Working with crystals... throw those books away

I have written about this before but I thought I would revisit the subject to possibly explain why I don't work with books that list the attributes of crystals.

Some years ago I joined an online group run but an amazing guy called Fabeku Fatumise.  His passion for working with crystals on a deep level inspired me and I set to learn from him.  Although he used to write at great length about the energies and attributes of what he called "stone spirits" his underlying message was that your personal intuition was more important than anything anyone else could tell you, including books.

You see, we have been brought up to trust the wisdom of others, teachers, doctors, scientists, and gurus and in doing so we have lost the most important trust; trust in our own wisdom and inner knowing. We have given our power to these people and forgotten that we are know ourselves best. In this instance we look to those we consider wiser to tell us which crystals we should use for our own personal situation.

There is one major flaw in this; not only do the books give us a tiny piece of information about the extent of work that can be done with any one crystal but the book doesn't really know what we are working on on a deeper level or what we need to make progress.

Take an example; we are struggling to sleep.  Books will suggest you use amethyst to help you sleep.  But there are so many causes of sleeplessness, the writer doesn't know what is causing your problem so how can they suggest the correct stone?

Another issue with looking to authors for guidance on which crystal to work with is that the writer is only sharing their personal experience of a stone, through their own personal filters and energies.  What another person experiences might be completely different.  You will notice that so many people love amethyst; it must be the biggest seller in the crystal "range" and yet I don't see what all the fuss is about.  Show me a fluorite and now we're talking.  I won't let myself pick up fluorite in shops because I guarantee it will come home with me.  Amethyst... meh?  It's pretty and it has it's value, but I'm no more fussed about it than a pebble on the beach (which I love btw, remember, I love working with all stones).

So, if the writer can't know everything about the stone, doesn't know what we are really dealing with and is writing only about their personal experience, how can we know which crystals we should work with at any given time?

Throw away the books and trust our own intuition!!

We all have an inner wisdom, an intuition about what we need and what won't help us.  The trick is to remember this and learn to use it.  It takes time to learn to trust our intuition and it can be very hard at times to take back the power we have given the "experts" but it really is worth it.

On a practical level, if you are either adopting new stone spirits or intending to work with the ones you already caretake, rather than reach for a book, simply spend a moment with your stones, think about what it is you would like to achieve and clear your mind.  Simply gaze at them, pick them up or listen with your inner ear to see which ones you are drawn to.  Some hear a strong "me me meeee!" from their stones, others simply pick one up and find it feel calming or they don't want to put it down.  That's the one.  Trust it, trust that feeling and open up to the stone that has spoken to you.  Work with it and see what happens.  You might just find something wonderful happens.

Before you actually bin your books though.. if you really want to use them, use them as a tool AFTER you have picked your stone friend for the day.  Look it up and use it as you would the book that comes with a tarot or oracle deck.  Look up your stone and see what the book says, but remember, if it doesn't mention the issue you are dealing with that doesn't mean your choice is wrong, it simply means the author hasn't experienced that aspect of the stone.  If you think you will lose faith in yourself leave your books to one side until you are able to trust yourself more than the book.

In the end, what have you got to lose?  Give it a go and see what happens.

Visit my website to learn more about my healing practice  

www.CrystaloakTherapies.co.uk/

How to safely make crystal waters and elixirs

Gem elixirs and crystal waters are a great way to work with crystals in our daily life but there are some safety precautions that need to be considered before they are made.

Are you drinking toxic chemicals?
It seems such a simple process; get a glass of water and drop some of your favourite crystals in it and the energies of the crystals will be passed to the water; but what you might not be aware of are the toxic chemicals that may also be passed into the water.

We have to remember how crystals are formed.  Deep in the earth water picks up chemicals and these then come together to form the crystal.  Different chemicals in different environments create the multitude of crystals.  Some of those chemicals may be harmless, but others not so much.

To name a few: Malachite, pictured left, is often mined for it's copper content.
Angelite can contain lead
Cinnabar is a source of mercury
Pyrite has sulphur as a constituent 
Tourmaline can have aluminium in it

All of these chemicals are toxic to humans and animals and even some plants, if these were in our tap water there would be an outrage, and yet we blithely put them in our glass of water.

Another issue to bear in mind is that some crystals are water soluble.  Not only does this guarantee that some of the chemicals will end up in your water but it will also damage your crystal, something else we want to avoid.

So how do we make a gem elixir or water and guarantee it is safe to drink? 

No soak method 
There are 2 ways you can get around this problem and which one you use tends to be based on your beliefs, whether your crystal is damaged by water and whether you are able to dowse.

The first option is what I call the "no soak" method but others call it the "indirect" method.

Take a clear, colourless glass or jar and fill it with the water you want to drink.  Place it in the centre of another clear, colourless bowl of water and place the crystal in the bowl.  This will transfer the energies of the crystal into the glass or jar without the water being affected by the crystal's physical properties.

