Do you have crystals galore and don’t know how to efficiently and effectively clear, cleanse and recharge them?  Here’s a guide that will help.

Most crystals can benefit from clearing and cleansing, and in cases where the stone has been doing lots of work, it may need to be recharged.  Some advanced crystal healers declare, when used mindfully, stones never need to be recharged, but that’s a different class or blog.  For now, let’s go with the theory that clearing our stones is necessary and energetically beneficial.

There are many ways to cleanse your stones and, because crystals are available in so many sizes, it’s good to have a few processes in your repertoire so you can approach the cleansing process with confidence and ease.  Some stones are heavy, so you’ll want to clear them in place, some are light or water sensitive, and most can withstand all the elements.  You may live in an area where placing them outside is not an option.  Don’t worry, there are ways to approach cleansing that will help each stone in any size.

Here’s a quick list of cleansing techniques:

• If you have a collection of small crystals that will fit in a bowl, a salt water bath is an easy way to clear them all at once. I recommend using natural salt, not iodized table salt.  If you are using a soup bowl, fill it with warm water and add few tablespoons of natural salt.  Place the stones in the bowl overnight then rinse them thoroughly. (some stones are water sensitive and will disintegrate, crumble, or lose their sheen) Check our list of crystal cautions to find out if yours are water sensitive. (clicking on the crystal cautions link will take you to our retail website, Tushita Heaven)
• If you don’t have time to use a salt water bath, you can use a smudging technique. Any type of sage will work.
• A simple wash in cold water is also very effective for removing superficial energy. This can help crystal healers between sessions.
• The lunar (full) moon is one the most effective ways to cleanse your stones while recharging them simultaneously. You can place small stones on a window sill to soak up the energy of the moonbeams.  Larger stones can be placed outside. Leave them overnight.
• Strong sunshine will cleanse your stones, but many are sun sensitive and will fade. Check our list of crystal cautions to find out if yours are sun sensitive.  (clicking on the crystal cautions link will take you to our retail website, Tushita Heaven)
• A method I don’t choose to use myself, but know to be effective, is the freezer method.  Place the stones in a container and pop them into the freezer, leaving them until you “feel” they are ready.  The reason I don’t recommend this is because the expansion that occurs in freezing, changes the crystalline structure of many stones, creating stress on their natural fracture lines. If you’re in a hurry, and you have confidence that your stones will hold up in the cold, this method can work.
• Place your stones near another stone whose vibration is high enough to clear others around it. There are many crystals in this category: Selenite, Citrine and Kyanite are three popular ones that are readily available.
• Sound is a beautiful way to cleanse crystals, as the crystals themselves have a musical tone in their frequency, which makes it feel like home to the stones.  You can play singing bowls, chime Tingsha bells, or use enlightening sound therapy-music to shift the energy, and get the crystals singing. I personally love to use music by Jonathan Goldman.  He creates music using ancient tones with instruments he often has made for specific recordings.  He uses lots of singing bowls and other sound therapy instruments.  The recordings are super charged with sacred energy.  But, having said that, you can use your favorite music to clear your crystals.  As long as you connect spiritually with the music, it’s all good.
• If you are advanced in healing and understand how to use your breathe for cleansing, you can use that laser-like technique to quickly clear a crystal. This is a subject we cover in our advanced classes.

Here’s a quick list of recharging techniques:

• The lunar moon will recharge your crystals (covered above)
• After a salt water bath, sprinkle your crystals liberally with corn meal. Corn meal is considered sacred to Native Americans and represents the Corn Mother.  It carries the essence of the Earth and offers that energy to the stones.  Leave them in the cornmeal for several hours, or days, depending on how “tired” they are.
• You may leave your crystals outside on the ground, basking in sunshine for as long as it takes for them to be recharged. (As long as they aren’t sun sensitive) Use your natural intuition to ascertain when they are ready to work again.
• If your stones are really dull, you can bury them in the Earth, allowing Mother Nature to restore them.  If your crystals have lost their vibrant energy to the point where burying them in the Earth is the option you choose, I would leave them there for several weeks.  If your living situation is not compatible with this choice, you can bury them in a potted plant in your home..
• Stones play well on the playground together, and sometimes they can recharge themselves in the company of other stones.  If you have some high frequency stones, that may be all it takes to get your crystals back to their optimum vibration. Just place previously cleared stones together so they can share energy.  They should feel restored in no time.