend - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U_7CXj7WkeU&t=995s and her Rose Quartz Oil is pretty special too - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kZPHxcz7Ong.

·        Crystal Grids

Do you remember sitting in math class thinking… “I’m never gonna use any of this”; well, if that class was Geometry then you may have been mistaken in your thinking. A crystal grid is the placement of crystals in a geometric pattern designed to concentrate energy in a specific direction toward your intention. Using several crystals (perhaps incorporating Numerology) and/or using different types of crystals can generate quite a wallop toward your goal.

·        God & Goddess Representation

This is something I have done for a very long time… I have a large piece of rough sunstone on my altar which is representative of God-energy. I purchased it very inexpensively from a garden store where it was being sold as pond/rockery decoration – I knew better. It has now been sitting on my altar for approximately seven years and whenever I touch it, I feel the masculine energies of the Universe emanating from it – gooooorgeous!

Many deities have crystals that are sacred to them and so they can be used as offerings too or as decoration for an altar dedicated to that specific deity. On the flip side of that idea is that certain crystals will help you connect to deity too. If you do not have a matron/patron deity but are drawn to, for example, garnet, meditate with that garnet and you may be surprised by who you find.

·        Casting Circles

Oh, the art of casting circles is a beautiful and magickal working all of its own; to weave a place where enchantment dwells, to open a door and experience divinity… this sacred practice can also be enhanced by incorporating crystals; whether they line your physical barrier or you use them to cast with, the delicate resonance crystals have with magick and divinity will strengthen the connection you experience whilst in a crystal circle.

·        Healing

The term crystal-healing is somewhat common place these days as the effect crystals have on the physical body and emotional aura have been well-researched and scientifically proven. This process can be done in any ways but I have two favourites:

                                    i.            The first is how crystals can cleanse the chakra system. Placing crystals of corresponding vibration and colour on the chakra points will resonate with that chakra and help to shatter any blockages.

                                  ii.            The second is crystal massage – I have experienced this with a rather bulbous quartz (polished, obviously) and it was incredibly relaxing for the body whilst reaching my astral self too; my astral body melded around and into the crystal as it moved, my vibration echoed through it, and echoed back through me. Truly amazing.

·        Spell Work

Many of the things I have already listed are or can be a part of spell work but there are other means of incorporating crystals into your magick:

                                i.            Meditation Aid. This has been partially covered in connecting with deities but holding a crystal for meditation can strengthen your sight, determine what you see, set the tone of the meditation and help you interpret what you see.

                              ii.            Visualisation Aid. Similar to meditation, visualisation is enhanced and strengthened by crystals and as visualisation is a key component in a lot of spell work, having your abilities in its application made more potent can only lead to more fruitful ends. For example, I have a large piece of yellow calcite which resonates so intensely with my solar plexus chakra that I only have to look at it and my chakra burst open to greet it; the reason I add this little anecdote here is that even after 20 years of studying and practicing spirituality I still struggle with chakra visualisation but not with this crystal because from seeing that one chakra bursting open, the others will follow suit. Thankfully, no messy clean-up!

                            iii.            Motivational Aid. In this instance, for me, a crystal is a spell all by itself… if, for example, I want to feel  very sexually confident; I want to really open my base chakra and feel that energy radiate from me, pulsate through me, this can be achieved with a crystal. I raise my energy in circle and hold a bloodstone between my hands, I visualise myself as a siren, a vixen, a proud, confident, sexual woman and channel that energy into the crystal, saying a few words to seal the charge of the crystal and set the intention that this crystal will always give me this feeling.

It works for other examples too – a sodalite would work well as a communication spell, so would a lapis lazuli for a means to dominate an argument, such as for a lawyer in court.

There are other ways to use crystals in spells but if I told you all of mine then you lose the fun and wisdom of others experiences and your own experimentation. Happy charging!

·        Fine-tuning Intuition

This could be one of the most delicate, precise and awing abilities that crystals have. Far from just fine-tuning intuition, a crystal is like a sound board in a movie-editing studio. Very few card-readers will spread their cards with a crystal or two on their table because these innumerably faceted, sparkling gems of earth energy are beacons of divinity and guidance. Intuition isn’t limited to divination though, it is your inner voice, your conscience, your nature and a crystal is a key to unlock the door that keeps the mind unenlightened. I believe in something I’ve never heard of before, a soul crystal; this is the idea that one type of crystal, be it agate, amazonite, quartz, tourmaline, lepidolite, etc. resonates in complete harmony with your soul; when you hold it, it feel like a reset button, like freedom, the wisdom and power and wild energy of the Universe explodes in your very consciousness and you can see the way ahead. I don’t claim to have had this happen exactly but I believe in it wholly because crystals are the children of earth and earth is a daughter of the Universe, that is an impressive family tree and I trust in can be completely tapped into. Crystals help our intuition because they echo that connection into our consciousness and all we have to do... is listen!