Chances are that you already have some space that functions in some way like an altar. You may not consider it as such, but nearly everyone has a place that collects precious stuff. With some work and sanctification you may be a few steps from having a functional altar. If you do not have an interest in dedicating or maintaining a separate sacred space, you can craft an entirely mobile altar. Follow the steps below to at least create a temporary place of connection to the greater-than-mortal aspects of this universe.

Step one is to start with a clean slate. Remove everything from your chosen area even if only temporarily. Even if you have a working altar take this opportunity to disassemble it completely. Next, thoroughly clean the space. Wipe down, vacuum, scrub, and even repaint your spot if necessary. While completing this process, use directed Will power to energetically cleanse the area. Use gestures such as sweeping arm movements, or blow your breath over the area while imagining a wind of renewal clearing all the past energies of the space.

Now is the time to create some sort of delineation for your sacred space if needed. Many people use altar-clothes, which are pieces of fabric they find attractive, to frame the altar. If you are dedicating an entire tabletop from some structure such as an end table or dresser top, or even simply an overturned cardboard box, the edges of your structure will serve as the delineation.

Once the above steps are finished, you will be at a point to ritually purify the altar that is manifesting. Similar to the cleansing step, this is a process of energetic work. Many people find using a smoke bath from an incense stick or smudge stick a great way to purify a space. Others will use water or salt water sprinkled over the area. Using your imagination, these purifying tools will of their own nature cause an energetic shift. Allow yourself the inner certainty that the space is undergoing a process that leaves it different than it began, in a way that is appropriate to sacred work.

Next is the completely personal task of arranging the items you will display and use on your altar. Begin by collecting all the special items you have been gifted with or procured for yourself over your life. This may be overwhelming to consider, or it may be as simple as gathering a few trinkets you have been spiriting away. Through a process of energetic elimination, whittle down the items to the most appropriate number for display on your altar. If you follow a spiritual path that has a protocol for altar creation, you can gather the items that fit the dogma of your chosen path.

Cleanse each item to be used on you altar similarly to how you purified and cleansed the altar itself. Each item on your altar is representative of more than it may seem at first glance. Allow your emotional ties to each to speak to you about the deeper significance of the stuff. You will often find that archetypal or universal processes are represented by the otherwise mundane items. If you follow a prescribed setup design, ponder deeply the already thought out correspondences of the items you will be setting on your altar.

Now arrange the altar items on the surface of your altar. Allow intuition to be your first guide, this is not a time to be self-editing your every move. Sometimes creating an altar is similar to playing a game of magical chess: you place and move your belongings in a dance-like juxtaposition of evolving energetic give and take. Eventually a type of balance is reached, and an agreement with yourself is reached as to the placement of each special item of your new altar. If you follow a system that has altar placement agreements, you can still personalize the process as much as possible, being sure to reconsider each step of the process to deepen your connection to your chosen practice. Once the altar is set up, it is time to ritualistically inaugurate it. This can be to simply smudge it again, or a more formal prayer of sanctification and consecration. You may write down a few crafty lines or come up with appropriate words on the fly. The important thing to accomplish is to inform yourself on a deep level that the space that you have created is different from all other places in your life. The new altar has become your own personal gateway to the Divine. You have imbued it with energy through the creation process, and you have energetically crafted the matrix of vibration surrounding the space.

Congratulations! You are ready to put your altar to work.

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