Sarah Lyn

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Stones for the Season: Autumnal Equinox

by Sarah Lyn

Stone has a beautiful language. Anyone who has ever had a rock jump out at them has heard it. Pick me! Pick me! Before you know it, you have either slipped it into a pocket, or you find yourself holding it in your hand, uncertain of how long it has been there.

Deep stone sleeps but the closer to the surface it gets, the more connected it is to us and our life cycles. Some rocks just want to introduce themselves and have a conversation. Some rocks will bite and want to be left alone. And some rocks have been looking for you to take them on a quest to some unknown corner of the world they have only heard about in the whispers of the deepest bedrock (even if that’s just your front yard).

[ALWAYS respect places that ask you NOT to take their rocks.]

The Trio

Different stones I encounter have different energies to them. Each sabbat, I put together a trio of stones to focus on for the following six weeks. It’s divination to me. I reach out into the web and see where we are in the world, creating a recipe of stone allies, and then I send that energy back out into the web.

I don’t usually use the same grouping of stones every year, but a couple of times I have. I will work with the stones I choose in my night meditations until the next sabbat, sometimes individually and sometimes as a group.

It’s the Autumnal Equinox, one of my favorite times of the year. For those of us who live in seasonal climates, the leaves are starting to turn colors and drop to the earth. We’re bringing our harvests in even as we are laying some garden beds to rest for the winter. This is when we frequent our local orchards weekly, and pick apples and pears and pumpkins…

It’s the time of year when the days grown shorter and we begin our spiritual descent into the Labyrinth like Ariadne. Into the Underworld like Inanna. What we find in the center is what we bring in with us. This is the time of year to look inward, stand at the crossroads, and calibrate your way forward.

As you go deeper into the labyrinth, the hidden shadows you carry will be revealed.

Who travels with you in fellowship?

My stones for the Equinox are: Snowflake Obsidian, Tourmalinated Quartz, and Howlite.

Snowflake Obsidian is black, volcanic glass, with crystalized snowflake-like inclusions. It’s one of those stones I am drawn to, over and over again. It is a good stone for people who have trouble staying grounded and tend towards escapism, which makes it a great stone for bringing into the darkness, and facing the reality of what waits for you. It’s a friendly stone, too, and is almost impossible to misuse.

Let me be your shield, snowflake obsidian asks.

My second stone choice for the Equinox was another black and white mineral, Tourmalinated Quartz. Quartz is a power staple in spellcrafting and ritual work. Black Tourmaline is one of the most powerful defensive stones I have used, but it is assertive, not aggressive. It absorbs negative darkness and transforms it into positive energy, and transforming that within the quartz creates a battery of power you can both recharge yourself from and use to light your way forward.

Let us scout the way for you, tourmalinated quartz sings.

The last stone, Howlite, took me a while to find. It is accessible to everyone and has a quieter voice. It is milky white with grey veining and shading. It is often dyed as substitutions for other stones, most commonly for Turquoise. I prefer the natural stone (and have many of them strewn about my home). It connects strongly with the heart center, like a balming elixir, exuding tranquility. This stone is a great ally to have in times of stress and uncertainty.

I’m right beside you, howlite whispers.

These stones will both guide you and take your lead as you do your winter work within the dark shadows we all carry. And they will see you through to the other side of the wheel.

For Advanced Work

For those going on an intense internal journey, I picked out Labradorite as an advanced work companion. This is one of my absolute favorite stones. I have pieces in all colors of flash. Out of the sunlight it can appear a dull grey. But once it gets a taste of some light, it flares to life. This stone is a journey stone, growing and evolving along with your Work. It likes to bond to a person and holds immense power for shifting and transforming.

[Notes from Sarah Lyn: I never purchase rocks from people who do not know where they are sourced from. It’s important to know where your rocks come from so you can make informed decisions about where to put your money. For those of us buying tumbled stones at rock shows, we’re picking up the chips of what has already been cut from the earth, we are not part of the demand that influences the mining world. But know where your stones come from.]