Many people would put this in the sunlight to aid the process.  Of course the problems with this method are that we can't always be sure that our crystals won't be damaged by the water or the sunlight for that matter.  This means I prefer not to use this process.

Intentional method
The way I make elixirs and drinking waters are based more on the spirit of co-creation with the stone spirit and the belief that energy can be transferred with intention.

Choose your clear, colourless glass and fill it with mineral water.  Ask the crystal that is right for you to step forward.  After connecting with it and asking if it will join you in co-creation hold it above the water with your non-dominant hand (this is your left if you are right handed).  With your dominant hand hold a pendulum above the crystal and ask the crystal to send its energies into the glass.  Use the pendulum to tell you when the process has been completed.  When the water is ready thank the crystal and the process is complete.  This method can be used to imbue water with any number of energies without any concerns.

Visit my website to learn more about my healing practice  

www.CrystaloakTherapies.co.uk/

 

How can healing help in the real world?

Often it's hard to see how going to see a crystal healer can help you in the real world.  I mean, we have to make real life changes to see better results, don't we?  Not just lay there and let someone waft crystals around and expect all to be ok again.

You would be right, getting a healing isn't suddenly going to fix all your problems, but it will help you make those changes.

Quite some years ago now I was in a situation where I needed to find somewhere to live.  I had been living pretty much rent free and my life had changed leaving me needed to find a flat.  The problem was I could only afford one it a really bad area.  I didn't know what to do, I would be living on my own for the first time and the last thing I wanted was be scared of every noise outside my door.

I was seeing my crystal healer almost every week at this point dealing with what was going on in my life and when I was next on the couch I explained my situation.  We talked and the crystals did their thing and we decided I would ask my boss for a raise.

We all know how pointless that would be, yes?  No boss ever gives a raise just by being asked.

But, because of the healing I was balanced, I was calm and I had faith in my ability to get what I needed.  I walked in that office the next day, stated that unless I got a raise I would need to look for another job and I was given exactly what I asked for instantly.  Within weeks I was living in a lovely flat in the best part of town.  Money was still tight, but I was there and I was safe.  I even found out that I had an amazing neighbour who helped me start to rebuild my life.

Although healing can, at times, help manifest amazing things, for the most part though what it does is bring us back to our optimum selves.  It quiets the doubt and fear, the voice that says it can't be done, and allows us to get on with doing it.

Visit my website to learn about my healing practice  

http://www.crystaloak.moonfruit.co.uk/

Meditation - Stone Spirit Temple

Pick a crystal and hold it in your hand, take a look at its colour and texture.

Close your eyes and take a few deep breaths.  Begin to calm your mind and centre yourself in the here and now.  Focus on the point where your third eye is, just above and between your eyes.  Feel a stillness in this point and relax.

See yourself walking along a country path with deep hedges either side.  It’s a beautiful warm day and you are feeling relaxed and at peace as the sun shines in a clear blue sky. The sound of the birds singing lifts your heart as the scent of wild flowers floats on a gentle breeze.

As you walk you notice ahead of you the hedge that grows along the path thickens and becomes dense and tall.  You see that there is a doorway in the hedgerow leading to a secret walled garden.

Entering the garden you feel safe and calm.  Only you know about this place and only good can enter this sacred space.  Close the door behind you and take a walk around the garden, become familiar with what is there.  

As you explore you find another gate in the wall and as you open it you see another path leading to a beautiful temple that strangely reminds you of the stone you hold in your hands.  Follow the path to the door of the temple.

As you enter the temple you see two large regal chairs, almost thrones and in one sits the spirit of the stone you chose to work with you.  

You step forward and the stone spirit beckons you to sit in the other chair. As you sit the stone spirit reaches out and takes your hand looking deep into your eyes.  A sense of calm wisdom flows over you and you relax in their company.

Take time to be with this stone spirit.  Ask why you were drawn to work with it, does it have a message or maybe some healing energy for you?

It is soon time to leave the temple but before you do give thanks to this wise earth elder for their time and healing.

As you leave the temple and walk along the path ponder the message you were given.  

You soon find yourself back in your walled garden.  Take a look around, has anything changed, is there anything you need to do?

Now it is time to return to the mundane world.  Leave your garden through the first gate and find yourself back on the path between deep hedges.  The sun is still shining and you are thankful for spending time with the stone spirit.

As you walk back up the path feel yourself returning to your body.

Take a few grounding breaths and spend a moment focusing all of your attention on your feet.

When you are ready, open your eyes.

Spend another moment looking at your stone spirit, do you feel a stronger connection to it now?

Which crystal should I use? Intellect or intuition?

I am often asked which crystal is right for which situation and I thought I would post a little about my philosophy on this.

 When working with crystals, or many other complementary therapies for that matter, it is important to turn the intellect off and turn the intuition on.

The whole human system of mind, body and spirit is complex and our brains don't hold all the information; there is much that goes on in our body that we are not aware of.  How often have people found that they did not know they were ill until they were VERY ill?  Surely if our brains knew what we needed to make us well we would know at the very first instance when something started to go wrong.

