What crystals, symbols, and scents do you need most?

It can be overwhelming to know what crystals, symbols, scents, and other tools to rely on for different purposes. Here’s a quick guide for a variety of situations you may be seeking support for or, perhaps, you have a friend who needs support in a specific area?

Happiness

Who doesn’t want to be happier? Scroll through the tools below for symbols, crystals, scents, and herbs that can help you cultivate more happiness in your life.

Symbols & tools

Wunjo Rune is the rune of joy, pleasure, and harmony. Get The Ritual Deck to get your Wunjo Rune oracle card, a great reminder of joy to place on your altar or carry with you throughout the day.

Crystals

Citrine, a crystal of happiness, emits positive energy and can help you stay positive, attract your desires, and be more present in your life. That’s where the joy really comes from after all, right?

Scents & herbs

Brahmi, an ancient Ayurvedic herb, can help promote feelings of well-being. Try burning it in the morning as you do a gratitude meditation.

Grounding & Protection

There are so many reasons grounding and protection are important. For those of us who do energy work and psychic work, grounding can help us bring our energy back into our body, back into the lower chakras. Protection can help protect you from absorbing the energy of others, either in spiritual work or just in general as you go about your life (especially for anyone who lives in the city!).

Regardless of your work with magick, grounding and protection help bring you back into your body, feeling safe, supported, and cared for.

Get more tips for psychic protection here.

Symbols & tools

There are many symbols of grounding and protection in the magical world. Some of my favorites are:

• Algiz Rune, the shield rune for protection

• Salt, a tool that has been used as protection for centuries

• Root chakra, your energetic center of safety and grounding

• Dark moon, an invitation to ground into your body and shed negative energy

The Ritual Deck includes representations of each of these symbols, which can act as energetic stand-ins in rituals or on your altar.

Crystals

Use snowflake obsidian, a stone of cleansing negative energy and releasing blockages, or smoky quartz, the ultimate stone for grounding and balancing.

Scents & herbs

Clove is your go-to for protection. Spruce will help you ground, bringing you deeply into the present moment.

Anxiety Relief & Peace

Many of us struggle with anxiety in the modern world. It’s so easy to get caught up in what has happened and what might happen or could happen. The tools below help you relieve anxiety and connect with a sense of inner peace.

Symbols & tools

Blue is a soothing color that can help restore tranquility and peace. Try lighting a blue candle or working with the blue candle card in The Ritual Deck.

Crystals

The crystal kingdom has an abundance of stones to help soothe your anxiety and restore your inner peace. We love blue lace agate for its calming vibrations, labradorite to keep you from absorbing too much of other people’s energy, and howlite to help relieve stress and get better sleep.

Scents & herbs

Lavender can be used as aromatherapy to soothe mild anxiety, and chamomile has long been used to reduce stress and anxiety.

Abundance & Wealth

Who doesn’t want to call in more abundance and wealth? The tools below will help you connect with the abundance you desire to manifest in your physical reality.

Symbols & tools

The color green is associated with abundance, wealth, good fortune, and success. Light a green candle on your altar or work with the green candle card in The Ritual Deck.Fehu Rune is your Rune for bringing abundance of all kinds into your life, whether it be financial or other. Fehu can also be used as a useful tool to tap into the abundance already surrounding you. If you’re having a difficult time tapping into gratitude for all of the gifts you already have, Fehu can help fill your heart with gratitude. Check out a ritual to work with Fehu in this blog.

Crystals

Citrine is also known as the success stone. It’s associated with the solar plexus chakra and can be a powerful aid in manifesting wealth and abundance.Green aventurine is another stone well-known for attracting abundance, success, and luck. It’s also associated with the heart chakra, helping you to open to receive the abundance that is on its way to you.

Scents & herbs

Cinnamon has its roots in many cultures as a powerful plant for attracting abundance as well as success and healing. Try adding it to your coffee, blending it in your smoothie, and sprinkling it over a banana or your favorite dessert!

Love & Compassion

Turn to these tools when your heart chakra needs some healing. They’ll help you cultivate unconditional love and compassion for yourself and others. Find rituals to cultivate self-love here.

Symbols & tools

Use a pink candle when you’re working with self-love and compassion, or a red candle when you’re working with passionate love involving someone else.

Crystals

Rose quartz is your crystal ally for unconditional love and compassion. It’s a gentle healer for your heart chakra, a space where we can store so much fear and doubt.Carnelian is another beautiful stone of love, as well as faith and devotion. Use carnelian when you want to devote yourself to a healing practice or when you need to deepen your faith and trust in yourself.

Scents & herbs

There are many scents and herbs that help promote love and compassion! Try hawthorn, rose petals, lotus petals, or motherwort. Mixing a few herbs together into a tea or a bath can be lovely.

Cleansing Negative Energy

Sometimes, we’re not able to protect ourselves from negative energy. Life is life, and negative energy is sometimes inevitable. Use the tools below to cleanse yourself and your space of negative energy, especially after a difficult conversation, a break-up, or a stressful day.

Symbols & tools

Salt is an amazing natural tool to absorb negative energy. Use a representation of salt from The Ritual Deck, take a salt bath, use a salt lamp, or place a bowl of salt in your space.

Crystals

Black tourmaline, a dark stone for protecting and cleansing, is your go-to for cleansing negative energy. Try meditating with black tourmaline, visualizing all of the negative energy being absorbed into the stone.All-purpose quartz, the ultimate balancer, is another great crystal to have on hand for cleansing negative energy. Learn more about the magical properties and benefits of clear quartz here. Labradorite is also available to help you cleanse your aura. If your aura is weak, has tears, or holes in it labradorite can help. Keep your aura squeaky clean by meditating with a piece of labradorite or going around your entire body with a piece of it in your hand.

Scents & herbs

Rosemary and cedar can all help you cleanse negative energy. Burn them over yourself or in your space to cleanse, purify, and release.

Intuition & Psychic Abilities

These tools will help you open your third eye chakra, to connect with your psychic abilities and center of intuition. (We have a whole slew of blog posts to help you in these areas as well -- check out 5 Quick Tips to Improve Your Intuition,You Are Psychic! How to Determine What Psychic Gift You Have, and 3 Daily Actions to Improve your Intuition to get started.)

Symbols & tools

Your third eye chakra is the center of your intuition. It’s associated with the color purple, so try burning purple candles or connecting with the color in other ways like wearing it or including it in your space.

Crystals

Amethyst is a classic stone for your third eye chakra. It’s like a cool bath for your intuitive center, gently opening and awakening it to deepen your connection.Labradorite connects strongly to your third eye, making it ideal for honing your intuitive abilities. It can also help you connect with spirit guides and angels, and open the doors to the other side by helping you with astral travel. A multi-purpose stone for your intuition and psychic abilities, indeed!

Scents & herbs

Experiment with mugwort, lavender, juniper, and bilberry to open your center of intuition.

Connecting to the Moon

Symbols & tools

Work with representations of the moon in all her phases to connect with the lunar, divine feminine energy of the moon. The Triple Goddess is also here to connect you with the moon and its cycles, as well as the mother/maiden/crone cycle of life. Download your Triple Goddess free printable here.

Crystals

Moonstone, just like the name implies, is your crystal ally for connecting with the moon. It’s a dreamy goddess stone that channels the energy of mama moon into your energy field.Selenite received its name from the Greek goddess of the moon, Selene. Selenite offers the water element, connecting you to emotions, intuition, your highest self, and of course, the moon.

Scents & herbs

Mugwort is your go-to to harness the intuitive and psychic power of the moon. Burn it in your space to connect with the moon’s energy and your own inner Selene.

Femininity

Symbols & tools

The Earth element, represented as an upside-down triangle with a line across the bottom, and the Water element, represented as an upside-down triangle with no line, are both beautiful representations of the divine feminine, womb healing, and receiving. Work with the representations of these elements in The Ritual Deck.

The triple goddess symbol that I mentioned above, shown by two crescent moons with one full moon between them, is another beautiful symbol of the divine feminine. Besides the phases of the moon, it also represents the phases of womanhood we cycle through: maiden, mother, and crone.

Crystals

Rainbow moonstone is here to connect you to your inner goddess and divine feminine energy.

Strawberry quartz can also connect you to feminine energy as a gentle, loving stone here to fill you with the healing energy of love and open your heart center to give and receive love unconditionally.

Scents & herbs

Hibiscus, the flower associated with the Hawaiian goddess Pele, connects you with Pele’s fiery, passionate, and yet nurturing energy.

The lotus, whose petals represent the yoni, can connect you with your feminine energy and feminine center, the space of creation within you.

I hope you find this guide helpful for quickly finding tools to help you!

10 Uses for Labradorite

It’s hard not to fall in love with labradorite. Ancient people who came upon labradorite believed it was connected to the Aurora Borealis. Just like this natural wonder in the sky, no two pieces of labradorite look quite alike with their flashes of color.

In addition to its colorful glow, labradorite comes with a slew of metaphysical and spiritual uses. The best part is that this stone is easy to come by and relatively inexpensive to acquire.

Labradorite is said to be the stone of magick. This title isn’t surprising due to its long list of magickal and spiritual benefits. Keep reading for ten uses for labradorite.

Aura Cleansing

Labradorite is queen when it comes to cleansing your aura (learn more about auras here). If your aura is weak, has tears, or holes in it labradorite can help with that too. Keep that aura squeaky clean by meditating with a piece of labradorite or going around your entire body with a piece of it in your hand.

Psychic Protection

Beyond protecting your aura, labradorite can help shield you during psychic work too. Whether you’re practicing tarot, using a pendulum, or scrying with a crystal ball labradorite can help protect you from any unwanted spiritual energy. Try wearing or placing a piece of labradorite nearby you the next time you practice any form of psychic work.

Enhancing Intuition

Labradorite connects strongly to your third eye, especially if you can find one with some purples in it! This third eye connection makes this stone ideal for honing your intuitive abilities. Start including labradorite into your daily life and see if it makes a difference. You may even try placing some labradorite on your nightstand to work on your intuition at night too.

Connecting with Guides and Angels

If you’re trying to connect with your spirit guides or angels, labradorite can help with this too. If you haven’t noticed, labradorite has a thing for helping you with the spirit realm! Think of labradorite as a window to the other side. This stone will make connecting with your guides and angels easier, and the best part is that it will also offer protection too. Wear or hold a piece of labradorite in your hand as you call on the guide or angel you’re trying to connect with.

Balancing Chakras

Because you can find labradorite in just about every color, it’s a potent healer and balancer for your chakra system. If you know that you have a specific chakra that’s out of wack you can try to find a labradorite stone that matches that chakra's color. Or, you can grab yourself an extra rainbowy labradorite that has every color in it to have a powerful chakra balancer for all of your chakras!

Astral Travel

Labradorite is a must for astral travel. It will help open the doors to the other side and will offer you protection along the way. Wear or hold labradorite in your hand anytime you intend to leave your earthly body for a trip through the cosmos or to the Akashic records.

Aid for Magick and Spellwork

Of course, the stone of magick is ideal for performing any magick or spellwork. Anytime you’re performing magickal spells you’re enlisting forces on the other side to help you. Because labradorite helps open doors to the other side, it’s the ideal stone to have nearby for any magickal work you’re practicing. If you already have an altar space where you perform spellwork placing a piece of labradorite on it won’t hurt!

Creativity and Imagination

Looking for a way to get more in touch with your creative side? Think of your creative thoughts as little nudges from the other side; labradorite can help let them in. If you’re looking for labradorite to help with a serious creative block, try finding labradorite with an orange flash to it so it can work on your sacral chakra too.

Anxiety

If you have anxiety or identify as an empath, labradorite is an excellent stone to keep handy while you’re out and about, especially in large groups of people. Because this stone is so good at protecting your energy, it’s great for super sensitive souls too. Don’t let labradorite take the place of your doctor or therapist, but it can offer some added protection when you’re feeling triggered.

Light Bringer

Remember when I said ancient tribes believed labradorite was connected to the Aurora Borealis? Remember that anytime you use it. This iridescent stone is all about bringing self-awareness and opening pathways for you. Labradorite is a true bringer of light in both appearance and its many applications.

I hope you’ve found ten more reasons to adore this stone! It truly is a stone of magick and has so much to offer.

