From East to West: A Spell for Collective Healing

The ultimate alchemy is to generate positive energy that spirals outward, improving everything in its path. I know of shamans and wise women who have dedicated their lives to doing good works, including some crones who practice in the ancient rainforest to protect the trees, and aborigines who spend their “dreamtime” repairing the earth.

You can contribute to universal peace and healing by burning a white candle, anointed with rose oil, on your altar during a waning moon on Saturday, which is Saturn’s Day. Place a single white rose in water and lay a garlic clove beside some rose incense. Light the incense, then take an herb bundle, light the end, and pass the smoke over your altar to cleanse the space. Chant:

    War and grief will come to an end

    as we walk the path of peace.

    Love thy neighbor as thy self,

    all we need is love.

    With harm to none, only understanding.

Perfume of Peace Oil

This candle spell involves creating and consecrating a lovely oil you can use to instill a greater sense of peace within your mind and heart. Into a blue bottle, pour almond, soy, or any other unscented base oil, then add two drops each of neroli, chamomile, and Turkish rose essential oils. Shake the oils together to blend them. Next, take an orange and place it beside a lit lavender candle you have anointed with the potion. Chant aloud:

    By my own hand, I made this balm.

    This divine essence contains my calm.

    By my own will, I made this charm;

    This precious potion protects from all harm.

    With harm to none and health to all.

    Blessed be.

Anoint your pulse points—your wrists, throat, and heart, behind the ear lobes, and behind the knees—with the unguent and bask in a sea of calm.

Some other excellent oils for anxiety or a quick pick-me-up include frankincense, marjoram, hyssop, neroli (orange blossom), jasmine, nutmeg, and valerian. You can apply them directly to the skin or use them for dressing your candles!

Presence of Peace: Citrine Spell

To begin this comforting ritual, anoint a yellow candle with calming and uplifting bergamot oil, then light it to bring mental clarity. Place a yellow rose in a vase to the left of the candle. To the right, place a bowl containing at least two citrine or quartz crystals.

Next, you will need saffron water, which is made quite easily by simmering a single teaspoon of saffron from your cupboard in two quarts of distilled water. Let the saffron water cool to room temperature and pour it into the bowl of crystals. Put your hands together in prayer and dip them in the bowl. Touch your third eye in the center of your forehead, anointing yourself with the saffron water. Now, speak aloud:

    Goddess great, fill me with your presence.

    This night, I am whole and at peace.

    Breathing in, breathing out, I feel your safe embrace.

    And so it is.

Walking Meditation—How to Walk the Labyrinth

The labyrinth represented wholeness to the ancients, combining the circle and the spiral in one archetypal image. The labyrinth is unicursal, meaning there is only one path, both in and out. Put simply, it is a journey into the self, into your own center, and back into the world again. As a prayer and meditation tool, labyrinths are peerless; they awaken intuition.

Do your best to relax before you enter. Deep breaths will help a great deal. If you have a specific question in mind, think it or whisper it to yourself. You will meet others on the pilgrim’s path as you are walking; simply step aside and let them continue on their journey as you do the same. The three stages of the labyrinth walk are as follows:

Purgation: Here is where you free your mind of all worldly concerns. It is a release, a letting go. Still your mind and open your heart. Shed worries and emotion as you step out on the path.

Illumination: When you have come to the center, you are in the place of illumination. Here, you should stay as long as you feel the need to pray and meditate. In this quiet center, the heart
of the labyrinth, you will receive messages from the Divine or from your own higher power. Illumination can also come from deep inside yourself.

Union: This last phase is where you will experience union with the divine. Lauren Artress says that as you “walk the labyrinth you become more empowered to find and do the work you feel your soul requires."

May you use this learned tranquility to better participate in other rituals that focus on important aspects of your life. 

