Meditation with Crystals

I find using a crystal in meditation helps me to find that inner person that seeks guidance in time of needing clarification on what life dishes out. It also enables me to touch powers that can help control the person I am.  I have learned that the more I can control myself, the more effectively I can create my own reality. I now see my growth and I know I can trust my inner guidance.  

In meditation the crystal amplifies signals directly from your intuition and allows spiritual guidance to come in.

Recently, I read this paragraph and wish to share it, as I could relate to it myself.  “Very few people know themselves, nor do they know how to control themselves.  Most people are like the branches on a tree.  When the wind is low and the weather is nice, they endure fine.  However, when a storm or wind arises, these, rock steady branches will blow this way and that way, being totally out of control.  Well, your inner person is not unlike the tree branches.  When your life runs smoothly, you have no problem keeping stable; but when a crisis arises, you fly completely out of control, reacting to everything and not knowing how to get through the crisis or control what is happening.  That loss of control is due to a lack of knowledge — a lack of knowledge concerning your reactions, your feelings, or your energy.  Surprisingly enough, crystal meditation will unlock some of these inner chambers, which can help you to understand, more fully, yourself and reduce your fears. Not only that, with crystal meditation, when a crisis does come up, you will possess a great tool that can help and guide you toward agreeable resolutions.”

Some people do have the ability to see or feel the energy around the crystal.  Recently, my dear friend Teresa and I were blown away with our own eyes when we were in Crystals and Candles snapping away shots for the blog, and saw that the Selenite Lamps were truly alive.  There was an energy field captured in the picture frame around the lamp which was totally beautiful. Not obvious to the eye when the photo was taken, but in aligning the frame shot, the energy was very present.

There are several ways you can hold the crystal for meditation. One is to hold it in your receiving hand with the point towards the fingertips.  If you wish to feel the concentrated energy from the crystal, the point can face toward you.  Another way is to hold it in the cup of your hands, placing your receiving hand on the bottom and your sending hand on the top.  The crystal sits in your sending hand with the point upwards. It helps if the crystal has a flat base for this.  You can also hold or tape the crystal to your third eye, point up.  This position seems a little more sensitive than the others do, so watch for dizziness or headaches.  Once you have adjusted to the increased amplification of your forehead, you will generally not experience these symptoms.  It is important to use your intuition to determine what feels right for you.

In meditation the crystal is aiding in helping to stay calm and focused, particularly in the sitting, breathing part also with affirmations, visualizations and so on.   

If you have a space that you particularly use for meditation, you can place a cluster in the space to amplify higher energies.    Practice breathing with the crystal, as this helps you attune to it.  Set yourself up to be positive, even if you may feel drained, tired or emotionally low in vibration. Intend that you will repair and realign yourself, therefore creating a higher vibration and allowing the crystal to assist you, through its ability to amplify the intent, ready in anything you plan to use it for.

For meditation it is common to use quartz, amethyst, selenite or in some cases, ones own birth stone.

Quartz crystal when used during meditation will focus your own inner energies and take control of the mind easily and more effectively.
Amethyst is great for psychic and spiritual development. Amethyst is essentially the “spiritual quartz”  and will help you to channel and enhance those abilities that are already inherent in you.
Selenite is to calm and clear troubled or confused states of mind or to advance mental powers and activate the crown chakra.
Birth stones increase inner relaxation and peace of mind and, in particular, to find a sense of direction when you might feel that you have temporarily lost your way in life.

Crystal Programming

It is so easy to say this crystal does this and this one does that… but do you really want to know how and why they work? When working with crystals as tools for healing we require an understanding of how to correctly use them.

Like people, they are living and conscious and able to communicate.  They require programming to perform certain tasks. I believe that are several ways of doing this. The one I commonly use is to hold the crystal in my left hand, which is my receiving hand. I place it on my heart, and through my heart I place an intention (program) into the crystal.  Another way is to hold the crystal in your cupped hands, bring up to your mouth and breathe the intent into the crystal.

