Available to pre-order: The Beginner's Guide to Crystal Healing

A full-color guide to working with gemstones for self-healing, energy work, and spiritual growth

• Explains how to choose your crystals and cleanse them, how to energize and charge them, as well as how to get to know your crystals and attune to them

• Explores the correspondences between gemstones and colors and discusses the effects of crystals on the chakras, the meridians, and the aura

• Reveals how to craft crystal essences, heal animals with gemstones, work with crystal grids, and combine crystal therapy with ancestral healing, Reiki, reflexology, acupuncture, and massage

In this full-color guide to working with crystals, Shirley O’Donoghue shares the basics of crystal therapy, enabling anyone to begin using crystals for self-healing, energy work, and spiritual growth.

The book is available to pre-order at the links below:

US:

Simon & Schuster
Amazon US
Barnes and Noble
Inner Traditions
Books A Million
Bookshop.org

UK:

Simon & Schuster UK

Crystals For Winter Solstice and Christmas – How To Work With Them

Winter traditionally was once a time for us to retreat and hibernate. Replenish and relinquish that which no longer serves us so that we start the new year moving into spring with new energy and perspectives. Perhaps our modern day lives don’t give us quite as much time as we used to have to take time for contemplation and healing. Most of us still must go to work and what winter holidays we do have can sometimes leave us frazzled, drained and tired. Its not all doom and gloom however and we should try to enjoy the aspects of the Christmas break – feasting, partying, family time and gift giving – by giving ourselves a little space to rest and step back from the hurly burly. The best way to do this is to wrap up well and take a walk in nature. Crystals can help you to realign and recharge your energies but also help us to make a stronger connection with the natural world.

Here's some crystals I recommend for this time of year with some ideas on how you can work with them.

Amethyst: Spiritual and protective, Amethyst is perfect to support the space we need to create when we want to recharge and replenish our energy

Anthrasite Palmstone: Great for some serious introspection when you want to take time to think about new beginnings and perhaps endings as well. A wonderful “journey” stone which helps you accept change and transition and look forward. Supports people during periods of depression and anxiety.

Citrine: A crystal which bring abundance, Citrine is forward looking and positive, great for charging up your energies with positivity, it is also linked to the sun and helps to shine a light in the darkness of winter promising us that the warmer days of spring and summer will soon be with us.

Moonstone: Helps us to connect to the moon energy and perhaps this is a good time to focus on the moon cycles, using them to support our own individual planting and sowings of new ideas, perspectives, and ways to live our lives.

Angelite: Tradition Christian beliefs focus on the angels’ messages around the nativity. Working with the angelic consciousness at this time of year inspires compassion thoughts and actions.

Rose Quartz: Will enhance our capability to give self-care and self-love as a gift to ourselves for Christmas. Time spent embodying this will also support you in staying balanced and compassionate when faced with friends, family, and relatives etc.

Bloodstone: Christmas Green with red flecks reflecting the colours of Holly and Ivy, Moss Agate will enhance your ability to connect with the energy of nature as it goes through its own cycle of death and rebirth. It’s a stone that also bring vitality and energy, strength and passion. It’s energy is both mystical and magical.

White Calcite: A crystal which can shine light in the darkness, great for clarity and guidance when you feel you want to illuminate and see ways forward.

Ways To Use Crystals

• Create a Winter Solstice Altar using crystals but also other things that you wish to focus on: photos of relatives/ancestors, affirmations etc

• Make a crystal healing grid. You can welcome in the new and release the old by creating a crystal grid – place crystals of your choice in a space where they won’t be disturbed. You can also incorporate something from nature that you may have come across during a walk – a feather, piece of agate, holly, ivy etc. Just spend a few moments contemplating the grid and if you want to hold the energy of the grid in your hands by feeling the energy generated from the crystals. You could also add a candle if you wish but make sure it is not left unattended. Then you can just leave the crystals to continue to do their magic

• Make a crystal essence using a selection of Christmas crystals and perhaps Christmas plants. You could make the crystal essence into a Christmas spray adding appropriate essential oils such as orange, cinnamon, frankincense, myrrh etc.

