Most likely you have been seeing a trend talking about full moon, new moon intentions and manifestations or possibly the quote " I can't tonight I'm charging my crystals". This blog post is long over due as I have been slowly posting wellness, crystals and more on the Instagram FEED...
BEFORE YOU READ- The backstory is just a brief history on the matter- I MEAN REAL BRIEF.
WE CAN ALL COEXIST...
BACKSTORY:
Before FreePeople and Urban Outfitter and other trendy stores started blogging about this, these rituals with natural materials have been occurring for centuries. They derived from many groups i.e. Native Americans, Egyptians, Astrologist, Romans, Celtics, Buddhist and the list goes on. I mean there is some serious history on religions and spiritual groups that intertwine with the metaphysical world. Thats a whole other blog post in itself.
For me, I'm a Catholic who's a bit open minded to spiritual works that involve natural materials. I think it's my innate Virgo tendencies that lean towards materials like like crystals, sage, palo santo, meditation, moon phases, salts, essential oils etc. Whenever I do a "ritual" I say prayers from the Bible. I think anyone starting out can follow a prayer that they use on a daily bases from their own practicing religion. If you do not follow along with a religion but do feel spiritual, there are many books that carry wordings of intention or write your own and connect within yourself, we all have the power of our minds, it's all about being in tune. The more you do this, the stronger your intuition becomes. You know, that feeling in the pit of our stomachs that happen when we sense danger, or when it engulfs us with vibrant warm energy that just has us glowing. Follow it, nurture it... and have FAITH that there is something big out there guiding us and we are our own personal tool that attracts that information of guidance.
LET'S BEGIN WITCHES
Now my goal here is to help you get an idea of what EASY RITUALS you can incorporate to your daily routine... We are just going to cover the essentials /starter kit
SAGE| BURNING RITUALS
The SAGE Smudging ceremony is a custom originated by the Native Americans, also commonly used amongst other indigenous cultures. For centuries this ceremony has been used for a CLEANSING of your home and/or sacred space and also for PROTECTION. As you create your smoke bath (by just lighting the end and then after a few seconds of burning blow it out, notice the smoke like incense) say your favorite prayer and ask for protection and cleanse every corner of your space and any other intention. Don't forget to give yourself a bath (starting from the top of your head working your way down), freshly bought crystals, everyday jewelry and for extra good juju cleanse your car, office and any other space important to you.
HOW OFTEN SHOULD I USE SAGE?
I use sage for every NEW MOON & FULL MOON, when a new cycle has begun (job, relationship, a move, a renewal of some sort) when an emotional event has happened (death, natural disaster, ending of a relationship), and of course when your intuition/ physical self is drained because you have picked up on other people's energy/ MAL DE OJO (evil eye/ bad juju). Sage comes before Palo Santo
PALO SANTO| BURNING RITUALS
The PALO SANTO comes from the coast of South America, mostly Mexico, Peru and Venezuela. This "HOLY WOOD", is a great tool for BLESSINGS. It is able to capture and highlight the good energy, bless it and has it lasting. This is why Palo Santo should happen after Smudging SAGE. You want to capture the clean protective energy and amplify it by blessing it. You can say your prayer of choice and other intentions as you do this and like Sage, you can do it in your designated area's that you wish to BLESS.
HOW OFTEN SHOULD I USE PALO SANTO?
Since this is all about blessings and positive vibes, this type of smudging can occur as often as possible. Everyday, twice a day if you wish. I like to do it in the mornings. You want to keep the cleansed air from your sage moments fresh with the help of Palo Santo.
CRYSTALS | MEANINGS, CLEANSING & CHARGING (Programing)
Crystals carry energy, just like us. There are certain types of energy and frequencies that these crystals already manifest and other's you can set intentions to allow manifestation. Here's a good starter group of crystals for you and your home (you will notice I'm all about tapping into intuition, positive energy, love and abundance in my selection):
CLEAR QUARTZ
Master Crystal. Easiest of all crystals to program to any intention or divination, helps to balance all chakras and aid in meditation.