Peace of Mind: A Happy Home Altar

On a low table or chest of your choosing, place a forest green scarf and a brown candle to represent your family. Add lovely objects that you have found around your home and garden: a special fallen leaf, ocean-carved driftwood, lacey dried lichen, smooth stones, or whatever your heart desires. It is of utmost importance to add a bouquet of wildflowers native to your area that you have gathered close to your home or purchased locally. This bouquet will help integrate your home into your neighborhood and the geographic area in which you live. If possible, add a sweetly scented sachet of potpourri made from your home kitchen garden. Add personal mementos like photos or a locket with a photo of your spouse and children. Burn your favorite essential oils, the ones that create an aura of instant comfort for you, such as vanilla, cinnamon, or sweet orange neroli in an oil lamp. Finally, anoint the brown candle while concentrating on peace and bliss surrounding your home. Chant:

Here burns happiness about me.
Peace and harmony are in abundance,
And here true bliss surrounds.
From now on, disharmony is gone.
This is a home of peace and blessings.
Here sheer joy lives.

This consecrated space will ease your spirits at any time. Your altar connects you to the earth of which you are a part. 

Ganesha Mudras

Elephant-headed Ganesha is the Indian god who helps overcome all obstacles. What better way to start the New Year that with this mighty deity at your side? Ganesha is beloved in India, where he is also called Vighnaharta, the “Lord and Destroyer of Obstacles.” When people seek success in work or school, they turn to this jolly elephant god. I keep a little bronze statue of a supine Ganesha on my computer.

Mudra is a type of yoga you do with your hands. It is also called “finger power points.” This is a portable yoga that you can do anywhere—on the bus, on the phone, at your desk, even walking down the street. This is a marvelous way to calm yourself and handle stress. Buddha statues are usually shown with the hands in a mudra position.

The very easy Ganesha mudra begins with you holding your left hand in front of your chest with the palm facing outward, away from your body. Bend your fingers. Grasp your left fingers with your right finders bent, toward your body. Move the hands to the level of your heart, right in front of your chest. Exhale vigorously and gently try to pull your hands apart without releasing the grip. This will create tensions in your upper arms and chest area, exercising those muscles.

Now relax those muscles while inhaling. Repeat these steps six times, then place both your hands on your sternum in the Ganesha clasping position. Note the energy and heat you feel in your body. Now repeat six times with your hands facing in the reversed positions.

The Ganesha mudra opens the fourth chakra and gives us “heart”—courage, confidence, and good feelings toward others. It opens us up to fresh encounters and positive new experiences. Performed once a day, this is a marvelous way to strengthen your upper body. It is also believed to open the bronchial tubes and stimulate the lung area.

Use the rituals in this chapter to become one with yourself and find peace within. May you use this learned tranquility to better participate in other rituals that focus on important aspects of your life.

Ayurveda is the ancient Indian “Science of Life” that has become very popular in the past few years, Aromatic plants and the oils derived from them are a major part of this wellness wisdom tradition. Herbaceous species used for ayurvedic healing include tulsi (holy basil), coriander, fennel, and various sages and mints, as well as aromatic roots including vetiver, valerian, and calamus. Ayurvedic flowers include roses, jasmine, champa, marigolds, and lotuses. Woody and tree species include agar, cedar, eucalyptus, pine, and sandalwood. Fragrant resins are utilized, including frankincense and myrrh. As you might expect, Ayurveda is also rich in spices, including cinnamon, cardamom, black pepper, long pepper, ginger, nutmeg, and clove. Several aromatic grasses, such as lemongrass, are found in the tradition as well.

Tips ’n’ Tricks: Polish Your Perceptions

So what do you do if you are attracted to all the wonderful qualities I just stated are inherent in the mysterious, water green malachite but are afraid of the negativity-amplifying aspect? Go for this fairly commonplace natural merging of malachite and azurite becoming popularly known as azur-malachite. It is a similarly lovely green blue and a real helper crystal. Azurite has the incredible ability to help us all integrate unacknowledged beliefs, and malachite is a creativity crystal, so when these two stones occur together, their combined power enables us to handle the hardest truths about ourselves.