All photographs © Sarah Lyn, 2023

Stones for the Season: Lughnassadh
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Stones for the Season: Lughnassadh

by Sarah Lyn

Stone has a beautiful language. Anyone who has ever had a rock jump out at them has heard it. Pick me! Pick me! Before you know it, you have either slipped it into a pocket, or you find yourself holding it in your hand, uncertain of how long it has been there.

Deep stone sleeps but the closer to the surface it gets, the more connected it is to us and our life cycles. Some rocks just want to introduce themselves and have a conversation. Some rocks will bite and want to be left alone. And some rocks have been looking for you to take them on a quest to some unknown corner of the world they have only heard about in the whispers of the deepest bedrock (even if that’s just your front yard).  

[ALWAYS respect places that ask you NOT to take their rocks.]

The Trio

Different stones I encounter have different energies to them. Each sabbat, I put together a trio of stones to focus on for the following six weeks. It’s divination to me. I reach out into the web and see where we are in the world, creating a recipe of stone allies, and then I send that energy back out into the web.  

I don’t usually use the same grouping of stones every year, but a couple of times I have. I will work with the stones I choose in my night meditations until the next sabbat, sometimes individually and sometimes as a group.  

Lughnassadh, spelled many different ways, is a Celtic festival but is most familiar to people in the form of the county fairs and local harvest festivals we grew up with during August and September.  

We are reaping the rewards of the plants we have tended and nurtured. It’s a good time of year to put energy into finishing projects. To that end, I chose stones this year that spoke to me of growth and abundance, with the idea of reward for work done.

Now, at the harvest, do you see the seeds you planted? Are they the seeds you intended to sow?

My stones for Lughnassadh are a bit of a green dream team: Aventurine, Rhyolite, and Silverleaf Jasper.

The first stone I picked, Aventurine, is a favorite. It is a commonly-found stone, a kind of quartzite in various colors like blue, green, peach, and others I haven’t encountered. For me, the best Aventurine contains veins of mica flakes, and these are the only pieces I use for my magic. I chose one of my green pieces, for the earth energy.  

They are a favorite stone of mine to work with as they are accessible to anyone, at any level of magic and their main energy is abundance and support. Intuitively, when I need to represent a person, I almost always pick out an Aventurine to represent humans, as they are connected to the Earth. It’s like the stone wants to connect to people. So that is my association with the stone, and a foundation stone I always use for the harvest season.  

You are my cousin and I support your endeavors, aventurine says.

If you don’t know Rhyolite by one name, you may recognize it as Rainforest Jasper. Jaspers are the silent workhorses of the stone kingdom. You can find a kind of jasper compatible to be used in substitution for any other gemstone in spellwork. Think of them as understudies, ready to step in at the last minute. Maybe not as shiny, but just as powerful. I use Rainforest Jasper a lot in substitution for Garden Quartz, so I associate it with growing vegetation and bountiful harvest, whether literal or figurative.  

Stretch out and root, stretch up and thicken, rhyolite chants.  

The third stone is one I always pick up when I see it, even if I don’t always purchase it. Green Silverleaf Jasper is the artistic cousin in the jasper family. Its growth is a little gentler and comes with a flourish. So, this is a good stone to round out the trio. It acts as a bit of a muffler for people who aren’t quite ready to handle their growth, and also, as an aid to people who need some outside-of-the-box movement.  

It is what it is and it will be okay, silverleaf jasper says.

Together these stones harken abundance and growth, in however you need to take in that energy.

For Advanced Work

Chrysoprase is a bright apple green chalcedony. I would use this stone to do some deeper growth work as it works similarly to black tourmaline, in absorbing and then transmuting negative energies, but Chrysoprase does this only for the emotional body.  

Let’s face it, right now we’re all a bit burnt out. We could all use a little extra armor for our poor stretched and beleaguered hearts. If you are a highly-sensitive person, I recommend pairing black tourmaline and chrysoprase together for yourself.    

[Notes from Sarah Lyn: I never purchase rocks from people who do not know where they are sourced from. It’s important to know where your rocks come from so you can make informed decisions about where to put your money. For those of us buying tumbled stones at rock shows, we’re picking up the chips of what has already been cut from the earth, we are not part of the demand that influences the mining world. But know where your stones come from.]