SELENITE
Selenite can evoke protections from the angelic realm and also dispels negative energy. Selenite is a crystallized form of Gypsum, which is used for good luck and protection. The powerful vibration of Selenite can clear, open and activate the Crown and higher chakras. It is excellent for all types of spiritual work.
BLACK TOURMALINE
Crystal of protection and grounding oneself, while dispelling negative energy both physically and spiritually and in your home. Aids in stress and depression.
LABRADORITE
For self-discovery, it is excellent for awakening one's own awareness of inner spirit, intuition and psychic abilities. Used in divination during Full & New Moon.
ROSE QUARTZ
Heart Chakra, unconditional love and peace. Deep inner healing and self love, Calming and reassuring and encourages self forgiveness, acceptance and self worth.
GREEN AVENTERINE
HEART Chakra but of protection against those who wish to take from you emotionally. A promotion of positive well being. It also attracts wealth and big on prosperity of love and money.
SODALITE
For spiritual healing, it is enhanced by sodalite mineral stones due to their ability to reduce personal negativity and provide protection from external negative influences.
TIGER'S EYE
For those seeking change within their lives and within themselves. Overcomes self worth issues, self criticism and blocked creativity. Overcoming addictions and depression and uplifts mood.
BLUE TIGER'S EYE
Throat Chakra. Balance, self grounding, practicality, harmony with all things you do. Creativity. Great for artists.
ANGELITE
3rd EYE chakra, Angelic communication (talk with your spirit guides), psychic atunement, serenity/peace.
Before you use them, you need to cleanse, charge (set the intention) and then use them.
HOW DO WE CLEANSE CRYSTALS & WHY
(don't forget jewelry that has the ability to absorb other energies)
WHY?
Crystals come with energy properties and have the capability to absorb and release them. We only want their positive influences to go in and out, but occasionally they will absorb other peoples energy. If you take them out all day, if an allotted time has passed, if others touch them you are going to want to refresh them, especially before you charge/ set your intentions.
SAGE BATH: as we stated above, it has powerful cleansing properties and this is a great way to do a deep cleaning for any new crystals you have acquired.
SALTWATER BATH: With a bowl of fresh water, and sea salt (or table Salt), place your crystals in there a minimum of an hour if you are using them with other people I would leave them in there for some time longer, maybe even a couple days. Do check if your crystal is water soluble, like Selenite and most gypsum.
BEACH: Ever feel renewed after taking a dip in the ocean? The mysterious healing energies of the ocean really work wonders for oneself, take your stones in a safe pouch or carefully hold them and drench them. This is why you should be an avid salt bath doer(that's for another post).It's quick.
SELENITE: Because of it's angelic properties it also has healing and cleansing abilities for other stones and crystals. Place your everyday jewelry and crystals next to and over night.
BURY IN SALT: In a bowl of sea salt (or table salt), place your crystals in the bowl overnight or up to 24 hours.
BURY IN MOTHER EARTH: take your crystals and lay them to rest and rejuvenate in the soil. Do overnight or up to 24 hours.
HOW DO WE USE CRYSTALS? HOW DO WE CHARGE THEM AND WHY?
Other than crystals already coming in with a certain amount of positive energies like "love, health, peace, grounding etc." we also want to set them to specific places in our hearts, minds and goals, aka OUR INTENTIONS.
With that we then focus on them and meditate and go about our daily tasks with these tools (crystals) to help aide us with their energy, but also remind us of what the task at hand is. The mind is a powerful thing as we often hear and at the end of the day, it is up to us to make things we want in life to come to fruition. We want to keep our mind, body and spirit positive and surrounded by things that make us happy.
You can use your crystals in physical healthy activities such as meditation, yoga, weight lifting, cardio and even intimacy. You can wear crystals(especially for any physical activity), hold them in your hand (I do this for meditation), place them in your sacred space of your home and different rooms, even your car. I also keep a pouch of them in my purse for specific reasons i.e. safety, prosperity , shield against negativity and attract love, abundance and happiness.
