How to Cleanse Crystals

Crystal cleansing practices help to keep your stone feeling radiant and potent.  Cleansing a crystal or healing stone releases accumulated energy and revitalizes its essence.  Cleansing new stones before introducing them to your daily mindfulness practices ensures a clear, stable foundation for energy work.  Refreshing stones which feel heavy, appear dull or less effective, through various cleansing techniques brings them back to a full-bodied vibration.

Prior to cleansing any crystal or healing stone, it is vital to note if the stone is water soluble.  Avoid damage to your specimens by checking whether they can be exposed to water, and if so, for how long.  Noting whether your crystal or healing stone is sensitive to factors such as water exposure, salt water, or even sunlight helps to prevent deterioration, fading or other damage.

Cleansing with Water

Refresh your healing stones by cleansing with water.  Utilizing a water element is a wonderful way to tune into the energy of the stone you are working with.  Simply placing your stones under running water allows stagnant energy to release, creating more energetic flow.  Cleansing rituals involving a live body of water, such as a lake, river or stream replenishes the stone with earth energy.  Allowing ocean waves to flow over your healing stones is another wonderful way to cleanse stones that are not sensitive to salt water.

Water Cleansing Tip:  When wiping stones down with Florida water, Holy water or moon water (water charged under a full moon), an excess of product is not necessary; stones can be air dried or wiped dry.

Cleansing with Smoke

Bring your crystals back to a bright vibration by cleansing with smoke!  Incense, Palo Santo, or herbs may be burned to create a smoke to waft over and around stones.  When selecting incense, consider the stone you are cleansing to select an incense that amplifies that specific energy.  Frankincense is effective during smoke cleansing rituals for consecration, purification and protection.  Palo Santo, also known as Holy Wood, cleanses the environment while inviting positive energy in.  Rosemary has long been revered as an effective herb for purification, exorcism, healing and protection; in ancient practices, Rosemary was used as a substitute for frankincense.

Smoke Cleansing Tip:  When cleansing with smoke, open a window to allow all negative energy a way out.  Close the window when the smoke has completely dissipated.

Intuitively discerning what cleansing method works best is very personal.  Other methods of cleansing crystals include placing them in brown rice overnight, passing them through the light of a candle. or even visualizing them surrounded in white light.  Burying crystals and stones in a marked part of the garden grounds and charges them; this is excellent for all stones, especially grounding stones such as Black Tourmaline.  Cleansing stones connected to solar energy with sunlight is effective, as well as allowing moonlight from a full moon to wash over stones connected to the moon.  Selenite, though self-cleansing, is noticeably brighter after bathing under a full moon's glow.  Selenite is very effective is cleansing and clearing stones; simply place a crystal on or near a piece of Selenite and allow it to perk up!  Sound is another method which may be used to clear your crystal collection; singing bowls and tuning forks activate the crystal, refreshing it.

Exploring different modes of crystal cleansing opens up energy work through intuitive expansion.  There are so many ways to work with crystals, and we are always finding more; what method is speaking to you?