Regarding Crystals

I recently came across a silly meme online asking how bad things could be happening in the world when so many people are buying crystals. Crystals are very popular in New Age spirituality and are said to ward off "negative energy" and the like. A lot of New Age practices are based on watered-down ideas from magical lore, and the alleged properties of crystals are no different.

I previously have covered some of this material in the context of talismans, but this basic point bears repeating - crystals do not do anything unless you actively work magick with them. The idea that you can set up a shelf in your house, put a bunch of crystals on it, and expect to be safe from negativity or whatever is essentially a cargo cult take on magick. Crystals, by themselves, are just regular objects.

In magical work, crystals are some of the best objects for anchoring talismans. They have a fascinating property called the piezoelectic effect, which means that (1) when they are compressed, a small amount of electricity is generated and (2) exposure to certain frequencies of electromagnetic radiation will cause them to vibrate. This is why you can build a crystal radio without a power source - the crystal vibrates as it interacts with the radio waves themselves.

This also is probably why you can perceive vibrations in certain crystals. The modern world is literally awash in electromagnetism produced by radio transmissions, electronic devices, and so forth. A crystal that resonates with those frequencies literally vibrates at a low level. This is not necessarily a psychic effect, it can be entirely physical. This further feeds the proposed association between crystals and "vibes" of various sorts.

The reason that this is helpful for talismans is that a talisman can be designed to "feed" off this vibrational energy. Talismans need to draw some amount of energy - psychic or otherwise - from their environment in order to sustain themselves indefinitely. In practice I find that without this, talismans made from durable materials like metals or stones will last about two years. Less durable materials last for a considerably shorter period.

But all this needs to be set up intentionally. It does no good to buy a crystal and put it in your home. It can be pretty, but it will not have a magical effect unless you empower it using a spell. Aleister Crowley noted that every intentional act is a magical act, and the reverse is therefore also true - every magical act is an intentional act. So in order to take advantage of the nice, shiny crystal you just bought, there's another step that you have to do if you want to see a paranormal effect.

The best way to do this is with ceremonial techniques. Those techniques are optimized, standardized, and tested by many practitioners over a significant span of time. I have posted articles here about how to make talismans using those techniques, and I highly recommend making use of them for this purpose. They will allow you to turn your crystals into powerful implements for manipulating the probabilities around you.

However, these techniques are complex and can be hard to learn, especially if you have no previous exposure to them. Not all New Agers just let their crystals sit, and there is a simple technique that many of them practice in order to accomplish something akin to making a talisman. It usually is called "programming crystals" or something similar. The technique is simple and intuitive, and while it lacks the power and precision of ceremonial methods it can still be quite effective.

The method involves sitting quietly in a meditative state until your mind quiets down. As I have commented in my posts on meditation, you should let this happen naturally without forcing it. Once that happens, you hold the crystal tightly between your hands and take a few breaths for the posture to settle. Then concentrate on your crystal, formulate your magical intent, and then hold that intent along with the focus for at least 25 seconds or so. You will feel something when the intent "locks in," and from that point forward your crystal will actually start working.

As with formal magick, make sure that your intent aligns with the nature of the crystal. Amethyst, for example, is associated with Jupiter in ceremonial magick and is related to luck and prosperity. Emerald is attributed to Venus and used for love and relationships. And so forth. You can look these attributions up in many sources from both ceremonial magick and more popular New Age systems. Crystals can be resonate with more than one kind of energy, so do not worry too much about which system is right. Just pick one and stick with it.

A key point to remember is to be specific in your intent. Empowering a crystal to draw related energies into your life in a general sense does not always produce a positive result. Jupiter, for example, is associated with prosperity but also rules expansion. A friend of mine once tried to curse someone by calling on Jupiter just to see if it would work, and the person soon after gained a bunch of weight. Most energies are like this - they have both a positive and negative side and if you do not specify, you could get either or both.

So if you are wanting prosperity, at least formulate an intent something like "I empower this crystal to increase the energies of Jupiter to bring great prosperity into my life." It's simple, basic, and makes sure that the energy drawn is of the kind that you actually want. Once you are done, then you can put the crystal on a shelf and expect it to work for you. You can also place it in contact with a magical link if you want to connect it to a target - for example, if you are looking for a higher-paying job, print out a copy of the resume you are sending out and set the crystal on top of it.

This a classic example of exotericism - a practice from magick working its way into more mainstream spirituality. The key is to make sure that effective steps do not get lost during this transition. With the intuitive "programming" method is not as precise or technical as explicit ceremonial work, it is quick and effective and requires no elaborate preparation. I sometimes use it myself when I have a stone available but no time for a larger or more involved operation.