Whereas malachite is so powerful by itself that it can cause heart palpitations among more sensitive souls, the combined stone is very gentle and peaceful. What Aldous Huxley wrote about, cleansing the doors of perception, can happen with azur-malachite!

Dioptase

Dioptase is a gorgeous gemstone that is nearly the color of emerald but lacks the hardness, thus lowering its marketplace value. It can be found in Peru, Chile, Russia, Iran, and some sites in Africa. The true value of dioptase lies in its ability to help anyone experiencing mental stress. It lends balance to male and female energies and acts as a stabilizer. As an energy stone, dioptase can activate and awaken every chakra, invigorating the mind, body, and spirit. If you want to be really different, wear dioptase, and you will fascinate admirers with this beautiful stone and find peace of mind in the process.

Chalcedony

This member of the quartz family is also a gem family in and of itself, including cat’s-eye, tiger’s-eye, jasper, onyx, agate, and carnelian. It is a fine-grained and multihued type of silica mineral quartz with a waxy patina. Chalcedony most commonly occurs in a white, gray, yellow, brown, or light tan form known as chert. It is the result of silica’s replacing the original organic material—sea sponges, fish, plants, or wood from trees. Some spectacular chert specimens are the petrified trees in Arizona’s Petrified Forest National Park; their brilliant reds and greens are due to the traces of iron contained within, giving them an otherworldly effect. 

As chalcedony is actually a stone from some of Earth’s earliest living things, it has been with us since man’s earliest days and has been used in tools and as adornment. It is still actively produced in South America, primarily in Uruguay and Brazil, as well as in the southwest part of Africa. Known as the stone of brotherhood, chalcedony was sacred to Native Americans and was a powerful stone used to unite tribes in holy ceremonies. It is a stone of stability, kindness, endurance, and balance and is said to create peace. Chalcedony engenders a desire for introspection and can help overcome low self-esteem and bring about enthusiasm for a new lease on life. This star-powered crystal can also prevent loss of mental faculties as your age. Keep your memory intact with chalcedony!

This crystal is best if you wear it in a ring, a necklace, or a belt. It is a cleansing stone and can even assist you with healing your skin. Chalcedony is most unusual in that it doesn’t have to be cleansed after each use. It absorbs negative energy and is a protector; exposure to ultraviolet light will increase these cleansing powers. An old wives’ tale (literally) is that chalcedony promotes both lactation and the maternal instinct and is, therefore, a mother’s stone. The ancient Egyptians recorded many medicinal formulas made up of powdered chalcedony. Don’t drink it, however; wear it to stay smart and soothe your soul and your skin.

Stained-Glass Spell

Recently, I have been wishing and hoping for peace in this world of ours, as have most of us. I have been making, burning, and giving away candles with the word “peace” written with crystals embedded in the soft candle wax.

If possible, perform this spell during a full-moon night for the greatest effect. Place your stained-glass peace candle on your altar and light rose incense, which represents love and unity. Light the candle and chant:

“I light this candle for hope,
I light this candle for love,
I light this candle for unity,
I light this candle for the good of all the world
That we should live in peace. And so it shall be.”

Sit in front of your altar and meditate, eyes closed, for a few minutes while visualizing peace in the world. Let the candle burn completely for full charging.

DIY Magic Bottles

In use since Elizabethan times, magic bottles, or spell bottles, can function as guardians. Called witch bottles in the 1600s in England, they were originally used to hold objects for magical uses. They have largely fallen out of use, but you can customize magic bottles for yourself with crystal stoppers for a variety of reasons. You can put one in your garden for healthy plants, on the mantel to protect your home, next to your bed for love and happiness, and in the kitchen for good health. These magic bottles are mostly used for protection, but you can also place into them symbols of your dreams and desires, such as a flower for peace, rosemary for remembrance, and cinnamon for the spice of life.