What is The Soul Star Chakra and How to Connect to it

Have you ever experienced flashes or intuitive nudges about your past lives? If you have, you may have already connected to your soul star chakra. Your soul star chakra is said to be the seat of your soul, even though it’s located above your head. It gets its nickname because it’s your direct connection to your higher self, the Akashic Records, your karmic past, and your past lives.

Think of this chakra as a storage bank for your soul. The soul star chakra carries all of the information for your soul’s past and present purpose for being here.

Generally, this information about your soul isn’t readily available to you in your earthly body unless you accidentally stumbled upon it or inadvertently open your soul star chakra. All of this information is there, present within your energetic body, and can be tapped into with practice.

Where is the soul star chakra located?

Similar to the earth star chakra, the soul star chakra is outside of your physical body and located in your etheric body approximately six inches above your head. It resides within your auric field and is connected to your other chakras. The color of this chakra is up for negotiation. Some say it’s white and golden, while others ascribe a specific color to it. I suggest connecting to this chakra and deciding for yourself what color yours is.

What is the purpose of the soul star chakra?

Activating this chakra will act as a potent chakra balancing tool. Because your soul star chakra is connected to your higher self it is also connected to the light of the universe. This powerful energy can keep your crown chakra open and healthy along with all of your other chakras.

If you’re interested in tapping into your karmic past, past lives, or the Akashic Records, the soul star chakra is the key. Your soul star chakra is the direct link to all of this information. Tapping into your soul’s past may help you better understand fears and challenges in this current lifetime, why you’re being faced with them, and how to overcome them. Another benefit of tapping into your soul’s past is better understanding the relationships and people in your life.

Learning how to engage with information about your past lives and the Akashic Records can be powerful and life-changing. It could also be upsetting and shocking if you’re not ready for it. If you feel uneasy about it or encounter something you weren’t ready for, there are professionals that specialize in past life regression and the Akashic Records that can safely assist you.

As an added benefit, connecting with this chakra will also help support your psychic abilities.

How to connect to the Soul Star Chakra?

There are a variety of methods for connecting with your soul star chakra. Here are some of my favorites to get you started.

Crystals

Try holding any of these crystals in your hands during meditation to connect with your soul star chakra.

• Kyanite: This is a great crystal to use when you’re getting started working with this chakra. Kyanite will help gently cleanse and balance all of your chakras to ensure that your energetic body is in good shape.

• Phenacite: This less common crystal is a powerful one for connecting with all of your upper chakras and especially your higher self. Because this stone is rare it tends to be a larger investment. The other more common gemstones listed below will also prove helpful and you may already have some.

• Selenite:This super cleansing stone can help open up your crown and soul star chakra. Try waving a selenite wand around the top of your head around your soul star chakra and crown chakra to cleanse and open them.

• Clear Quartz: Clear quartz is queen when it comes to balancing all your chakras, and is especially helpful for your upper chakras.

• Lithium Quartz: If you need help calming yourself as you begin your journey with this chakra, this stone has all of the added benefits of clear quartz with the addition of calming energy.

Meditation

Start your journey with curiosity as you become familiar with this chakra. A soul star meditation will be similar to a white light chakra meditation, but with your intentions set on your soul star chakra. Here are steps to perform a meditation for your soul star chakra.

• Find a quiet place to sit and place some of the crystals mentioned above in each of your hands (the crystals are optional).

• Focus on your breathing and begin to imagine a white or golden light about six inches above your head. If you feel this ball of light wants to take on a specific color, go with it.

• Imagine a beam of white light from the universe zooming down to meet your soul star chakra. Once the beam of light connects to your soul star chakra imagine it growing brighter with every breath.

• Ask to be connected to your soul star chakra. If you work with any guides or angels this is a good time to call on their support.

• If you feel called to, repeat the mantra “I am divine light” or “I am love” during the meditation.

• Once you feel connected to your soul star chakra imagine the light from it radiating to the rest of your chakras balancing them and restoring them.

• Close this meditation slowly and thoughtfully by imagining the white light slowly retreating back to the universe. You can continue to envision your soul star chakra glowing above your head throughout your day.

Practice this meditation a few times, or until you feel comfortable, before asking to be shown information about your past lives or karmic history.

Have a healthy crown chakra

Because your soul star chakra links directly to your crown chakra it’s important to ensure that your crown chakra is healthy and balanced. If your crown chakra is blocked you may have a difficult time accessing your soul star chakra. Feeling stuck? Check out this blog post to find out if your crown chakra needs some attention.

Want to learn more about the basic chakra system? Understanding Chakras Book offers tools and information about your chakras.

3 Ways to Use The Ritual Deck

The Ritual Deck is here! Here are tips and tools you can use to jump in and start using your deck as soon as you receive it. Update 2022: The original Ritual Deck is currently discontinued but we’re working on having a similar version eventually!

Ritual has the power to ground you, help you manifest your desires, and unlock your intuitive abilities. I created this deck to help you tap into the power of ritual on a regular basis without needing to purchase several supplies.
There are three main ways to use The Ritual Deck.

1. As a traditional oracle card deck for regular guidance from the cards.

2. Unique card spreads designed specifically for performing the rituals you need most.

3. The cards themselves act as energetic stand-ins for ritual, perfect for spell work or placing on your altar.

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I’m going to share a few ways to start using your deck here but keep in mind, The Ritual Deck comes with a robust guidebook that goes into greater detail on all three of these methods. The guidebook includes much more than I can offer here in one blog post! Beyond the guidebook, this deck is incredibly versatile, and I’m sure you’ll be able to find more uses than what is outlined in the guidebook.

Oracle Card Pulls with The Ritual Deck

First and foremost The Ritual Deck is an oracle card deck. Use it for daily card pulls to receive a message for the day or bigger oracle card spreads to find guidance on more significant questions you may have.

The triad card spreads outlined in the guidebook is a common one for oracle card decks because it has so many applications. Apply the triad card spread to any of the situations you’d like more guidance on:

Steps to perform a triad card spread:

1. Hold the cards in your hands and focus on your question.

2. Shuffle your cards.

3. Call in any guides, Gods, or Goddesses you work with to help (optional).

4. Turn over the top three cards in a straight line or in a “v” shape as pictured below. The “v” shape indicates that you’d like to bring more feminine energy into your reading.

5. Apply the chart above to your three cards and reference the guidebook for more information on each card you selected.

As an example, let’s pretend that your question is, “What is holding me back from my goal to find a new job?”. The first card represents your desire to find a new job, the second card represents what might be blocking you, and the last card references how your problem may culminate. You’d then be able to dig deeper into the meaning of each card in the guidebook.

Card Spreads for Ritual with The Ritual Deck

The Ritual Deck offers several unique spreads specifically based around rituals that can help you balance your chakras, follow the phases of the moon, balance the five elements within you or your space, and more. Here are the steps for practicing the five-element card spread.

The five elements are energies within you and outside of you that can help you feel more balanced. They can also be used to bring in a specific kind of energy you’re seeking. For example, if you’re trying to accomplish a goal on a short deadline you may want to bring in more of the fire element.

To perform the element card spread follow these steps:

Place the earth card North, the air card East, the fire card South, the water card West, and the spirit card in the center.

Next, use the correspondences on the bottom of the cards to sort the cards by element. For example, all of the cards with a correspondence of water will go in a pile together.

Place each pile on top of its corresponding element, shuffle the cards, and place them face down.

Starting with the top earth element card pile select a card. This will be the ritual you perform to balance your earth element. Continue around the circle selecting one card from each pile until you end in the center at the spirit element.

This card spread can be modified for just one element, and you can decide to pull as many ritual cards from each pile as you’d like! Space your rituals out over a few days, trying to do all of them at once may be overwhelming.

There are similar card spreads outlined in the guidebook for balancing your chakras and performing rituals for every moon phase.

Using Your Cards as Energetic Stand-Ins

Your mind is a powerful tool. By believing that these cards carry the same capacity as the actual objects, they will. I do not mean to discredit the power of real crystals and tools — they are potent healers that I use and adore, but it may not be convenient or possible to find all of the physical tools you need in a given moment for a ritual. That’s why I created this deck: to provide you with the tools you need to perform regular rituals and be transformed by them.

For example, if you’re trying to bring more feminine energy into your daily practice you could place these three cards on your altar as reminders.

Or, if you’re performing a manifesting ritual and need specific tools to perform a spell or ritual, you can use cards that align with manifesting as stand-ins rather than acquiring several different physical objects.

I hope you enjoy these tips for getting started with your deck! Of course, if you have any questions about using your deck you can contact us. Click here to read a blog post all about chakra readings with The Ritual Deck.

5 Rituals for the New Moon

One of the beautiful things about living with the moon is that each month, we get the opportunity to reset, reevaluate, and set intentions for the month ahead. This time is the new moon. New moon energy is conducive to resting, receiving downloads from the Universe, and checking in with yourself. Think of it as the New Year’s Day you get to have every month!

One way to celebrate the new moon is to do rituals. Scroll down for five rituals to help you connect with the energy of the new moon.

Create a new moon altar

One beautiful way to honor the new moon is to create an altar. You can ritualize altar creation by following your intuition! You can put anything on your altar that symbolizes newness, openness, and beginnings to you. Here are some ideas:

• A white candle for newness and purity

• Amethyst to connect with your intuition

• Howlite to receive messages from the Universe

• Flowers and plants (gathering these on a meditative walk through your backyard or local park can be a really nice way to connect with this time!)

• New moon card

• Any or all of the aces in the tarot

• Images of goddesses you’d like to work with this month

• Your new moon intention/intentions written on a piece of paper

• Any oracle or tarot cards symbolizing what you want to call in this month

• Any of these herbs: lavender, angelica, blessed thistle

Candle magick ritual

For this ritual, you’ll need:

• A white candle for newness and purity

• An essential oil that corresponds to your intention or a simple oil like grapeseed

• Piece of paper

• Pen

Charge your candle with your energy by rubbing it with the oil of your choice. Write your intention for this cycle on your piece of paper and place it under the candle. As your candle burns, meditate on your intention.You might like to state your intention out loud as the candle burns or chant a mantra that’s meaningful to you—I like to use the Kundalini mantra for manifesting, Ek Ong Kar Sat Gur Prasad.Let the candle burn all the way down, and bury the wax outdoors if you can.You can learn more about candle magick here.

Burning ritual

One simple and powerful ritual to do at the new moon is a burning ritual. Ask yourself: what do I want to release and not carry with me into this new cycle? And what do I want to manifest with this new moon?

Meditate on these questions, or you might try the visualization meditation below.

When you feel ready, write a few words symbolizing what you would like to release on one side of a small piece of paper. On the other side, write a few words symbolizing what you would like to call in.

Burn your paper over your cauldron or fire-safe dish, and as the smoke wafts up to the ceiling or the sky visualize the energy of your desires wafting up into the universe, releasing and calling in at the same time.

Finish with “This or better make its way to me. And so it is.”

Visualization meditation

Spending 10-15 minutes feeling into the energy of your desires can be so powerful at this time. For your meditation, you might like to have amethyst to connect with your intuition and howlite to open yourself up to receive messages from the Universe, or you might like to wear jewelry to open your third eye and crown chakras.

A few mantras you might like to hold in your mind as you visualize receiving what it is you would like to receive are:

• All that I desire is already here.

• Abundance flows to me from the Universe and I receive freely without hesitation.

Allow your mind to wander and your imagination to create your ideal world. Imagine how it feels to be working with the client you want to manifest, to live in the dream home, to have the relationship you desire, whatever it is.

End by thanking the Universe for always supporting you.

You can also try our guided meditations here

Tarot spread

Giving yourself a tarot reading on the New Moon can be a beautiful reset for the cycle ahead. Pull a card for each of the questions below, and allow yourself plenty of time to journal around what comes up for you afterward.

• What wants to come through me this cycle?

• What shadow am I going to be working with this cycle?

• Advice for working with this shadow

• How can I ensure that my New Moon intentions are aligned with my highest good?

• Energies that will support me during this cycle

Below you can find more ideas for New Moon rituals

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The Spiritual Side of Boundary Setting + 4 Steps to Help You Set Boundaries

Many of us, especially women, have been taught to give and give and give without question. Over time, as you probably know, this becomes exhausting and depleting. You might already have strong boundaries, or maybe you’re realizing just now that you really need to set them, but you’re afraid. If you’ve been waiting for a permission slip to create more boundaries in your life, consider this it.