• Give crystals away to your friends as gifts

• Wear crystals to support your energies as you spend time with friends and family – aid communication, protect energies, generate compassion etc.

• Add to Christmas decorations – wreaths etc.

• Use them to help with meditation and self-healing

• Try bringing out your “inner witch” by scrying with crystal balls

We have a selection of the crystals listed as well as essential oils which you can buy from our shop.

Our specially selected Solstice Crystal Set comes in a beautiful box with the selection of crystals mentioned in this article which can be used during the solstice but also individually whenever needed.

The Day of the Dead

Day of the dead         Día de los Muertos

by Pia Gronroos

In Western cultures we tend to fear death, perhaps for the fear of being punished by God for all our sins or maybe fearing the unknown, but we also fear loosing our loved ones. In our society there is no place for communicating with the departed. Everything needs to be scientifically researched, tests need to repeatable (will uncle John want to take part every time, probably not) and get the same outcome to be seen as reliable results. Does it mean it’s a scam or does it mean the equipment we made aren’t good enough? Mediums - it’s all a scam, or is it? Finding a good medium can be a hit and miss, but they are out there, and when you do, you will be amazed!

In past cultures, such Tibet, Egypt and Mexico, death played a central role. When someone died, their heart and soul were to be light as a feather, with goddess Ma’at weighing the soul of the de-parted against an ostrich feather. There is a strong emphasis on learning how to die a conscious death n the Toltec and Aztec traditions in Mexico, as there are in Buddhist teachings.

Our ancestors and parted family play a major part in our lives. In the West we grieve them, we re-member them fondly or not, and often notice resemblances of family traits in ourselves and family members. In the Mexican traditions, whilst we are alive we are to experience ego and attachments - enjoying the rich colour of experiences of love, joy, happiness, having possessions, adventures but also the other spectrum of emotions loss, grief, anger, distrust, resentment when we don’t get what we want. All of these create the experience of living, but ultimately we need to learn to have some-thing and then be able to let go of the attachment to it, so that when we die we won’t get stuck in the underworlds. In this sense, the saying “life is precious” takes on an even more powerful mean-ing; we have a chance whilst alive to clear our baggage once and for all. When we are dead, the op-portunity to heal any strong emotions, is not easy. The dead need someone in the family line who is alive to do it.

These attachments and heavy emotions go down the family line until someone heals them, and when they do, the whole family line is cleared from it. So sometime if we call in ancestors we think that they will heal us, but the opposite is true. When we heal our great grandmother, we heal all the entire family line thereafter, including ourselves and our children.

The Tibetan book of the dead says “enlightenment is gained when we die and don’t loose con-sciousness of being alive”. The Toltec teachings tells us how to go through the tunnel of light and how to go through what happens next. If we manage to get through the death experience we can choose where we go afterwards. Do we want to merge with the sun and disappear into a higher consciousness? Do we want to come back to help humanity? Do we want to live forever? The prac-tice will tell us how to navigate the death experience for the outcome we choose.

Traditionally the teachings of dying and healing the ancestors wasn’t left to the two days we know as the Day of the Dead or Día de los Muertos. Originally the practices started in September lasting for of 60 days. This is not the only time to do conscious death practices, a practitioner should do them once every 20 days and more often when death was approaching.

As a result of the European/Spanish invasion in the 1500, forced conversion to Christianity (Cathol-icism in particular), and ongoing colonisation of what today is known as Mexico, Dia de los Muer-tos now takes place on November 1 and 2, having merged with the Catholic All Saints' Day and All Souls' Day. November 1 is to honour children and infants, known as Día de los Angelitos (Day of the Little Angels). November 2nd honours adults and is known as Día de Muertos.

In Mexico the days are prepared long in advance and the cities and villages are covered in colourful displays of orange tagetes called cempasúchil, skulls, candles widely situated around cities and vil-lages. The living make altars at home and decorate the graves with all their love for their past rela-tives.

