Crystal Healing and Sacred Pleasure: Awaken Your Sensual Energy Using Crystals and Healing Rituals, One Chakra at a Time | Book Review

Crystal Healing and Sacred Pleasure by Vanessa Cuccia is an uplifting, aesthetically pleasing and comprehensively accessible guide to crystals and chakras, both in general and within the context of pleasure.   

The book is easy to understand for those beginning their journey with crystals, chakras, and pleasure.  Cuccia provides an introduction to the realm of sacred sexuality with a context of self-love and relaxing, accessible language.  Aesthetically, the book is very beautiful, with lots of images and negative space to balance the emotionally-attuned, heart-centered text.  

For those with an intermediate knowledge and practice of chakras and crystals, Crystal Healing and Sacred Pleasure may feel rudimentary.  As someone who has a working knowledge of this realm, I found that the book didn’t offer me any new information, but served as a light and affirming review of my existing knowledge.  It is not a dense or academic text, but allows space for fluid, intuitive interpretation on the part of the reader.  

Each chapter is dedicated to one of the seven chakras, and includes a ritual for its corresponding energy center.  The rituals are fairly simple and easy for the individual to adapt to their needs and preferences. As someone who comes from a background of deity- and sabbat-specific rituals, those in this book feel more like spiritual exercises rather than ceremonial rituals.  However, this in no way negates the potential power and positive impact of the practices. Personally, I found myself selecting certain aspects of the rituals and integrating them into my already-existing practices. I didn’t radically change my rites and devotional works, but the book’s rituals added a wonderful new nuance to them.  

The book’s appendices include further reading resources and correspondences chart, adding to the value of this text as an accessible reference book and a resource for further learning. Crystal Healing and Sacred Pleasure ultimately provides a substantive and holistic introduction for beginners, and a well-rounded review for intermediate and advanced practitioners.