Hag Stones: Meaning, Magic & Where To Find Them

A Witch’s Guide to These Ancient, Sacred, and Mysterious Treasures

If you’re someone who collects sacred tools and nature-born relics for your altar, your spell jars, or your windowsill, a Hag Stone is more than a pretty find. It’s a magical ally. A portal. A protector. But what exactly is a Hag Stone, and why do witches, folk healers, and sea-walkers cherish them so deeply?

Let’s step into the lore…

What Are Hag Stones?

A Hag Stone is a naturally holed stone, a rock worn by centuries of flowing water, tides, winds, and time until it’s left with a hole right through its center. No tools. No human carving. Only nature’s hand shapes it through erosion, pressure, and movement. That hole is what gives it power.

Hag Stones aren’t a specific type of rock. They can be limestone, flint, sandstone ( any stone, really) as long as the hole was formed naturally. They’re found most often near shorelines, riverbeds, or streams, and are rare, often hiding until the exact right person walks by.

They’re also known by many names, depending on region and folklore:
• Witch Stones
• Adder Stones
• Snake Eggs
• Hex Stones
• Fairy Stones
• Eye Stones
• Holey Stones
• Holy Stones

Each name carries a history, a whisper of what these stones were believed to do: protect, reveal, and connect.

Hag Stone Lore & Folklore

The name “Hag Stone” stems from the old belief that witches, or ‘hags,’ could cause illness or misfortune, and that these stones could protect you from such spells. Ironically, witches today embrace them as protective tools against dark energies and as sacred gifts from nature.

Some believed the stone’s hole was the eye of protection, letting only good energy pass through, while evil spirits and misfortune would get caught or turned away, unable to pass through the narrow threshold.

Others claimed hag stones were made by serpents gathering during moonlit rituals, forming the hole through magic or venom. Hence, the old name: snake eggs.

There’s also a tale that if you looked through a hag stone, you could:
– Spot a witch in disguise
– See into the fae realm
– Glimpse the future
– See through illusions
– Access the otherworld

Water, the element that birthed the Hag Stone, is also deeply symbolic. It’s connected to dreams, intuition, emotion, and purification. Because magic was believed to be weakened by moving water, the hag stone, formed by it, becomes a sort of natural amulet against dark magic, curses, and harmful spirits.

Symbolism & Spiritual Meaning

Hag Stones are rare for a reason. Many say you don’t find a hag stone, it finds you. And if you come across one during Samhain (October 31st) or any of the liminal Sabbats, its energy is believed to be even more potent.

Symbolically, hag stones represent:

• Protection
• Ancient wisdom
• Good luck & abundance
• Insight and truth-seeing
• Strength and resilience
• Spiritual maturity

To own one is to be chosen. To wear one is to walk with sacred protection.

How to Use a Hag Stone in Your Practice

Whether you’re a green witch, kitchen witch, sea witch, or spiritual seeker, hag stones can be incorporated into your magical or everyday life in many ways:

For Protection:

• Hang one over your doorway to keep evil spirits, hexes, and negative energy out.
• Place it under your pillow to ward off nightmares.
• Carry it in your pocket or pouch as a protective charm.
• Add it to your spell jar, especially for protection, strength, or truth.

For Spiritual Work:

• Meditate while holding it for deepened intuition.
• Gaze through the hole to see auras, spirits, fae, or what is hidden.
• Use it during astral projection or journeying work for safety.
• Place it on your altar to charge with your intent or offer it to a deity of your path.
• Use it in candle magic — set it near a flame and focus through the hole to visualize intentions.

For Everyday Magic:

• Tie it to your keys so you never lose them.
• Wear it on a cord around your neck or wrist to protect your energy field.
• Place it near your bed or in a dreamcatcher.
• Use it as a pendulum or scrying tool.
• Keep one in your car or travel bag for safe journeys.

Bonus Witch Tip:

If you’re working with the Fae or nature spirits, hag stones are said to allow respectful communication between realms. Always ask permission before using them for fae work; they know when you’re messing around.

Where to Find Hag Stones

The best hag stones are those you find yourself. Walk the seashore, explore rocky riverbeds, visit ancient streams or mossy paths in forests. Be patient. Be open. Sometimes they appear when you stop searching.

You can buy hag stones online or from metaphysical shops, but beware of fakes. True hag stones have a naturally eroded hole, not drilled. The energy is different. Some witches even believe purchased ones won’t bond to you the same way.

If you do buy one, cleanse it well, with moonlight, smoke, salt, or running water. Then, hold it and introduce yourself.

A Living Talisman

A hag stone isn’t just a stone. It’s a survivor. A witness. A spell born from water and time. It holds ancient energy, protective magic, and a quiet promise: that you’re never truly alone when you walk the path with sacred tools and a grounded heart.

So if you’ve found one, cherish it. Whisper to it. Use it wisely.

And if you haven’t found one yet… maybe it’s waiting for you on a shore somewhere, where tide meets fate.