Magic bottles are very easy to make, as you can easily glue the crystals of your choice onto the lid or cork top or place them inside. Here are a few to try:

• *  For luck with money, place three pennies and some pyrite or jade into a bottle and put it on your desk and home or your workplace. Shake the magic jar whenever you think about your finances, and your fortune will improve in three days.

• *  For love, place a rosebud or rose petal, rose essential oil, and rose quartz into a bottle and keep it at your bedside. Each night, burn a pink candle anointed with the oil from your love- magic bottle. On the seventh day, your prospects for romance will brighten!

• *  For a peaceful and secure home, take a teaspoon of soil from outside your house (or the closest park) and place it into a
  bottle with some smoky topaz or brown jasper. Place the bottle into the pot of a plant near the entrance of your home. Every time you water the plant, think about the sanctity of your home. As your plant grows, so will the tranquility of your residence.

Defining Crystal Categories

First, let’s explain the different categories: precious and semiprecious gems, crystals, and stones. We’ll start with the widest category, stones, which actually encompasses all the other categories. Stones can hold much magic and bring the best to you. I’m always looking in my path for a pretty stone or one of an unusual shape or coloration. In fact, I have a mobile altar in my car that is frequently augmented by a charming chunk of rock. I always notice that my friends and passengers are unable to resist picking them up and rubbing the smooth surfaces admiringly. Maybe one day, I’ll find a diamond in the rough in my path!

Stones have been of interest for many centuries. Primitive peoples probably picked up stones out of curiosity. Through trial and error, they discovered which rocks withstood the test of time and were more durable for use in tools. Doubtless, they also noticed that some stones could be polished to a lovely sheen.

Stones are primarily minerals that can be defined as natural, generally inorganic substances with a chemical composition and an internal atomic structure. So, a diamond, the most precious of all in the eyes of many rock hounds, is a stone and also a crystal with a very simple structure of one element—carbon. Quartz, a very commonly available and rarely expensive stone, is usually referred to as rock crystal and is composed of two elements—silicon and oxygen. Crystals are defined as such because of their internal diffracting patterns—that is, by the way they hold and reflect light. Rocks can be defined as natural, solid compounds of mineral grains, or glass, or a combination of both.

What is the difference between precious and semiprecious gems? The simple distinction between these two categories is that only the most rare and costly gems are classified as precious. Emeralds, rubies, sapphires, and diamonds fall into this foremost category. Those remaining gems, such as opal, amethyst, and bloodstone, are semiprecious. Gems are a special class of very valuable minerals rated according to their hardness, color, and luster. Gems are held so dear because of their quality; they are usually clearer, rarer, and exquisitely beautiful.

All of these “rules” date back thousands of years in some cases. There is great tradition surrounding the lore and love of gems, stones, and crystals. They are simply glorious. Think about it—not only are they lovely to look at and to adorn yourself with, but they also have properties that bring love, health, happiness, abundance, and peace of mind.

DIY: Message in a Bottle

In use since Elizabethan times, magic bottles, or spell bottles, can function as guardians. Called witch bottles in the 1600s in England, they were originally used to hold objects for magical uses. They have largely fallen out of use, but you can customize magic bottles for yourself with crystal stoppers for a variety of reasons. You can put one in your garden for healthy plants, on the mantel to protect your home, next to your bed for love and happiness, and in the kitchen for good health. These magic bottles are mostly used for protection, but you can also place into them symbols of your dreams and desires, such as a flower for peace, rosemary for remembrance, and cinnamon for the spice of life.

Magic bottles are very easy to make, as you can easily glue the crystals of your choice onto the lid or cork top or place them inside. Here are a few to try:

For luck with money, place three pennies and some pyrite or jade into a bottle and put it on your desk and home or your workplace. Shake the magic jar whenever you think about your finances, and your fortune will improve in three days.

For love, place a rosebud or rose petal, rose essential oil, and rose quartz into a bottle and keep it at your bedside. Each night, burn a pink candle anointed with the oil from your love-magic bottle. On the seventh day, your prospects for romance will brighten!