Either way your intent will impregnate the crystal and activate it.

This intention will rest in the crystal for about 28 days or until you purify it or remove existing programs with a new clearing program.

The crystal can house several intentions providing they are compatible.  As everything is in duality there are recognizable female and male energies in all things. Feminine energies are passive, used in nurturing, healing practices. Male energies are far more active such as in strength, protection, abundance etc.  In other words male and female energies can’t be mixed at the same time with the intent given to a crystal.  

Another aspect that needs to be considered is how many programs can a crystal hold?  Marvel Vogel, a man with a scientific understanding said that a crystal could hold only as many programs as there were faces on the end of the crystal.     

When you are attracted to a crystal, visually or energetically, that crystal may reveal itself to you in many ways.  It is very possible that you may physically experience warmth, a coldness or even a tingle.  Each crystal is unique in its own vibration, so trust what you choose and what thoughts or feelings come through for you.    Do not be concerned if you don’t at first recognize these sensations, however the more you work with them the stronger the sensations become. Regardless of your sensitivity towards the crystal, when programmed it will still work for you.

You now know how to choose and program your crystal, so how do you get it to help you.  
Firstly, either wear or carry it.  This method works fine if they are small, but if they are large crystals, you can meditate with them.  Hold them in your hand for 5 minutes or so and ask the crystal to help you with what you have programmed into it.  The crystal will then go about making subtle changes in your energy field to help you.  Do not be surprised if your life changes because of this work, that is what you wanted; however it may not be what you expected.  Crystals often have a mysterious way of changing your reality and the areas where you thought there was no change needed, it ends up being the one that is changing.  This is all part of the process. Best thing to do here is to go with it and see where it takes you.  Usually it takes you where you wanted to go but not in the way you thought it would.

Crystals have phenomenal abilities and affect people in all kinds of ways.  They are amplifiers and transformers of energy.  The crystal immediately enlarges to the slightest thought or gesture.

Crystals

We are blessed to have such wonderful natural tools given to us directly from Mother Earth. From as far back as the days of the ancient Mayan, Hebrew and Egyptian civilisations, and Far Eastern and Native American cultures, crystals have been used as aids to healing. For many people they are still a wonderful natural tool that is commonly used today.

What are crystals exactly?    

I have witnessed mixed reactions with people in regards to crystals. When you know what they actually are comprised of, how can they be considered taboo?  Physically they are merely fossilized water.  They are formed naturally when certain elements, pressure, temperatures and energy are combined. The water allows/causes the element to grow as a crystal. 

On a less physical aspect, crystals have certain properties. Quartz crystal amplifies, transforms, stores, focuses and transfers energy. When cut into precise shapes, quartz vibrates at precise rates and transforms electricity into waves which can be broadcast as in radio and television signals. This is also the way we use quartz in watches and computers. An interesting aspect is that quartz vibrates at all of the colour frequencies, a trait which is invaluable in healing. Being originally fossilized water, it is not surprising that quartz and water vibrate at a similar frequency. These vibrations are also very compatible with the human body, not surprisingly, as the human body is comprised of over 70% water. This enables us to use crystals for healing in both the physical and etheric bodies.

Crystals have been used to harmonize relationships, aid allergies and spiritual awakening. Crystals are often used in meditation, laid on the body during various types of therapy.  Elexir’s can be made by placing the crystal in water and drinking it.  You can bathe in water that has been charged with the energy of the crystals. 

Crystals feed the energy to our cells.  The cells can then repair themselves. Extensive research from many respected scientists including Albert Einstein proved that we and everything around us are made up of energy. Within our bodies we have millions of cells, each with its own electrical charge within.  Sometimes when things aren’t quite right within us, or we are ill, it can be because something has disturbed the electrical balance of our cells. 

Crystal healing deals not with the physical body, but the energy systems which create and support that body. We are all an end result of energy. We get energy from food, water, air and from the earth itself.  Take energy away and what happens to us?  Our bodies break down, get sick or even die. When a crystal is held or placed against an affected area, it’s not unreasonable to assume that the tiny electrical charge from the crystal can balance and harmonize the cells within us, giving our body a chance to heal itself. 