The Disney movie Coco, made the village of Mixquic famous, and for a good reason. It had a tem-ple where the skills how to die and heal the ancestors were taught. Sometime after the conquest like in many other places in Mexico, a Catholic church was built there and a statue of an angel was placed in the courtyard. In 2017 the angel was removed and a statue of the Lord and Lady of the Land of the Dead, Mictlantecuhtli and Mictancicuatl was returned to the site. The Mexicans were amazing stone carvers, but this one with the two standing back to back as one were much rougher than the ones you would see in the museums in Mexico city. The Lord and Lady of the Dead be-longed to the energy of the North and the night, so they were carved in the middle of the night without much light.

On November the 1st the church rings the bells to call in the ancestors. On November the 2nd the cemetery next to it is covered in the most beautiful flower arrangements, offerings of food, drink, wine, music and copal (incense) smoke filling the air, families sitting by the graves talking with their ancestors. On the 2nd the church bells ring to send the departed back to the Land of the Dead.

If you would like to honour your family and ancestors and friends that are departed you can do the following :

October 27 light a white candle

for those who died alone without family to remember them. Also for beloved pets.

October 28 light a white candle

for those who died in an accident or other unexpected manner.

October 29 light a white candle

for those who died by drowning

October 30 light a white candle

for those who died unidentified and without food. Light a white candle and place bread and food on the altar for them.

October 31-November 1st Make an altar for the infants, children and those not able to be born. (It is said if a child dies before the age of 7 come back again to the same family)

November 2 This is the main day for all the ancestors and adults.

Making an altar

If you would like to make an altar, the Mexican way is to make it in three tiers and place

• Photos of the deceased ones.

• Add according to your religious/spiritual beliefs photos or symbols, such as pictures of the Ma-donna, a cross, in Mexico often a picture of the Lady of Guadaloupe.

• Candles to show them the way to the land of the dead.

• Skulls to remember the wisdom and knowledge that the deceased left. Sugar skulls with names of loved ones on them - I haven’t been able to find any of these in the UK.

• Salt to absorb the departed’s attachments.

• Water as the dead can get thirsty on their travels.

• Bread to represent the body. Pan de Muerto - round bread with bones across and a single tear drop on top for sorrow is a typical bread for the altars.

• Flowers, traditionally marigolds, create protection for the soul on its journey to the land of the dead.

• Lay a beautiful colourful tablecloth. Arrange the altar for important visitors.

• Toys, alcohol, sweets, cakes, fruit etc - anything the departed would have liked in life.

• Incense, generally copal in Mexico but use what you have.

• Traditionally you would have colourful punched paper to let the you know when the spirits arrive.

If you don’t have what is needed you can make a simple altar, use what you have. The intention is much more important than having everything on the list. If an altar is too much to create, just light a candle.

Pia Gronroos has trained with her Mexican teacher Sergio Magaña in the Toltec traditions for several years and is a practitioner in the Toltec healing arts. She has been a practicing acupuncturist in the Stems and Branches and 5 Elements tradition for over 20 years and has a wide array of knowledge and expertise in many areas as her curiosity of life and how it works is endless. She works is Horsham, East Grinstead, Merstham community hub and Dorking as a practitioner and teaches workshops at Lucis College in Dorking. If you want to contact her for more information please email her at pia_gronroos@yahoo.com.

Colour Therapy Workshop

Indian Head Massage Workshop

Introduction To Homeopathy

Introduction to Reflexology

Latest Covid update from the Complementary Therapist Association

Dear valued members,

We are thrilled to finally announce in light of the government’s announcement yesterday (Thursday 9 July) that close contact service businesses will be permitted to reopen from Monday 13th July in England. The government has published further COVID-19 secure guidance in a 43 page document which we have uploaded to the members hub for you to easily access. This guidance applies to England, except for Leicester and would not apply to other regions if a local lockdown is enforced by the government.

Re-opening of close contact businesses in England from 13 July

The following businesses which had to remain closed by law will be permitted to reopen from Monday 13 July as outlined in the table below with links to guidance to ensure their safe reopening.

