So you’ve bought yourself a gorgeous gem stone to summon good energy, and now you wanna know how to cleanse crystals, huh?
After shopping for crystals, you can’t just pop that baby on your shelf without ridding it of the baggage it’s picked up. Those bad boys go on a long journey from the earth to being mined to being shipped to the store, and when it’s there, imagine all the people playing with crystals with their grubby hands and bad energy. Your crystals need cleaning, my friends, so its powers can be activated to serve you good.
Here, I’m gonna go through the best and easiest methods and also answer some FAQs such as how to charge crystals.
Cleaning Crystals: How to cleanse crystals and charge them
1. Leave your crystals under the light of the full moon
People often use the terms ‘charging’ and ‘cleansing’ crystals interchangeably, but the fact of the matter is that they’re both entirely different, but equally important methods. They’re different in the way that they serve separate purposes, but they’re literally done the same way: by leaving them under the light of the full moon.
You cleanse crystals to refresh and restore them and to spiritually clear away any residual junk they may have picked up from overuse or from being touched by other people, and you charge crystals to empower them.
When you buy a crystal, you should suss out when the next full moon is and leave them out under the light of the full moon for both cleansing and charging purposes.
2. Use salt water
Here’s a super quick and easy way to cleanse your crystals, literally using items in your kitchen. Mix a tablespoon of sea, rock, or table salt into a bowl of water. Pop your gorg gems into the salt water for a minute or so and remove them when you’re done and rinse them off. Water is one of the four elements and salt is believed to banish negativity, so both combined, it’s an incredibly powerful cleansing agent.
If you happen to live by the sea, actual sea water is even more potent. Safely submerge them in sea water the next time you’re down at the beach.
Note: The following stones will go manky if you put them in salt, so be sure to use one of the dry methods instead: Hiddenite, angelite, selenite, pyrite, lapis lazuli, opal and hematite.
3. Cleanse your crystals in lunar water
Can’t find any salt around? Weird flex, but okay. But not to worry, because ordinary water is also v. useful in cleansing your crystals. If it’s good enough to keep ya hydrated, it’s good enough to keep the energy of your crystals sparkling bright!
Drop your pretty gems in a bowl of ordinary water, one minute per stone. For bonus points, leave the water out under the light of the full moon and it becomes what’s called lunar water, which is even more potent and powerful.
Note: The following stones cannot go in water, so please hit up one of the dry methods for that: Amber, turquoise, red coral, fire opal, moonstone, calcite, kyanite, kunzite, angelite, azurite, selenite.
4. Cleansing your crystals with sunlight
Before you go yeeting your crystals into the sun, please don’t, because gravity will send those bastards back down to smack you in the face.
Cleansing your crystals with sunlight is literally the same as cleansing them with moonlight. Simply leave them out from when the sun goes up ’til the sun goes down so that it absorbs the powerful solar energy.
5. Use sage to cleanse crystals
Despite being commandeered for commercial purposes in recent times via every basic bitch hippie shop, sage burning is one of the oldest and purest methods of cleansing people, places and, in this case, things.
The Latin word for sage is salvia which means ‘heal’, hence why folks use sage to heal (read: cleanse) stuff of negative energy.
Because white sage is considered to be one of the most potent cleansing and protective botanicals, grab yourself a stick, light ’em up and allow the smoke to permeate the stone.
As the smoke wafts around, you’re also cleansing your home and yourself in addition to the crystal, free of charge.
6. Cleansing your crystals using the earth
I’ve already explained how to cleanse using air, fire and water, but there’s one element missing: earth! How the bloody hell do I cleanse my crystals using the earth, I begrudgingly hear you ask? Calm your tits, I’m gonna explain.
Bury your stones in a shallow hole in the dirt, then remove them several moments later, so their energies neutralise and you’re left with a clean slate.
If they’re fragile stones, I’d avoid this method, but if they’re able to withstand water, go right ahead, then cleanse them in water when it’s done. BOOM. Two elemental cleanses in one.
7. Cleansing your crystals using *checks notes* other crystals
Sorry if reading that heading gave you a headache, but it legit does what it says on the tin: you can cleanse your crystals using other potent gems that radiate powerful cleaning, cleansing energy.
Clear quartz and selenite are believed to be self-cleansing crystals so not only do they not need to be cleansed, but they can also be used to cleanse other crystals by simply placing them beside the crystals that need cleansing.
For extra power, I’d recommend doing this under the light of the full moon.
8. Using sound
Just like listening to soothing sounds can help you chill the fuck out, there are certain sounds that can be used for cleansing crystals. There’s a variety of instruments that can do this, including a tuning fork, singing bowl, bell, chime, tingsha or, if you’re so inclined, by chanting or reciting a mantra to them.
Allow the sound to wash over the stones, all the while visualising the crystals ridding themselves of their old energies on the sound waves.
I’ve found some handy dandy Spotify albums with cleansing tunes that you can play around your crystals to cleanse them.
9. Try visualisation
Another epic power source that you can draw from to cleanse your crystals is your own mind.
Sit in a quiet room, as if you’re about to meditate (‘cos you pretty much are!). Close your eyes, clutch the crystals gently, and visualise the crystal in your mind’s eye.
Envision a gorgeous golden light encircling the stone and illuminating its power, cleansing all the negative energy off that baby and filling it with positivity.
Now your crystals are ready to be used!
Can I cleanse all my crystals together?
Absolutely! Do as many as you’d like.
How long should you cleanse crystals?
That all depends on the method you’re using. If you’re using sun and moonlight, you’ll wanna leave them overnight.
If water, smoke, visualisation, etc, use your discression.
You’ll feel the energy once they’ve been properly cleansed.
Why is cleansing crystals so important?
Because otherwise you’ll carry the negative energy of the people who have touched the crystal before you (i.e. punters in the crystal shop who go through and fiddle with every damn stone).
How to activate your crystal?
Form a crystal grid by placing the stone in the centre of other crystals that have already been cleansed.
If not possible, just leave them out in sunlight.
How to charge your crystal?
And finally, it’s time to charge your crystal.
Leave them in sun or moonlight. If you used this method already to cleanse the crystals, leave them for an additional night to ensure that they charge and activate.
