Practical Magic: A Beginner's Guide to Crystals, Horoscopes, Psychics, and Spells - Nikki Van De Car 2017
Crystals
Healing for hedge witches
HONESTLY, PART OF THE REASON WE’RE DRAWN TO CRYSTAL healing is because it’s so pretty—it just feels magical.
Whether it is truly magical is up for debate. There is evidence that crystal healing has been around for 6,000 years, dating back to Sumerians and ancient Egyptians. Today’s crystal healing most often relates to the Buddhist and Hindu understanding of chakras. All of these different practices assign different properties to different stones—diamonds to draw out poison, garnet to keep nightmares away, jade for longevity, and so forth.
There hasn’t been much in the way of real scientific research done on crystal healing, and what little there is shows nothing more than a placebo effect. But, worst-case scenario, crystal healing is utterly harmless, and according to its practitioners, it can achieve a staggeringly wide variety of results—everything from stimulating psychic abilities to aligning the spine and offsetting alcoholism.
Because there are so many stones with such varied uses, crystal healing can be a fairly complicated practice. The effect of each crystal changes not just with its type but also its shape and how it has been activated and cleansed. For instance, rose quartz will produce different results depending on whether it is shaped as a wand or left as a tumbled stone. For a professional session, a healer will interview you about your needs and concerns before having you lie on a mat or a massage table for the session. The healer will then place stones on or near your body as you remain still and try to achieve a state of comfort and relaxation—which isn’t always easy with someone darting about putting rocks on and around you.
Most often, the placement relies on the chakras (see here):
MULADHARA, the root chakra, can be stimulated with red or black stones like obsidian, hematite, garnet, and smoky quartz.
SVADHISTHANA, the sacral chakra, responds to orange stones like citrine and carnelian.
MANIPURA, the solar plexus chakra, should be paired with yellow stones like yellow jasper and golden calcite.
ANAHATA, the heart chakra, traditionally responds to green stones like malachite and jade, but since our bodies are influenced by our minds and cultures, pink stones like rose quartz have gained in power and popularity for the healing of the heart.
VISHUDDHA, the throat chakra, is stimulated by blue stones, including aquamarine and turquoise.
AJNA, the chakra located right between your eyebrows, at your “third eye,” is opened up by indigo stones like lapis lazuli and azurite.
SAHASRARA, the crown chakra at the top of your head, is paired with violet and white stones including amethysts and clear quartz.
After that, it’s a matter of the healer’s personal preference and interpretation of your needs. The healer will observe your reactions to each stone as it magnifies your positive energies and balances your negative energies. During or after a session you might experience some lethargy, a runny nose, and even some weeping as physical and emotional blockages are released.
Whether that’s just a placebo effect, the power of your mind choosing to believe that it’s working, or amethysts really taking your headache away… who knows? And if the headache is gone, does it matter?