4 Crystals for the Summer Solstice / Litha / Alban Hefin / Alban Heruin

The Summer Solstice is a time of great power for this is when the days are at their longest and the Summer Sun is at its strongest. This is the sacred time of the great Sun Deities of the Northern Hemisphere such as the Celtic Lugh/Llew, the Irish Àine, the Saami Beiwe, the Norse Baldr and Sol, the Baltic Saulė, the Romano-British Sulis, the Chinese Xihe, the Japanese Amaterasu and many more...

In modern Paganism this is also the time of the Green Man or Jack in the Green who looks out at us still from churches and woodlands with his foliate face showing his connection to the fertility of nature at this time. These are the final glory days of the great Oak King who rules over the light half of the year, before the Holly King gains in power and takes over as the light wanes again. The Goddess moves from her maiden phase into her mother phase as she now carries the God's child to be born again in Winter.

The Summer Solstice is also a very important day in the Faerie Calendar, hence Shakespeare making use of it for his A Midsummer Night's Dream. The Faerie revels run continuously from the 21st of June to the 24th of June (also called St John's Day) which is when many bonfires are lit and healing herbs are collected to be stored for the winter ahead. During this time the veil between our world and the Faerie Otherworld is very thin and is is said that Faeries can be seen at many Sacred Sites around the globe.

Midsummer is a great time to charge and re-energise your crystals, especially within the earth which is so full of life and energy right now thanks to the Sun. Although some crystals can be charged safely in sunlight, others - such as the transparent ones or the quartz family - are best kept out of the sunlight at this time as they will fade in the light and can even start fires!

1. Amber

Said to hold the power of many Suns, it is perfectly in tune with the strong and powerful Midsummer Sun. Amber has long been popular for jewellery and talismans and was once thought of as the Gold of the Sea. With its sunny disposition Amber loves to share its optimistic joy with us. Amber feels warm to the touch unlike cold crystals and was once full of real life as it is the fossilised resin of ancient pine-like trees. It combines the potent energy of the earth and the power of the Sun in perfect harmony.

Sacred to many Sun Gods and Goddesses, Amber is renowned for its healing, energising and rejuvenating properties. Amber has been used to counteract the evil eye and to heal just about every ailment known to man! Even today it is used to heal toothache, migraines and worn as 'teething necklaces' by babies to help them with the pain of teething as it is thought to draw our pain and dis-ease and fill that void with sunny, healing energy.

Amber was once thought to have been solidified sunlight or the solidified tears of various European Sun Goddesses such as the Norse Freyja and the Baltic Jurate. Like tears, Amber is capable of cleansing and purifying our energies and our environment, helping us to release negative energies, and to live with and work through our grief.

Keeping a piece of Amber in your home or on your person can really help protect you from the negative energies all around us and bring in happy and positive energies. It is worth keeping a pice of Amber near your altar, tarot cards, runes and crystals for the same reason. If you want to connect to the energies of Midsummer at any other time of year, work with Amber for it carries that energy all year around.

Amber is a must have for the modern Witch, Wiccan or Heathen as it is so closely linked with the Goddess, the Lady of Wicca, and the Norse Goddess Freyja whose name means 'Lady'.

You can find some gorgeous examples of Amber jewellery and Pagan Prayer Beads at Cauldron Crafts and more stones and jewellery here.

2. Preseli Bluestone

Also known as the Stonehenge Stone, Preseli Bluestone is one of the many different types of stone used to construct the magnificent megalithic monument of Stonehenge. Several of the smaller, inner stones are of this precious and magical material that our ancestors considered so special that they dragged it over 150 miles from South Wales to Salisbury Plain!

Preseli Bluestone is a stone that connects us to our ancient ancestors and helps us to learn from them and the land itself. It is full of the magic, mystery and great wisdom of the universe all around us and invites us to explore these mysteries, both alone and with others. It is a strangely social stone encouraging us to find others who can help us and who we can help as we all journey along in life. It teaches us also to come together in celebration of nature and the turning seasons around us, just as many still gather today to see in the dawn at Stonehenge and other places on Midsummer's Day or have get togethers around bonfires on beaches on St John's Day (June 24th). It also reminds us to work respectfully with our non-human allies, the animals with whom we share this planet, the Spirits of Nature, the Faeries and the Deities all around us, for we can learn much from them and their legends.

Preseli Bluestone is a powerful stone, you only need a small stone to get great results. Many people like to set up their own mini Stonehenge at home with small tumblestones of Preseli Bluestone and you only need four or five pieces to create an amazing magical space such as a circle or square for ritual, magical or meditative work. Even just holding a small piece in your hand can really connect you to its amazing energies in a very powerful way.

You can find some gorgeous examples of Preseli Bluestone jewellery and Pagan Prayer Beads at Cauldron Crafts and more stones and jewellery here.

3. Fairy Cross Stone (Chiastolite)

Several different type of stone bear this name, but here I am talking about Chiastolite which is a form of peachy, sun-coloured Andalusite with a dark graphite cross feature across it. This dark cross splits the stone into four sections representing the four quarters of the Sun - the two Solstices and the two Equinoxes which are so important to modern Pagans and to the Faeries. This cross also reminds us of the criss-crossing Energy Lines or Faerie Paths that run across the landscape and are supercharged during the time of the Summer Solstice. These are the lines by which the Dragons, the Wild Hunt and the Faerie Hosts travel.

The lines can also be seen to represent the crossroads sacred to the likes of Elen of the Ways and Hecate, and represent the liminal veil between the worlds. By working with Fairy Cross Stones we can learn how to safely navigate our way along Energy Lines and between worlds with the aid of the Faeries. These stones act as shields, encouraging the good Faeries to assist us and to any Faeries who might wish us ill well away.

These stones remind us of our own path in life which is rarely, if ever, linear or as we planned. We can work with Cross Stones to try to keep our lives on track or to make the most of what we learn on our meanderings, for we can discover much off the beaten path...

If you wish to work with Faeries during any of the four Solar festivals, and especially at the Summer Solstice, Fairy Cross Stones are truly magical to work with as they attract friendly Faeries like magnets.  

You can find some gorgeous examples of Fairy Cross Stones here. 

4. Sunstone

Sunstone, named after the Sun, is a type of plagioclase feldspar found in Scandinavia, Siberia and the United States. Truly a stone of the Midsummer Sun, with its peachy orange glow it seems to almost radiate light in and of itself. Long associated with the energy of the Sun and of Summer, like Amber it has a cheery disposition and was used for healing in times past. Sunstone is said to bring warmth, strength, power, focus and enjoyment of life in its wake. It teaches us to celebrate our existence, to wonder at the world around us in all its glory and to look after our bodies and our health.

Sunstone wants us to get outside at this time of year, to feel the sun on our skin (safely and in moderation of course), to appreciate nature in her summer glory and to celebrate life to the full. Used by artists, writers and other creative souls to heighten their creative abilities and to bring inspiration and enlightenment to their work, Sunstone illuminates and brings forth ideas from our imagination to the real world where we can share it with others.

Sunstone is great to carry with you if you have been feeling low, lacking in energy or you are in need of a boost of sunny energy for any reason. It can also enliven the energies of your business, if things have fallen off of late, or bring sunny energy to the home.

You can find some gorgeous examples of Sunstone here and the Sun Goddess Sunstone Prayer Beads above are from Cauldron Crafts.

For more on the magic and metaphysical properties of Crystals please check out my book, Faerie Stones: An Exploration of the Folklore and Faeries Associated with Stones & Crystals.