With the Autumnal Equinox in our rearview, we’re encroaching upon Samhain. The Witches’ New Year marks the end of the harvest season. Leaves wither and crunch beneath our feet as we tip-toe a bit further into the dark half of the year. The Crone Goddess returns. Her loyal companions, darkness, death, and transformation trail closely behind. Her arrival is a signal to embrace the seasonal shift—it’s time to redecorate the altar and realign our sacred space! Let us help usher in an enchanting rhythm for Autumn and do gridding for the season by sharing a few crystal secrets in honor of Samhain.
Look for Inspiration in Nature
Gridding for the season means that you are the artist, and Mother Nature is the muse. Lucky for us, there are several ways to infuse the essence of the harvest season into our grids.
Take a walk outdoors
You can use this time to respectfully forage items or channel an intention with a quick pre-ritual meditation. Fallen acorns, brightly colored leaves, dried marigolds, and feathers carry the essence of Samhain and can easily fit within most grids.
Peruse your herb garden or scan the spice rack
Do you have any cinnamon, cloves, ginger, sage, or star anise? Consider blending a loose incense with seasonal spices to purify your surroundings before crafting a grid.
Look to the skies for guidance
Traditionally we celebrate Samhain on October 31st, but we can also look to astrology when planning our festivities. Depending on our intention, we might choose to observe Samhain during the night of October’s full, dark, or new moon.
Incorporate relics and personal items
Orange and black candles, sweet and spicy anointing oils, tarot cards, old photographs, jewelry, or copper tensor rings are powerful additions to a Samhain grid.
Embrace the Archetype
An intention that aligns with seasonal themes is equally important as the crystals that make up the grid. Since the veil to the afterlife (and otherworldly dimensions in general) is at its thinnest, many of us will focus on divination and psychic voyaging. Ancestors, spirits, and visions of past lives make themselves available to us during this period.
Samhain also requests that we get in touch with our shadow. The shadow is home to the misunderstood parts of the psyche—the same things that we believe to be unfavorable, sinister, and shameful.
This grid generates a frequency that cloaks the body and shields the spirit. It’s a layer of protection for the dream walker, the astral traveler, and the psychic. With it, we can venture beyond the veil to visit long-lost ancestors. We can go inward, into the murkiest corners of our memory bank. We might even sneak a peek into an alternate reality. The mind is our only limit.
Curate a Seasonal Selection
Crystals with deep red, brown, grey, black, and copper tones are a nod to the soon-to-be dormant lands. Try integrating a few of these dark and earthy stones into a Samhain grid to generate security and foresight.
Carnelian: As a focus stone, carnelian is an anchor. It offers stability, vitality, and confidence in the physical world so that the spirit can venture into higher realms. It eliminates the fear of death by sharing glimpses into the afterlife.
Fire Agate: When placed in a grid, fire agate creates a portal to the past. This stone emits a protective layer that shields the body from harmful vibrations and deflects ill wishes back to the sender.
Selenite (Satin Spar): Selenite unites humans with the feminine aspect of the psyche. When placed in a grid, selenite amplifies messages from angels, spirits, and deities.
Black Tourmaline: Protective, detoxifying, and transformative, black tourmaline directs unfavorable frequencies into the earth for recalibration. Each shadowy specimen acts an energetic bodyguard for our intention.
Staurolites (Fairy Cross): This protective crystal is a magnet for good luck. It encourages a positive outlook, no matter the situation. In a grid, staurolites amplify the regenerative power of nature.
Black Obsidian: The reflective surface of volcanic glass exposes all secrets, even those buried deep within the subconscious. Add one piece of obsidian to a grid for every answer that you seek.
Smoky Quartz: Smoky quartz is an excellent tool for practicing non-attachment. We can incorporate pieces into our grid to banish what we have outgrown.
Almandine Garnet: If you’re curious about your soul’s potential, try viewing life through the lens of an almandine garnet. This stone shows us our strengths, weaknesses, and areas that yearn for growth.
Howlite: Howlite is a protective talisman for those with active dream lives. In a grid, it gently probes The 3rd Eye and communicates forgotten lessons from past experiences.
Labradorite: Labradorite carries the mysteries of the sky. In fact, it’s rumored to be a literal piece of the sky that fell to Earth during a display of lights from the Aurora Borealis. Gridding with labradorite amplifies intuition and psychic abilities.
Red Jasper: Comforting and nourishing, red jasper is the blood of the earth. Place a few pieces in a crystal grid to generate passion and amplify primal energy.
Clear Fluorite: Clear fluorite is the companion of Neptune, the planet of mysticism and psychic awareness. If we surround a crystal grid with clear fluorite, it creates a field of obscurity. This stone has excellent cloaking abilities.
Obey your Instincts
There’s no need to spend ample time planning a seasonal grid. Let intuition lead when creating the design. Rely on your senses. Do what feels right.
Can you make a pumpkin-shaped grid and leave it up the entire month? Of course.
Want to use a homemade magick wand to activate the grid? We hope that you do.
If you’re still unsure, look to the Crone Goddess for guidance. Ask her to steer your hand as you transform a pile of stones into a harmonious pattern. Invite her to share her know-how of the mysteries in the dark. Call on her when crafting an intention that compliments the season and your goals. She is a sage teacher.
When we tune into the cyclical rhythms the earth, crystal gridding for the season becomes second nature. Whether we’re gridding for Samhain or another season, the key is to follow our instincts. Because, as astrologer Dane Rudhyar reminds us, “when you don’t follow your nature, there is a hole in the universe where you were supposed to be.”
Check out The Alchemist’s Kitchen’s crystal offerings here!
Photos courtesy of Sister Spark Crystal Grids