Stones for the Season: Summer Solstice
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Stones for the Season: Summer Solstice

by Sarah Lyn

Stone has a beautiful language. Anyone who has ever had a rock jump out at them has heard it. Pick me! Pick me! Before you know it, you have either slipped it into a pocket, or you find yourself holding it in your hand, uncertain of how long it has been there.

Deep stone sleeps but the closer to the surface it gets, the more connected it is to us and our life cycles. Some rocks just want to introduce themselves and have a conversation. Some rocks will bite and want to be left alone. And some rocks have been looking for you to take them on a quest to some unknown corner of the world they have only heard about in the whispers of the deepest bedrock (even if that’s just your front yard).

[ALWAYS respect places that ask you NOT to take their rocks.]

The Trio

Different stones I encounter have different energies to them. Each sabbat, I put together a trio of stones to focus on for the following six weeks. It’s divination to me. I reach out into the web and see where we are in the world, creating a recipe of stone allies, and then I send that energy back out into the web.

I don’t usually use the same grouping of stones every year, but a couple of times I have. I will work with the stones I choose in my night meditations until the next sabbat, sometimes individually and sometimes as a group.

This sabbat is a little different. I am about to embark on a new adventure and the fires in Canada have thickened the haze in my town so much that the sky is a different color and the sun is hard to find. The earth is burning in the north, as it usually is, but this fire is bad and my heart is hurting for the loss of wildlife. I’m a burn survivor and being able to taste the fire in the air has been difficult.

For me, summer solstice has always been about action and courage and stepping into the world as it wilds up around us. The first fruits are readying themselves for us. Flowers are bursting into bloom. And so should we.

I’m going on an epic quest that will help me in my career and I assembled three stones that speak to that kind of invoking, as well as remembering that sun when it is not visible.

Where do you stand most comfortably in yourself? In the world?

My stones for Summer Solstice are: Sunstone, Amber, and Tiger’s Eye.

The first stone I picked, Sunstone, is a favorite of mine. I do tend to be attracted to the Feldspars. Sunstone falls in that family group. It has a gold-orange metallic sheen to it and pokes my inner magpie to action. I do like to pair it with rainbow moonstone, connecting the two energies. But sunstone is a stimulant and it works with your natural rising kundalini energy to lift your spirits. The energy of this stone strengthens healing work.

Yes, you can, sunstone says.

I’ve used Amber before, and I chose it this time because of what it is and where it forms, thinking about the trees on fire across Canada. It’s a strong witch talisman, made of fossilized tree sap. It increases the potency of spellwork and I use it to represent the fire of the sun, shining down through the haze.

(Know what you purchase if you buy it. Raw amber is expensive, but be wary of the large, clear amber pieces that vendors will try to snow you on. It’s still amber. It is. But it’s been melted done and reconstituted. I have some pieces, but I knew what I was getting.)

Hold on. We got this, amber hums.

The third stone is a favorite of mine, Tiger’s Eye. It is brown and yellow-tan with fibrous banding that causes golden flashes that is just gorgeous. It is my courage stone and it helps me keep my footing on the world. It’s about confidence and focus and will help see the sun when it is obscured in the sky by frightening things.

You are worth it, tiger’s eye says.

Together these stones become a beacon of energy ready to move. This combo answers the call to action.

For Advanced Work

I would use Pyrite, also known as Fool’s Gold. It comes in natural globules and cube form, and everything in between. It’s got a good base of life-force energy to it and it’s a good additive to healing work. It channels and focuses scattered energy. But it represents the Sun energy and is a good source of abundance, especially in creative endeavors.

[Notes from Sarah Lyn: I never purchase rocks from people who do not know where they are sourced from. It’s important to know where your rocks come from so you can make informed decisions about where to put your money. For those of us buying tumbled stones at rock shows, we’re picking up the chips of what has already been cut from the earth, we are not part of the demand that influences the mining world. But know where your stones come from.]

All photos © Sarah Lyn

Stones for the Season: Beltane
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Stones for the Season: Beltane

by Sarah Lyn

Stone has a beautiful language. Anyone who has ever had a rock jump out at them has heard it. Pick me! Pick me! Before you know it, you have either slipped it into a pocket, or you find yourself holding it in your hand, uncertain of how long it has been there.