• Spas

• Nail bars and salons and beauty salons

• Tanning booths and salons

• Massage parlours

• Tattoo parlours

• Body and skin piercing services

Business or Venue

Spas
Nail bars and salons and beauty salons Tanning booths and salons
Massage parlours
Tattoo parlours
Body and skin piercing services

Guidance for re-opening safely

All close-contact service providers are strongly advised to follow guidance on how to work safely available to download from the CThA members hub.

From 25 July, subject to assessment the evidence at the time regarding the rates of transmission, it is proposed that sports facilities and venues, such as indoor gyms, fitness and dance studios, indoor swimming pools and indoor water parks will be permitted to open.

Scope of Restrictions

The Devolved Administrations have issued their own guidance and regulations. The guidance can be found below:

Northern Ireland
The Northern Ireland Executive's confirmation statement on July 2, said resumption of close contact service, including massage, spas, tattooing and piercing could commence from Monday, 6 July. (The relaxation pertaining to spas does not apply to thermal treatment aspects of spas, including saunas and steam rooms, hydrotherapy pools and cold and ice rooms.)

Wales
First Minister of the Welsh Government, Mr Drakeford is expected to signal to begin preparing to reopen from July 27, depending on the state of Covid-19 in Wales at that time. We will of course keep our Welsh members informed.

Scotland
We have been advised by NHS Scotland that close contact services may not resume at this time. We will of course keep our Scottish members informed of changes.

Track and trace

The opening up of the economy following the COVID-19 outbreak is being supported by NHS Test and Trace. You should assist this service by keeping a temporary record of your customers and visitors for 21 days, in a way that is manageable for your business, and assist NHS Test and Trace with requests for that data if needed. This could help contain clusters or outbreaks. Many businesses that take bookings already have systems for recording their customers and visitors – including restaurants, hotels, and hair salons. If you do not already do this, you should do so to help fight the virus. We will work with industry and relevant bodies to design this system in line with data protection legislation and set out details shortly.

Gatherings

People should continue to socially distance from those they do not live with wherever possible. Social interactions should be limited to a group of no more than two households (indoors and out) or up to six people from different households (if outdoors). It is against the law for gatherings of more than 30 people to take place in private homes (including gardens and other outdoor spaces) except where specified in the Regulations.

Businesses and venues following COVID-19 Secure guidelines can host larger groups. This is also the case for events in public outdoor spaces that are organised by businesses, charitable or political organisations, and public bodies, provided they take reasonable steps to mitigate the risk of transmission, in line with COVID-19 Secure guidance and including completion of a risk assessment. Any other gathering in an outdoor space must not be any larger than 30 people except where specified in the Regulations.

Businesses should demonstrate to their workers and attendees that they have properly assessed their risk and taken appropriate measures to mitigate it, for example by publishing their risk assessment online or making it available at the premises/event.
 
In particular, those operating venues or running events following COVID-19 Secure guidelines should take additional steps to ensure the safety of the public and prevent large gatherings or mass events from taking place. At this time, venues should not permit live performances, including drama, comedy and music, to take place in front of a live audience; and should not permit indoor grassroots sport to take place.

Individual businesses or venues should also consider the cumulative impact of many venues re-opening in a small area. This means working with local authorities, neighbouring businesses and travel operators to assess this risk and applying additional mitigations.

These could include:

• Further lowering capacity - even if it is possible to safely seat a number of people inside a venue, it may not be safe for them all to travel or enter that venue.

• Staggering entry times with other venues and taking steps to avoid queues building up in surrounding areas.

• Arranging one-way travel routes between transport hubs and venues.

• Advising patrons to avoid particular forms of transport or routes and to avoid crowded areas when in transit to the venue.

Local authorities should avoid issuing licenses for events that could lead to larger gatherings forming and provide advice to businesses on how to manage events of this type. If appropriate, the Government has powers under schedule 22 of the Coronavirus Act 2020 to close venues hosting large gatherings or prohibit certain events (or types of event) from taking place, and a power under Regulation 6 of the Health Protection (Coronavirus, Restrictions) (No. 2) (England) Regulations 2020 to restrict access to a public place.