You are a powerful being, and you get to decide what is and is not acceptable to you in your life (if reading that gave you a strong reaction, check out this post for tips to connect with your authentic power). You are allowed to take up space. You are allowed to speak up and stand up for yourself. This is the spiritual work of boundary setting.

Boundaries are an important way of setting the terms for how it is and isn’t okay for other people to interact with you, and on an energetic level, they’re a way of protecting your own energy.

Because spiritual work isn’t all pretty all the time. Sometimes it’s the deep, unglamorous work of digging into the roots of your heart and seeing what you truly need, and then telling people that no, you won’t answer their DMs, or no, you won’t do free work anymore, or no, you can’t hold energetic support for them at this moment because you simply have nothing left to give.

I saw Gabby Bernstein live last year, and during the Q&A portion of the night a woman went up to the mic and told Gabby that she was feeling so spiritual these days— so spiritual, in fact, that all she wanted to do was lock herself in her room and meditate and read spiritual books. She said she was starting to resent her life— her kids, her work, her husband— for taking her out of that.

Gabby said, “Here’s what you don’t yet understand: your life is your spiritual practice.”

That’s always stood out to me. Meditating, ritual, yoga, tarot, all of the things we love— they can all be part of your spiritual practice. But they’re not THE spiritual practice. Your spiritual practice is how you treat people, how you treat yourself, how you move in the world, how you set boundaries.

And since we’re always evolving and growing, our boundaries are always evolving, too.

Scroll down for some tips on how to set clear boundaries.

Figure out what your boundaries are

How do you know which boundaries need to be set? How do you know when a boundary has been violated?

Practice checking in with your feelings. Boundary violations may manifest as making you feel powerless, confused, drained, disassociated, angry, or upset. When you feel that way, take an honest look and ask yourself why?

Did someone treat you in a way that’s unacceptable to you? Did you perform free emotional labor that’s leaving you drained? Are you speaking to yourself in a way that’s hurtful?

Dig in and look at why you may struggle to set boundaries

Try these journaling questions:

• What did I learn as a child about the importance of being liked, going with the flow, and saying yes?

• What did I learn as a child about saying and hearing “no?”

• What am I afraid will happen if I set and stick with clear boundaries?

Open your throat chakra

The state of your throat chakra is heavily associated with your ability to set and communicate clear boundaries. When your throat chakra is blocked, you might be afraid to stand up for yourself and be seen or fear being judged for the boundaries you set. Get seven ways to balance your throat chakra here.

Communicate clearly

Once you’ve done the work in steps 1-3, this step should come more easily. Just remember when you’re communicating your boundaries to stand firm. You can speak your boundaries with love and compassion without apologizing, feeling guilty, or making them feel optional. Be as clear, honest, and direct as you can.

Remember, you have to set that boundary clearly with yourself before you can communicate it to anyone else.

You’ve heard it before but I’ll say it again: saying no creates the space for your big YES to come in—whether that’s relationships with people who treat you well, a job that fulfills your soul, or something else. Setting boundaries aren’t just about saying no, it’s about saying YES to only the things that feel good to you and light your soul up.

What’s your relationship with boundary setting? Now’s a perfect time to take a look!

How to Balance Your Throat Chakra & Know When It's Blocked

When your throat chakra, Visuddha, is balanced, you’re able to speak your authentic truth from a place of love. You set loving and firm boundaries, and stick by them. You’re able to find your voice and share your unique gifts with the world. You trust that what needs to come through you will come, and you don’t get stuck in self-judgment or self-doubt wondering if you should or shouldn’t say something.

So many of us get blocked at our throat chakra. When your throat chakra is blocked, it may show up as:

• Holding back from saying what you’re thinking and feeling

• Not standing up for yourself

• Not having strong boundaries

• Being afraid to be seen for who you are

• Having a sore throat, neck pain, or hoarseness in your throat

• Fear of being judged for what you say

• Having trouble listening to others

• Always needing to have the last word

Scroll down to look through some simple tips for opening your throat chakra.

Featured card from The Ritual Deck

Yoga Poses

Any yoga pose that stretches your throat is going to be really opening for Visuddha. Try one of my favorites below!

Upward-facing dog

Lift your chin and breathe deeply into your throat space. Try holding this pose for a few breaths instead of just flowing through it on your way from plank to downward facing dog.

Heart-to-Earth pose

Try heart-to-earth pose coming onto your chin instead of your forehead. This is a really deep stretch, so have blocks or blankets nearby to help you if you need them!

Camel pose

If your neck is healthy, try releasing your head instead of keeping your chin tucked. Bring your awareness to your breath flowing through your throat, dissolving any blockages.

Crystals

Working with crystals can be a beautiful tonic for your throat chakra. Try laying on your back and placing one of these crystals on your throat, sleeping with them by your pillow, or simply meditating holding one of them in your non-dominant hand.

• Sodalite to help you express yourself, set boundaries, and grow your self-worth and self-esteem

• Celestite to promote peace and soothe anxiety

• Lapis lazuli to help you communicate effectively

Scents

Plants are here for us as medicine, so let’s use them. Pick your favorite essential oil (or two, or three!) from the list below and diffuse it, make a rollerball to use on your skin, or put drops in your bath.

• Jasmine for greater communication

• Clary sage to allow energy to flow more freely through your body

• Cypress for transformation and renewal

• Eucalyptus to promote inner freedom and expansiveness

Work with Tarot Archetypes

Queen of Swords and King of Swords can be your inspiration for opening your throat chakra. The Queen of Swords helps you do the inner work you need to understand why your throat chakra is blocked, and the King of Swords reminds you that you do have something unique to share and that what you have to offer can only come through you.Try this Queen of Swords inspired tarot spread to help you understand why you might be energetically blocked in this area:

• What am I afraid will happen if I speak my truth?

• The wound or shadow underneath this blockage

• Advice for healing this blockage

• Why am I afraid to set boundaries?

• The wound or shadow underneath this blockage

• Advice for healing this blockage

• Mantra for working with the throat chakra

Journal about anything that comes up for you as you pull these cards. Place the Queen of Swords and King of Swords on your altar to remind you to speak your truth.

Meditate

I find that the heart chakra and throat chakra are so connected. If your heart space is closed, you’ll feel disconnected from your truth and not even sure what boundaries need to be set, so how can you speak your truth and set boundaries?

Try coming to a comfortable seat, closing your eyes, and placing one hand on your heart and one hand on your throat. Send your breath to your heart space, simply visualizing it arriving there and filling your entire heart with prana, life force energy.

When your heart feels full, begin to send your breath to your throat. Visualize your breath flooding this area, dissolving any blockages with love. Continue breathing into your throat space for as long as you feel you need.

You can also use this guided meditation to balance your throat chakra

Affirmations & Mantras

The bija mantra for the throat chakra is ham (pronounced “hum”). Try chanting that mantra, silently or out loud (out loud is super powerful!), or work with one of the affirmations below:

• I speak my truth with love

• I set firm boundaries easily

• I clearly state my needs

• My truth is love

• I speak my feelings easily

• I claim and honor my truth

• I release judgment over what I did or didn’t say

Play with Color

The color associated with the throat chakra is blue. Try incorporating this color into your life more! Some ideas to spark your creativity:

• Paint with different shades of blue

• Eat blue foods such as blueberries, blackberries, and plums

• Write in a blue journal with a blue pen

• Light blue candles

• Wear blue clothing

7 Tips for Psychic Protection

Once you open yourself up to working on your psychic abilities you’ll probably notice that you’re more in tune with subtle energies all around you. This is great most of the time but can also be troublesome when it’s negative or unwelcomed energy.

When you’re honing your psychic abilities it’s important that you learn ways to cleanse yourself after challenging psychic work, ground yourself, and protect yourself from unwanted energies.

In fact, you should perform some sort of psychic protection ritual anytime you perform an intuitive or psychic act. Leaving yourself so open may be seen as a welcome mat for negative energy and spirits.

I’m going to share simple and effective techniques with you so you’re able to protect yourself in a way that won’t block you off from all the positive effects of your newfound psychic abilities!

First, let’s cover some clues to know if you’ve ever experienced any negative side effects from doing psychic work. Keep reading for some common signs.

Have you experienced negative side effects from performing psychic work?

It’s true that there are many reasons you could experience the symptoms below. To be sure it was from practicing your psychic abilities, pay attention to your mood and emotional status on days you’ve been performing any psychic work.

• You feel anxious, nervous, or restless like you can’t focus on anything. This may indicate that you need to ground yourself more before practicing psychic work.

• You feel a heavy cloud of negativity for no reason at all that you can’t shake. This could mean that you picked up some negative energy from a lower-level spirit while performing psychic work.

• You feel a wave or attack of pessimistic thoughts about yourself. This might mean you’ve left yourself too open and receptive to others and are experiencing a psychic attack. People can knowingly or unknowingly psychically attack you.

• You’re receiving messages all the time and feel distracted and overwhelmed by them. This indicates that you need to learn techniques to better control when and how you receive psychic information. If you’re empathic, you likely identify with this!

How to protect yourself during psychic work

Shield Meditation

Create a psychic shield around yourself before practicing any psychic work or at the start of each day. If you’re very sensitive to the thoughts and energy of others you’ll find this tool very helpful! One popular meditation shielding technique is a white light meditation.To perform a white light shielding meditation, sit, close your eyes, get comfortable, and begin by focusing on your breath. Imagine your crown chakra (located right above your head) bright, white, and growing bigger with every breath. Next, imagine a cord of light stretching from your crown chakra out of your room, and out into the stars above you. With each inhale imagine light from this cord coming to your crown chakra and with each exhale visualize this white light creating a glowing white shield around your body. Continue this meditation until your shield is complete. You can visualize your shield anytime throughout the day as a reminder that you’re protected.

Crystals

There are a variety of protective stones available to you. The most effective are usually dark or black in color. Try having one near any time you practice psychic work or simply carry one around with you throughout your day for added protection. Here’s a short list of some of the most effective protective stones:

• Fire Agate: This stone is especially helpful at shielding you from negative thoughts from others and psychic attacks.

• Black Tourmaline: This stone is helpful at blocking negative energy of all kinds, it is also very grounding.

• Hematite: This stone is great for protecting and balancing your auric field. It is especially helpful for empaths and psychics who feel other people’s energy.

• Obsidian & snowflake obsidian: This stone does wonders for releasing and letting go of negative thoughts and energy. This stone will come in handy if you’ve picked up negative energy from a darker spirit and you’re having a hard time getting rid of it.

Salt

Cleanse, practice, repeat! Cleansing the energy of yourself and your workspace is key while doing psychic work and salt is a super simple and powerful protector and cleanser. Like I mentioned above, by opening yourself up, you may also be opening yourself up to some lower-level energy.Here are a few ways to use salt as a protective and cleansing tool:

• Create a mixture of salt and water to spray around the perimeter of your home and around yourself.

• You can also just sprinkle some salt around your house, this doesn’t work as well for cleansing yourself though!

• Cleanse your psychic tools (oracle cards, tarot cards, pendulum, etc.) in a bowl of salt (no water for this one!) every once in a while to keep them energetically sound.

• Take a salt bath! This is not only relaxing but will help wash away any negative vibes you’ve picked up.

Recruit the help of your favorite angels, guides & deities

This is a super powerful psychic protection technique that’s often overlooked. Your guides, angels, and beloved deities are always at the ready to help and protect you, but you have to ask! Place a picture or a reminder of some kind of your guides, favorite angles, or respected deities in your workspace, this will serve as a reminder to call upon them for assistance and protection during psychic work.

Ground yourself

One issue with honing your psychic abilities is that you may start to feel flighty and restless like you don’t belong here on the physical plane. Bad news, you’re still needed here and you can’t take off just yet! If you feel like your head is in the clouds call upon the nurturing and protective energy of Gaia after opening yourself up psychically. Click here to check out a previous blog post with lots of tips for getting grounded.

Cleansing Smoke

There are a variety of plants and herbs that can help cleanse your space and yourself. Bonus, some of them smell great too! Giving yourself a quick smoke bath in your favorite cleansing herb is a great way to “wash off” any residual negative energy from something you picked up while out or during a psychic reading. Click here to learn more about making your own cleansing smoke stick and which herbs are best suited for protection.

