How to Create a Sacred Altar

Introduction

Have you ever walked into a space and immediately felt lighter, more happy, or more at peace? Maybe your mind went peacefully silent or you felt like you could finally take a breath?

Take a moment to remember such an experience.

Perhaps it was in a church, a forest trail, or your favourite reading nook?

Sometimes we connect with spaces where there is an abundance of positive energy. The connection makes us feel very good and even spiritual. A regular spiritual practice allows us to be more relaxed, which in turn allows us to connect with positive energy more often.

If you want to start a regular spiritual practice, a sacred altar is a great first step. Keep reading for a short beginner’s guide to sacred altars and how to create your own.

The root of the world altar

The word altar has latin roots that can be literally translated to: an elevated place where rituals are performed. A ritual can be an offering, a prayer, a meditation, a breathing exercise, or anything else that allows you to feel at peace. Feeling at peace looks different for everyone.

Altars can be constructed of manmade or natural materials and they exist in every culture and religion.

What an altar can do

An altar has many functions, all geared towards helping you maintain your spiritual practice.

An altar

• • creates peace in your entire home.

• • allows you to more regularly practice spirituality.

• • is a meeting place for you and spirituality.

• • supports and empowers you to be the best version of yourself.

• • offers comfort.

Where to place your altar

An altar is a holy place where you do your spiritual practice. For that reason, here are some questions to ask yourself when considering a spot for it:

Questions to ask yourself

• • Can I easily sit here to do my practice?

• • Is this a quiet and private spot that I can easily do my practice in?

• • Is this a high traffic area where my altar might get knocked over?

• • Does this spot feel right to me?

What to add to your altar

Once you find the spot that feels the best for your altar, you can start creating it!

Please keep in mind that your altar is a sacred space, meant to be a spiritual workplace and a reflection of your spiritual practice. Do not clutter it with meaningless trinkets or go spend a fortune on trendy items for it. Stick to a minimalistic approach. This will ensure that your altar amplifies your spiritual practice.

A common theme that is found in altars is that they often consist of items that coincide with symbolic elements (air, water, fire, earth). As such, below is a chart of common items that people put in their altars, and which element they allign with. Please find inspiration!

Earth	Fire	Air	Water	Other
Pebbles/Rocks	Wood	Feathers	Holy water	Statues
Crystals	Candles	Incense (smoke)	Blue	Symbols
Plants	Red	Yellow		Pictures
Green				Coins
				Singing bowl
				Placemat

Once you have one item that speaks to you, add it to your altar. It’s perfectly fine if your altar consists of only one item! If you then find another item that you’d like to add, go ahead. Your altar will be everchanging with you and your spiritual practice.

How to construct your altar

Once you gather your item(s), you can follow this construction guide.

To construct your altar

1. Cleanse your item(s) with the intention to remove stagnant or negative energy and to bring in positive energy.
2. Speak the intention for your altar.
3. Arrange your items. It’s best to arrange them symmetrically.
4. Check in periodically to cleanse and update your altar.

Now that your altar is complete, you can begin your spiritual work at a deeper level than before. Have fun on your journey!