Deep stone sleeps but the closer to the surface it gets, the more connected it is to us and our life cycles. Some rocks just want to introduce themselves and have a conversation. Some rocks will bite and want to be left alone. And some rocks have been looking for you to take them on a quest to some unknown corner of the world they have only heard about in the whispers of the deepest bedrock (even if that’s just your front yard).

[ALWAYS respect places that ask you NOT to take their rocks.]

The Trio

Different stones I encounter have different energies to them. Each sabbat, I put together a trio of stones to focus on for the following six weeks. It’s divination to me. I reach out into the web and see where we are in the world, creating a recipe of stone allies, and then I send that energy back out into the web.

I don’t usually use the same grouping of stones every year, but a couple of times I have. I will work with the stones I choose in my night meditations until the next sabbat, sometimes individually and sometimes as a group.

Most people will be familiar with Beltane if they associate it with the tradition of May Day. There are a lot of traditions associated with it that liken to fairy magics, because in the European continent, this holiday is the start of summer. Which is largely the reason it took me so long to connect with Beltane as a pagan holiday in America.

In my neighborhood, the flowering trees are just bursting with blooms and the air is fragrant with them. All the day lily shoots are that bright vibrant green that only happens in this short growth period. It reminds me that everything that dies has a chance to start again. So I wait every year, to witness this specific season for us, lest I blink in my business and miss it.

To me, this green is a fire, a catalyst, a call to action to spring forth into the world. And that is how I relate to the energy of this Sabbat, and that is reflected in my stone choices for this year.

How do we choose to walk in the world?

And we cannot forget, when engaging in a new adventure, one must be prepared for hardships along the way. So there is some protective energy evident in each stone. Companions along the journey.

Stones for Beltane

My stones for Beltane this year are: Lodolite, Carnelian, and Bloodstone.

The first stone I picked, Lodolite, is also known as Garden Quartz. It has all the focus and power of a quartz. The inclusions in the crystal keep it grounded and earthy and it’s related to prosperity and abundance. It is also a good gardener’s talisman and, who are we all if not gardeners of our own souls? We are weeding out what no longer serves us from our psyches and making room for new growth and new life.

You are the key to your own change, lodolite reminds us.

My second choice is an orange stone that also happens to be a chalcedony quartz, Carnelian. It’s associated with the lower three chakras, with energy unbound, uncurling from the earth as tiny seedlings. It is that spark of fire within us, the dry match just about to be struck. It is a stone of both courage and protection, long-used for carved amulets. This chalcedony buzzes with latent energy, made of both earth and fire.

Ready to strike, carnelian hums.

I work with two different kinds of Bloodstone. The more common version on the market has red flecks of Heliotrope in a green matrix. There is another, South African version that is more grey and translucent with red heliotrope inclusions. This is an earth stone and a protector. Warriors have used it for talismans in many cultures and I often use it as a curative, as a healing tonic, and as a shield.

Nourish the soil you stand on, bloodstone says.

Together these stones become a small burst of new energy, ready for activation. What growth are you bringing into the world with you this spring? It’s time for show and tell.

For Advanced Work

There is one stone I have always associated with Beltane, and that is Garnet. There are many kinds of colors of garnets: Almandine (red, purple-red), Spessartite (yellow, orange-brown), Pyrope (deep red), Grossular (white, yellow-green, brown-red, black), and Andradite (colorless, brown, black). It is a root chakra gem and has long been valued. Many creeks in the New England areas are littered with garnets.

It’s a high energy stone that adds potency to your magical workings. It helps move the kundalini energy through your body for full activation. Garnet does a lot of the heavy lifting for you. Because of that, if you suffer from anger issues or high blood pressure, this stone may be too strong on its own for you to use as a tool.

[Notes from Sarah Lyn: I never purchase rocks from people who do not know where they are sourced from. It’s important to know where your rocks come from so you can make informed decisions about where to put your money. For those of us buying tumbled stones at rock shows, we’re picking up the chips of what has already been cut from the earth, we are not part of the demand that influences the mining world. But know where your stones come from.]