CHARGING YOUR CRYSTALS
First set intention with EACH CRYSTAL. Take them one by one knowing of their current properties and then focus in and set what you want this crystal to bring fourth and MANIFEST and then you can...
SUN BATH: You can set these outside or by a windowsill (the sun is strong enough) for them to absorb the powerful sun rays. They need Vitamin D just like us, Superman even needs it and by that I mean it's great masterful energy.
FULL MOON BATH: This sacred phase of the moon is full of luck and positive manifestation vibes! You can easily place by the windowsill, but I prefer to put them outside on a special plate (any container will do) and let the gentle shining moon enter the crystals.
WORKING WITH NEW MOON & FULL MOON PHASES
Yes there are eight phases of the moon, but for this intro we are only going to talk about the top two, NEW and FULL. NEW MOON is the FIRST HALF and FULL MOON is the start of the SECOND HALF. Often confused as the end of a cycle- it's only half way. When we work with phases of the moon we are setting intentions (or goals) and working towards those intensions to allow them to manifest and be released into the Universe, Heaven, God, whichever is the place that you believe allows these things to come to fruition. I believe (again my belief) that if I put in the WORK for things that I wish to happen, God will grant me the RIGHT ones to manifest and happen.
NEW MOON | SET YOUR INTENTION
If you've been following this blog, then you know that I enjoy journaling and noting accountability and all that planner obsessed work [CLICK HERE FOR MORE]. Journaling is a great way to focus in on what it is I intend to work for. So what is your intention? Write them down. It can be general happiness in home or work life or specific like " I want to improve attitude in work to then influence positivity around others and myself"... This is the time to plant the seed, a New Moon means new beginnings. There is no wrong answer as long as it's something that betters yourself, your life and those around you. Keep positive thoughts. If your intention involves other people, be sure that it is also positive thoughts and actions as you don't want KARMA coming back to you in a negative X3 backlash.
FULL MOON | MANIFEST YOUR INTENTION
So we are halfway through the moon cycle. The energy of the moon and all those intentions are about to hit it's peak. At this time you will take the moment to reflect, re-read those intentions, follow your intuition that you are on the right path. The FULL MOON is also about letting go. Remove any dead weight that is bearing you down. There might be some feelings, people, or habits that are not allowing you to properly manifest. With the Lunar energy being it's strongest, this is an opportunity to tap into that and RELEASE! Release what is not meant to be and sometimes that even include an intention. This is not a bad thing, not everything we wish for and want in our lives are meant to be, that is the mystery of life. When things do come to light it is up to us that we take that knowledge and choose the right path for it. So if you must let it go, turn that page, if you see growth and manifestation, keep working towards that goal. You are on the right track. Keep going.
As the cycles continue to change and repeat, you alone will be able to decipher which intentions to focus on, move on from, work on and if your intentions were general in the beginning, then you can begin to get more specific on them.
So there you have it. A BASIC- 101 - spiritual metaphysical explanation on crystals, moon phase rituals and incense rituals. There is so much out there and you can stop here or continue on. Try them out, see what you do like and what you don't like. I personally use these practices on a regular basis and it's a fun and relaxing. You know what's also great, introducing it into you squad. I love that my girlfriends and I get together for meditation circle and lift each others spirits on the daily. Whether near or far, it's all about good vibes daily and your friends will thank you for it.
"YOUR VIBE ATTRACTS YOUR TRIBE"
Want to add more to your repertoire visit a local metaphysical shop, or visit OAK in their SACRED OAK [CLICK HERE] section for more tools (all products pictured are from Oak, except cards). There are some items on their fee that are not sold online, so feel free to ask them if there are any left.
More post's on the spiritual side coming, until then feel free to leave a comment or request below, or mailbox us!
XOXO,
CARO
P.S. Helpful tool, bring plants and flowers into your personal space. Positive attraction for prosperity, abundance of love and health. When the plants are beyond wilted, make sure you throw them out of your home, not just in the trash....