Crystals in Witchcraft and Paganism

Crystal magic is the pagan and witchcraft practice of choosing a stone for what it means and putting it to work for a specific intention, purpose, or goal. Clear quartz focuses and strengthens a spell, amethyst protects and calms, and black tourmaline grounds and shields. Pagans and witches carry a stone in a pocket, wear one on a cord, and set them on the altar with the candles and herbs of a spell.

Pagans and witches set a stone on the altar for the earth element, place stones at the boundaries of their property, or set them at the quarters to hold the boundary of a cast circle. A clear stone or a crystal ball is gazed into for scrying, and a bag of stones is cast and read. Some stones are bought, and some are picked up on a walk as an omen or a sign. Found, bought, or gifted, a stone is carried as an amulet or kept at the threshold of the home for protection.

Crystal Magic in Witchcraft and Paganism

Crystals and Their Meanings

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Crystal correspondences are the meanings, colors, elements, and planets kept for each stone, and pagans and witches match a stone to the purpose of a spell the way an herb is matched to it. Clear quartz is for clarity and focus, amethyst for calm and intuition, rose quartz for love, carnelian for passion, and black tourmaline for protection. The color of a stone carries a correspondence of its own, and so does its shape, and pagans and witches write the correspondences in a book of shadows beside the herbs. Stones are also sorted by element.

A crystal grid is stones laid out in a pattern to hold one intention. Pagans and witches write the intention on a slip of paper, set it under a center stone, and lay the other stones around it on a cloth or a drawn pattern such as a circle, a spiral, or a pentacle. Each stone is chosen for its correspondence and cleansed before it is laid. The grid is activated by tracing a line from stone to stone with a finger, a wand, or a quartz point, and it is left in place, in the room that matches its purpose, until the spell is done.

Cleansing a crystal clears the energy it has picked up, and charging it fills the stone with new energy and an intention. Pagans and witches cleanse a stone when it is new, after a spell, and whenever it feels heavy, by passing it through incense smoke, ringing a bell over it, washing it in running water, burying it in salt or soil, or setting it out overnight under a full moon. To charge a cleansed stone, it is held in the hand while the intention is spoken or pictured. To fill it with energy, it is set in moonlight or sunlight, on a pentacle, or in the earth. Some stones are damaged by water, sunlight, or frost, so always check before washing a stone or leaving it out.

A hag stone is a stone with a hole worn all the way through it by water, found on a beach or in a riverbed. It is a hole made by nature, rather than a hole drilled by hand. Hag stones are also called holey stones, witch stones, adder stones, and fairy stones. Pagans and witches carry them in amulets or wear them on cords to protect against curses, hexes, and the evil eye. A hag stone is hung over the door, the window, or the bed to guard the home and the sleeper, and one tied in the barn keeps the horses from being ridden by night. Looking through the hole is a way to see spirits and the Fae, so a hag stone is also kept for spirit work and for scrying. Finding one is lucky, and one given as a gift is luckier still.

The stone chosen for protection depends on the kind of protection needed. Black tourmaline and hematite shield, and are carried against hexes, ill intent, and the evil eye. Obsidian is a mirror, and sends back what is sent. Smoky quartz grounds and steadies, tiger's eye is worn for courage and clear sight, and selenite and clear quartz clear a space so nothing heavy settles in it. Pagans and witches carry a protection stone in a pocket, keep one by the bed, set one at each corner of the home, or add one to a charm bag or a ward. Stones used for protection or warding may need to be cleansed more often than others.

Agate, steadiness, courage, and slow, sure protection

Amethyst, calm, intuition, a clear head, and protection in sleep

Aventurine, green, luck, opportunity, and a door opening

Aventurine, yellow, confidence, cheer, and a lift for the spirits

Black tourmaline, shielding against hexes, ill intent, and the evil eye

Bloodstone, courage, strength, and health

Blue calcite, gentle calm, soothing, and easy speech

Carnelian, passion, vitality, and the will to act

Citrine, abundance, success, and sun in the pocket

Clear quartz, clarity, focus, and strength for any intention

Garnet, passion, loyalty, and a steady heart

Hag stone, protection, luck, and a window onto the Fae

Hematite, grounding, shielding, and a steady footing

Howlite, patience, calm, and restful sleep

Jade, luck, long life, and quiet prosperity

Labradorite, magic, intuition, and the veil between worlds

Lapis lazuli, truth, wisdom, and the favor of the gods

Lepidolite, peace, ease in change, and a soft landing

Malachite, transformation, protection in travel, and the heart

Moonstone, the moon, new beginnings, and intuition

Obsidian, a mirror that sends back what is sent, and truth

Pyrite, wealth, willpower, and a shield of gold

Red jasper, endurance, strength, and the earth underfoot

Rhodonite, forgiveness, mending, and love after hurt

Rose quartz, love given and love turned back on yourself

Selenite, clearing, light, and a clean altar

Shungite, protection and clearing what is heavy

Smoky quartz, grounding, steadiness, and letting go

Tiger's eye, courage, clear sight, and protection

Turquoise, protection, healing, and luck on a journey

Explore Witchcraft and Pagan Practices

• Spellwork, casting spells and making charms
• Herbal Witchcraft, the herbs used in witchcraft and what each one is for
• Pagan Divination, tarot, runes, scrying, omens, and other ways of reading
• Energy Work, grounding, centering, shielding, and cleansing
• Spirit Work, working with ancestors, deities, spirits, and familiars
• Animals in Witchcraft, familiars, omens, spirit animals, and animal correspondences
• Kitchen Witchcraft, cooking, cleaning, and keeping a home with intention
• The Four Elements, earth, air, fire, and water in witchcraft and paganism
• Wheel of the Year, the eight sabbats and how to celebrate them
• Symbols in Witchcraft, the circle, the pentagram, runes, sigils, and other signs of meaning and power
• Pagan Community, finding your people, covens, solitary practice, and families

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