5 INVITING SELF-LOVE
We are all children of the earth, comprised of the same minerals found throughout nature. There are even crystals in our bones—crystalline structures are in our skeletal structure, our teeth, and in our ears. Without anything else, you can tap into this crystalline energy and remind yourself that you already possess the tools you require for any journey you set foot on. Crystals help facilitate our natural ability to heal, but it is you who heals you. Different crystals will bring out different energies, but it is all within you.
Somewhere along the line, we downplay our divinity. We’re taught to follow rules instead of our intuition. We begin to question our authority over our lives and lose our sense of co-creation with the universe. To benefit from all that crystals have to offer you, it is important to remind yourself that you are a powerful being.
The body is where we start. You must understand the magnificence you are walking around with all day, and to do that we explore self-love.
Masturbation as a Symbol of Self Love
When I say masturbation, I do not just mean genital play. Self-pleasure is the better term, because it involves anything you do to create a more loving relationship with yourself, through touch or loving thoughts. For example, I have some nervous habits—I pick at my skin or pinch myself when I’m feeling anxious. The best way I’ve found to stop myself is to repeat the phrase, “I love you” to myself when it happens. It may seem silly at first, but it is hard to do self-destructive acts when you’re being given love.
When approached from a healthy perspective, masturbation can be experienced as an act of pure love. Coupled with the intention of creating positive culminations, it can be a gesture that evokes feelings of safety, body positivity, and comfort. We are creating energy within our bodies when we give ourselves pleasure. That energy becomes fuel for us when we learn how to channel it.
From a practical standpoint, orgasms are good for your health and have been proven to reduce depression and stress, regulate the immune system, increase fertility, and lower blood pressure. When we honor our ability to soothe ourselves and see pleasure as a gift bestowed upon us, we can begin to cultivate the very transcendental emotion of gratitude.
Becoming “stuck” in certain sexual fantasies, acts, or habits, such as self-pleasuring the same way each time or needing a specific fantasy to “get off,” is a signal that there may be an energy blockage. When you recognize an energy blockage, you can try to understand what has caused it and then move it.
Holding on to a sexual fantasy can be a sign that a correlating chakra is weak. This does not mean it’s bad—we all have kinks, and that is natural, normal, and fun. But it can signify an energy block when you are stuck on a fantasy or cannot enjoy sex without going to a specific idea. When that block is accepted and released, you can enjoy the full potential of your sexuality, which will permeate your everyday life.
For example, when a sexual fantasy becomes a recurring part of your self-pleasuring sessions, take note of why its aspects turn you on and what they symbolize. Fantasizing about having someone take control over you, for example, could indicate an underlying desire to surrender. It could be a signal to “let go” more often in your daily life to satisfy your need to trust in the universe. Working with turquoise and generally most blue crystals can promote a vibration of universal trust. Chrysanthemum stone is also said to bring about an understanding of the bigger picture in life, which allows for a trusting attitude.
It may not be fun to examine why you’ve become dependent on your sexual habits or fantasies. And you’ll always have specific kinks that turn you on, but when they become a crutch, take it as a sign that there is an energetic block you need to release.
Treasure Within Exercise
This exercise is an easy way to include self-love practices in your everyday routine. It combines crystal healing, self-massage, and the therapeutic art of eye-gazing. It only adds 5 to 7 minutes to your daily routine (but can last longer, if you would like!). Keeping a crystal charged with your intention on your bathroom counter can help act as a reminder to include this practice in your daily routine.
Have you ever looked into your own eyes? It may feel strange at first, but the more you do it, the easier it becomes. Before getting into the shower, take some time looking into the mirror. Focus on your eyes. There is a reason why they say eyes are the windows to the soul. Looking into someone’s eyes or into your own eyes for an extended period can be a spiritual experience in itself. It is a bonding and trust building exercise.
1. Place one or both hands on your heart in front of the mirror.
2. Close your eyes and take a deep breath in. As you exhale, open your eyes.
3. Gaze softly into your less dominant eye.
4. Try to keep a steady focus, and imagine you are looking deeper and deeper within the eye.
5. Tell yourself aloud or silently: “Thank you for seeing me for who I really am. I love you, I forgive you, and to continue this love I will…” Finish the thought.
6. Step into the shower.
7. In the shower, recognize that within you there is crystal. Imagine that the shower has acted as a cleansing agent, just like you would use to clear any other crystals (see here). Tune in to what you feel a crystal goes through energetically when it is being cleaned. Feel excess and unnecessary energy running off you, down into the shower drain.
8. After the shower, once you get out and while still wet, take a deep breath and imagine your skeleton inside you, glowing with the crystals throughout.
9. State this intention: “I appreciate all my body does for me.”
10. Rub your hands together so they become warm. Now, put your focus on your toes—you may touch them if you’d like. With your attention, you are activating this part of you. This can be done by imagining orgasmic energy but placing it in your toes. Focus your attention on the bones in all your little toes, and feel the subtle vibration of the crystals within you. Give thanks to this part of your body.
11. Move up toward every part of you, thinking deep down all the way through to the skeletal system. Keep imagining the orgasmic energy moving to each part of the body you focus on. How does it feel to caress and give praise to every inch of you? How does it feel to know of the inner workings that are happening constantly within you?
12. Keep doing this while working all the way up to your facial structure. Softly caress your face with the tips of your fingers. You are creating a circuit of enhanced energy, simply by putting your attention on these underlying minerals within you.
13. To finish, stand erect. Take deep breaths and smile (your teeth have crystal, too!). Acknowledge the positive choices you have made to give yourself loving attention. Doing this exercise often will benefit the relationship you have with yourself, by putting emphasis on the way you feel inside of your body.
KEEP A CRYSTAL CHARGED WITH YOUR INTENTION ON THE BATHROOM COUNTER AS A REMINDER TO PRACTICE SELF-LOVE.