by Laura Posadas
Altars are structures with offerings that are made for personal beliefs purposes that can range from religious to spiritual. Traditionally, altars are found at shrines that are located in temples, churches, and even in the convenience of people’s living rooms.
Creating a personal altar at home can be beneficial to people by serving as a personal space where people can dedicate beliefs, ideals, people and focus at the comfort of their own home. It can be used for prayer, meditation, chanting, remembrance, or a place of sheer beauty to connect to beliefs.
Tips to create an altar at your home:
1. Create Space.
This is the first step to creating an altar. You have to create the space if you want the altar to exist whether it may be small or large. Pick a space that you will dedicate your altar such as a room, a corner, a table or shelf that will solely be used for you altar. Clean the area thoroughly. Some people use burn sage or incense to clear the energy of the area prior to building the altar.
2. Decide a Theme.
Altars do not have a set theme. You can choose the purpose of you altar and it will be completely acceptable. Pick a theme that expresses your intent. Examples of themes range from elemental, meditation, seasonal, remembrance and so on.
3. Decorate Your Altar.
Chose items for your altar with careful consideration and treat them as sacred items. There are no wrong things to place on your altar. Have fun selecting your items to reflect you. Once the items are chosen, place everything with intention. You can follow many styles such as the Native American style based or simply how you find it aesthetically pleasing. Many altars will include the four elements of nature, earth, wind, water and fire. Placing fresh fruits and vegetables represents the earth element. Wind element is represented by papel picado because it moves in the wind. Lighting a candle represents the fire element and placing a container of water represents the water element. Traditionally, a candle is lit for every soul to be remembered. If you are creating an altar to remember a loved one, you can place their most cherished items there along with a photo of them. Other items to place on an alter include pictures of loved ones, marigolds, oranges, food, beverages, toys, candies, statues of saints, candles, and bread of the dead.
4. Keep Your Altar Maintained.
Ensure to maintain your altar afterwards. It’s important to keep it clean. Don’t forget to clean up any forming dust and you can burn sage periodically to keep the energy fresh in the altar.
Altars were created to help people connect to their beliefs. If beliefs change, altars can rearrange to fulfill the change in beliefs. Once you create a personal altar, use it! Whether you bring it flowers, pray, or just pass by it in your home do acknowledge it and smile.