Prayer, mantra & positive affirmations

Super simple but very powerful, this is another protection technique that is often overlooked. The simple act of taking a few quiet moments to recite a prayer of protection can go a long way. Similar to asking your guides and angels for help, simply speaking it aloud and asking for what you need will help a lot. Here are some suggested mantras and positive affirmation to use during psychic work:

• I am safe and protected.

• I am surrounded by white protective light.

• I open myself up to only the highest beings of love and light.

• My guides and angels are always protecting me.

Try a variety of these tools out to know which ones work best for you. You might find that all seven bring some extra brightness into your day!

You are Psychic! How to Determine What Kind of Psychic Gift You Have

You have psychic abilities. We all do. Some of our psychic gifts are more pronounced than others, but we all have them. The best place to start when it comes to making your psychic gifts more effective is knowing what kind of psychic you are.

The way that we each receive psychic information varies. Just because you don’t see premonitions of the futures does not mean that you’re not psychic! Some of us intuit psychic information through touch, feel, sight, and even smell. Once you determine what kind of psychic you are, you’ll be able to perfect and hone your abilities.

Let’s find out what kind of psychic you are so you can start mastering your psychic abilities! I’ll break down signs to look for each psychic category and a few ways for you to sharpen your skills.

What kind of psychic are you?

As you read through this list, keep in mind that It is entirely possible that you contain gifts from more than just one of these psychic categories. Many of us have two to three that stand out, or, you may have one that is very prominent.

If you haven’t been practicing your psychic abilities you may not be receiving fully formed messages from the other side just yet, and that’s perfectly ok! Determine which of the psychic skills listed below pique your interest, start paying closer attention to that ability in yourself, try out some of the suggested “fine-tuning tips,” and see what happens! If you do have that psychic ability you’ll likely notice that you become more sensitive to it.

A little note: the Latin word “clair” translates to clear, which is why each of the psychic abilities starts the same. I’ve added the English translation to break each one down.

Clairvoyance // Clear Seeing

Clairvoyance is the most commonly referenced of the clairs and is likely one you’ve heard mentioned most often. Don’t be fooled by the term's popularity. It certainly isn’t the most common form of psychic ability!Clairvoyance is the ability to see things before they happen. If you’re clairvoyant, you may have intuitive hits that include seeing visions of future events or having dreams about future events.How to fine-tune your clairvoyant abilities:

• Write down any visions you have so you can cross-reference their accuracy if/when they happen.

• Keep a dream journal.

• Practice third eye meditations often with the help of crystals like amethyst to help open your third eye.

Clairaudience // Clear Hearing

If you fall into the clairaudient category, you’re likely very sensitive to sound and may even get different feelings from sounds. Practiced clairaudients may hear messages from loved ones who have passed on, music from the other side, or hear about the future. If you’ve ever heard voices or music when there are none to be heard you may be clairaudient.How to fine-tune your clairaudient abilities:

• Try sound healing with gongs or singing bowls.

• Keep a journal of how certain sounds make you feel or any messages you hear.

• Practice sound healing meditations often.

Clairsentience // Clear Feeling

If you’re clairsentient, you’re also likely an empath or consider yourself very empathic. Clairsentients can feel the energy of others with ease through their energetic field or aura. You may even have strong feelings about the well-being of plants and animals too. If you’re the type of person that knows that someone is no good immediately upon meeting them, you’re likely clairsentient.How to fine-tune your clairsentient abilities:

• Experience Reiki and consider learning more about Reiki and the auric field.

• Keep a journal to record any intuitive hits you receive about people you come in contact with.

• Practice aura and energy meditations often.

Clairtangency // Clear Touching

Clairtangency is also referred to as psychometry and is the ability to receive intuitive hits from holding different objects. Many people that are clairsentient are also clairtangent, not always, but there are many overlaps between the two. The objects that clairtangents read carry the same energy that clairsentients pick up on. You may receive intuitive hits from holding objects through feeling or visions. Think about the last time you were in an antique store or someone’s home with a lot of older items, how did it feel? If you’ve ever had a strong sense or vision from holding an object, you may be clairtangent.How to fine-tune your clairtangent abilities:

• Keep a journal with any intuitive hits you receive from touch.

• Have friends or family test you by giving you different objects to hold, check with them to see if any intuitive hits you receive are accurate.

• Practice meditations while holding different stones and objects and be aware of how each meditation feels different based on the object.

Claircognizance // Clear Knowing

This psychic ability is a little tougher to pin down and to describe. Claircognizants know things, from either the past or the future, and may not understand why or how they have the information. Unlike clairvoyants, claircognizants may not see a vision, they simply know. If you’ve ever had a strong feeling of knowing something to be true without anyone having told you, you may be claircognizant.How to fine-tune your claircognizant abilities:

• Keep a journal for anything you know all of a sudden, so you can cross-reference it for accuracy later.

• Begin to trust your instincts more rather than questioning them.

• Practice crown chakra and third eye meditations often.

Clairalience // Clear Smelling

Smells are powerful and one of our strongest ties to our memories. Though this psychic ability may seem strange, it’s not surprising that scent can invoke a strong intuitive hit. Seasoned clairaliences receive messages through smells, even if there are no actual smells present. If you’ve ever become overcome with the scent of a loved one that has passed on this not only may indicate that you’re clairalient but that your loved one is nearby.How to fine-tune your clairalient abilities:

• Keep a journal to record any intuitive hits you have that include smell, be sure to include where you were and what you were doing at the time too as this may have something to do with the intuitive hit.

• Surround yourself with scents you enjoy like, herbs, plants, flowers, or essential oils. Record how they make you feel.

• Practice third eye meditations often with the intention set to receive intuitive hits through scent.

Clairgustance // Clear Tasting

Like clairalience, clairgustance involves one of your senses, taste. Not always one of the most pleasant psychic abilities, if you fall into the clairgustance category, you may taste things when you don’t have anything in your mouth. Odd as it may seem, these mystery tastes may be related to intuitive hits. For example, if you’ve ever experienced a familiar taste that took you back to childhood and you weren’t eating anything, you may be clairgustant. How to fine-tune your clairgustant abilities:

• Practice mindful eating to become more in tune with your palette and any feelings you receive from different tastes.

• Keep a journal to record any intuitive hits you receive through taste. Remember, you may not actually be eating anything when you receive a hit of this nature!

• Practice third eye meditations often with the goal in mind to receive intuitive hits through taste.

If you love visuals, below you can find an infographic with some of the psychic abilities that we went through:

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Opening your third eye will help to hone any psychic ability listed above!

How to Open Your Crown Chakra & Know When it’s Blocked

Your crown chakra, known as Sahasrara in Sanskrit, is the highest of the seven chakras in the traditional chakra system. It’s located on the crown of your head and is the center of your connection with the Universe and with your highest self.It’s where you’re able to channel messages from the divine, access higher states of consciousness, and deeply trust the Universe. An open crown chakra helps you connect with something greater than yourself, experience the interconnectedness of all beings, and know that you are truly taken care of by an abundant, loving Universe.When your crown chakra is blocked, it may manifest as:

• Feeling disconnected from the Universe

• Feeling disconnected from magic

• Experiencing loneliness

• Feeling like life is meaningless

• Disconnection from your spiritual side

• Experiencing migraines and headaches

• Strong attachment to material possessions and achievements

If any of those sounds like you, don’t worry. Our chakras are ever fluid, just like us, and they can change from day to day. Scroll down to get eight ways to unblock your crown chakra and experience a connection with the divine.

Slow down

Are you stuck in the “grind?” Waking up, going to work, taking care of all the necessary human things in life but not tending to your inner world?The first thing you can do to open your crown chakra is to simply give it space to breathe by carving out more time in your day to just be. To read a good book, take a salt bath, or take a leisurely walk with the purpose of just experiencing the pleasure of the outdoors rather than getting somewhere.

Do a ritual

Maybe it’s been a while since you sat at your sacred space and made time for magick. That’s okay! Open your crown chakra by doing a ritual that is meaningful to you, or try this simple one.You’ll need:

• Purple candle

• Pen

• Piece of paper

On your paper, write “I connect with the Universe” or a similar phrase. Create a sigil out of the phrase by removing all of the repeating letters and vowels, and connecting the lines together into a symbol.

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Breathe that intention into your sigil. Take a moment to visualize how you will feel when your crown chakra is open and energy is flowing freely.

Then, light your candle, and burn your sigil over it as you continue to focus on your intention. You might like to say, “As I burn this paper, I connect with the Universe.”

You can rewrite your sigil on another page and place it on your altar as an ongoing prayer to the Universe.

Affirmations

The crown chakra is not associated with a bija (seed) mantra like the rest of your chakras. Try meditating on one of the affirmations below instead.

• I am deeply connected with the Universe

• I trust the flow of the Universe

• I am a channel for divine wisdom

• I am a channel for divine light

• I am always open to receiving messages from the Universe

• I am magic

• I am light

• I am a deeply spiritual being

Use scents

Try using one or more of the oils below on your skin, in your bath, or in a diffuser to open Sahasrara:

• Frankincense for tranquility and meditation

• Vetiver to connect with the divine and your own spiritual nature

• Sandalwood to quiet your mind and ego

• Helichrysum to help you access higher spiritual states

• Palo Santo for healing, purification, and opening up to higher spiritual realms (be sure it comes from a sustainable and ethical source)

Learn more about balancing your chakras with aromatherapy and crystals from this past blog post.

Meditate

Find a comfortable seat and lengthen your spine from your tailbone to your crown. Start to breathe deeply, focusing on sending your breath to a white flower at the crown of your head.

As you continue to breathe, visualize this flower blossoming open, opening the crown of your head as a channel to the Universe, letting the bright white light of the divine enter your energy field.

When you feel complete, close with a deep breath in and a long breath out of your mouth.

You can also try one of our guided meditations here.

Crystals

Try working with rutilated quartz, clear quartz, sugilite, selenite, or amethyst to help you open your crown chakra. Meditate with them, place them on your altar or by your pillow while you sleep, and journal with them to see what comes up around what’s blocking your crown chakra.

Yoga poses

As we move up the spine to the higher chakras, they become more affected by meditation than by physical postures. But there are still some yoga poses you can use to open Sahasrara:

Headstand

This pose directly activates your crown chakra. It restores the flow of energy in your body and inverts the flow of blood towards your crown. If you have trouble balancing in headstand, try doing this pose against the wall— you’ll still get the benefits!

Savasana

The most important yoga pose. As you come into savasana, set your intention to open your crown chakra. Then remind yourself that it is safe to relax completely, and release into your savasana.

Half or full lotus pose

Lotus pose helps balance the body and mind, helping you tap into higher consciousness. Find a comfortable seat, and start in half lotus. If you’d like to go deeper, try the full version.

Pray

Send a simple prayer into the Universe: “Please help me connect with you. I am open and willing to receive messages.” Try saying this prayer or a similar prayer that resonates with you each morning when you wake up.

Breaking Down the Yamas & Niyamas

If you’re reading this, you probably already know that there is a lot more to yoga than just asana, or physical postures.

In classical yoga philosophy, we use something called the Patanjali’s eight-fold path for guidance. These eight limbs, or steps, help us reach the state of ecstasy and deep connection with the divine known as samadhi.

Patanjali’s eight-fold path for guidance are:

• Yamas

• Niyamas

• Asana

• Pranayama

• Pratyahara

• Dharana

• Dhyana

• Samadhi

In this blog, I’ll be breaking down the first two limbs: the yamas and the niyamas.

Yamas

The first limb, the yamas, are about personal practices that relate to our interactions with others and to the outer world. They are:

• Ahimsa, nonviolence

• Satya, truthfulness

• Asteya, non-stealing

• Brahmacharya, moderation

• Aparigraha, non-attachment

Ahimsa

This is probably the most well-known of the yamas (you probably know a yoga studio, clothing line, or juice bar named after this one, even if you didn’t know what it meant until now), with good reason.

Ahimsa isn’t just about a lack of violence, it’s about active compassion. To connect with this principle, ask yourself how you can bring more compassion into your relationship with yourself and each interaction with others.

Satya

Satya, truthfulness, speaks to not just honesty but to speaking your personal truth. To me, this principle is super connected to the throat chakra.

What does it feel like when your throat chakra is balanced? When you aren’t afraid to speak your truth, even when it’s uncomfortable? This is satya.