Compliance

As of 26 March 2020, the Regulations (which have now been replaced with consolidated Regulations to take account of the gradual relaxation of restrictions) imposed enforceable restrictions on people in England.

The Regulations are reviewed regularly to ensure they are effective and proportionate to the risk to public health. The most recent and up to date England Regulations can be found on the legislation website. Everyone is required to comply with these Regulations issued by the government in relation to coronavirus, in order to protect both themselves and others, to fail to do so can constitute a criminal offence.

An owner, proprietor or manager carrying out a business (or a person responsible for other premises) who contravenes the Regulations, without reasonable excuse, commits an offence. The restrictions on gatherings of more than 30 persons apply to everyone in the gathering.

In England, Environmental Health and Trading Standards officers will monitor compliance with these regulations, with police support provided if appropriate. Businesses and venues that breach restrictions will potentially be subject to prohibition notices, and a person who is 18 or over, who carries on a business in contravention of the Regulations may be issued with a fixed penalty.

With the support of the police, prohibition notices can be used to require compliance with the Regulations including requiring that an activity ceases. It is also an offence, without reasonable excuse, to fail to comply with a prohibition notice.
 
If prohibition notices are not complied with, or a fixed penalty notice not paid, you may also be taken to court, with magistrates able to impose potentially unlimited fines.
 

Business support

In England, under the Retail, Hospitality and Leisure Grant (RHLG) measures announced on Monday March 16, businesses and venues in England in the retail, hospitality and leisure sectors will be eligible for cash grants of up to £25,000 per property.

Eligible businesses and venues in these sectors with a property that has a rateable value of up to £15,000 will receive a grant of £10,000. Eligible businesses and venues in these sectors with a property that has a rateable value of between £15,001 and £51,000 will receive a grant of £25,000. Businesses and venues with a rateable value of over £51,000 are not included in this scheme.

For more information please visit the government’s business support page.

Business rates
 
In England, as announced on Monday 16 March, the government will provide a business rates holiday for businesses and venues in the retail, hospitality and/or leisure sector. This includes the businesses and venues in scope for closure listed above. The relief will apply to business rates bills for the 2020 to 2021 tax year.

Further Information

This guidance will be updated regularly as the situation develops and to reflect frequently asked questions. For information about support for business, please go to the government’s business support page or visit GOV.UK.

Exciting Online Workshop With 3 Experts In Crystals, Astrology & Mediumship

Crystal attunement guide

Crystal Attunement

Always cleanse your crystal before and after the attunement. 

If you wish to work with different chakras for example you can pre-select a crystal which is the same colour as the chakra you wish to work with, likewise if you want to work on something particular, you might like to choose a crystal which has qualities to support that such as Yellow Tigers Eye to support self-esteem or a blue crystal such as Turquoise or Blue Lace Agate to support communication etc.  The directional flow suggested in this meditation can be altered to suit your reasons for undertaking this meditation e.g. use Amethyst to send energy to the Crown Chakra to stimulate it in order to enhance meditation practice for example.

Some people say that you should use the left hand for receiving energy from crystals and the right hand for giving.  I feel that you should hold the crystal however feels more comfortable for you. 

Holding the crystal in your hand and sitting comfortably take a deep in breath through the nose and breathe out through the mouth. 

Look at the crystal and notice the colour, shape, texture of the crystal.  Does this “say” anything to you? 

When you are ready, close your eyes and again take 2 or 3 deep breaths.  Now take your focus again to the crystal but this time concentrate on what the crystal feels like.  Is it smooth or rough, does it have chips or fissures, can you sense the shape, and is the temperature warm or cool?  (Sometimes people can also sense a tingling or buzzing sensation)

After a few moments,  visualise your palm chakra starting to open and connect with the crystal you are holding in your hand as you breath in.  Breathing out visualise the energy from the crystal starting to flow up your hand and along your arm.  The next breath takes the energy past your elbow and up to your shoulder.  Pause here for a moment and then you can visualise/imagine the energy at this point.  Taking another breath, and with intention send the energy to any chakra or part of your body you feel drawn to work with.

