Seashell Spells
for Your Health
by Janina ReneÉe
When concentrating on mental imagery for bodily healing, it is helpful to use visual and tactile objects that inspire the unconscious mind. Seashells can be used as symbolic objects to assist some visualizations. Certain shells have been likened to body parts, and their pleasing shapes and glossy surfaces also suggest lustrous health and beauty.
For dental care, smooth, glossy white shells suggest perfect teeth. For example, if cavities or sensitive teeth are a problem, place such a shell before you as you treat your teeth with a fluoride gel or rinse, or even while sipping milk or green tea. Visualize the fluoride or calcium doing its work to help repair the enamel shell of your teeth. Visualize your enamel becoming thicker, stronger, and healthier.
If you have a shell that has both white and pink surfaces, use it to visualize healthy teeth and gums. As you brush, mentally recite the words “bright white teeth, perfect pink gums,” glancing at the shell to reinforce your imagery.
For improved hearing, gather shells that are associated with hearing. Ears are sometimes described as shell-like; the cochlea, the part of the inner ear that is responsible for hearing, resembles a small shell. Some Moon snails and abalones are referred to as “ear shells.” And, of course, we fancy that holding a shell to the ear allows us to hear the call of the ocean (though this is actually ambient noise trapped and bounced around inside the shell). For any sort of hearing problem, you should always seek proper medical care. However, for some minor problems, such as impaired hearing due to allergies or colds, low-level ear infections, mild intermittent cases of tinnitus or Meniere’s disease, cysts and other obstructions in the ear, and normal diminution of hearing due to the aging process, you can complement your treatment with the following exercise.
Hold a shell up to your afflicted ear or ears, listening as best you can to the oceanlike roaring within. (Medium-sized conch shells may get the best results.) Visualize yourself by the side of the ocean, your attention fully attuned to the sound of rolling waves, and then recite to yourself: “In this vibration, the song of the ocean, a song of healing, restore my hearing.” Imagine the sound waves transformed into waves of psychic energy, vibrating your inner ear in a way that restores its optimum functioning, setting everything right. If the exercise causes the slightest pain, desist at once and seek medical treatment. (Persons with mild cases of Meniere’s and other balance problems should perform it sitting down.)
For reproductive well-being, cowries have been valued as amulets for good health throughout the world. Aside from their beauty, cowries bear resemblance to several body parts. Because their long ventricle slits suggest half-closed eyes, cowries are used as facial features in African and Middle Eastern masks and figurines. Their apertures also resemble mouths or vulvas, and the general shape of a cowrie is similar to a uterus. Thus, the Romans called them “little wombs,” and in Japan, the cowrie is known as the “easy delivery shell.” Women giving birth hold one in each hand to ensure a successful and healthy birth. Associations with fertility are also seen in their group name Cypraediae (in honor of Aphrodite, called the Cyprean because legend said she was born on the island of Cyprus). Cowries found in prehistoric graves may have been symbols of rebirth.
If you are a mother-to-be, try stroking a cowrie while saying affirmations such as “Smooth and easy; easy delivery.” The white eggshell cowrie is ideal for this purpose. To promote general feminine health and pride in sexuality, any woman could caress a cowrie while beaming some loving energy to her reproductive organs.
In regard to bone health, the calcareous composition of the corals, as well as the stems and branches of certain species, calls to mind a skeletal structure. In fact, some calcium supplements are derived from coral. If you are concerned about osteoporosis or healing a broken bone, you might enjoy contemplating a piece of coral while taking your daily calcium supplement and mentally reciting “Strong body, strong bones. Strong body, strong bones.” In addition to stimulating the unconscious mind, handling a seashell engages the conscious mind, handling a seashell engages the etheric “virtues” of the minerals in the shell.
For mental power, consider brain coral. While investigating the magic of the Deep South during the Depression, Zora Neale Hurston studied under a man known as Father Watson, who was renowned for removing curses. Watson’s wife believed that the source of his power was a large piece of brain coral that he kept on his altar. Brain coral (species of the genus Meandrina) have folds and ridges that resemble the convolution of the human brain. A piece of brain coral can inspire students, creative people, and others whose work require mental activity.
To amplify your brainpower, spend a few moment contemplating a piece of coral. Allow your gaze to follow its valleys and ridges. Trace them with your fingers. Relax your eyes as you take in its larger patterns. Feel that you are becoming calmer and calmer, yet also more alert, as you explore its convolutions. If there is a special question on your mind—perhaps you need the solution to some problem—state it aloud, and then continue to contemplate the coral. After a few moments, set it aside. If the answer has not already popped into your mind, have faith that unconscious forces have gone to work on it. For persons who suffer from certain minor forms of nervous or neurological problems such as sensory processing disorder that affect learning abilities, regular contemplation of brain coral might help modulate mental energies.
If you enjoy the beauty of seashells, you will no doubt think of many additional ways to use them for healing magic.