Asteya

Asteya, non-stealing, is about not taking what isn’t ours. This practice isn’t just about stealing physical items. Most of us wouldn’t steal a bracelet or a snack from a store. But what about stealing someone’s ideas? What about when you get extra change at the store or when a teacher you love accidentally registers you for an online course you never paid for? What then?

Coming back to this principle of non-stealing is a guiding light.

Brahmacharya

Brahmacharya is all about moderation, or as I like to think of it, balance. It’s an invitation to develop a self-care practice and most importantly, to remember to feed all parts of yourself.

It’s a reminder to come back to your center. To make space in your life for dancing and meditating, for green juice and French fries, for deep conscious connection and memes—or whatever else looks like balance for you.

Aparigraha

It’s really hard to practice aparigraha. The idea of non-attachment is that it’s none of your business how your work is received. Whatever it is that you put into the world, do it for the joy of creating, for the joy of connecting, for the joy of doing the thing, not for some end result.

We can do this in all areas of our lives: our interactions with our friends, families, and partners, our careers, our passion projects, everything.

Can you experience pleasure and be present in each moment, rather than being attached to what may happen in the future?

Aparigraha also refers to not being possessive or hoarding. It’s an invitation to allow yourself, your possessions, and your relationships to be in a constant state of flow.

Niyamas

The second limb, the niyamas, are about personal practices that relate to our inner world. They are:

• Saucha, purity

• Santosha, contentment

• Tapas, self-discipline

• Svadhyaya, self-study and inner exploration

• Ishvara Pranidhana, surrender to God/Goddess

Saucha

Saucha can refer to the purity of the body, but more importantly, it’s about the purity of mind. This is an invitation to explore your thought patterns and limiting beliefs: What’s holding you back here? What thoughts take up the real estate of your mind, and are they serving you? Do judgment, fear, and lack consume your thoughts?

Saucha asks you to look at what’s really going on in your mind, and heal your thoughts.

Santosha

Santosha is about you—what you have and how you feel about it. It’s an invitation to be happy and content with everything that you have (which is a huge feat in a world that is always encouraging you to be unsatisfied and strive for more).

Think of santosha as embodying more lunar, yin energy: the energy of presence, of being, of contentment.

Tapas

Tapas is self-discipline. What is it that you want in life and are you willing to do what it takes to get there? It’s about showing up for yourself and really doing the work: sending those emails, grinding out that report, finishing your work instead of going to that happy hour.

It’s also about doing the work on yourself, by staying on your healing journey and doing the more physical work like eating healthy, practicing yoga every day, and meditating every day.

When you think of tapas, think of the Chariot in the tarot. This is about pushing forward in service of your greater vision.

Svadhyaya

Svadhyaya is key to your spiritual practice.

Who are you, really? What do you value? What are your deepest desires? What are your greatest fears? What brings you joy and purpose?

This niyama is all about learning about yourself and exploring your inner ocean.

Practices like meditating, journaling, shadow work, astrology, past life regression, and divination can all be part of svadhyaya.

Ishvara Pranidhana

Surrender to the energy of a higher power, whatever that means to you: whether it’s Source, Goddess, the Universe, God, or something else.

Practicing all of the other niyamas will help you get into a state where you are able to surrender to the Universe. Where you trust the constant flow of the Universe and know that it is an abundant and loving place where more magic than you could ever imagine is unfolding all the time.

Purify your mind. Practice gratitude. Do what you can with tapas. Explore your inner oceans. And then, it’s time to lay it all at the feet of the Universe and let magic take over.

5 Simple Summer Solstice Rituals

Litha, or the Summer Solstice, is one of the four solar festivals, celebrating the height of the season. Summer Solstice, of course, celebrates the height of summer: the longest day of the year.

This solstice is about honoring the vibrant, healing energy of the sun. But it’s also about honoring the duality of light and dark as we start to shift into the days getting shorter.

Honoring the sabbats with rituals is a beautiful way to tune into yourself, nature and connect with Mother Earth. You can learn more about honoring each sabbat by reading this past post. Scroll down for five summer solstice rituals to help you celebrate this day! And if you want more ritual ideas you can click here to check out a past post.

Burn Herbs on Your Altar

Fire, naturally, is heavily associated with the summer solstice. One beautiful way to honor this sabbat is to burn herbs on your altar. As you burn them, give thanks for the bounty of Mother Earth and for the healing, vibrant energy of the sun. Some herbs traditionally associated with Litha are:

• Lavender

• Vervain

• Mint

• Basil

• Fennel

• Rosemary

• St. John’s Wort

• Mugwort

• Iris

• Honeysuckle

• Mistletoe

Explore Your Relationship with the Sun Archetype

The sun represents the ego, the self, and the way you shine in the world. Try this five-card tarot spread (you can also use oracle cards if tarot isn’t your thing!) to explore your relationship with your ego and how you show up in the world.

• How is my ego keeping me stuck?

• What is my ego telling me that isn’t true?

• How can I be more visible in the world?

• What blocks me from sharing my gifts with the world?

• My mantra and medicine for working with my ego

Charge Magical Tools in the Sun

At this solstice, the sun is said to be at its most healing and revitalizing. It can be powerful to charge any divination tools in the sun during the day, including (but not limited to!) crystals, tarot and oracle cards, and any talismans you have.

And on that note, don’t forget to get outside and soak up the sun’s powerful rays for yourself! Your magical tools aren’t the only things that can benefit from spending time outside. Lay on the grass and savor the feeling of the sun on your skin.

Meditate

Connect with your inner sun by meditating on your solar plexus chakra. Find a comfortable seat and breathe deeply into your belly. Visualize a golden sun growing brighter and stronger on your solar plexus chakra with each exhale.

You may like to incorporate the bija mantra for the solar plexus chakra, Ram (pronounced RUM), into your meditation by chanting it either mentally or out loud with each exhale.

Make an Altar

Making an altar is a beautiful way to honor Litha. Get creative and make it yours! Some ideas of things you might like to put on your altar are:

• Elderflower

• Any of the herbs from the list above

• The sun tarot card

• Tiger’s eye, goldstone, and/or citrine crystals.

• Summer fruits and vegetables

• Any summer flowers you’d like (try sunflowers if you have them)

• Yellow, orange, and/or red candles

• A mirror

Your altar is the perfect place to meditate, to give thanks to the sun, and to manifest what you want to create in the next 6 months.

To learn more about the different sabbats on the wheel of the year (plus, get a free printable), click here.

The Best Crystals For Each Zodiac Sign

Your astrological sign comes with a variety of good qualities. Your zodiac sign also comes with some, let’s call them, growth opportunities. Working with the right gemstones for your sign will make you feel right at home, honing in on your best qualities while bringing balance to some of your pitfalls.

The gemstones associated with your astrological sign are not the same as your birthstone, though some do overlap. These are all crystals with specific properties to help bring tailored healing for your astrological sun sign. Think of them as your crystal “glass slipper,” they should energetically feel like a perfect fit!

To incorporate these crystals into your daily life, you can place them on your altar or nightstand, carry them in your pocket, or you can wear them. Keep scrolling for a couple of crystal suggestions for each zodiac sign.

Capricorn ♥ Dec 22 - Jan 20

Hardworking Capricorns will feel comfortable and empowered with the aid of grounding stones like these.

Obsidian

This grounding gemstone will make you feel comfortable and at home with Capricorn being an Earth sign. If you’re overworked, like Capricorns often are, obsidian can help strengthen your energy and auric field, bringing you back to balance.

Hematite

Many responsible Capricorns find themselves in management and leadership roles. If you’re one of these lucky Capricorns, hematite is here to help! Hematite is a powerful stone for shielding yourself from negative energy so you can stand your ground and shield your energy.

Aquarius ♥ Jan 21 - Feb 19

Airy Aquarians can find balance with mentally clarifying stones.

Garnet

This stone is the ultimate balancing gemstone for air signs like Aquarius. If you’re an independent and sometimes temperamental Aquarius, garnet can bring you some much-needed stability.

Labradorite

Aquarians tend to have very active minds, always thinking ahead and trying to figure things out. Let labradorite hone your mental chatter so you can put it to better use. Labradorite can help your psychic abilities while stifling some of your negative traits.

Pisces ♥ Feb 20 - Mar 20

Intuitive Pisces will find a needed mental escape with these healing gemstones.

Amethyst

This sign is susceptible to taking on the woes and sadness of others. Retreat to the healing power of amethyst to transmute your sadness into love.

Fluorite

Escape your Earthly troubles with this stone. If you’re a Pisces, you may feel a desire to escape reality, or like you don’t belong here, fluorite can give you a safe place to relax and temporarily withdraw too.

Aries ♥ Mar 21 - Apr 19

Fiery Aries always on the go will find much-needed recharge in these stones.

Red Jasper

Aries can be quick to anger, but red jasper is here to help! The grounding and protective energy of this stone can help quench your temper before you react to a situation.

Ruby

This stone has intense energy and is perfect for a quick recharge. Aries tend to be continually going and love a good physical challenge. If you’ve overdone it and need a boost, ruby can help with this too.

Taurus ♥ Apr 20 - May 20

Practical Taurus will find flexibility and motivation with these stones.

Jade

Taurus signs are masters at completing their goals, and jade will make it even easier! Jade offers support for moving through challenges, tasks, and accomplishing your dreams. This stone will amplify your best traits, making attaining your desires a breeze.

Amber

Sometimes stubborn Taurus signs can find balance with this stone. Amber is excellent for releasing negativity and finding more flexibility in their unmovable personalities. This stone is also great for manifesting, which is a favorite hobby of Taurus signs.

Gemini ♥ May 21 - June 21

Gentle Gemini signs will find balance in the duality of their personalities with these stones.

Agate

If you’re feeling unstable or nervous from your dueling personality traits, agate can bring you a needed self-confidence boost and a sense of stability.

Sapphire

This stone can help you find focus if your mind is flipping back and forth. If you’re feeling indecisive about something, as Gemini’s often do, sapphire can help you follow through with decision making.

Cancer ♥ Jun 22 - Jul 23

Emotional and imaginative Cancer signs will be able to get their water fix with these stones.

Moonstone

Cancer is ruled by the moon and is also a water sign, making moonstone an ideal fit. Moonstone has a special relationship with both the moon and water. Moonstone can help you get in touch with the best parts of your personality. If you’re feeling insecure, like many Cancer signs can, this stone is also very nurturing.

Abalone

Cancer’s often long for the water. Even though Abalone isn't a true crystal, it's often found used in jewelry or as an altar tool. If you’re feeling called to the ocean but are landlocked, abalone can offer some serious water vibes to help you get your fix.

Leo ♥ Jul 24 - Aug 23

Sunny Leo will feel right at home with these radiant stones!

Carnelian

Though Leo’s are loved by many, this can make them lazy. If everything has come easily to you and you don’t feel like trying when the going gets tough, carnelian can give you the boost you need.

Sunstone

Let your best qualities shine brightly with this cheerful stone. Leo is ruled by the Sun and a fire sign, so this gemstone will help bring out all of your best qualities. This is also an excellent stone for Leo’s that happen to live in a cloudy or cold climate.

Virgo ♥ Aug 24 - Sept 22

Kind and cautious Virgo’s can find the confidence they need to speak their truth with these stones.

Blue Topaz

Earthy Virgo’s can have a difficult time connecting to their higher-self. Blue Topaz can help you tune into higher realms and boost your confidence in this area. Taking a less practical path might give you the perspective you need!

Amazonite

If you’ve found yourself consumed by worry or overthinking a situation, as Virgos tend to do, amazonite can help you separate your emotions from the situation so you can gain a sense of clarity.

Libra ♥ Sept 23 - Oct 22

Peace-seeking Libra will find just that in these gemstones.

Peridot

Libra loves to be in relationships but hates conflict. Unfortunately, conflict will show up at some point even in the best of relationships. This master heart healer will help you stay balanced and help you release grudges more easily.

Bloodstone

Libra is an air sign, so grounding energy is always a bonus! Bloodstone will not only help you stay grounded but help you keep your emotions balanced as well

Scorpio ♥ Oct 23-Nov 22

Passionate and intense Scorpio's will find a sea of respite and love in these crystals.

Aquamarine

Scorpio’s can come across as very assertive, which is an excellent quality in leadership roles but might sometimes need tempering when dealing with friends and family. As a water sign, you’ll find aquamarine to be soothing and cooling to your intensities. Aquamarine is also masterful at stabilizing fear and anger.