Sit with the energy until you feel that you are done.  Then you can either visualise the energy returning to the crystal in the palm of your hand or just gently release the energy from your aura into the earth. 

Typical responses to this exercise are:

·       Heightened colour in Brow Chakra or pictures

·       Buzzing and tingling in the hands from the crystals

·       Temperature variations from what would normally be expected e.g. cooler, warmer than expected, got colder or got hotter as the visualisation progressed

·       Sense of energy moving up the arm

·       Sense of energy reactions from chakras

·       Surge of emotion

Taken from Crystal Alchemy – A Practical Guide To Crystal Therapy by Shirley O’Donoghue

ISBN 978-1-913088-08-8    RRP £14.00 Available from Lucis College, Amazon etc.

Copywrite Lucis College Ltd 2020

New FHT Article

FHT magazine have kindly published an article covering a day in the life of Shirley

Just Announced: Crystal Alchemy - a new book by Shirley O'Donoghue

Lucis College are proud to announce that Shirley O’Donoghue’s book Crystal Alchemy will be published by Lotus Publishing in December.

Incorporating Energy Based Therapies Into Your Practice

Incorporating Energy Based Therapies Into Your Practice by Shirley O’Donoghue MICCH, MIAC, RM, MBFVEA, MICHT

Sunday 29th September
Olympia Stage, Gallery Level
11.45am – 12.15pm

As Principal of Lucis College Ltd., Shirley has taught Holistic Therapies to practitioner level for over 25 years in addition to running training and workshops in the corporate and public sector. She is also Director of a Community Interest Company called Holistic Harmony CIC who have delivered therapies to a wide range of disadvantaged groups and individuals.

She is a speaker  for The Federation of Holistic Therapists and has written 4 books  “Working With Natural Energy” and “Working With Crystals” (publisher Capall Bann) and “Live Better Crystal Therapy” (publisher Duncan Baird), Crystal Alchemy Workbook (Lotus Publishing)

She has also written articles for magazines and appeared on TV and radio.

Talk subject Matter:  

In this talk she will explain how you can incorporate energy based therapies such as Colour Therapy,  Flower Essences and of course Crystals into your practice and treatments.  Participants will have the opportunity to understand how these therapies work and provide you with ideas on how you can add value, variety and additional income to your practice.

Qualifications:

Shirley has been teaching Holistic Therapies to practitioner level for over 12 years.  She is a Reiki Master, Crystal Therapist, Colour Therapist, Flower & Gem Essence Therapist, Indian Head Massage Therapist, Beauty Therapist (Ayurvedic Face Massage and Thai Foot Massage).  She is currently completing an post grad MSc degree in Teaching For Healthcare Professionals.

Website link: www.lucisgroup.com

Facebook: Luciscollege

Instagram: Lucis_college

Download: Guide to Colour Therapy

Colour Therapy embraces many different modalities, this article will give you some insight into how it can be used therapeutically. Click the link below to download.

Download here.

Download: Guide to Reiki

An article for anyone wondering about whether to learn Reiki. Click the link below to download:

Download here.

Download: Guide to Flower Essences

An underused resource for the therapist. A short article explaining how they work with some interesting ideas on how you can use them creatively, Why not take a look at our FHT Online Flower Essence Course.

Download here

Download: Guide to Crystal Therapy

Click the link below to download an in depth article explaining Crystal Therapy and giving basic ideas on how you can use crystals. Why not also take a look at our FHT Online Introduction To Crystal Therapy Course.

Download here

Lucis College - Featured CAM Article

This article was published in 2006 when we had spent 4 years working with various organisations which brought us into contact with a wide range of substance misusers.

There were a number of repeating patterns that appeared in the treatments we gave and this article was a result of the experiences we had had. Since then we have continued to treat similar groups and individuals and have also the span of clients we treat has expanded to include sufferers of serious mental ill health conditions.

We feel privileged to have had these experiences and hope that anyone embarking on treating similar client groups will find this article still relevant, accurate and helpful.

Click here to download the article.