altar
Memorialize Loved Ones With A Remembrance Table
I have a remembrance table in my home where I display framed pictures of my grandparents, as well as some of the possessions they passed on to me. My eclectic collection also includes a few candles, angel figurines, some essential oils, Grandma’s favorite perfume, grandpa’s favorite cologne, as well as two trees on either side of the table, which I always decorate for the holidays.
My grandparents really enjoyed the holidays. They especially celebrated Halloween and Christmas, their two favorite holidays of the year. The other holidays were also a great time to be at their house, but Halloween and Christmas were always the best!
I believe having a remembrance table, or ancestor altar, really helps to connect us with our loved ones, after they’ve crossed over. I personally don’t worship my ancestors, but I do honor them. You don’t just have to make a remembrance table at a loved one’s funeral, or at weddings or family gatherings. You can make it a permanent part of your home decor, and have it there all year long.
I love the idea of the remembrance table because a funeral should not be the only time you celebrate the life of a deceased loved one. It’s a great way to honor them and the wonderful memories you have to create with them when they were alive.
I’ve put special photographs from different times in their life that were especially joyous and memorable. Family was everything to them, so many of the pictures also include other relatives, such as uncles and their other grandchildren.
Reclaiming Your Power When A Relationship Ends
One of the main reasons it is so painful to release someone when a relationship ends, is because we have usually invested so much of our time and energy in our connection with that person. In essence, what we are truly missing when we mourn a relationship are parts of our self that we have given away. What we are mourning is the loss of our hopes and dreams, not merely the presence of the person who is no longer in our life.
If this is something you are currently struggling with, I recommend the following ritual designed to help you reclaim your power after a relationship break-up, so that you can restore your inner wholeness and resume your search for true and enduring love.
Supplies
- 3 votive candles: 1 blue, 1 green, 1 yellow
- 1 aqua marine or clear quartz crystal
- rain or sage incense wand
- small mirror
- 3 copper pennies
- 2 tbsp of fresh or dried mint in a small bowl
- 2 tbsp sea salt
How To Create Your Own Angel Altar
Over the last few months, I have written in depth about the angelic realm and all the wonders it bestows upon humanity. In today’s blog, however, I wish to share some ideas on how to construct your own angel altar at home, so that you can connect with the angels and archangels whenever you need their spiritual guidance and assistance in your life.
First, find a sacred space for your altar somewhere in your home or office. This can just be a small, private area in your bedroom where you know you will not be disturbed and will be at peace with yourself.
Select or purchase a base for your altar. It can be as simple as a small box or coffee table that is sturdy enough to hold whatever you choose to place upon it. Then drape a cloth over your altar. Anything that is large enough to cover the base will suffice.
Next, you can adorn your altar by placing appropriate objects on it, such as candles, crystals, angelic figures, plants, flowers, stones, and the like. You may use anything that is personally meaningful to you, or to which your are intuitively drawn.
To glamorize your display, you could add golden or silver colored objects, or even spray-paint an artifact of your choice to really add that personal touch. Silver, gold, black, white and mirrored rectangular trays are particularly on trend at the moment for decorating holy altars. However, if your budget is limited, simply paint or decorate an old tray, before placing it on your altar. Check around your home for other unused items that you could paint spray and add to your altar to compliment it.
How To Use Crystals In Your Life
Stones and crystals have been sought after throughout human history, especially for the making of jewelry, amulets and ornaments. Many cultures also used them for healing purposes. The Egyptians, Sumerians, and Mayans are especially known for using crystals and stones in their healing rituals. Today these ancient traditions are regarded as pseudoscience.
Interestingly, the crystal structure is the basis of one of the biggest technological advances in the last 50 years. That technological advance is the microchip.
Some scientists attribute the healing potential of crystals to the placebo effect. Yet, despite the mainstream notion that there cannot be any scientific basis to the healing effect of crystals, the metaphysical community remains obsessed with the use of crystals and stones for healing and spiritual purposes.
The metaphysical use of crystals and stones has become a multi-billion dollar industry, and it is not appearing to slow down. Many are drawn to the touch, to the color, and to their properties. Rose quartz heals the heart. Amethyst calms. Citrine improves finances. Black tourmaline releases negative emotions and protects.
In my experience crystals really do have the ability to heal. They uplift people. They connect with us. Crystals heal and transform the environment.
The Return Of The Divine Feminine
Sometimes when I do psychic readings, I sense a powerful female presence from Spirit, with wings spread wide, who appears to be lending strength and support to my clients. I recognize her as the Egyptian Goddess Isis, or by her Greek name, Auset.
When Goddess Isis comes into a reading, I know that serious business is at hand and that my client needs to be brave, strong, and to believe in themselves. This brings in the grander subject of the Divine Feminine and how that is showing up during my client’s reading.
The awakening of the feminine is alive and happening all around us, and more widely recognized now than ever before. The rise of the Divine Feminine is showing up in all sorts of arenas, including the corporate workplace. Women, as a whole, are speaking up and no longer have much tolerance for sexual discrimination, lower pay rates, or other outmoded ways of female disempowerment.
However, the interesting thing about the Divine Feminine is that it has a quality of power that is not based on forcefulness. It works more in alignment with the psychic realm and intuition. The Divine Feminine works in harmony with what is, and ways to empower everyone.
Spiritual Rituals Provide Sacred Space
Spiritual ceremonies, where humans gather together in a circle, are especially potent. An energetic hoop gathers over the circle to assist in the endeavor for the gathering, whether it be for the purpose of celebrating a new birth, honoring a solstice, or to express anything of importance to humanity, as individuals, or as a group.
Altars are also powerful. They are a gathering place for spirits to provide protection and shielding, to aid in a calling or, perhaps, to provide a sacred place for the energy of one who has crossed to another dimension to gather and connect. Or, we might choose to build an altar dedicated to providing an anchor for our business when we are away, the same as when we are present. Continue reading
A Message Of Hope From Hel’s Pond
A yellow butterfly guided me to Blanke Helle, or “Hel’s Pond” during a recent visit to Berlin, Germany. It darted ahead of me all the way from the bus stop in AlboinStraße, until I reached the entrance to the park where lies forgotten, and hidden from public notice, the ancient pagan site sacred to Hela, or Hel, the Norse-Germanic goddess of death and the underworld.
I have been guided by butterflies on a regular basis over the past two years, since the first one appeared to me at the Temple of Apollo in Delphi, Greece. I was much encouraged by the sudden presence of this golden, magical creature, because it predicted that my visit to this sacred pagan site would be less somber than I had imagined. Yellow butterflies represent rebirth, new life, transformation and resurrection in several cultures. The Irish believe yellow butterflies to be an indicator of the peaceful transition of departed souls. And in Christian tradition yellow butterflies are symbolic of the Christ’s resurrection from death. They are also regarded as a sign of the presence of angels. Would Hel’s dark waters ultimately leave me with a message of hope? Continue reading