Rhodochrosite

Scorpio’s have strong emotions that can sometimes be expressed as jealousy and an unwillingness to trust others. This gemstone can balance your powerful feelings and help you understand and accept the actions of others more readily.

Sagittarius ♥ Nov 23 - Dec 21

Positive Sagittarius signs will find needed protection and communication aid in these stones.

Turquoise

Sagittarius loves adventure. Don’t forget to bring some energetic protection along with you as you’re traveling the world. Turquoise is a powerful stone of protection that can also help keep your throat chakra in check.

Lapis Lazuli

Though Sagittarius leans towards optimism, they are fire signs. If you’ve been known to sling some hurtful words at your loved ones, this stone can help balance and restore your throat chakra for optimal communication.These are just some of the stones that will benefit each zodiac sign. Want to find more crystals to balance your zodiac sign? The best way to find more gemstones for your sun or moon sign is to research your signs. Check out blog posts dedicated to each zodiac sign here.

What is the Earth Star Chakra & How to Connect to It

I know, throwing a new chakra into the mix of the familiar seven may be pretty surprising! Now, to fully blow your mind, you actually have three celestial chakras in your etheric body as well, and a slew of minor chakras throughout your body.

Today, I’ll share tips for connecting to your earth star chakra. Don’t worry, I’ll dig into all of the others in a future blog post.

What is the Earth Star Chakra?

Your earth star chakra is not a part of your physical body like the other seven chakras. It’s actually located below your feet and makes up part of your etheric body. It connects directly to the core of the earth and to Gaia.

The earth star chakra is sometimes referred to as one of the “new chakras” or “subpersonal chakras.” Think of your earth star chakra as a high-performance root chakra! Learn more about the root chakra here.

The earth star chakra differentiates from your root chakra in a few ways:

• It is the grounding point for your entire chakra system and etheric body.

• It connects you to not only the earth but the whole of humanity as well.

• Some believe it is connected to our past lives too.

Why should you connect with your earth star chakra?

How much time do you spend inside using technology? If you’re like most humans today much of your time is spent doing these very things.If you’re anxiety-prone or lean on the airy side of the four elements, the earth star chakra is your new bestie. Developing a strong connection to this chakra can give you an unshakable feeling of being grounded. Here are a few benefits of deepening your connection to this chakra:

• A greater awareness of nature and a stronger connection to mother earth.

• Intuitively know how to help heal the earth.

• A strong feeling of being grounded and safe.

• A healthier root chakra.

• Easily dispel negative energy you may pick up throughout your day. The earth star chakra is especially great for healers.

• Because this chakra is connected to the energy of the earth you can easily pull energy from this chakra on days you need a boost.

Sounds nice, right? Keep reading for some tips on how to connect more deeply with your earth star chakra.

Ways to Connect to Your Earth Star Chakra

Meditation

The best way to connect with this chakra is through meditation. The next time you sit down to meditate try this visualization: imagine a cord coming from the sky, going through your body, connecting to each of your seven chakras, finally connecting to your earth star chakra about 8 to 12 inches below you, and then imagine the cord going through each layer of the earth until it reaches the core of the earth. Imagine this cord anchoring into the core of the earth so you have an unshakable grounding effect.

You can also try visualizing the color of this chakra creating a bubble around you. There’s some debate over what the color of the earth star chakra is. Many say it’s brown or black (representing the core of the earth), while others say it’s aqua (representing all the water on the earth’s surface). Personally, I feel that my earth star chakra radiates a very dark reddish-brown hue, but I suggest meditating and deciding what feels true to you.

Earthing

Earthing is direct skin contact with the earth. Of course, doing this with a conscious effort in mind of connecting with your earth star chakra will be best! Try meditating while sitting outside, or simply spending some extra time walking in nature (preferably barefoot), thinking about your connection to your earth star chakra.

Crystals

Black kyanite is the most highly recommended stone to use for connecting with your earth star chakra. Any dark earthy stones like onyx, black tourmaline, black or snowflake obsidian, and red or green jasper can assist you. If you fall into the category of having an aqua-colored earth star chakra, some recommend an aqua aura quartz.

Ask

If you’re just learning about this chakra now it’s likely that it’s been a bit neglected. No worries though, it’s never too late to start and you’re certainly not alone! The simple act of asking to be connected to this newly found chakra can go a long way. Try asking during meditation or while spending time in nature.

Tapping into this chakra can have a powerful effect on your own well-being and our world. Imagine the world we’d live in if everyone was more in tune with mother earth!

Yoga for the 4 Elements

Fire, water, earth, and air are the four elements of the Universe. They make up all that is, everything we see around us, and everything we are.

None of them are either good or bad, and they each have specific, different properties.

Fire, associated with your solar plexus chakra, is connected with passion and inspiration. Water, associated with your sacral chakra, is all about emotion and intuition. Air, associated with your heart and throat chakras, is about communication. Earth, associated with your root chakra, is connected with grounding and stability.

There are many different ways to connect with and balance the four elements in your body and life: eating certain foods, meditation, visualization, spending time with the elements in nature, such as the ocean, connecting with crystals associated with each element, and more.

But one of my favorite ways to connect with the elements is through using yoga.

There are two ways to use yoga for the elements:

1. To create more of an element you desire.

• For example, if you want to feel more grounded you’ll want to connect with the Earth. If you want to stimulate your creativity or get out of your comfort zone, you’ll want to connect with fire.

2. To balance an element you feel you have too much of.

• For example, if you’re feeling overly emotional, you may want to balance the water element by working with its opposite, fire. If you’re feeling materialistic or too stuck in your ways you’ll want to balance the Earth element by working with its opposite, air.

Scroll down to get ideas for different styles of yoga, poses, and some breathwork to connect with each of the four elements of the universe.

Yoga for Fire

To connect with the element of fire, you’ll want to do a power or vinyasa-style yoga flow focused on stimulating your core, where your solar plexus resides.

Suraya Namaskar. For a fire practice, you’ll want to start off with a series of sun salutations. There are several different variations, but I recommend this one:

• Mountain pose at the top of your mat

• Arms lifted over head

• Hand to foot pose

• High lunge on your left side

• Plank pose

• Chaturanga

• Upward-facing dog

• Downward-facing dog

• High lunge on your right side

• Hand to foot pose

• Arms lifted over head

• Mountain pose

That’s one sequence. Do as many as you’d like! And remember that you can always modify your high lunge by lowering your back knee for a less intense version.

Plank pose. Nothing lights a fire in your belly like a plank pose. Try keeping a slight micro bend in your elbow and lifting from the back of your heart space so you really get into your belly.

Boat pose. There are two variations you can take: knees bent (gentler) or legs straight. Try starting with your knees bent and then straighten your legs after a few breaths if you feel strong and steady.

Chair pose. In this pose, tuck your tailbone and really focus on your core. Bring your awareness to those muscles, and see how the posture changes for you. If you feel like adding a little detoxifying in, take a twisted chair variation.

Agni Sara pranayama. You’ll look weird, but you’ll literally feel yourself getting hot. Start in a standing position with your knees gently bent and your hands on your knees. As you inhale, fill your belly with breath. As you exhale, draw in your lower and upper core muscles, hollowing out your stomach.

Yoga for Water

A hip-opening slow-flow style yoga practice will connect you with the element of water. As you move through each pose, imagine that you are moving through water. What would that feel like? What would that look like?

Low crescent lunge. Keep your back knee lowered to keep this pose a little more gentle, and work on finding a little more balance in your hips. If you’re lunging on the left side, try pulling your left hip back and right hip forward to get you there.

Incorporating a mudra into this pose can be really nice, too. Try flowing through Padma, or Lotus, mudra by bringing your hands to lotus mudra at the heart center, inhaling to lift your hands overhead, and exhaling to cascade your arms down and back to your heart center.

Lizard pose. Time to really get into the hips. Be gentle with your body here and use props like blocks or a bolster as needed! Ask yourself: what do I need to feel good in this pose? And listen to your body’s wisdom.

Child’s pose into cobra flow. Start in child’s pose with your legs parallel instead of knees wide. As you inhale, shift all the way forward onto your belly and into cobra pose. Your exhale brings you back to the child’s pose. Keep flowing with your breath, trying to move as slowly and mindfully as possible.

Wide-legged forward fold. Start standing with your legs wide and hangs to your hips. Inhale to open your chest, and exhale to fold, releasing your palms to your mat, ankles, or to a yogi toe hold. After a few breaths here, you might like to add in a side body stretch by walking both hands to the left side of your mat, and then to the right side.

Reclining cobbler’s pose. Bring one palm to the heart and one palm to the belly, and visualize your breath flowing up and down your spine like water with each inhale and exhale. Connect with your heart space and notice any places that your breath feels shallow or stuck. See if you can make your breath deep, smooth, and fluid.

Yoga for Earth

A grounding yin yoga practice will connect you with the Earth. As you settle in each pose, notice the Earth below you. Notice how it grounds you, supports you, and nurtures you. Spend at least five minutes in each of these poses, connecting with your breath.

Malasana seated on a block. As you sit in a yogi squat with your palms at the heart center, visualize your breath running all the way down your spine and out your tailbone, grounding you and rooting you to the Earth a little bit deeper with each inhale.

Caterpillar pose. Place a block on your thighs at whatever height you need to allow your body to completely relax and round forward over your legs. Instead of trying to stretch your hands to meet your feet, let them fall to your sides wherever they naturally do.

Half frog variation on belly. This is one of my favorite poses. Lying on your belly, turn onto your right cheek and stretch your arms out to a T. Bend your left knee and open your hip out to your left side. Take five minutes on this side, and then switch to your right side.

Thread the needle. Try to completely relax through the hips, spine, and shoulders here as you rest on your shoulder and head. For the gentlest variation, walk your other arm out in front of you and release it completely to your mat. You also have the option to wrap that arm around the lower back for a gentle bind. Just find what feels good for you, and return to your breath.

Seated straddle. Sit up on a block for extra support as you take your legs wide. First turn your torso to your left leg and round your spine over that leg, bringing your forehead to a block or to your knee. Then turn to your right leg, and then walk your palms out in front of you and round in the center.

Yoga for Air

A heart-opening, throat-opening Hatha flow style yoga practice will connect you with the element of Air. As you move through these poses, visualize green light beaming out of your heart chakra, opening you up to a flow of unconditional love, and blue light beaming out of your throat chakra, opening you up to speak your truth freely.

Camel pose. Camel pose opens up both of these chakras beautifully when you allow your neck to drop back. Focus on pressing your pelvis forward and opening the front side of your body rather than bending your back body. Breathe into your heart space, and see that green wheel of energy softening, opening, and expanding.

Bow pose. Bow pose opens both your throat and your heart chakras as well. Notice how your breath sinks you lower onto your mat with each inhale and takes you deeper into the pose with each exhale.

Upward-facing dog. Open your throat chakra with the upward-facing dog. You can try it as part of a flow from plank to chaturanga to upward-facing dog to downward-facing dog to really connect with the element of air.

Heart bench. Set up your blocks on whatever setting feels best for you, and make the block supporting your head lower than the block running along your spine for extra throat chakra opening.

Plow pose. Skip this one if you have any back or neck problems. But if not, it’s a beautiful opener for your throat, heart, and solar plexus (bonus!) chakras. Start with the legs straight behind you (and if you can’t reach your toes to the floor, try reaching them to a chair or another piece of furniture behind you), and feel free to bend your legs around your head as you get deeper into the pose.

Which element do you need to balance or call in more of right now?

The Importance of Sacred Space & How to Create One

I think of sacred space as being very root chakra related. A sacred space feels like home. It feels safe to do your most vulnerable work and have your deepest breakthroughs there. It feels safe to put your worries, your fears, your joys, your disappointments, everything that you have and are on the altar there.

The best part is that you don’t need anyone to hold this sacred space for you. You can hold it for yourself.

What is it, exactly? It’s any space that you set aside as sacred or holy. It’s a place where you can meditate, do magic and ritual, and connect to your highest self. This might look like an altar, or it might not. If you are interested in creating your own sacred altar, check out this blog post.

Your space is personal and unique to you. This blog post is all about creating sacred space in your home, but remember that you are sacred, too, and any space you hold for yourself can be a sacred space. Divinity doesn’t have to be experienced just at your altar.

