Sacred Space with Sage & Palo Santo

Peace & Greetings Spiritual Warrior!

We all have those times when we need to refresh the energy of our spaces from any external energies or imbalanced vibrations.

When considering the addition of Sage & Palo Santo to your spiritual cleansing or sacred routines, it’s important to understand each plant’s historical and ancestral origins.

Whether you’re working on your personal cleansing ritual for specific instances, like coming home from work or having tough conversations, or more general purposes like daily, weekly or monthly renewal for your mind, body, spirit, and space… Sage & Palo Santo have been known to do the trick!

For centuries, Indigenous American Tribes have burned different herbs and plants as part of their spiritual ceremonies to cleanse, purify and protect within some cultures. We have the traditions of many Indigenous tribes like the Lakota, Chumash, Cahuilla, and others to thank for its use.

Different plants and herbs have different properties and use.

In both cases, Sage & Palo Santo are spiritual tools traditionally used by Shamans and Medicine People of Indigenous cultures in smudging ceremonies.

In honor of the experience of the ancestors & elders who have preserved these spiritual practices and the sacred rituals themselves, it is important to be mindful of HOW you take up this practice, with special care to not disrespect the Indigenous Cultures and Peoples. Here are a couple of things to keep in mind:

1. Pay attention to where your palo-santo and sage are sourced from. The cultural appropriation of the spiritual practice of smudging has created an overharvesting and illegal harvesting of sage from preserves and protected lands. Using unlawfully sourced or stolen plant medicine defeats the entire purpose, so where you buy your sacred supplies really matters.

2. Never approach the herbs or plants under the influence of any substance.

3. Always approach the herbs and plants in gratitude, giving thanks for their essence and ability to assist you in your spiritual journey. Never approach them from a sense of entitlement, or arrogance, for without them, your spiritual cleansing process would not be the same.

Sage is a CLEAR ALL plant, used to cleanse you and your space of EVERYTHING.

You may think of this plant as you would an antibiotic…

It takes away all of the good and the bad energy in your space. It is important to be mindful of this because, you MUST invite the good energy back into the space with music, dancing, meditation, essential oils, crystals, etc.

In the absence of good, you can bring back and even increase negative energy in your space if this ritual is not performed correctly!!!

There are different types of Sage, but for this blog article, we are talking about White Sage, which is typically used to invoke protection.

Palo Santo is a Good Energy BRINGER.

It is typically used to bring in blessings and good vibrations.

You may think of this plant as you would a pro-biotic…bringing good energy to balance out the energy in the space.

It encourages positive energy, with its sweet woody smell, while purifying the air and does not require you to do any additional steps to bring in goodness after you are done.

HOW TO BURN:

1. Always remove people and pets from the home to begin a smudge.

2. Make sure the windows are open to release all negativity from the home.

3. Set your intentions for your ceremony!!

4. For Sage:

5. Loose Leaf & Bundle–Very Carefully light a corner of one or two loose leaves at a time or (bundle) leaving the thin white string that holds the sage together, light them and place them in/on a fire-safe, ceramic bowl or incense holder/plate. Blow the flame out by waving it in the air and allow the smoke to linger as you walk around your space. To extinguish the sage bundle, dip it in sand or gently grind it into the incense dish. Do NOT use water to put it out. Follow this burning process with a ceremony filled with the intention for what you want to now occupy the space. Remember to keep out of that ceremony, anything that you do not wish to attract more of.

6. For Palo Santo: Light the Palo Santo stick at one end for approximately 20-30 seconds and then blow out the flame by waving it in the air. Let the smoke linger for about 1-2 minutes to bring in blessings. As you waft the palo santo in the air, envision the goodness and blessings you intend to receive. Place the wood stick on a ceramic or fire-safe incense holder/plate and allow the smoke to linger until it fully extinguishes.

AFTER BURNING —VERY IMPORTANT STEP:

Heating spiritual herbs and elements is an “exciting” or “stimulating” act that truly “heats up” your environment.

To return coolness to your space or person, I recommend spritzing your space or person with floral waters or waters blended with 100% essential oils that add calm or cooling energies to your ceremony.

You can easily make your own special spritz with calming intentions, a pure floral scent like lavender or eucalyptus essential oil, and water. Or you may use Floral Spiritual Waters like Florida Water or Violet Water to promote additional cleansing and spiritual protection.

For more information on Sage & Palo Santo, Spiritual Home Cleansing, Spiritual Life Coaching, and more contact Coach Creatress at HealingBegins@CreateWithinMe.com