The effect of crystals on mental energy is as dramatic as its effects on physical energy. Not only do crystals amplify body energy, but thoughts as well. They create power and clarity in thinking. They also enable thoughts to more effectively influence matter.  In one such experiment, a Kirlin photograph of a crystal was taken, measuring the energy field around the crystals.  A subject then concentrated on projecting loving thoughts into and towards the crystal. The energy field around the crystal immediately more than doubled.   

Our bodies are surrounded by an electromagnetic field (aura), which may be influenced by outside energy. Having a crystal within your field, re harmonises any negative energies.   

Realize too that on different days you may feel drawn to different crystals, depending on what you are experiencing in your life at the time and what energy you need to work with. You may like to keep some crystals within your home or workplace to create specific energy in various rooms or spaces.

You should cleanse your crystals to wear, carry one in your pocket, or sleep with it in your pillowcase for a little added boost. To cleanse a crystal you can use any of the following methods:

•             Hold it under cold running water until it feels clean to you.
•             Hold your stone in the smoke of some incense or smudge stick such as frankincense, sandalwood, sage and cedar until you feel the negativity has been removed. 
•             Place your stones outside in the sun or a window ledge will work fine if you don’t have a safe place to put them.  For added benefits and balance, let them sit for 24 hours so they receive the energy of the sun as well as the moon energy.
•             The vibrations of pure sound can quickly cleanse, balance and re energize your stones.  You can use a singing bowl, a bell, a gong, a chiming bar or a tuning fork.  Sound them close the crystal until you feel the crystal is completely cleared. 
•             Place the crystal on a crystal cluster over night to cleanse, balance and re-charge your stone.

Death and Rebirth... From a Buddhist Perspective

From a Buddhist prospective, there is no need to fear death, as it’s inevitable, as it’s not really the end of life. Death is part of a process, life is a process, where we are born, we live a life, and at some point we die and are reborn again.

In Buddhism, death is not the end, it is the end of the physical presence only.  The spirit is reborn as a resultant karma of one’s past actions.  The person will be reborn in one of six realms which are heaven, human beings, asura, hungry ghost, animal and hell -  according to the severity of one’s karmic actions.  Buddhists believe however, none of these places are permanent and one does not remain in any place indefinitely.  

The fear of death stemmed from the fear to cease to be existent.  It is also the fear of leaving behind your loved ones.   Death is certain, however,  the time is uncertain.  There is no possible way to escape death.  Life has a definite, inflexible limit and each moment brings us closer to the finality of this life.  We are dying from the moment we are born. Death is what separates us from the next life.        

GRIEVING

It is natural to grieve the loss of family members and others we know, as we adjust to living without their presence and missing them as part of our lives.  The death of a loved one is terribly painful, as time goes on and people pass away, and each time we feel a loss, we are reminded of our own journey of life and how impermanent it actual is. 

KARMA

According to Buddhism, our lives and all that occurs in our lives is a result of Karma.  Every action creates a new karma, this karma or action is created with our body, our speech or our mind and this action leaves a subtle imprint on our mind which has the potential to ripen as future happiness or future suffering, depending on whether the action was positive or negative.

If we bring happiness to people, we will be happy.  If we create suffering, we will experience suffering either in this life or in a future one.

This is called the Law of Karma, or the Law of Cause and Effect.  Karmic law will lead the spirit of the dead to be reborn in realms which are suitably appropriate to their karmic accumulations. 

Good actions are an excellent way to prepare for our death.  Not performing evil deeds, keeping our heart and mind pure, doing no harm, no killing, no sexual misconduct or lying, not using drugs or alcohol has very positive merit which enable us to die as we have lived.

Improving the moral and spiritual quality of life, in the bigger schemes of things has more value than medically trying to prolong it. 