With that being said, here are a few ideas for things you might like to include in your sacred space:

A Window

Having your sacred space by a window can be a beautiful way to connect with nature even from the inside. See the sun, the stars, and feel the breeze right in your space.

A Moon Calendar

Connecting with the phases of the moon can help anchor you and connect you with nature. Having a moon calendar (and moon ritual cards) in your sacred space where you do rituals and other healing practices that you might base around moon cycles is ideal.

Crystals

Crystals can raise the frequency of your space and bring in specific energies you want to work with. The options are endless, but some crystals you might like to have in your sacred space are:

• Amethyst to help you connect with your intuition and boost your mood

• Clear quartz (the ultimate crystal!), the ultimate healer, balancer, manifestor, and energy amplifier

• Rose quartz for heart opening

• Labradorite for self-discovery

• Citrine to bring in energizing and creative energy

• Fluorite to cleanse your aura and draw off negative energy

• Obsidian or black tourmaline for grounding

• Selenite to access higher guidance and open your crown chakra

Candles

Candles and their colors have all different types of uses. You can use them in spell work, rituals, burning ceremonies, or just to bring some soft light into your space. Here are some different candle color meanings (source):

• Blue for harmony, peace, and tranquility

• Red for passion and action

• White for purifying, cleansing, and clarity

• Purple for psychic abilities and spiritual awakening

• Yellow for inspiration and creativity

• Orange for energizing, joy, and success

• Pink for love, compassion, and forgiveness

• Green for nature, growth, and fertility

• Brown for grounding, Earthy energy

Learn more about candle magick here.

A Feather

You can use your feather to direct the flow of smoke when cleansing with a smoke wand or herb. For example, when cleansing yourself you might want to circle the smoke around the top of your head or other parts of your body. A feather will help you do that!

Plants & Herbs

Plants and herbs have so many practical and magickal uses. You can use herbs in your sacred space for burning or tea-drinking, and you might like to also have dried or fresh flowers, or other plants that you feel connected to.Learn more about herbal magick here.

Essential Oils

Like plants and herbs, essential oils also have many practical and magickal uses. Use them in your sacred space for ritual, to anoint your candles, to assist in meditation, or to massage your body. Some go-tos you might like to have are:

• Geranium oil for self-love

• Juniper for protection and purification

• Cilantro oil for releasing negative energy

• Lavender oil for peace and healing

• Frankincense and myrrh oil for meditation

• Yarrow oil to connect with your psychic abilities

Tarot or Oracle Decks

Your sacred space is the perfect place to keep any divination tools you use such as tarot cards, oracle cards, or runes. Display the card or rune you’re working with at the moment on your altar as a visual reminder of the energy you’re working to create, or the intentions you’re working to manifest.

Visual Representations of Goddesses You’re Working With

This could be a printed photo, a statue, an oracle card, a painting, or another creative representation that resonates with you. Everyone’s needs are different, so choose a goddess that you feel drawn to work with. That likely means that she has a message for you.

Salt Lamp

Salt has been touted for its magical properties for a long time. Practically, having a salt lamp in your space releases negative ions (which actually make you feel good, despite the name!) and detoxifies the air. But magically, salt also purifies and protects against psychic attacks. If you don’t want to go for a lamp, you can also opt for a small bowl of sea salt.

Additional Representations of the Four Elements

You don’t actually need additional representations of the four elements (fire, earth, water, and air), since you likely already have them on your altar. But feel free to add any other elements to your space that you’d like, such as a bowl of water.

Learn more about the four elements here.

Any Sacred Possessions

Anything that feels sacred and holds special meaning to you, even if it doesn’t make sense to anyone else, can also go in your sacred space. Maybe it’s photographs, special objects, or mementos. Whatever it is, feel free to add it.

You can customize your sacred space or altar depending on where you are in life and what you’re trying to manifest. For example, you might create an abundance altar centered around money, photos of abundance goddesses like Lakshmi, tarot cards like the 10 of pentacles, and herbs or spices that promote abundance when you want to manifest material wealth.

The most important thing to remember is that this space is for you. All of the above are just options and suggestions. Create a space that feels sacred to you, and you will have created a sacred space.

The Only 3 Love Spells You’ll Ever Need

“Love and compassion are necessities, not luxuries. Without them humanity cannot survive.” -Dalai Lama

You not only want love, you need love. Love and compassion are like air for sensitive souls like you and me. If you’re anything like me, you probably grew up craving love and affection, and not getting it could be truly painful. Being highly sensitive makes us uniquely vulnerable to our emotions and the emotions of others. The cure, potent and honest love.

So, what does magick have to do with this?

As above, so below. As within, so without. Not surprisingly, the key to finding love in your life manifests from learning how to love yourself truly and fully. Any true magick practitioner will tell you that it’s not only inadvisable but probably won’t work to use magick to lure another to you, friend or lover. The true purpose of magick is self-development and intention setting, not casting spells to bend the wills of others.

This idea is best illustrated by this excerpt from Lisa Chamberlain from her book Wicca Candle Magic:

This phrase [as above, so below] is also known, as the Hermetic Law ofcorrespondence, which states that whatever is true in the microcosm (i.e., the Earth) istrue in the macrocosm (i.e., the Universe in total). Another way to say it is hat theethereal plane (also called the “higher” or “spiritual” plane) is a mirror of the seen,physical plane (also called the “lower” or “material” plane), and vice versa. In order tomake a change on the material plane, magic works by changing the spiritual plane. Thechange then works its way through the linear time and physical space of the materialplane until it manifests. (19-20)

By changing your internal frequency to complete and total self-love you’ll become a magnet for love.

With the constant signals, we can receive from social media and the like, building a solid self-love practice requires regular attention. This is why spellwork and ritual are such powerful tools for bolstering your self-love practice.

I created three love spells just for you based on my own experience with magickal tools, rituals, and learning to love myself. It seems that these are the three topics that have come up the most for me and I hope you find them applicable too. Let’s jump into the three love spell you’ll ever need!

The only 3 love spells you’ll ever need:

Pink candles and rose quartz are used for each of the spells as they’re pillars of self-love. If you don’t have some of the suggested tools for the specific spells you can certainly just use rose quartz and a pink candle.

Each of these spells can be used in a variety of ways. You can place the items on a nightstand, altar, or other visible space in the home. You can put the stones and herbs into a bag to carry around with you throughout the day. Do what feels right to you.

I love my body spell

You’ll need:

• Pink candle

• Rose quartz

• Picture of the Goddess Amaterasu and/or Aphrodite

• A mirror

• Garnet to help you see the beauty in yourself

• Rose petals, rose water, or roses for realizing beauty and self-love

• Jasmine essential oil or incense to inspire sensuality

Spell steps:

Find a quiet space to arrange your items and light your candle. Looking into the mirror, say loving things about your body. Here are some suggestions: I love my body. I am beautiful. My body is perfect just as it is. I am grateful for my beautiful body. Take as much time as you need saying these loving statements to yourself. You may decide to meditate on the love and gratitude you have for your body as the candle burns. Thank yourself for taking the time to offer yourself this love and blow out your candle. Keep your items up as a reminder as long as you’d like.

I love my journey spell

You’ll need:

• Pink candle

• Gold candle for inner strength and to inspire self-realization

• Rose quartz

• Agate to bring you soothing strength

• Rhodochrosite to inspire a loving positive attitude

• Lavender essential oil, incense, or dried lavender will do for bringing calming love and peace

Spell steps:

Find a quiet space to arrange your items and light your candles. Holding all three stones meditate on your life's journey up to this point. As the candles burn think or meditate about your life, the challenges, the high points, and the low points. Look at all aspects of your life without judgment, simply be an observer. Think about three things you’re grateful for that have happened in your life and say them out loud. Say positive affirmations about your journey aloud, here are some examples: I trust my journey, I love my life, My challenges strengthen me, I am open to learning from this life, I trust that I am right where I’m supposed to be. Spend as much time as you’d like in quiet reflecting. Thank yourself for taking the time to offer yourself this love and blow out your candles. Keep your items up as a reminder as long as you’d like.

I love my mind spell

You’ll need:

• Pink candle

• Indigo candle for soothing emotions and bolstering your intuition and clarity

• Rose quartz

• Amethyst to soothe the mind

• Rhodonite to balance emotions and help heal past wounds

• Clove for banishing negative thought patterns

Spell steps:

Find a quiet space to arrange your items and light your candles. Lie down and place an amethyst on your third eye and the rhodonite on your heart center. Imagine your third eye chakra (purple) and heart chakra (green) glowing and swirling brighter and stronger with every breath you take. Aloud or in your mind repeat loving affirmations about your mind, here are some suggestions: I love my mind, my mind is calm and peaceful, I choose to let go of negative thought patterns that no longer serve me, when negative thoughts come up I choose to surround them with love, I speak to myself with love and compassion. Stay in this space as long as you need to. Thank yourself for taking the time to offer yourself this love and blow out your candle. Keep your items up as a reminder as long as you’d like.

Like all spellwork, you’re the creator. Do what feels right and what rings true for you. Feel free to amend or modify any of my tips and make these spells truly your own. You cannot choose wrong. Enjoy and love yourself first, always.

5 Amazing Things You Didn't Know About Amethyst

If you’re reading this then it’s safe to say you probably have some amethyst somewhere in your home. Amethyst is one of the most popular gemstones and for good reasons--it’s sturdy, beautiful, fairly easy to come by, and, energetically speaking, it comes with a slew of benefits.

Thirsty for more amethyst knowledge and uses? After doing loads of research about this purple powerhouse, I came across five amazing things about amethyst that I thought you should know, some are quite surprising! Read on to learn all five.

Your citrine was most likely an amethyst

Did you know that baking amethyst at 850°F for a certain amount of time will turn it into a golden yellow color? Amethyst is pretty amazing, but color-changing abilities too?! Most citrine on the market today was born from heat-treated amethyst. (It’s still up for debate whether or not this heat-treated citrine has the same metaphysical benefits.)

As far as the heat-treated citrine debate goes, some believe it’s all about your thoughts and intentions and some say it’s definitely not the same. Personally, I find that real citrine has a more powerful vibration to it, and feel that heat-treated citrine has a similar but slightly weaker vibe. Heat-treated citrine is also much more affordable and easy to find. I definitely don’t recommend throwing out all of your citrine! Sit with some of each and see what you think.

Here are some simple ways to determine whether or not your citrine is natural or was amethyst in a past life:

• Golden orange yellow rather than a pale yellow.

• Just golden yellow at the top part of the crystal with white at the bottom.

• Fragile and pointed shape. Heat-treated citrine breaks apart faster.

Amethyst likes to buddy up

Amethyst joins up with other crystals naturally within Mother Earth for some seriously magical combinations. Meet ametrine and super 7!

Ametrine hails from Bolivia and is a naturally occurring combination of amethyst and citrine. It creates a pretty dreamy combo. Metaphysically speaking, ametrine carries the healing benefits of both amethyst and citrine. Ametrine can be difficult to come by and heat-treated lookalikes are out there too.

Super 7, also called melody stone, comes from Brazil and has a little bit more going on than ametrine. It’s comprised of 7 different gemstones all in one! Super 7 is a combination of, you guessed it, amethyst, quartz, smoky quartz, cacoxenite, rutile, and lepidocrocite.

With so much going on super 7 comes with several benefits. Some, to name a few, are:

• Grounding and uplifting

• Balances all chakras

• Self-cleaning

• Connects you with your higher self

Recruit amethyst for your tiebreaker

On the fence about a decision? You’ve weighed all the pros and cons but just can’t decide? Amethyst is here to help! Amethyst and your third eye are besties. Your third eye aids in intuition, connecting to your higher self, and taming your busy mind. Amethyst can help to gently soothe the third eye, lull busy thoughts, and can help clarify decision making.

Here are a couple of ways to recruit amethyst as your decision referee:

• Meditate while lying down and place a piece of amethyst on your third eye. As you meditate ask for clarity about the decision you need to make.

• Place a piece of amethyst on your nightstand. Before you go to bed focus on your decision and ask for clarity to come to you in your sleep.

Boost your mood with negative ions

Amethyst won’t release these negative ions on its own, but, by heating it in the sun, an oven (not too high though, don’t want it to turn into citrine!), or from the heat of your own body it is said to release negative ions.

