Crystals have the ability to hold on to and absorb energies surrounding them, so before adding a new crystal to your collection it is important to first take the time to properly cleanse your stone from any energy it has picked up prior to reaching you. Returning the stone to its natural state to emit it's purest form of energy will help you to benefit from it's healing properties. There are several methods for clearing the energy of your crystals that we will be discussing down below. Choose which method is most comfortable to you and begin cleansing your stones today!
Ways to Cleanse your Crystals
Smudging Crystals with Smoke
Smudging with sage or palo santo smoke from natural incense. Place your intention on the stones you wish to clear energy from and pass them through the smoke in order to cleanse them. After several passes your crystal will be cleared of any unwarranted or stagnant energy.
Moonlight or Sunlight
Sunlight: Place your crystals outside in the natural sunlight. Sunlight will re-energize the stone Some stones may fade in the sun such as Amethyst and Rose Quartz.
Moonlight: Set your stones out in the light of the moon. Full or new moons are most effective and believed to increase the stones vibrational patterns. The energy from full or new moons last for around 3 days after so your stones will still receive the benefits if you miss the day of.
Cleansing with Water
Salt Water: first make sure your crystals are able to get wet and won’t dissolve or be damaged by the water. Place the crystals in spring water and sea salt and let them soak overnight. Note that certain stones shouldn't be submerged like Kyanite, Celestite, and Calcite, Selenite will break down, and stones with metal like Hematite and Pyrite can rust. Dyed stones will lose their color in water. If in doubt, try using another method to cleanse your crystals.
Natural water: running your stones under or through natural water such as a river or the ocean is an effective way to rid any negative energy.
In the Earth
Place your stones in the Earth. You can dig a spot in the soil to bury your stones for the day to reconnect and recharge them with the grounding energy of Mother Earth.
Other Cleansing Crystals
Selenite is a great stone for cleansing that does not need to be recharged or cleansed itself. Wave a selenite wand over the crystals you wish to clear energy from or place them by the wand, slab, or tower of selenite stone. Citrine can also recharge and cleanse surrounding crystals as well as placing crystals on a large piece of clear quartz overnight.
How Often to Cleanse
There is no set amount as to how often you should cleanse your crystals, you should go on intuition and how they feel to you. Depending on how frequently you are using your stone determines how often you should cleanse it. As a guideline, once a month or each time you set a new intention would be ideal.
We hope you found this information helpful to discover a method you can feel comfortable with using to realign your stone to vibrate at it's highest potential. For more information please see our article to learn about how crystals work and how to use them.