PREPARING FOR DEATH

Live a responsible and compassionate life, fully aware of the impermanence, with a loving attitude towards all living things, with no regrets when death approaches trusting that in your moment of truth you will find grace.  In Buddhist traditions, a dying person will wish to have spiritual friends read prayers and chants from Buddhist Scriptures and this is important for them as it will be the last thing they hear and therefore in their final moment of their present life, the right state of mind has been generated within the person and they can find their way into a higher state of rebirth as they leave the current life.    

In fact, Buddhists don’t want anyone to even touch the body for 3-8 hours after breathing ceases. Buddhists believe that the spirit of the person will linger on for some time and can be affected by what happens to the corpse.  It is important that the body is treated gently and with respect so the spirit can be at ease, not angry or confused.

NIRVANA

According to Buddhism if a human does not obtain nirvana or enlightenment, to separate themselves from egotism, the person cannot escape the  cycle of death and rebirth and we are destined to be reborn into the 6 possible states beyond this our present life, these being in order from the higher to lowest:

Heaven:  In Buddhism there are 37 different levels of heaven where beings experience peace and long lasting happiness without suffering in the heavenly environment.

Human Life:  We can be reborn into human life over and over, either wealthy or poor, beautiful or not so, and every state between and both as it is served up to us.  Anything can happen, as is found in human life and society all around us as we are already familiar.  What we get is a result of our Karma of what we have dragged with us from previous existences and how it manifests in our temporary present lives.

Asura:  A spiritual state of Demi- Gods but not the happy state experienced by the gods in the heavens above this state.  The Demi-Gods are consumed with jealousy, because unlike humans, they can clearly see the superior situation of the gods in the heavens above them.  They constantly compete and struggle with the gods due to their dissatisfaction with their desires from the others.

Hungry Ghost:  This spiritual realm of those who committed excessive amounts of evil deeds and who are obsessed with finding food and drink which they cannot experience and thus remain unsatisfied and tortured by the experience.  They exhaust themselves in the constant fruitless searching.

Animals:  This realm is visible to humans and it is where spirits of humans are reborn if they have killed animals or have committed a lot of other evil acts.  Animals do not have the freedom that humans would experience due to being a subject constantly hunted by humans, farmed and used in farming, also as beasts for entertainment.

Hell:  This realm is not visible to humans.  It is a place where beings born there experience a constant state of searing pain and the various types of hell realms reads like a variety of horrific torture chambers.  Those with a great deal of negative Karma can remain in such places for eons of time.

To conclude, none of us can avoid death, however, the only thing that can help us at the time of death is our mental and spiritual development.   Practise the spiritual path and ripen your inner potential -  by cultivating positive mental qualities and abandoning disturbing mental qualities.     All that goes on to the next life is our mind with its karmic positive or negative imprints.

Resources: 

Death and Dying in the Tibetan Buddhist Tradition:  Compiled by : Ven. Pende Hawter

Buddhist view on Death and Rebirth.... Ven Thich Nguyen Tang   www.urbandharma.org/udhama5/viewdeath.html

Just Be!

Stop . . . and look at where you are at right now!   

Since you began to accept your spiritual path, look at how your perception has altered. Realization of your soul is the beginning.  Finding the “freedom” that comes with acceptance of “soul purpose” is another step to evolving.   

The biggest obstacle to freedom is US!

We spend far too much time being  “left brained” looking at logics and being concerned about every day stuff,  like expectations, ours and those of others.  Our perceptions often distorted.  

We need to learn to live in a state of “being” which is our deepest  true self, where life force energy  can flow through us connecting us from the physical plain through all the plants, animals and everything else that is and back through the cosmos directly to Source.  There is no need to force things to happen, if its within the contract, by just “being” everything falls into place.    

So, what is simply “being”?

You can not mentally interpret it, because you put thought into it.  It is the stillness of “now”.  It can be felt.  Find the empty spot in your head – that is it!  Our mind is a superb instrument if used rightly, however, can be destructive when wrongly used. The truth is your mind uses you!  So beware.

