sacred space
Painting As A Powerful Spiritual Practice
As a visual artist, I find painting to be a powerful tool for spiritual growth and manifestation. Art has been used as a medium for self-expression and energy channeling for centuries. Painting in particular is an enlightening way to tap into one’s innermost thoughts and feelings and connect with your higher self.
One of the ways that painting can be particularly helpful in growth and healing is that it offers a way for us to let go of what no longer serves us. We too often hold onto old traumas, fears, and limiting beliefs that keep us stuck in negative patterns. Channeling these toxic thought patterns and emotions into art can help us to release it and create space for new energy to flow in.
The act of painting itself can be deeply meditative and calming, allowing the artist to quiet the mind and tap into their intuition. When we allow ourselves to be mindful and entirely present in the moment and focus solely on the act of creating, we access a state of energetic flow that is incredibly soothing, healing, and transformative.
Additionally, painting can be used as a powerful tool for manifesting. When we create art with a specific intention in mind, we are essentially using our thoughts and imagination to give physical form to that intention. Making an original painting is much more powerful and intentional than creating a vision board, for example. By painting images and scenes of the things we desire, we are sending a clear message into the universe that we are ready to receive it.
Meditating On An Archangel
Archangels are powerful celestial beings who serve as messengers or agents of God, and who offer protection, guidance, and healing to those who call upon them. They are found in various spiritual traditions, including Christianity, Judaism, Islam, and Gnosticism.
Meditating on an archangel is a powerful way to deepen your spiritual practice and connect with God, Source, Spirit, the Divine. For the best results it is important to select the archangel that best corresponds with your personal development, spiritual growth, healing, or manifesting goals.
The seven archangels are Michael, Raphael, Gabriel, Jophiel, Ariel, Azrael, and Chamuel. Each of these angelic beings are associated with specific correspondences, including colors, elements, planets, and virtues. Here are some of the correspondences for the four main archangels in the Judeo-Christian tradition:
Archangel Michael: Michael is associated with the color red, the element of fire, the planet Mercury, and the virtue of courage. He is depicted as a warrior and protector, and is known for his powerful ability to vanquish evil and defend the righteous.
Archangel Gabriel: Gabriel is associated with the color blue, the element of water, the Moon, and the virtue of purity. He is depicted as a messenger, and is known for delivering important messages from God, including the announcement of the birth of Jesus Christ.
Archangel Raphael: Raphael is associated with the color yellow, the element of air, the Sun, and the virtue of healing. He is depicted as a guide and healer, and is known for his ability to bring physical, emotional, and spiritual healing to those in need.
The Metaphysical Properties Of Houseplants
Many people who use houseplants to brighten their living space do not realize that they also have metaphysical properties to enhance our spiritual and energetic well-being. Plants, in addition to beautifying our environment, have mystical qualities, and also serve to purify and detoxify the air we breathe.
Herbs are especially powerful and traditionally associated with mental clarity, serenity, and purification. An ancient spiritual cleansing tradition is smudging in which the smoke of burning dry sage and other herbs is used to purify spaces and banish negative energies.
Many herbs are also edible and can be made into elixirs, teas, or potpourri mixes. Delicious and nourishing herbal teas are the perfect way to begin or end a day. Herbs can also be added to healing baths and to enhance nutritious food. Some of my favorites are lavender, mint, rosemary, and basil.
Herbs are easy to grow and do not take up much space. They are no doubt the most versatile houseplant, and even a small apartment can host a herb garden if it has a sunny windowsill.
If you’ve never owned houseplants before, begin with a succulent, such as a cactus or aloe plant. They don’t require much maintenance or watering. Many succulents have spines or spikes, which is why they are associated with protective energies and healing. They are the ‘armor wearers’ of the plant kingdom and keep feelings of despair, gloom, and anxiety at bay. Aloe is also well-known as a treatment for minor cuts, itches, and burns, so grab a piece if you have a slight accident at home and rub some on.
Receiving Spiritual Guidance From Your Ancestors
The ancient tradition of ancestor worship is a powerful, yet often misunderstood spiritual practice. It is typically viewed as a form of idolatry, mainly because of the inaccurate use of the term ‘worship.’
In truth most cultures practicing such rites do not refer to it as ‘ancestor worship.’ The more appropriate terms to use is ‘ancestor reverence’ or ‘ancestor veneration,’ because it is about living descendants paying respect to and seeking the guidance of their loved ones in spirit.
It is a common practice among indigenous people and an integral component of most shamanic traditions. It is not the same as the worship of gods or deities.
In fact, as a spiritual practice it is not much different from looking at old pictures of departed loved ones and rememembering them fondly. We might even tell them how we miss them or share our problems with them. Some of us have even asked them to help us find solutions to problems, or pull a few strings on our behalf from the Other Side.
Although I cannot say I have any special reverence for my ancestors, I do respect them for all the trials and tribulations they experienced while they were in this life. In my ancestral lineage there were courageous prisoner-of-war experiences, the conquering of grievous setbacks and material harships, and even suicides, to mention but a few. Several of my predecessors had truly unique, and even exceptional life stories that still dwell in my cellular memories.
