Many schools of thought connect specific crystals to individual chakra centers. There are a wide range of meditation, toning, visualization, and physical placement practices whereby you can use crystals to cleanse and empower specific chakras.

The benefits derived from such practice could be the result of subtle electromagnetic energy within crystal formations, or it could simply be a placebo effect that results from strong belief.

But I suggest the why/how is not important. Rather than worrying about the mechanical details, why not just try one or more chakra stone exercises for yourself to see if you can strike the right chord?

The simplest approach to using crystals within chakra mediation is to find one or more colored stones that coordinate with the colors given to the specific chakra points. So you could find…

• a deep red stone (like jasper) for the base chakra
• a deep orange stone (like orange carnelian) for the sacral chakra
• a bright yellow stone (like citrine) for the solar plexus chakra
• a deep green stone (like jade) for the heart chakra
• a nice blue stone (like angelite) for the throat chakra
• a steady indigo stone (like polished lepidolite) for the third eye/brow chakra
• a deep purple stone (like amethyst) for the crown chakra

You can choose to hold each stone in your receptive hand while visualizing colored light flowing through your chakra, or you can actually lie down and place each stone on the correct chakra point. The latter method is a great cleansing meditation you can use to manifest a fresh start or a sort of “recharge” on many levels.

A trained Reiki master or Yoga instructor can also help you apply crystals to your chakra meditations. And a good book for this purpose is the crystal bible; this handy reference provides pictures and property descriptions for many useful stones.

The best way to explore the idea of chakra stone treatments is simply to get hands-on right away. Begin handling stones, visualizing, and practicing basic breathing exercises along with simple chakra meditations.

You’ll know soon enough whether or not these practices are right for you.

When first discovering the chakra system and learning of the connection these subtle points have with many aspects of physical, emotional, and psychological health, many people have the tendency to fret. They take the whole matter too seriously and automatically assume their chakras are not healthy, need cleaning, etc.

It’s certainly possible that a long-term health problem can be treated with chakra knowledge. But if you’re basically a healthy person please don’t start obsessing over the state of your chakra system; this will cause real problems.

You should approach exercises like chakra breathing & visualization, chakra color therapy, toning, and other chakra meditations with a light spirit. Embrace these practices with joy and a positive attitude.

Your goal is to love and empower your subtle energy system, not to bring stress and worry into your chakra centers. So lighten up and even have fun when you are meditating or working with your subtle energies.

Combine exercises like yoga, basic meditation, emotional freedom technique, and other breathing and channeling methods with your chakra focal work for best effect. But never bring stress into your sessions; always have the best in mind before you start and then clear your mind to allow the peace and clarity of the moment during your actual sessions.

Basic meditation actually brings numerous benefits. Reduced tension, improved focus and sensory perception, inner peace, happiness, empowerment, and much more can be achieved with simple meditative practice.

But for purposes of this article, meditation is a great way for increasing your awareness of the chakra points. By engaging in simple breath observation meditation you will begin to sense your body’s subtle energy system.

Over time, simple meditation will still your mind. As this happens you will naturally begin to sense each of your chakra centers.

Some people feel their chakra points as warm areas, while other people simply know they are there. Exactly how you become aware of your subtle energy will depend on your individual personality and the way you normally perceive the world around you.

And once you become more aware of your chakra system you can begin to focus on specific meditations for each chakra, if you desire. It’s not necessary to ever do this, but many people find it a useful practice for remaining in balance or for addressing specific energetic needs.

You can learn to meditate by visiting our basic meditation tutorial here.