The beginning of freedom is the realization that you are not the possessing entity – the thinker.   Recognize the thinker.    The moment you start watching “the thinker” a higher level of consciousness becomes activated.  You begin to separate your self from your mind, you awaken to all that is! Love, creativity, joy, inner peace all arise from beyond your mind.

When you just BE, you realize the more dots that you connect the more vivid the pieces of the “bigger picture” become apparent. Be patient, insight will come to you with Divine order.  What you will notice first is the synchronicity of life experiences. To just BE, find the stillness in your mind, where there is an inner guidance called intuition.  It is the way to discover what the wisdom of your higher-self has to offer for you.  And surprisingly, many of the journeys led by intuition will enable you to really do what you enjoy doing, something that many describe as “going with the flow of the universe”.

An excellent way to encourage this intuition is through experiencing the stillness – as in a meditation.  Calm the mind, becoming quiet and relaxed.  In fact, it can be doing anything where you experience calmness and an activity where you can empty your thoughts.  When surrounded by calmness and stillness, without expecting anything, intuition will make its voice heard. It could be a sudden thought that pierces your mind or a gut feeling evolving from within. 

With experience, you will perceive the way that intuition – or your inner voice – makes itself noticed and you then begin to appreciate its guidance throughout your day to day life.  Sudden thoughts are a tell tale sign for your intuition. It is important to differentiate between the supportive voice of intuition and your no so supportive ego. 

Looking at perception

It has been a hot topic of late. I have spoken to a few different people in regards to different situations – and of course looking at my own experiences in the last week – I can identify clearly with the association of the thought process and how it alters what we perceive.

What we perceive in any situation, regardless of what that situation may consist of or which area of life it is, directly impacts our experience as a result of how it was perceived.  To be specific it’s the emotions that are experienced which result in the perceptions you hold.

YOUR perception of something is an observation, interpretation, or a mental image that you hold with regard to some event, condition, or circumstance. In other words it is how you SEE things in the world around you that moulds, shapes and determines your individual perception.

In reality a perception is merely the effect of any given belief. That perception is merely an individualized awareness based on a belief that you have established. If the belief is flawed or self limiting... the perception that you hold with regard to the belief held will be flawed and self limiting as well. And the results that you experience will correlate precisely with what you "perceive" to be true.

We are fed by information systems, which are influenced by our emotion, in turn programming the subconscious mind.  From early childhood programming, even from within the womb, we believe what the outside information system is feeding us.  There comes a time, when we need to be responsible, filtering through the information and finding our own truths.  Through self awareness of who we truly are (expanding our own perceptions beyond smell, taste, sight and feeling), we embrace our Higher Truths and we can then reprogram the way we perceive things through our own free will. Not what someone in society has instilled, but fully making choices for our higher self. 

By developing this understanding and establishing it as a firm belief, and then fully expressing heartfelt gratitude for the growth that you are experiencing, you will become empowered to begin attracting more of those outcomes that are pleasing rather than more of that which you would rather not experience.

The point that should be noted is that how you perceive your life to be is precisely what you will attract to you and how you will experience life in the physical realm.  Find good in ANY situation. Develop the unshakable awareness that ALL things (regardless of what they are or how they may APPEAR at the time) YOU are creating and that ALL happen for a "greater good"... a greater purpose.

Reflect into your own life. Are you experiencing an abundance of money? Do you enjoy great physical health? Are your relationships, fulfilling, satisfying and mutually rewarding? Are you blaming someone else for how you feel or what you experience?  Regardless of how you may have answered those questions, whatever is happening in the present, whatever events, conditions, or circumstances you are currently experiencing in your life are based on a perception that you hold or have held at some point in the past. Change your perceptions about what reality is and your reality will change.




No two people see the external world in exactly the same way. To every separate person a 'thing' is what he thinks it is – in other words, not a thing, but a think – Penelope Fitzgerald, The Gate of Angels.

Grounding . . .

