Ritual Uses Of Crystals
(This is an excerpt from a University Of Metaphysical Sciences course at www.umsonline.org,
please feel free to visit the school website)
Crystals and gemstones can be used for a myriad of healing activities, including layouts on the body, as objects of focus for Altars, to hold and set intention for a particular day, week, month, or to achieve certain purposes (spell casting), as meditation aids, and for placing in one’s house to aid in the movement of energy. Let’s begin with the use of crystals for crystal healing on oneself or another person in a layout. One of the main ways this is done is through layouts, where crystals are placed at certain spots on the body, usually on the chakras, in order to reflect and generate forces that infuse the aura with light.
Purpose of Layouts
The purpose of practicing crystal healing is to assist yourself or those whom you work with to neutralize, balance and align the physical, mental and emotional bodies so that they can tap into their own inner resource of power and truth, according to the book Crystal Enlightenment (1985) by Katrina Raphaell. From Love Is In The Earth (1995) by Melody, we learn that there are no set procedures and no rules; the intuition is the teacher. (Laying on of stones) first affects an aligned connection between the perfection of the etheric body and the physical form and, subsequently, promotes the energy transfer from the minerals to the physical form. Crystals, as “the blossoms of the mineralogical portion of the Earth can greatly enhance one’s personal development (Love Is In The Earth). Layouts, or laying on of stones, can be used to initiate healing, astral travel, travel to the center of one’s being, and much more.
Preparation for Layouts
In the book Crystal Healing (1987) by Katrina Raphaell it is said that “before beginning a crystal healing it is important to clear your mind, center yourself, and focus attention within and on the crystals and stones that you will be working with.” Also recommended is aligning oneself with the healing energies of the stones through meditation, becoming receptive to their frequencies. It is important to visually surround yourself with light and mentally affirm that you are working in tune with the energies of the stones to harmonize, balance, and healAs with any healing modality, the practitioner must remain grounded throughout the healing process and not get caught up in the increases in energy that usually take place.
Choosing Crystals for the Layout
Now, how do you decide which crystals to use for the layout? Certain types of stones are associated with the different chakras, so a study of the chakras themselves is recommended before beginning your layout. (See the UMS course on Chakras & Auras for more information). Once you’ve familiarized yourself with the body’s energy centers, you can decide which crystals are appropriate to use for your healing.
A good layout for beginners is the Chakra Balance Layout, which comes from Crystal Enlightenment (1985)by Katrina Raphaell and can be done with any group of seven stones that correspond to the color frequencies of the seven chakras. It is to be done as follows:
Point a single quartz crystal at the top of the head; place an amethyst on the third eye, aquamarine at the throat, rose quartz at the heart, malachite on the solar plexus, citrine quartz on the navel and smoky quartz on the public bone. Stones should be placed in a direct line on the body. It is also recommended in the same book that “it is beneficial to work above the body with a small (two to six inches) generator quartz crystal to direct energy downward from the crown to the groin.” The generator crystal is used similarly to a wand as a director of energy to the stones that have already been placed on the body. Any number of stones can be used in the Chakra Balance Layout.
Depending on exactly what the intention of the layout is, different stones may be more effective than others. For example, if the purpose of the healing is to direct suppressed emotion into verbal expression in order to be released, single terminated clear quartz crystals can be placed upon the sternum pointing towards the throat, directing the energy from the heart to the throat to be expressed. It is recommended that you, the crystal healer, remain open and sensitive to feel where energy is imbalanced, creating excess energy in one chakra and depletion in another. The generator crystal can be used to direct the excess energy to feed the depleted area. The Chakra Balance Layout is a good one to start with so you can get the feel of doing a layout. Its purpose is general balancing of the chakras, so it is fairly simple.
For more specific purposes, layouts corresponding to a certain chakra can be used. The following is a third eye awakener, from the book Crystal Healing (1985),by Katrina Raphaell.There are several major stones that can be placed at the third eye center to initiate altered vision. They are amethyst, gem silica, azurite and luvulite. Each stone, having its own special effect, can be used in combination with another to create clear vision through which the soul can see with the third eye. Amethyst is the main third eye stone that draws energy within for self-healing, and it is the main meditation stone used to bring personal peace through its clear purple ray. Gem silica is often used along with amethyst to stimulate the higher visionary powers, enabling the third eye to see beyond the illusions of time and space, into the realm of spirit. It emanates a vital blue-green ray into the mind.
Azurite is the most powerful stone to use when one is consciously ready and prepared to meet personal fears straight on. Because it often crystallizes, it has great penetrative powers into the subconscious. Azurite should only be used when one is ready to look into the locked and blocked areas of the psyche, for it is necessary for awareness to accompany its use. It is best used with amethyst at the third eye point to calm the mind while processing the cause and effect of fear patterns. Azurite is a thorough scourer of the mind, harmonizing both thought and feeling. When used with Gem Silica, the deep indigo of azurite is greatly aided by the clear sight of silica to help the soul’s vision see through fear tendencies and to plant new seeds of thought.
Luvulite, when used at the third eye, can relay to the mind exactly why the soul is attracting experiences and what lessons are to be learned from them. It is one of the best stones to use when knowledge into the source of physical disease is ready to be revealed, worked with, and healed. Amethyst is the passive partner to luvulite, which can help bring into the mental realms the wisdom of the soul. These stones can be used interchangeably at the third eye center to still the mind, purify the thoughts attached to fear modes, open inner vision, and bring into understanding the soul’s purpose behind all circumstances. They are also very powerful stones, and can initiate altered vision. Working with them requires a level of responsibility to be aware of their effects on oneself and other people. To do this, monitor the pulse rate, the rhythm of breath and subtle shifts in energy. Also, consciously use your breath or direct the other person to use their breath to help move the energy that comes up during the session. This exercise is an example of one which is focused on one chakra, whereas the first one was used to balance all the chakras.
There are so many possibilities for using crystals and gemstones to heal oneself and help others facilitate healing. There are specific stones that can be used to stimulate, balance, open up, or energize each chakra. There are also specific stones that are used for other ritual healing purposes, such as connecting with the energy of the sun, stars, or moon, connecting with the stellar gateway, the causal chakra, remembering past life experiences, working with nature spirits or devas, aligning one's consciousness with another person’s, and many more uses.