Like many pink crystals and stones, Rhodochrosite is associated with love and matters of the heart. What sets it apart as a “crystal for love” or “stone of love” is its simultaneously soothing and activating vibration. Rhodochrosite is a mood booster; giving one the necessary energy required to heal their past and present ; in order to step into their future with an open heart. It is also known to help attract one’s soul-mates and/or soul companions, which is most likely due to Rhodochrosite’s ability to help one release emotional baggage and anything obstructing the vibration of love. Rhodochrosite awakens compassion for ourselves and for others.

Rhodochrosite is a manganese carbonate mineral that is found in small deposits around the world, although today its main sources are in the United States and Argentina. It is sometimes known as “Inca Rose” due to large amounts of it being found in abandoned Inca silver mines. It is often confused with another manganese mineral, Rhodonite, due to its similar name, color, and chakra association. However, it can be easy to differentiate Rhodochrosite due to its characteristic pink and white banding, which Rhodonite does not possess.

You’re in a bit of an emotional funk.

If you’ve been feeling out of balance, drained, or just not like your best version lately, Rhodochrosite can be a positive mood boosting presence. It aligns with both the heart  chakra and the solar plexus chakra, connecting us with our sense of purpose and our ability to be and receive love. Rhodochrosite can be beneficial for those who may be focusing too much on the negative and need to receive some gentle reminders that they are not stuck or things are not as hopeless as they seem. Rhodochrosite opens us up to the deeper, universal, ever-present truths of love, beauty, and true power; reactivating our sense of hope and ability to choose a more expansive and aligned perspective.

You want to forgive someone or practice more compassion.

Rhodochrosite is a gentle stone that amplifies the vibration of forgiveness and releasing to love. If you have been harboring resentment towards another person, or if you are having trouble seeing their point of view or getting space or distance from the situation,  then Rhodochrosite can be a wonderful stone to work with. It can help free you from fixed perceptions about people and situations; allowing you to open up to a more divine and expanded point of view, so that you may see other people through the non-judgmental gaze of compassion. If you have been hard on yourself, you may want to use Rhodochrosite as a means to activate self-compassion and to release inner conflict.

You want to call in an aligned romantic partner or improve upon your current relationship.

As Rhodochrosite is a stone of divine love and compassion, it represents our own ability to be love. What that means is looking upon ourselves and others with the same level of openness and acceptance with which the divine operates. It is a sense of selfless, unconditional love which often requires practice in our human experience. Rhodochrosite can help expand one’s capacity for love, both giving love and receiving love. We cannot receive what we’re not willing to give and sometimes we can’t receive or give love if we’re still holding onto resentments or attachments from our past. Rhodochrosite is a great stone to use in magical rituals or meditations for calling in love, especially love within romantic relationships.

1. This love-activating ritual can be done any day of the week, although Friday may be best as this day is associated with Venus – the goddess of love. If you’d like to supercharge your intention for love, you can also perform this ritual on a new or full moon.

2. Make sure you have a piece of Rhodochrosite and a few other objects which represent love for you. These objects can be whatever you’d like: rose petals, cinnamon essential oil, pictures of happy couples or families, God/Goddess statues, talismans, or any other symbols of love. You might also want to have a journal or writing utensil nearby, just in case you’d like to record your thoughts or observations about the ritual.

3. Create sacred space by smudging the area around you with a cleansing herb of your choice, like sage or palo santo. Visualize the stale and stuck energy leaving the space around you as you simultaneously visualize 100% pure light and divine love coming in as support.

4. Affirm, “I release any unnecessary energetic cords of attachment. I release any resentments I may be holding onto and I release myself from any resentments others may be holding towards me.” You don’t have to bring old partners or circumstances to mind, but if they come up, just notice them with detachment.

5. Visualize golden light enveloping you and washing your energetic field of any unhealthy connections, long-held resentments, or any unwanted ties to former relationships. See the light swirling up and around you like a vortex, taking all that you no longer need with it. Again, if any negative thoughts or unwanted emotions come up, just allow for them to be without resisting the thoughts or emotions. Let the light take these with it as well.6. Now, while still holding onto your piece of Celestite, receive the answers to your questions from your highest wisdom, be it your higher self, your angels, spirit guides, or however you think of your connection with the divine. Write down the answers you receive with gratitude. Affirm, “Thank you for this higher wisdom.”

6. Affirm, “I release you to your highest good. I release you to love, with love, as love.”

7. Take your piece of Rhodochrosite in your non-dominant hand. Keep it in your hand as you visualize pink light emanating from the crystal, slowly getting bigger and more expansive, until it encompasses your whole body. Place your other hand on your heart and say, “I am compassion. I am love. I am loved.“

8. Take some time to think of someone in your life that you love, appreciate, and adore. It could be a family member, friend, or pet. Visualize this person. With your hand still on your heart, focus on the feeling of love you have for them. Sit with this emotion for as long as you’d like.

9. Bring to mind the type of love you’d like to experience more of, be it romantic, platonic, familial, etc. Visualize this type of love as you’d like it to manifest in your life, just like you were in a dream. Participate in your vision – really activating your senses in the process – almost as if this visualization/daydream of love is real. Because it is! Sit in the daydream as long as you’d like.

Rhodochrosite is a stone recommended for anyone on a conscious spiritual journey or path of self-actualization. It reminds us of our true, powerful nature and assists us in the necessary emotional healing that often precedes stepping into our more expanded and confident selves. Rhodochrosite definitely earns its place as a stone of love. It not only opens us up to receive more love in our lives – in the form of improved relationships with self and others – but it awakens us to recognize ourselves as a force of love and compassion in the world.

Disclaimer:  Please consult a healthcare professional for any medical advice. The information in this article is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure or prevent any disease or condition.