They can be small enough to fit into a travel size box, on top of a board, or take up an entire dinner table. I have also recently begun to find soy and palm wax candles, and particularly like the palm candles. Yes, lighting that may be all it takes to gather the energies and give gratitude to the nourishing animals, vegetables, herbs and minerals that made your meal the magical elixer of health that it is. Having a daily practice with my altar gives me something to regularly lean into with full trust, even when life is in flux,” says Aarona Leá Pichinson, a ritual wellness teacher and founder of the Moon Deck. It’s entirely up to the witch creating that space to make the altar that best suits them, their home or where they’re worshiping, and their own personal practice.

Homemade herbal lavender (lavendula) smudge stick smoldering on white plate with candles and amethyst crystal clusters for decoration.Gemstones for wellbeing, destress, meditation, relaxation Healing reiki chakra crystals over fabric background. An “altar” might stir up images of bad Hollywood movies of pointy hat wearing witches sacrificing babies on stone altars to an evil bright red dude with horns*. Always remember that altars are personal, so it’s always your personal preference and practice above all else when assembling your altar. Also, on every Sabbat, I perform certain divination tasks with various sets of cards, and the cards chosen remain on the altar until the next Sabbat as a reminder.

If you cannot be on the frontlines, yourself, do what you can to protect and support those change-makers on the front lines. For example, burning a piece of paper, mixing up a magickal herbal brew, or leaving small cakes to honour the Fae folk on Samhain. However, it is in the west – possibly the wrong direction to have it, but the only place in my room to put it. Valere­a Ruelas (also known as the Mexican Witch), author of Cosmopolitan's Love Potions, says that lighting a white and red candle is necessary to ward off negative energies from your altar. It's a sacred space you regularly come to when you need inspiration, healing, peace, comfort, and meditation during life's turbulent times.Altars are like mini temples, so you’re more likely to feel your intuition here,” Novo says, adding that visualization can also be supercharged when practiced at an altar. Rituals with gemstones and aromatherapy for wellbeing, meditation, destress, relaxation, mental health, spiritual practices. Communal, coven, or familial altars can be created as well, but today we're focusing on personal altars. Here in South Africa (Southern Hemisphere), East is Air, South is Earth, West is Water and North is Fire – this is according to the Wiccan associations.

Florida Water and flower waters/colognes are another option, used a lot in Shamanic and specific cultural practices. Female hands with sharp red nails among candles, herbs, pumpkin, nuts, dry leaves, acorns, ashberry, selected focus, low key Forest witch at work on the altar. Pichinson suggests practicing meditation, journaling, contemplation, intention-setting, candle-gazing, pulling oracle cards, reading, chanting, praying, and connecting with your intuition.Well, there’s belief that manifestation and spells for financial success can help you reach your goals faster! A place to harness and access powerful source energies, the gods, ancestors and the rest of the spirit world, and even our own higher selves. In the most basic form, an alter can be a single stone or a flickering candle that serves as a focal point for your meditation practice. Cauldrons hold many uses including mixing ingredients such as your herbs, burning loose incense on a charcoal disc, making black salt or to burn petitions. If you're new to crystals and would like some help deciding where to start and how to cleanse them, check out our other blog posts for more info!