Don’t be fooled by the name, negative ions aren’t negative at all and some believe can help boost your mood. Similar to salt lamps, amethyst is said to release negative ions too. Not quite as much as a salt lamp, but some, nonetheless.

Negative ions are found naturally at waterfalls, beaches, and mountains. This is why some people believe visiting these types of places can put you in such a good mood. Among other positive side effects, negative ions are reported to help increase your energy and improve your mood.

The possible benefits of negative ions are still being studied, and though many people claim they work, the jury is still out in the science community.

Fend off bad vibes

Often touted for its intuitive enhancing abilities, amethyst is also a powerful shield against negative energy. Energetically, amethyst is a potent aid in handling negative vibes, it doesn’t just block them and is said to transmute them into good energy. Here’s an excerpt from The Crystal Bible by Judy Hall where she explains this:

Amethyst is an extremely powerful and protective stone with high spiritual vibration. Itguards against psychic attack, transmuting the energy into love. A natural tranquilizer,Amethyst blocks geopathic stress and negative environmental energies.

Now that you’re an amethyst genius, I hope you’ll take advantage of some of its amazing abilities!

7 Self-Love Rituals for Valentine’s Day

It’s that time of year where everything is about love, but the most important thing you can remember about love is this: Love is not outside of you.

Love is within you. Love is your divine nature.

It’s easy to forget that, but it’s true. The rituals below will help you connect to the love already within you, and most importantly give it to yourself.

For all of these rituals, you might like to incorporate:

• Rose quartz, to open your heart chakra

• Clear quartz, to amplify the energy

• Myrrh incense, a healing scent associated with feminine energy, the moon, and the water element

Try just one of these rituals, or try them all throughout the month. Each of these rituals will be more powerful the more you do them, so find one you like and make it part of your routine this month.

Create Something

Nothing gets the energy of love flowing like creativity. Do a coloring meditation, make a vision board, cook a nourishing meal, write a poem, paint with watercolors, play an instrument, or create your own yoga flow.

Whatever you’d like to do, create a sacred space and tap into your creative energy.

Get this coloring page here

Here's also a fun idea for a self-love ritual where you can play with your creativity:

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A post shared by Cassie Uhl (@cassieuhl)

Tarot or Oracle Card Spread

Tarot and oracle cards are amazing magical tools for self-reflection and connecting with your intuition. Try this three-card spread with your favorite deck:

1. What is holding me back from loving myself right now?

2. What might I experience if I give myself the love I desire?

3. How can I deepen my love for myself?

Don't know how to get started? Check out this blog post for tarot, or this post for the ultimate tarot guide. If you feel called to try oracle cards check out this blog post.

Burning Ceremony

What holds you back from loving yourself more? What limiting beliefs do you hold onto that keep you small? What things about yourself do you struggle to love? What parts of yourself do you hide from yourself and from the world because deep down you believe in their unworthiness?

Get quiet, get your journal, and allow a stream-of-consciousness type of writing to flow until you feel like you’ve got it all out on the page.

Once you’ve poured your heart out, light a single white candle and hold your paper over the flame. Allow the negative energy, limiting beliefs, and your dislike for any part of yourself to burn up with the page.

Then, free-write to these questions: What do I love about myself? What is amazing about me? What am I grateful for? What parts of myself am I working on loving?

When you’re done, place this page on your altar and return to it anytime you feel those sticky, negative beliefs trying to creep back in.

Write a Self-Love Mantra

Writing your own self-love mantra is incredibly powerful because while there are many beautiful affirmations and mantras for self-love, you are unique and your journey with self-love is unique.

Write your own mantra that tells you exactly what you need to hear. Something kind, nonjudgmental, and compassionate that you might say to your sister or your best friend to let them know that you love them and they’re not alone.

Say it to yourself.

Write it on your mirror, on a piece of paper to tuck in your bag or place on your altar, or paint it in a picture (see ritual #1!), and return to it whenever you need it. Learn more about embracing the power of mantras here.

Heart Chakra Meditation

Inhale deeply into your heart chakra. Exhale out of your mouth, releasing all that doesn’t serve you. As you inhale, visualize a bud of green light glowing in your chest, blossoming bigger and brighter with each inhale as you strengthen this chakra. Allow the unconditional love to wash over you with your breath. If you'd like a guided meditation, you can click here for a meditation bundle done by me.

Herbal Bath for Self-Love

Turn bath into a ritual by using herbs, lighting candles, and playing whatever music or sounds help you relax and turn inward.

Try using rose-hips, lavender, elecampane, and balm of gilead to promote self-love. Rose-hips promote healing, compassion, and self-love. Lavender balances and calms while elecampane opens the heart chakra. Balm of gilead promotes love and helps you manifest your desires.

Simply fill a muslin bag with about a third of a cup of the herbs, loop the bundle onto the faucet, and let your tub fill with hot water as it runs through the bag. When it finishes filling, drop the bag into the water and let it infuse with the herbs for about 20 minutes.

For an extra dose of self-love, add a rose quartz crystal to your bath. For more herbal bath recipes, check out this blog post.

Create a Goddess Altar

Creating a goddess altar is a beautiful way to honor the divine feminine energy of the universe and the divine feminine energy within. Make this altar your own! Buy a statue of a Goddess who resonates with you, or just print out a photo online. If you’re not sure which Goddess you’d like to use, do some research! What Goddess energy would help you love yourself more? Some suggestions are:

• Greek Goddess Aphrodite for love, gratitude, and beauty

• Hindu Goddess Lakshmi for abundance and wealth

• East Asian Goddess Kuan Yin for mercy and compassion

• Hindu Goddess Kali for destruction, creation, and transformation

• Greek Goddess Artemis for independence, strength, and fearlessness

• Egyptian Goddess Isis for magic, healing, and protection

• Greek Goddess Athena for wisdom and courage

• Sumerian, Babylonian, and Phoenician goddess Inanna for sensuality and divine femininity in all its forms

Once you choose your goddess, add a white candle, incense, and maybe a cloth to your altar. Choose some objects that represent love to you and ask for help loving yourself. You can also put fresh flowers or a piece of fruit on your altar as an offering to the Goddess.

Goddesses are beautiful archetypes and energies to work with because they remind you that you, too, have this energy within you. You possess the abundance of Lakshmi, the compassion of Kuan Yin, the magic of Isis, and the transformative energy of Kali.

12 Mudras to Shift Your Energy

What are mudras and why are they powerful?

In Sanskrit, mudra means “seal” or “sign.” Mudras are hand gestures that act as energy “seals” and they also position your hands to symbolize different meanings.

The tips of your fingers, the crown of your head, and your feet are where energy leaves your body. You can practice mudras to take that energy back into your body and channel it instead of allowing it to leave through your fingertips.

The Elements of the Hand

The hand has three Gunas or qualities, and every finger has its own energy and its own elements.

In yogic philosophy the three Gunas, fundamental forces, are tamas, rajas, and sattva. They interact to create all of the known Universe (Prakriti) and can be increased or decreased by using mudras.

Sattva manifests as balance, inspiration, and knowledge of what is real. Tamas is a heavy, mindless energy that causes ignorance and inaction. Rajas is the energy of change, manifesting as passion, pain, desire, and effort, and it can lead you to sattva or tamas but is often characterized as an attachment to outcomes and unsteadiness.

Your hand has each of these three Gunas characteristics, and each finger within each Guna is associated with an element.

• Your thumb, associated with the fire or Agni element, is rajasic.

• Your index finger, associated with air, and your middle finger, associated with space, are tamasic.

• Your ring finger, associated with earth, and your pinky, associated with water, are satvic.

A Mudra for Everything

You can use mudras to increase or decrease the Gunas and specific elements. Whatever you need in your life, there is a mudra for it! The list below shares some great mudras to get started with, some of which you might already be familiar with, and many of which balance all five elements.

Jnana Mudra

Use this mudra to balance fire and air, connect to your higher self, clear stagnant energy, and create openness to receiving inner and divine guidance.

Rest your palms facing up on top of your thighs or knees and tuck the tip of your index finger under the tip of your thumb. Your middle, ring, and pinky fingers remain lightly extended.

Anjali Mudra

If you’ve ever been to a yoga class, you know this mudra. It is done by simply connecting your palms in prayer hands in front of your heart chakra.

Anjali mudra is commonly used to close and sometimes open a class because it is a gesture of offering from the heart. It’s a literal connection of your hands, symbolizing one of the key principles of yoga: union. It connects the right and left sides of your brain, and the right and left or feminine and masculine energies in your body.

Kashyapa Mudra

Do you ever spend time with a friend who has a bad attitude, and you feel yourself being lowered to her frequency? Do you ever feel yourself absorbing the energy of somebody else’s bad day?

This is the mudra you need to protect your energy. Kashyapa mudra balances and grounds you while creating a seal against negative energy.

To use this mudra, make a fist with the tip of your thumb between your middle and ring fingers.

Shankhavarta Mudra

Shankhavarta mudra is the mudra of inner wisdom. When you’re struggling to differentiate between the voices of your highest self and fear or ego, use this mudra to find clarity and connect with your inner guidance.

Start with your palms in Anjali mudra and, keeping your fingertips connected, press your palms away from each other to form a triangle with the base as your connected thumbs. Then release your right index finger and allow it to relax toward the center of the triangle your hands have formed.

Yoni Mudra

I like to think of yoni mudra as the goddess mudra. Use it to quiet your mind, connect to your divine feminine energy, and call on the energy of the goddesses.

Bring your palms together, fingers pointing down. Open your palms up into an upside-down triangle with your thumbs as the base. Then turn your pinky, ring, and middle fingers in so that the backs of the fingers are touching and thumbs are pointing slightly upward.

Shunya Mudra

Shunya means “empty.” This mudra balances fire and space to help you open and expand, to clear throat chakra blockages, and release the limiting beliefs of your ego.

Hold the palm of your hand open and bend your middle finger to gently press into the ball of your thumb. Bend your thumb so that it presses into your middle finger and extends your other fingers. Then try it with your other hand!

Use this mudra to clear away energetic blockages holding you back from abundance, and open yourself to receiving.

Padma Mudra

This mudra, also known as the lotus mudra, resembles a lotus flower blossoming open.

You know the phrase “no mud, no lotus.” The mudra reminds you that the lotus has moved through the mud and risen above it to blossom.

Start with your hands together at heart center in Anjali mudra. Keeping the base of your hands, pinky fingers, and thumbs together, allow the rest of your fingers to blossom open.

Use this mudra to balance fire and water, open your heart chakra to love, compassion, and gratitude, and remind you of the peace and wholeness you already possess within.

Buddhi Mudra

If you need help accessing your inner guidance and understanding intuitive messages, use Buddhi mudra to balance fire and water. Simply touch the tip of your thumb to the tip of your pinky finger while holding your other three fingers straight.

Samputa Mudra

Do you ever have those days where you just feel off? You don’t feel like yourself, and maybe your mind is spinning instead of being focused and calm. On those days, use Samputa mudra to find mental and emotional clarity, connect to your true self, and balance all five elements.

Bring your palms together at heart center. Hollow out a small space between your hands, keeping the tips of your fingers connected, and tuck your thumbs into that hollow space.

Garuda Mudra

If you need to be reminded of your personal power and strengthen your solar plexus chakra, Garuda mudra is the mudra for you. This mudra stimulates the fire element, the element of the solar plexus chakra, to energize you and stoke your inner fire.

Hold your hands in front of you with your palms facing your chest. Cross your left hand over right and interlock your thumbs, stretching all of your other fingers out as much as you can.

Ushas Mudra

The Ushas mudra is all about flow and creativity. When you’re stuck in a place of trying to force, push, and control where you aren’t allowing yourself to open, receive, and follow your inner guidance, use this mudra to get back into flow, connect with your feminine energy, and awaken your sacral chakra, your center of creativity and passion.

To do this mudra, clasp your hands together, interlacing your fingers with your left thumb resting on top.

Kubera Mudra

Kubera mudra, also known as the wealth mudra, is the mudra for attracting a regular flow of abundant energy and material well-being. This mudra balances fire, air, and space and reminds you that if you trust the Universe, you will always have enough and you will always be taken care of.

To use this mudra, touch the tips of your thumb, index, and middle fingers together, and tuck your ring and pinky fingers into the middle of your hand.

Try incorporating some of these mudras into your spiritual practice, whether it’s meditation, reiki, yoga, or breathwork, and see how they change your energy.