Crystals are generally low-maintenance companions, but even so they still need a certain amount of care and attention to perform at their best. The main aspects of crystal care are outlined below.

Clearing

"Clearing" of your crystal is neccessary before you can use it. Prior to clearing, your crystal will be contaminated by remnant vibrational energy from all those who have handled the crystal before you. This residual "psychic dust" needs to be removed to ready the crystal for absorbing your own aura.

An unusual but highly effective and quick method of clearing crystals that I have discovered is to place the crystal in a clay or terracotta bowl filled with salted water and a sprig of fresh rosemary and heat gently in an oven or on a stove to 120 degrees Fahrenheit. This is well below the boiling point of water and WILL NOT HARM THE CRYSTAL! Then remove the crystal and place in a copper wire pyramid to cool naturally. When cool your crystal will have cleared.

This process, known as "relaxation" causes non-crystalline stored energies (psychic dust) to be dissipated, so that only the crystals natural energy forces remain.

(Note: Other herbs - such as thyme, basil, oregano - may be used, but personally I find rosemary works best.)

Try to ensure that you are the only person to handle your crystal, to remove the need for constant clearing.

Cleaning

Once the crystal has been you should also make sure that the crystal is scrupulously CLEAN. Crystals should be cleaned using only purified water - the purer the better. (NEVER use alcohol or other solvents as this can quickly reduce the energy internal to the crystal!) The water should flow continually over the crystal. This way the crystal can replenish lost power from the motion and energy of the water. This will not be the case if the crystal is merely immersed in a static container of water. Indeed, this method can cause energy to be lost to the water. This cleaning process should take 30 minutes, and be repeated once a week under normal meditative/healing use.

Charging your crystal

Some people recommend holding and carrying your cleared crystal with you for several days before using it for meditation. This is often not a good idea because the crystal can absorb energies from you when you are in a negative frame of mind. You do not want your crystal charged with the negative energies of anger, hate or jealousy. Apart from being bad for the karma, too much negative energy can cloud or even crack the crystal in extreme cases.

The ability of crystals to absorb energy from your moods and thoughts is the basis for Crystal Programming which will be covered in a later update.

One interesting method of imparting your positive energy to the crystal, should you happen to awake having had a good night's sleep with many clear and positive dreams, is to bathe the crystal in your urine as soon as possible after waking. Before use the crystal should then be cleaned.

Storing your crystal

It is worth mentioning that the crystal should be kept in a pyramid when not in use. This is to guard it against external energy forces. Ideally the pyramid will also be made of crystal, but this can be expensive, so a copper or copper wire pyramid can be used. Pack the pyramid with cotton wool if traveling.