However, while our brains are blissfully unaware something is sending antibodies to deal with the problem.  People who are paralysed from the neck down still have organs that function despite the connection to the brain being severed. 

All this means there is a part of us outside the brain that knows what is going on and what we need.  This is what we tap into when we work with complementary therapies.

So how does this connect to picking a crystal?

If the brain doesn't know what we need to make us well there is no point in storing vast quantities of information so that we choose the right crystal on an intellectual level.  Instead, we have to quiet the brain and tune in to something more innate, the quiet voice that speaks to us when we we take control away from the brain.

It all sounds quite difficult but in reality we are given clues all the time.  We can get cravings for a certain foods and when we look into it we find that there is some nutrient in that food that our body needs.  We change our mind when we are traveling and find that if we had continued on that path something terrible would have happened.  These things aren't luck, this is us listening to our intuition.

So, when you want to work with a crystal and you have a purpose in mind, don't reach for the books; don't try and remember what you were told.  Simple look at the crystals with the work you would like to do held in your mind and see which one catches your eye.  Don't question it, don't doubt it, just go with it.

As with anything we try to learn, the more we listen to this little voice the better we hear it and the easier it gets for us to know just what we need in any given moment.

Of course, once you have learnt to trust your intuition there is nothing stopping you looking the crystal you have chosen up in a book to see what insight you can glean from your choice.  It is important though to not discard the choice if you don't like what you read, trust it was for the best and all may become clear later.

Enjoy connecting to your stone spirits and working with your intuition.

Visit my website to learn about my healing practice  

http://www.crystaloak.moonfruit.co.uk/

Working with the stones

When I first came to working with crystals I read the books and talked to people and learnt that stones have energy, that they can help us heal.  This opened up a world to me and I wanted to explore more.  I  listened to teachers and come to see crystals as tools in a toolbox of alternative methods to heal and grow.

After a number of years I was led to a yahoo group run by Fabeku Fatunmise.  He was talking about stones in a way that I had never heard of before.  Stones are spirits!!  Fabeku's philosophies gave me insight into a level of understanding that changed my view on crystals forever.

Animism is a philosophy that believes that all things contain spirit, that non-human entities are spiritual beings.  When I learnt about stone spirits I realised I had been working towards this for some time.  My first real experience of this was when I spent many hours sat lent against a willow tree trying to work through my problems.  I found that thoughts were coming into my head that weren't mine, and they made so much sense!  I realised the willow tree was talking to me.  As soon as I acknowledged and accepted this I spent more hours talking to the tree. So many times I arrived at it's base feeling as if my world was ending and left with a knowing of how to carry on.

So if a willow tree is sentient, why not a stone?

This understanding brings with it a complete shift in the way we view and work with the stones.  This is not a case of owning a tool, like a carpenter owns a saw.  It is more of working in a team and each member of the team brings their own gifts and skills to the table.

We wouldn't consider cleansing a co-worker and we certainly  wouldn't program one.  What we would do though is listen to their wisdom, respect their place in the team and show gratitude for their help.

Stone spirits have come to this reality to help humanity reach it's potential.  They can see us for who we truly are and know exactly what is best for us.  They are, like each of us, multifaceted in their skills.  Just as a person can be a parent, teacher, taxi driver, mechanic, chef, nurse and lover all in one day; each stone spirit has many attributes and abilities.  This means that there is never any way that a stone can be classified or described in a few lines in a book.  As such, I never try to hold on to "knowledge" about a stone.  I will very rarely suggest a stone for a situation based on something I have read in a book.  More likely I will suggest the person sits with a number of stones, with a question held in their mind, and listen to see which stone steps forward to work with them.

When working in a crystal healing environment I never select a stone based on preconceived  ideas or the colour of the stone, I will listen to who steps forward for each task.  I often don't even know what the stone spirit is working on when it steps forward; I simply trust that it will be for the well being of the client.

Of course, this knowledge that the stone spirits have come to help us means that no stone can ever harm us.  There is no "bad combination" of stones or "evil" stones.  Sometimes however you can find that a stone has stepped forward to bring about a great change, a difficult but powerful transition into healing.

Once I brought home a Girasol spirit.  It is a beautifully tactile stone and I was sat for some time, just watching tv, holding it to my solar plexus and it felt soothing and calming for some time.  Suddenly I needed to get it as far away from me as possible and it felt horrible.  At that point I could have thought that the stone was bad or not right for me, but in reality it had gently been coaxing some blocked emotions to the surface, and as soon as I became aware of them I resisted.  That night there was a great shift in me and I was able to express some feelings that I had refused to acknowledge.

Because I trusted the stone I passed through the uncomfortable feeling and gained great healing.

As soon as we open our hearts and minds to the magic of stone spirits we open ourselves to great healing.  Why would we ever want to limit ourselves to the "stones as tools" model ever again?

Visit my website to learn about my healing practice  

http://www.crystaloak.moonfruit.co.uk/