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A crystal or crystalline solid is a solid material whose constituents (such as atoms, molecules, or ions) are arranged in a highly ordered microscopic structure, forming a crystal lattice that extends in all directions. In addition, macroscopic single crystals are usually identifiable by their geometrical shape, consisting of flat faces with specific, characteristic orientations. The scientific study of crystals and crystal formation is known as crystallography. The process of crystal formation via mechanisms of crystal growth is called crystallization or solidification.

Crystals, or crystalline solids, are often used in crystal healing therapy, and, along with gemstones, are sometimes associated with spellwork in Wiccan beliefs and related occult practices. The Sumerians utilized crystals in their magical formulas as long as 6000 years ago. Examples of large crystals include snowflakes, diamonds, and table salt.

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Did you know...

Jean Bodin

• ... that the Jean Bodin wrote the first published definition of witchcraft?
• ... that the Book of Isaiah describes the Seraphim?
• ... that the Book of Magical Charms includes charms for healing a toothache?
• ... that some Abrahamic religions historically believed in Reincarnation?
• ... that Thiess of Kaltenbrun claimed to be a "holy werewolf?"
• ... that The Empress tarot card corresponds to Venus?
• ... that the ancient Egyptian goddess Nut is revered in Thelema?
• ... that Cassiel is one of the Angels of Death in Judaism?

This month in history Jan Hus being burnt at the stake 2 July - French seer and mystic Nostradamus dies. (1566) 3 July - Folk saint and shaman Don Pedro Jaramillo dies in Brooks County, Texas. (1907) 6 July - Jan Hus is burned at the state for heresy. (1415) 10 July - Czech occultist and author Franz Bardon dies from pancreatitis while in police custody. (1958) 14 July - The New Horizons spacecraft completes the first-ever flyby of Pluto. (2015) 12 July - French author Jean-Baptiste Pitois, who coined the terms Major Arcana and Minor Arcana, dies. (1877) 13 July - John Dee, court astrologer to Queen Elizabeth I, is born. (1527) 17 July - The last Tsar of Russia, Nicholas II, dies. (1918) 19 July - Date of the heliacal rise of Sirius used to begin the Egyptian calendar. (3000 BC) 19 July - Accused witch Rebecca Nurse is executed by hanging. (1692) 19 July - Australian cannibal murderer Alexander Pearce is executed by hanging. (1824) 19 July - Occultist Aleister Crowley begins his 40 day seclusion on Esopus Island. (1918) 22 July - Elizabethan astrologer Simon Forman marries 17-year-old Jane Baker. (1599) 26 July - Argentine folk saint Eva Perón dies. (1952) 28 July - Accused witch Lilias Adie is arrested for witchcraft. (1704)

Featured image Lilith is a female figure in Mesopotamian and Judaic mythology, theorized to be the first wife of Adam or a primordial demon. She is thought to be mentioned in the Biblical Book of Isaiah, and in Late Antiquity in Mandaean mythology and Jewish mythology sources from 500 CE onward. Lilith appears in various concepts and localities that give partial descriptions of her. She is mentioned in the Babylonian Talmud (Eruvin 100b, Niddah 24b, Shabbat 151b, Baba Bathra 73a), in the Book of Adam and Eve as Adam's first wife, and in the Zohar as "a hot fiery female who first cohabited with man." Many traditional rabbinic authorities, including Maimonides and Menachem Meiri, reject the existence of Lilith. Artist: John Collier (More Images)

Featured Quote "We live in the midst of invisible forces whose effects alone we perceive." - Dion Fortune

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