The ancestral technique I use in my spiritual practice is similar to that of the Yoruba people of West Africa. My greatest connection is with my father, and he is the one I communicate with daily in the Yoruba fashion. You can create an altar or sacred space in your home for this purpose.
Blessed Are The Kind And Helpful
September is Virgo season! What better time to consider becoming a better person by being more compassionate and supportive to others in need? Virgos are known for being helpful, kind, sympathetic, and someone others can lean on.
Virgo happens to be my Sun sign, so I have a bias here. But seriously, nothing is more rewarding than to be of service. Nothing blesses us more than helping to make the world a better place.
We owe it to ourselves and others to be of service. Because once we are truly there for others, we soon begin to notice undeserved joys and blessings filling our wellspring of abundance every day.
When we are kind, helpful and of service to others we begin to draw more beneficial energy to us, and lose track of the need to count money at the table as it comes in. Work is simply fun! Others see our joy and inspire towards similar goals in their own lives.
Those who are unkind or disregard the needs of others, even treating others as their emotional punching bags, eventually have a heavy karmic duty to repay. Being selfish, narcissistic, and cruel are the sources of much misery, anxiety and self-destructive, addictive behaviors in many people’s lives. It simply does not pay to be callous and uncharitable.
Of course, we all have our self-absorbed ‘bad days,’ because none of us are perfect. But we do an inventory at the end of the day, reflecting on how our conduct may have made others feel.
Create a sacred space in your home where you may atone for your missteps; peaceful area where you may recite a daily intention for grace. Equip this space with an essential oil diffuser or incense burner, candles, crystals and gemstones, oracle cards or runes, prayer beads, singing bowls, personal mementos, photos of loved ones, artwork, and other symbolic items.
Practical Ways To Cleanse And Protect Your Energy
We often blame other people or circumstances for feeling tired, burdened, overwhelmed, or depressed, while in truth it is due to our own choices and actions.
When we do not take care to maintain a raised energy vibration, lower or ‘dense’ energies begin to affect us in a negative way. It typically manifests as general physical and emotional exhaustion, or feeling drained. There may also be recurring episodes of ‘bad luck.’
How do we cause this lowered energy frequency? The main cause is negative thoughts and limiting, false beliefs. Our daily reality experience is the result of our thoughts and beliefs. We are personally responsible for the vibes we exchange with our surroundings and the rest of the world.
No matter what belief system or religion you subscribe to, energy protection is always necessary. Every day we are exposed to etheric energies imbued with despair, conflict, hatred, and anger, but nothing can get into our energy field if we do not allow it to enter. So, always protect yourself and shield your energy.
True spiritual protection and energy shielding is however never about fear, insecurity, or paranoia, nor is it about focusing on the negative. On the contrary, it is a way to keep our lives open to the blessings available to us every day. By protecting our energy, we make sure that we are open to every good thing that moves around us and to every soul that wants to vibrate in a key of joy with us.
There are many spiritual and metaphysical practices for achieving and maintaining energetic security and a raised vibration, such as prayer, meditation, visualization, cleansing rituals, and invoking guides, saints, or a particular deity. The following practices are also useful to incorporate in your everyday lifestyle.
Ritual In A Modern Spiritual Lifestyle
Rituals, rites and ceremonies are the oldest forms of spiritual practice and essential aspects of all religions and belief systems. A ritual is a meaningful or symbolic action or series of actions that has a standardized format or sequence and can therefore be repeated in exactly the same way by individuals, groups or even communities.
The metaphysical energy generated when we focus our intent using symbols, tokens and metaphoric activities during a ritual that has special meaning for us personally can be highly transformative! Whether you practice ritual in a group or solo, it can supercharge your manifesting ability and aid in any mental, physical, emotional, and spiritual healing processes you may be going through.
When some people hear the word ‘ritual,’ they tend to imagine darkened, smoke-filled rooms with mysterious people in long robes, chanting strange refrains perhaps, all choreographed with everyone knowing their roles. I’m sure there are people who practice rituals in this way and elements like incense and chanting can indeed be party of a rite or ceremony. But a ritual can also be more simply crafted in a way to fit into a modern lifestyle and everyday spiritual practice.
In my own practice, I created a little ‘altar’ for myself. A small sacred space where I have placed a few candles, some incense, crystals, feathers and a few other symbolic tokens which hold special meaning for me. I also added a picture of my mother and a statue of an angel given to me when my grandpa passed away. In this way I created a sacred space that has deep meaning for me personally and brings me into a spiritual mindset.
You don’t need to have a lot of room for this in your home. So, you can even create a small sacred space for yourself on the corner of a dresser or table top. As my practice has evolved, I now find that any spare surface or quiet corner in the places where I have lived can become a nook for little spiritual treasures that I find during my adventures. Once you start creating a sacred space, the Universe will send you little gifts to help you along.