All photos © Sarah Lyn

Stones for the Season: Spring Equinox
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Stones for the Season: Spring Equinox

by Sarah Lyn

Stone has a beautiful language. Anyone who has ever had a rock jump out at them has heard it. Pick me! Pick me! Before you know it, you have either slipped it into a pocket, or you find yourself holding it in your hand, uncertain of how long it has been there.

Deep stone sleeps but the closer to the surface it gets, the more connected it is to us and our life cycles. Some rocks just want to introduce themselves and have a conversation. Some rocks will bite and want to be left alone. And some rocks have been looking for you to take them on a quest to some unknown corner of the world they have only heard about in the whispers of the deepest bedrock (even if that’s just your front yard).

[ALWAYS respect places that ask you NOT to take their rocks.]

The Trio

Different stones I encounter have different energies to them. Each sabbat, I put together a trio of stones to focus on for the following six weeks. It’s divination to me. I reach out into the web and see where we are in the world, creating a recipe of stone allies, and then I send that energy back out into the web.

I don’t usually use the same grouping of stones every year, but a couple of times I have. I will work with the stones I choose in my night meditations until the next sabbat, sometimes individually and sometimes as a group.

Spring Equinox is one of my favorite sabbats. Even before I understood that I was pagan, I would thrill as the early flower buds littered the yards with splashes of color. And there was always that first day when you noticed the first bud on a tree; and then the next day, it seemed, every tree would be bursting with them.

Three tumbled stones, Moss Green Agate, Snakeskin Agate, and Amazonite, sitting in the soil at the base of a potted plant.

It’s time to start thinking about the Work we have done through the winter. It’s time to take those new pathways and take action to set them in motion.

We must all become the young shoots pushing up out of the rich soil.

So many of my beloveds are undergoing transformations and growth cycles right now. Some of them have even bravely chosen a new path.

The stones I chose for Spring Equinox this year have heavy growing properties: Moss Green Agate, Snakeskin Agate, and Amazonite.

Why the two agates? I always joke that if you don’t know what one of your stones is, it’s safe to guess that it’s either an agate or a jasper. Yes, they are that common, but they are also the extreme work horses of the metaphysical stone world. And agate, over jasper, reminds me of glass, which brings to mind the idea of lightning striking sand to create it. What a great representation for growth and change. Agate, the mineral, is a form of chalcedony, a form of quartz.

In my spellwork, Moss Green Agate always represents the Earth, the planet we were formed from and live upon; it’s an exceptional gardener’s talisman. It is semi-translucent, with inclusions of blue and green. Each one is different from the next. It helps me to use it as a foundation piece for any type of growth work—an anchor of who I am and where I am.

Remember where you come from, moss green agate says.

A particular stone that is important to transformation work to me, is Snakeskin Agate. It’s usually similar in orange color to carnelian, but the surface is broken up, giving the appearance of scales. I have heard that it can come in browns and whites, too, but I have yet to come across any in those shades. This stone is about movement and change. Its energy is like the kundalini energy rising up through your chakras, readying and preparing you to take action. It also has an undercurrent of joy and wonder at life that helps boost the positivity of the spell.

What doesn’t change, stagnates, it buzzes.

I often use the other two stones for Equinox work, but this third stone is important to this year. So many of my loved ones are struggling. Amazonite is the perfect addition to this trio. I have it in multiple shades of blue/green with white banding and markings. It is a creative talisman, and a good stone to add to work on change and transformation. It’s a creative stone that is also protective. Think of it like a shield you hold out in front of you. It adds a touch of grace to the mix, too.

Know what you want, it says.

Together this trio creates a well of energy you can tap into and access. We’ve been working on healing through the winter. Now it’s time to take what we’ve done and step back out into the world, with slightly different eyes. What growth are you bringing into the world with you this spring?

For Advanced Work

As Equinox is a sabbat of balance, one of the stones I use to work with balance is the Shiva Lingham. This egg-shaped rock is a sacred stone in India. Its shape is the phallic shape of Shiva, but it is formed by the waters of a river where seven currents merge. This stone is seen as a balanced piece. There is a village at this river that has spent generations hand-polishing the rocks they pull from the river for delivery to temples across the country.

My personal note—beware the shiva lingham that someone drilled a hole through to make into a pendant.