There are just some days l fall into a heap, mainly through frustration, not just with myself, but those around me. Feeling under appreciated, over tied, possibly out of whack, emotional, mentally and spiritually.  

Very recently, one of my good friend neighbours called in and she noticed I looked weary.  So, I explained how and why I felt the way I did. Very understanding she elaborated on some of her own personal experiences. We have been close friends since our children were early school age, and have been very aware of the progressive growth in one another.   

A teacher of a different kind, she said we tend to take on far too much at times as we become experts at what we do best, so we adopt more challenges because this is within our character to do so. Sometimes, we just need time to step back and smell the roses!   

I know this to be very true and I felt a strong urge to go out and garden, not to smell the roses literally but to get my hands dirty and feel the nurturing aspects of the earth as I know for me, it brings me peace. She explained that her method of coping is to practice a physical method of grounding by taking the dogs for a walk, not for the exercise but to find clarity in her mind and emotion.  

She learned to surrender to her Spirit this way.  She began to notice the messages which were in nature, from finding a feather to reading the rainbow message in the sky was confirmation that all would be taken care of and was proven time and time again. Again, knowing this to be true, sometimes it’s a good friend, or a song that will remind us and reflect back what we teach so again we can continue to learn and grow.

On waking this morning I asked my Spirit the question  “What is grounding really all about”? As fast as I had thought it, I sensed a strong visualization of a lightning bolt entering via my Crown, through me and into the ground. It felt like my chakras were all synchronised and aligned, connected to not just the earth but to the universe above. Followed with a message that you need to be alive in the present moment and truly be responsible for your “essence of being”.  I knew this message referred to being responsible for my Spirit in the present. Just for the record, I feel in the physical world that I am one of the most responsible, reliable characters you can find, but this is not the message. It was the realization of the lessons we have come to learn. I could see the truth in why I felt they way I had.  I can’t blame others –  it is my soul lessons.    

We can talk about being grounded, we can get connected and for most it is a temporary connection. Ultimately, grounding is the acceptance for the commitment you made to realign the soul before incarnating.  It is about the acceptance of the lessons for the soul, so we may elevate towards enlightenment.     

Tell tale signs of requiring grounding is becoming distracted, frustrated, angry, negative, stressed and overwhelmed by life –  not living in true essence of your soul. This is when we don’t listen and honour the spirit because of the outside ego influences.

Simply put, it is one thing to talk about being grounded, to do grounding gestures, but unless we are soul aware and aligned from morning to night and anytime in between, all of this work is only temporary. 

Presently Mother Earth is realigning, and to be grounded is also to realign with the energies from above and below. It is actually a very powerful experience. It is best to find a way to ground that resonates with who you are so it becomes a natural way of life and not something you have to do because you are told to “ground yourself”.

To begin with some common techniques are:

• Imagine an earth connected tree with a root system growing from the base of your spine or bottom of your feet going all the way down to the center of the earth, connecting you to “Mother Earth”. 
• Electrical Cord from the base of your spine, plugging in and connecting to Earth Energy.  Just like a house’s electrical circuit connects to Earth.
• You can imagine high vibrational colours coming in from the crown down, exiting from the root chakra down in the earth below. 
• Silver Cord Exercise around the body and anchoring down into the earth.
• Wearing Crystals that help with grounding.
• Open your awareness and connection to nature. Gardening, walking and sitting in nature.

Ultimately, find a method that suits you, it may be unique to you, given to you by your guides or angels.   Allow it to become an instinct not just some process that you have to think about. It is our natural state to be connected to the earth physically and etherically.  It keeps us energized, it keeps our spirit and body integrated, it allows us to realize our full potential as human beings.  It is as basic as brushing your teeth every day, taking a shower and eating!  It will help you be discerning, it will keep you from being attacked, it will keep you focused and alert. 

If you are serious about getting back in touch with your soul,

I fully recommend Echarkt Tolle’s  “The power of Now” or  “New Earth”. 
Both are available for $24.95, contact me today to order.