0 In Lifestyle/ Opinion

The Cost of Our Obsession with Crystals + Smudges

At the risk of sounding a little (or a lot) hypocritical about this, I have to say: we need to stop buying crystals and smudging our homes with sage (or palo santo).

What I’m about to say, may shock some. But I needed to talk about this, because like many bloggers with an Instagram account, I’m part of the problem.

In case you haven’t noticed, our ‘sudden’ awareness and consciousness and our deep need for connection with mother Earth through pretty crystals and smudging the hell out of the bad energies around us, is creating havoc in the very thing we say we love and want to protect: mama Earth.

Wait, my crystals are what?

Okay, let’s start at the beginning, shall we?

I’m sure the thought may have crossed your mind…but do you know where do crystals come from? Are you aware of the process it takes to deliver you a beautiful energy-cleansing clear quartz?

Crystals are rocks and rocks need to be mined. Usually under very bad conditions. And most certainly, with some kind of slavery arrangements and other dodgy work conditions. Also, the majority of the crystals we have at home, come from (wait for it) underdeveloped nations, like Brazil (hey homies), Congo, Madagascar, Myanmar and so forth. And our current thirst for more crystals encourages exploration, usually from underage workers.

Get that for bad energy.

Most of the industry is also unregulated and very little is know when you want to track the source of your stones, so you really have little to no way of finding out if your crystals are sourced ‘sustainably’. Plus, they are a non-renewable source, meaning, at some stage, those crystals will be forever gone.

But there’s more…

What about sage smudging and that palo santo, you might ask? They come from plants, right? They grow back again, right? RIGHT?

Errr, not so much, my friends. Palo santo and white sage are used by Indigenous tribes for their spiritual rituals. To them, those trees and plants are sacred and have deeper meaning within their culture.

For us, white people? They don’t mean much more than a ritual we do if we want to clean our apartment of bad vibes…see the problem?

We not only are sourcing and destroying Indigenous sacred environment but we are also stealing their culture and taking credit/abusing of their knowledge. That’s double bad vibes!

See, I’m guilty of buying crystals and smudging white sage when I moved into my new home. I didn’t know any better, but this shouldn’t be an excuse for me to continue exploring and using other people’s culture for my benefit (no matter what it is).

It took me a long time to write this blog post because I didn’t want to sound hypocritical, but it’s pointless to sit on my hands and not call out the culture that continuously explores Indigenous, black and poor people. And it’s time I called you out too.

So what can you do now, you might ask? Well, first off, don’t buy anymore. Don’t support the sale of crystals and smudging ‘tools’. Then, treasure what you already have and look after it. And lastly, share this knowledge around. Teach others why this is not right and why we shouldn’t be buying into this trend.

Next time you consider buying more crystals or that sage smudge, think again on the process, source and meaning it has in your life and the other lives you might be depriving too.

Peace & Love,