[Notes from Sarah Lyn: I never purchase rocks from people who do not know where they are sourced from. It’s important to know where your rocks come from so you can make informed decisions about where to put your money. For those of us buying tumbled stones at rock shows, we’re picking up the chips of what has already been cut from the earth, we are not part of the demand that influences the mining world. But know where your stones come from.]

All photographs © Sarah Lyn.

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Stones for the Season: Yuletide

by Sarah Lyn

Stone has a beautiful language. Anyone who has ever had a rock jump out at them has heard it. Pick me! Pick me! Before you know it, you have either slipped it into a pocket, or you find yourself holding it in your hand, uncertain of how long it has been there.

Deep stone sleeps but the closer to the surface it gets, the more connected it is to us and our life cycles. Some rocks just want to introduce themselves and have a conversation. Some rocks will bite and want to be left alone. And some rocks have been looking for you to take them on a quest to some unknown corner of the world they have only heard about in the whispers of the deepest bedrock (even if that’s just your front yard).

[ALWAYS respect places that ask you NOT to take their rocks.]

The Trio

Clear Quartz, Selenite, Citrine

Different stones I encounter have different energies to them. Each sabbat, I put together a trio of stones to focus on for the following six weeks. It’s divination to me. I reach out into the web and see where we are in the world, creating a recipe of stone allies, and then I send that energy back out into the web.

I don’t usually use the same grouping of stones every year, but a couple of times I have. I will work with these ones in my night meditations until the next sabbat, sometimes individually and sometimes as a group.

The stones I chose for Yule this year are: Clear Quartz, Citrine, and Selenite.

Quartz

If they’re familiar with crystals, most people are familiar with Quartz, a hard mineral composed of silica. It’s a crystal that everyone can tap into and connect with. It comes in a wide variety of flavors, so to speak, but I am working specifically with Clear Quartz. Many beloveds in my life right now are seeking the kind of clarity and focus that Quartz offers. I think about Quartz like this… I have a friend who went hiking on the glaciers in Alaska and on the journey they drank some of the running water from the center of a glacier. She tells me that we have not tasted real water yet… I believe her. Quartz is like that for me— a powerful crystallizer of intent. 

See clearly, it says to me.

Citrine

Another stone most people are familiar with is purple Amethyst. This year, I chose its kin Citrine, a yellow crystal. When Amethyst is exposed to extreme heat and pressure over time, it becomes Citrine. You can often find pieces of Ametrine, showing both purple and yellow coloring.

Citrine is rare in its natural form. Most Citrine on the market is heat-treated Amethyst. Still technically Citrine, and much more affordable, but not nature-made. And most heat-treated versions turn a dense yellow-brown.

As another variety of quartz, Citrine joined with Clear Quartz radiates joy and opens the mind for new beginnings. If Quartz is a focuser, then Citrine is its laser pointer. I associate it with the solar plexus chakra, and as a stone of decisiveness and courage. On the longest night of the year, it is a useful tool against the darkness.

Strike the match within, it whispers steadily.

Selenite

A favorite stone of mine is Selenite. It is made of gypsum and its structure is 70% water. And like water, it helps you with letting things go. I associate this stone with the emotional body and often use it for healing. It also looks like ice and is helpful in soothing energies associated with stressful family scenarios at the holidays. I decorate heavily with them and they feel peaceful. Even though they are constant workers, I associate them with the joyful stillness of the season.

Float with the current, it says.

Together this trio creates a peaceful clarity. They also remind me of light we carry through the darkness as we wrestle and/or dance with our shadows, and wait for the days to lengthen.

For Advanced Work

If you want to go deeper into this season? I recommend using a piece of Rutilated Quartz during vigil on the longest night of the year. There’s definitely a plethora of quartz this season, but it feels important to this year’s transition. The rutile inclusions are a mineral called Sagenite, which amplifies the Quartz energy. It’s an excellent stone for divination and for peering into the unknown while planning the next step on your path.

A Grief Balm

If your heart is heavy with grief this season, I would normally recommend keeping Rose Quartz nearby. But the holidays can be so heavy and may need something stronger. This year, I recommend Jade, a solid to translucent green silicate mineral. It can also be found in other colors but is most commonly known as green. It is a powerful heart protection stone, which fortifies your spirit at the same time as it works defensive magic.

