The Element Encyclopedia of 1000 Spells: A Concise Reference Book for the Magical Arts. Judika Illes
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Perhaps you have access to a stone that’s been treasured for a very long time, a museum piece, as it were. In that case, appropriate rites and care may have been taken. Otherwise, it is fair to assume that the rocks and crystals available today were not removed from Earth with love and care, but yanked out brutally and disrespectfully. As crystals have grown in popularity, the temptation to exploit this popularity for the purpose of some quick cash frequently outweighs any metaphysical concerns.
Assume therefore that crystals may arrive complete with grouchy, resentful attitudes. Furthermore, minerals are the witnesses of human experience too. Minerals are absorbent, absorbing surrounding emotion. Many minerals, particularly the most expensive—diamonds, emeralds, and rubies—are extracted amidst great human suffering. The stones carry these emotions with them as they travel to your hands.
All is not hopeless, however. Stones may be cleansed. Cleansing can remove memory stores, like wiping a computer’s memory, allowing for a fresh start. The depth of memory removal depends upon the stone and the cleansing methods used.
Stones need to be charged for a purpose or to harmonize with your personal energy, to enhance your partnership.
To Program or Charge a Crystal
1 Cleanse the crystal using the most suitable technique.
2 Hold it in your hands.
3 Clear your mind.
4 When you feel that your energy and that of the crystal are synchronized, state your intention, goal, or desire clearly, lucidly, and succinctly.
5 Repeat it until it feels right. Speak out loud if possible.
6 When charging feels complete, put the crystal down and consciously detach your attention from it.
Stones are used in their natural state or polished and cut. A specific stone can also be selected and then engraved with a specific design. This creates a talisman, which is then usually worn or carried on the body. There are healing talismans, love-drawing talismans, and protective talismans, among many others. This practice brings magic into the realm of professionals. Anyone can find a special stone on the beach; not everyone can engrave a gemstone with accuracy and precision.
The following ritual for cleansing and activating gemstones for healing and magic comes from India, birthplace of extremely sophisticated gemstone therapy.
To Cleanse and Activate a Gemstone
1 The night before you intend to wear your stone, immerse it in a cup of fresh milk.
2 Remove it and place the milky stone on an altar, before a sacred image, in the company of quartz crystals and any other objects you hold sacred.
3 Leave it overnight.
4 Arise at dawn and rinse the stone.
5 Raise it towards the rising sun.
6 Pray and petition that the stone fulfills your desires.
7 Wear, carry, or use it as needed.
Diamonds, emeralds, sapphires, and rubies have profound magical uses as well as their more conventional role in jewelry. Both magical and conventional uses, however, are limited to those who can afford these expensive gems. Luckily, the absolutely most powerful magic stones are easily affordable and, in some cases, free, if you can only find them. The following are some of the most magically powerful stones.
Quartz Crystals
Quartz looks like beautiful sparkling ice. It is believed to be tied to that watery trinity of lunar/oceanic/female energy. Clear quartz crystals are used as scrying tools: they are able to enhance the psychic ability and magic power of those who handle them consistently or who are in their presence. Likewise, quartz crystals are used to activate and empower other stones or tools. Quartz crystals may be attached to magic wands. Pack quartz crystals in with tarot cards, runes, or any other magical tools to enhance their power. Quartz crystals are used for cleansing purposes. Larger specimens left in a room have a vacuum cleaner effect on negative energy, helping to maintain a fresh atmosphere. (Remember to cleanse the crystal periodically, as if the vacuum bag was full.) It is a protective, empowering stone.
Hag, Witch, Holed, or Holey Stones
These names all refer to the same type of stone. Holed stones are exactly as their name describes: small pebbles or stones with naturally occurring perforations, they are gifts from the Earth Mother. They cannot be manufactured. Sometimes you’ll just find one: a common pebble with a hole. Pick it up. It is a priceless magical gift. Holed stones provide enhanced magic power, protection against malevolent spirits, humans, and the Evil Eye. They are also used to regenerate and protect physical vitality. Wear it around your neck or hang it over your bed so that you can absorb its power while you sleep.
Lodestones
Also known as magnetite, lodestones are magnetic iron ore. They are the magical bridge between the realms of stone and iron. They possess transcendentally powerful magic energy. Lodestones attract and draw good fortune: money, success, and love. They’re also used in healing rituals: lodestones can draw pain from the body in the same manner that they can draw a lover or money towards you.
Lodestones may be used individually or in matched pairs. They are perceived to have gender; depending on purpose, you may require a male or female lodestone or a pair. It’s easier to determine the gender of a lodestone than that of a parakeet. Female lodestones are rounded; phallic-looking lodestones announce their manhood.
Wherever people have been in contact with lodestones, they have used them magically. Alexander the Great distributed lodestones to his troops to protect them from djinn. Chinese magic favors lodestones as wedding rings, to ensure the happy survival of a marriage. In ancient Rome, statues of Venus and Mars were carved from lodestone so as to be magnetically attracted, demonstrating the powerful sexual magnetism between the two forces.
The origins of lodestones are shrouded in mystery. Their use goes back to ancient times. Magnetite, their more scientific name, derives from the ancient city of Magnesia, from whence they were once mined. Lodestones are a positive, benevolent force, always used to draw good fortune. Lodestones, like the root charm High John the Conqueror, are thus not tools for hexing. The worst thing you can do with a lodestone is fail to avail yourself of its power.
Christian legend has it that the stone upon which Christ’s body rested for three days following his crucifixion was a lodestone. Its miraculous properties were revealed to Godfrey of Bouillon when he led the First Crusade to Jerusalem. While praying in Christ’s Sepulcher a voice whispered to him that his victory was assured if he’d only carry away a bit of the stone. He listened to the voice’s advice, which proved true. However, according to this legend, the kings who succeeded him paid no attention to the stone and therefore the Holy Land was lost to them.
In addition to memory, lodestones are acknowledged to possess consciousness, intelligence, even wit, and especially a soul. Although any rock or crystal is alive, lodestones are really alive! Because of this perception, lodestones must be replenished consistently by “feeding” (though all crystals need to be recharged periodically). Now you can’t just give a lodestone a little bit of your own dinner, the way you’d give a treat to a dog. Lodestones have their own preferred nutritional supplement: fine iron shot, also known as iron filings, iron dust or, in Hoodoo parlance, magnetic sand. Magnetic sand is also perceived as possessing a “drawing” power all of its own, and is a component of many magic spells, with and without lodestones.
Feeding Lodestones
There are various techniques for feeding lodestones, depending upon different traditions.
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