Anil, also known as ball blueing or blue balls, is marketed as a way to whiten laundry. The blue tint that anil gives fabric makes yellowed whites look brighter. Blue anil is made of dye extracted from the True Indigo plant, a species of plant from the bean family. Although today, most indigo dye is synthetic, it is still the blue associated with denim cloth and blue jeans. Resourceful people also use anil for more magical purposes, to protect and cleanse. While anil is usually regarded as a guarding and clearing magical ingredient, it is capable of much more. Here are just some of the things that anil (or ball blueing) can help with:

1. Better sleep.

Anil's protective and cleansing abilities extend to your sleep. If you have trouble sleeping or experience frequent nightmares, take a vessel of fresh water. (Natural water is better than water from the tap. If you do not live near a water source, collect rainwater and store it in a sealed container in a cool, dark place.) Add some anil and stir until it is completely dissolved. Keep it beside your bed to guard you against disruptions and bad dreams. Change the water every week.

For extra strength, you can add a bit of camphor to the water. Camphor is another powerful energy cleanser that can remove negative energy from your space so you can sleep more peacefully.

This can also help you with dream recall. In addition to keeping a glass of anil water near your bedside, try writing down whatever fragments you can remember as soon as you wake up. You might also want to keep some clear quartz (especially the Herkimer diamond variety) under your pillow.

2. Clearing your energy.

You can also take a spiritual bath with anil. Make sure that you are physically clean first -- take a bath or shower as you normally would and do all of your washing up there. Afterward, fill your bath (or a basin) with warm water. Add some anil and stir with your hand to help it dissolve. When it has dissolved and the water is completely blue, step into the bath and immerse yourself. Allow the anil water to clear away any unwanted energy, jinxes, or other malicious vibrations that have been sent your way.

3. Protecting your home.

If you often have guests, you know how the energy of your home can feel different after someone leaves. Every person has their own personal energy, as well as any they may have picked up along the way. When they bring that to your house, it can disrupt things.

You can cleanse your home with incense, candles, and floor washes, but sometimes the best cure is prevention.

Take a glass or vase filled with fresh, natural water. Avoid using tap water. Add some anil and stir until it is completely dissolved. Place this vessel near your front door (or whichever entrance guests use most often). This will help remove any negative or unwanted energy people bring into your home. For added protection, add a bit of grated camphor to the water.

Change this water weekly. If you have a lot of guests, host a party, or have particularly disruptive guests, you may want to change it more often.

4. Improving your luck.

Anil's energy cleansing can also help you with luck, especially when it comes to gambling. For objects like lotto cards, bingo cards, or slot machines, discreetly sprinkle them with a little bit of anil.

To make this easier on yourself, you may want to grind the anil balls or squares into a powder first. Using a mortar and pestle, crush the anil. Keep the powder in a small jar and take a little from it whenever you need to sprinkle some somewhere. Powdered anil also dissolves more quickly and easily than whole tablets or balls, so it can be good to have on hand for making floor washes, mixing into water, or adding to spiritual baths. Powdered anil also helps when you do not necessarily need a whole tablet or ball -- you can take just a pinch at a time.

In the laundry, anil's deep blue color helps make fabrics look brighter. This same trait works in sympathetic magic, to help remove stagnant, murky energy to make you and your surroundings really shine. It is traditional to use anil in baths or floor washes to provide protection and spiritual cleansing, but the uses are nearly endless.

Any situation that would be improved by fresh, bright energy or a bit of luck can benefit from some anil. Keep it around in a glass of water to generally improve the vibrations of a space, just remember to change it often to keep the energy fresh.