Crystals pick up energy from their environments, often storing this energy for long periods of time which can have an impact on the next person who uses them. Crystals generally need to be cleansed and charged every month to every few months. This gives them a good, clean start, like taking a deep breath for the next adventure! Using crystals that haven’t been cleansed and charged brings that old, stagnant energy into places it shouldn’t be. It can result in useless, lackluster, or even broken stones. It’s not that the energy in the stones is good or bad, it’s just a general backup of energy. Fortunately, cleansing, charging, and programming your crystals is easy and there are a lot of options to choose from. Knowing which route to go is pretty straightforward and you should always do what feels right. If you’re not sure, try a couple of different methods and see which one resonates with you.
After your crystal is cleansed and charged you need to program it. It means you need to put your intention. I like holding my crystal, visualize a white light around it, then put my intention, it's like giving each crystal a job, ask your crystal to attract more of its property into your life or the intention you want. Crystals are like a manifestation tool that you can use at any time. Just make sure that you remember the "job" you gave to each of your crystals.
CLEASING
Physically cleansing your crystals is different than energetically cleansing them. If your stones need to be physically cleansed, most can be wiped down with a cloth or even rinsed in water. Be sure to research your specific stones to ensure that they are able to withstand exposure to water as some do not have the hardness levels necessary not to begin breaking down in water.
Energetic cleansing can be done in any of the following ways but this list is not all-inclusive. There are many many ways to cleanse your stones and if none of these feels right to you, research other ways or just follow your intuition and try something new.
SUNLIGHT - MOONLIGHT
Leave your stones in natural sun or moonlight (especially the full moon) for several hours. This works great for most stones but quartz should not be left unattended in sunlight as it can act as an amplifier and be a fire risk (think magnifying glass plus sunlight)
Running water- hold your crystals in natural running water (such as a creek or river) to cleanse them. Some people feel that faucets (unnaturally flowing water) works well also. Try both and see how they feel to you.
INCENSE - SAGE
encourage the smoke from incense or sage to flow over your crystals. This method works really well if you have many stones and need to do a general energetic sweep. It is also one of my personal favorites.
SALT
Place your stones in a bowl of sea salt and allow them to remain their overnight. The salt absorbs the energy from the crystals so well that it is recommended that the salt be disposed of after each use.
OTHER CRYSTALS
Selenite and Clear Quartz are excellent for cleansing other stones. Clusters (like druzes or geodes) are also very cleansing. Resting your stones near or on these other stones is a good method to cleanse them.
EARTH
bury your stones in the ground and leave them there for 24 hours. This can be tricky as some people say that if the stones aren’t meant for you, they will be reabsorbed into the Earth, resulting in you not being able to find your stones the next day. If you decide to go this route, it might be a good plan to mark their location very well and be prepared for the possibility that Mother Earth may take them back.
SOUND
If you have a Tibetan sound bowl, you can use it near your stones and the vibrational frequencies will clear the energies stored in the stones.
MEDITATION
Spending some time meditating with your stones and envisioning a cleansing white light clearing your crystals of old energy is not only good for them, but also good for you!
