This is a collaborative offering with the wonderful Jane Shaw! Thank you so much Jane!
What is a Hag Stone?
A Hag Stone, often referred to as an Adder Stone, is a unique type of rock characterized by a naturally formed hole piercing straight through it. These stones have been shrouded in mystery for centuries, with many cultures attributing magical qualities to them. It’s said that possessing a Hag Stone could grant one the power to cure venomous snake bites or to peer through the veil of enchantment, revealing the true form of witches or fairies when gazed upon through the stone’s hole. You might see them called Adder Stone, Witches Stone or Serpent’s Egg.
Traditionally these stones have been held in high regard, dating back to the Druidic rituals of pre-Rome Britain.
Hag Stones often find themselves in simple jewelry, where the natural hole makes it easy to wear the stone. They come in a wide variety of different sizes, from smaller than a quarter to larger than the palm of your hand. They have remained as simple talismans through thousands of years. With different cultures assigning them different origins and properties. The bulk of what you’ll find in the modern age is descended from Irish legend.
To this day some collectors will pay a bit more for hag stones from Ireland instead of other locations.
How Are Hag Stones Formed?
There are a couple of things that cause the distinct holes of these rocks. The first, and most common, is simply the byproduct of Pholad clams burrowing into the rocks to get a hold. These filter feeders burrow and grow in stones to protect themselves from predators.
The rocks in areas with these clams are often riddled with holes, and some of these holes will naturally go all the way through the stone. The other type of formation is rarer. In these cases, the stone is caught in a way that another stone rolls against it for years and years, often with sand providing more abrasive power.
Metaphysical Properties & Lore
Hag stones are known to have a lot of metaphysical properties. Which ones depend a lot on who you’re asking! Properties of protection are often mentioned as the common name, hag stone, comes from the belief that they would keep away witches.
The stones were often strung up in barns and across the entryways of homes as a barrier to prevent evil.
In regions where they have different names, their traditional properties are usually tied to the name “Adder stones”. They were said to protect the wearer from snake bites. Much of the lore of ancient Europe is lost, but we can find references to the Druidic faith prizing them. In this case, the stones were often thought to secure lawsuits and grant access to powerful people, rather than the protective qualities of many legends. In addition to the protective qualities of the stone, other traditions hold that they can allow the bearer to divine things.
Chickens, Serpents, and Crowley
On the other side of Europe, Slavic legends call the stones Kurinyi Bog, or “The Chicken God.” Sometimes this is translated as “Guardian of Chickens” but in all cases, the stone is reputed to be the home of powerful spirits. They were, naturally, placed somewhere around the coop to protect chickens. These reputed powers are why the stones have been prized for so long. Various traditions exist as to the origins of adder stones. One holds that the stones are the hardened saliva of large numbers of serpents massing together, the perforations being caused by their tongues. There are other claims that an adder stone comes from the head of a serpent or is made by the sting of an adder. The more modern and perhaps easier to attain artefact would be any rock with a hole bored through the middle by water.
In the seaside town Hastings, there is a local legend that the town is under an enchantment known as Crowley’s Curse, said to have been conjured by Aleister Crowley who lived in Hastings at the end of his life. The curse compels anyone who has lived in Hastings to always return, no matter how far away they move, or for how long. The curse can only be broken by taking a stone with a hole running through it from Hasting’s beach.
~ Jane
The Cailleach and The Hag Stone
Connecting with the Cailleach brought forward the myths and legend of an ancient force in creation. The pre-Celtic Cailleach is a Hag Goddess of creation, dropping or throwing stones and boulders to create the islands (Monaghan, 2014). In references to her various names or epithets, the Cailleach was known as a “hag”, “crone”, or “veiled one”. It is not lost on me that the Hag Stone is perfect to use in quests to peer deeper, to look beyond the veils of enchantment for truths and connection to the ways one knows the Cailleach.
The Cailleach is a wise Goddess, one who moves through as the seasons do. As one does. The ever turning wheel brings me to her when I am down to the bones within myself and my work. Many see her in Winter as the Goddess collecting wood, or have heard the tale of a visitor to her home needing to count the bones to know or understand her antiquity. Her conflations through time and space have led me to knowing her as my own Goddess of the Bones during winter, carving a name into mine, for the cycle of becoming that never ends.
Using the Hag Stone
There are many ways to use a Hagstone! I adore mine and while it has only one hole, those who have more may be excited to know that it means there are various views one can have!
In a Thoughtful Thursday I taught about a Cailleach Bone Practice (you can listen here!). In The Sacred Essence, we use it in ways to see beyond, to intuit paths and places that need a deeper look. For those who would like a small way to peer through the veil, take a walk outside. Find natural things to put into a glass jar, little twigs, pinecones, and stones you may find. Using your Hag Stone, look through the hole into the glass jar and see what is revealed to you!
A Candle & A Key,
Kaycee
Resources
Monaghan, P. (2014). Encyclopedia of Goddesses & Heroines. New World Library. CA.
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