Altars

Day 2 Creating Sanctuary

Altars
An altar serves as a visual focus of your spiritual intentions, affirmations, prayers, and energy. It also serves as a place to go be quiet, re-calibrate your mind, and re-ground your energy. An altar can be right where you are. In an open field, in your parked car, or in a private place in your home.

I suppose by this definition I have little altars all over the place. So many little collections of rocks, shells, bones, feathers.... treasures found on walks, visits to the mountains, the ocean, travels. These things have their own unique energy and depending on when I encounter them, they bring inspiration, memories or just quiet comfort.

 This little bowl was a gift Wesley brought me from Morocco, she also gave me all of the stones at times when I needed their particular energy. The yellow Ocean Jasper is my favorite. This stone is only found in Madagascar and is known for its healing of past sorrows and help with moving forward and letting go of old emotional wounds. Its a good stone for an altar. 

An altar should definitely be a part of creating sanctuary. A sacred space. Want to create your own altar? Here are a few steps to think about:

1. find a location, preferably a quiet place away from house traffic. Although, I do have a friend that had an altar right by her front door and I always loved seeing what was there, as she changed it from time to time.
2. Cleanse the space with smudging, incense or a sacred ritual, even sound cleansing could be nice
3. Try to choose items for your altar that represent the four elements, fire, water, air, and earth.
    some items might include:

• Candles (fire)
• A vase or bowl filled with water  (water)
• Feather (air) 
• Crystals or stones (earth)

• herbs or flowers (earth)
• Journal
• Photos of loved ones living or passed on
• Spiritual figures
• Poems, prayers, affirmations, quotes
• Fabric or cloth to place your altar items on.                                                                                      

4. Bless your altar by reading an affirmation, saying a prayer, setting an intention, you could also do a brief meditation

Most everything I have that is tucked in a drawer, sitting on a shelf, hanging on a wall has a special meaning for me. The above photo includes a doorknob from my grandmother's house, a bottle of sand from the beach, a shell from the beach, and a porcelain heart a very dear customer mailed to me when I was making pottery. She wrote me a beautiful letter of encouragement and loved my work. She sent me other gifts from time to time and I still have them. Precious items for an altar.....

If you don't have a particular place for an altar, you can still reference things that bring you joy, evoke a memory, or set an intention for you. I have a collection of necklaces that I love hanging on a beautiful wall shelf above my dresser. The turquoise is from my first trip to New Mexico when I was in my twenties, and then another turquoise that Wesley brought me from the same place, also in her twenties.  There are pieces that I have made, and one very special piece that was a gift from the extraordinary artist Nina Bagley.

I think wall shelves are a perfect way to create a special space for your spirit. This shelf holds a gourd  I bought from an artist at one of the many craft shows I did, she was just starting out and it was her first show, and she was so humble about her work, I have had this for many years now and I still love it. Wesley found this turtle shell down by our creek, it was upside down with a pile of bones inside including the head. Such a special gift from nature. The pottery vase is from one of my favorite artists in Seagrove and given to me probably 30 years ago by Gerry. I still cherish it.  I have so much stuff, but they are my memories and I love having all these things around me. Little Altars everywhere. Where is your altar? What do you have on it?