[Notes from Sarah Lyn: I never purchase rocks from people who do not know where they are sourced from. It’s important to know where your rocks come from so you can make informed decisions about where to put your money. For those of us buying tumbled stones at rock shows, we’re picking up the chips of what has already been cut from the earth, we are not part of the demand that influences the mining world. But know where your stones come from.]

All photos © Sarah Lyn

Stones for the Season: Samhain-tide
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Stones for the Season: Samhain-tide

by Sarah Lyn

Stone has a beautiful language. Anyone who has ever had a rock jump out at them has heard it. Pick me! Pick me! Before you know it, you have either slipped it into a pocket, or you find yourself holding it in your hand, uncertain of how long it has been there. Do you remember stuffing rocks in your pockets as a child? How they were each a tiny treasure all their own?

Do you remember how you saw their magic before you knew what it was?

Deep stone sleeps but the more surface it gets the more connected it is to us and our life cycles. Some rocks just want to introduce themselves and have a conversation. Some rocks do bite and want to be left alone. And some rocks have been looking for you to take them on a quest to some unknown corner of the world they have only heard about in the whispers of the deepest bedrock (even if that’s just your front yard).

[ALWAYS respect places that ask you NOT to take their rocks.]

The Trio

Labradorite, amber, and black tourmaline

Different stones I encounter have different energies to them. Some energize me and some ground me. Each sabbat, I put together a trio of stones to focus on for that season. It’s divination to me. I reach out into the web and see where we are in the world, creating a recipe of stone allies, and then I send that energy back out into the web.

It’s not the same grouping of stones every year. I will work with these ones in my nightly meditations until the next sabbat, sometimes individually and sometimes as a group.

The stones I chose for Samhain this year are Amber, Black Tourmaline, and Labradorite.

Amber is fossilized sap from ancient forests. I have seen it mostly in rich amber hues, but I have also seen versions of it that are blue, red, yellow, and black. It is light to hold and transparent. A lot of the inexpensive stuff on the market right now has been heated and formed in molds. It still passes amber tests, but the age of the inclusions in it are suspect. It has history in it and it strengthens the magic in my Work.

Depth and fortitude, is what it says to me.

Black Tourmaline gets heavy use in my home. It is great for taking negative energies in and transmuting them into positive ones. It is a power boost to any spell I work. It is a good stone for people uncertain about spirit visitations at this time of year and a good talisman for sensitive people.

Trust yourself. Do your Work, it whispers steadily.

Labradorite is a Feldspar mineral that can look like a dull brown lump of rock. Certain cuts of it display a wide array of iridescent colors; yellow, red, blue, purple, etc. This stone is a journey stone. I call it the Samwise Gamgee of the quest I am on, called Life. I have pieces I have been using for twenty years and they have grown and evolved with me. Whenever something calls for deep Work I turn to this stone.

We got this. Let’s see what’s out there, it says.

These stones, together, become sentinel magic workers, quest guardians that walk with you as you discover what waits for you come Winter time.

For Advanced Work

If you want to go deeper into the season? Use fossils. I can’t say that enough. My favorites? Ammonites and Petrified Wood. To touch something that was once alive, millions of years ago, when you can tap into its energy…? I have had some of the deepest and most visceral ancestral connections through the use of fossils.

Ammonite and petrified wood

A Grief Balm

Rose quartz and howlite

If your heart is heavy with grief this season, I recommend keeping some Rose Quartz and Howlite nearby. Rose Quartz is a soft pink crystal with soothing energy. Howlite is white with grey veins and eases anxiety and claustrophobic feelings in crowds. A fun fact about Howlite is it takes dye well, and most of the inexpensive ‘turquoise’ you see on the market is dyed Howlite.

[Notes from Sarah Lyn: I never purchase rocks from people who do not know where they are sourced from. It’s important to know where your rocks come from so you can make informed decisions about where to put your money. For those of us buying tumbled stones at rock shows, we’re picking up the chips of what has already been cut from the earth, we are not part of the demand of the mining world. But know where your stones come from.]

All photos © Sarah Lyn