For a peaceful and secure home, take a teaspoon of soil from outside your house (or the closest park) and place it into a bottle with some smoky topaz or brown jasper. Place the bottle into the pot of a plant near the entrance of your home. Every time you water the plant, think about the sanctity of your home. As your plant grows, so will the tranquility of your residence.

Stress-Reducing Stones

Alexandrite will bring lots of zest. Feeling depressed, worried, and blue? Citrine or jet can banish dark days. Stressed out? Rhyolite races to the rescue as well.

Certain green stones, such as chrysocolla and malachite, calm the mind, and green-flecked bloodstone is a stress buffer.

If you want to be uplifted, try jade. To become wiser, pick sapphire. To stay safe while traveling, pick dendritic agate.

To remain calm and overcome stress, choose blue lace agate. For more mental clarity, choose malachite. For a self-esteem boost, try rhodonite.

Herkimer diamonds are powerful and bring great vitality and exuberance into your life. They can redirect stress away from you with their absorptive abilities. Placing these rocks in your bedroom will cause the stress to melt away and help you relax and feel safe.

Dioptase is a gorgeous gemstone that nearly matches the color of green emeralds but lacks a similar hardness, which lowers its marketplace value. It can be found in Peru, Chile, Russia, Iran, and some sites in Africa. The true value of dioptase lies in its ability to help anyone experiencing mental stress. It lends balance to male and female energies and acts as a stabilizer. As an energy stone, dioptase can activate and awaken every chakra, invigorating the mind, body, and spirit. If you want to be really different, wear dioptase, and you will fascinate admirers with this beautiful stone and find peace of mind in the process.

Create Your Temple Sanctuary: Magical Mandalas and Sacred Space

Spiritual health is just as important as the other kind. Regular maintenance and what I call “inner work” is greatly abetted if you have sacred space where you feel at your best. If you don’t have access to a temple space, you can create a sacred temple space in your own home. The imprint of your own creativity is vital to your personal shrine; it should be decorated with things also made by your own hand. Ideally, your windows allow sacred light to fall upon your designs. This is an artistic endeavor; you are making sacred art. If you do your best work at night, be sure to have adequate lighting. It is also a good idea to reduce the possibilities of distractions and interruptions. It is strongly suggested to turn off phones and television, to create as peaceful an environment as possible.

Bless the space in a fashion of your own choosing with your favorite incense, candles and objects that represent deepest spirituality to you. A magical mandala will greatly enhance your sacred space. The word “mandala” is from the classical Indian language of Sanskrit. Loosely translated to mean “circle,” a mandala is far more than a simple shape. It represents wholeness, and can be seen as a model for the organizational structure of life itself—a cosmic diagram that reminds us of our relation to the infinite, the world that extends both beyond and within our bodies and minds.

Sweet Dreams: Do It Yourself House Magic

Tranquil sleep and pleasant, illuminating dreams are the surest sign you have achieved peace of mind. An enchantment pillow will ensure you experience your fair share of nocturnal reverie and wake up refreshed. Take a pink satin pillowcase and stuff it with well-mixed dried rose petals, chamomile, mint and woolly thyme. Sew it with purple thread and, before the final stitch, whisper:

I call upon the powers of the Night to watch over me,
To hear my heart’s desires and bring me what my soul requires. 

Blessings to one and all.

Knot the final stitch three times, place the pillow inside your pillowcase, and kiss the pillow. If you have been having problems sleeping, that will end this night.

Inner-Serenity Spell

For inner peace, take a walk in the woods, a stroll on the beach, or just relax in your backyard. Bring a stick, seven leaves from an ash or oak tree, several stones, and matches. With the stick, draw a circle on the ground and mark four directions: north, east, south and west.

Place the stones at the center of the circle. Concentrate upon your connection to the earth and how to honor that in your life. Say:

Good luck rises for me in the East;
My music rises in the South;
My wishes rise in the West;
From the North, my dreams will come true.