Sacred Space
What makes space sacred? Is it stained glass, icons, or pews? Grave markers and floral arrangements? Candles at the four Quarters and a ten-gallon tote of tools? A crusty old man in a robe, a froofy young woman in a robe? If you've been doing your homework, you'll have already said, "None of those. Duh." Why did you say that? If it's not the trappings and merchandise that makes a space sacred, then what exactly is it? The answer is encoded in that strand of our DNA that makes you get all shivery when you walk into Circle, that makes your hair stand on end at Stonehenge, that makes you speak quietly in a cathedral even if the last time you talked to Jesus was that time you thought you were pregnant your senior year. It's a feeling, a certain something in us that recognizes a place where magic happens, where the presence of deity is accepted fact. Sacred space is any space where knowledge, faith, and desire have coalesced into reality. Anyone can create sacred space, regardless of religion or creed, and there are myriad ways to go about it. The way Wiccans usually get at it is through casting a Circle, which delineates an area as our portable, private temple. It's a wonderful concept--we take our church everywhere, and in a few minutes and with a bit of attention a backyard, living room, bathroom, or bench in a bus station can become holy ground. The idea does, however, lead to some questions. Wicca is a religion that reveres nature; ideally we recognize all space as sacred because it is all a part of the divine, as are we. So why bother with Circles at all? Why not just fling our magic to the four winds and be done with it, and trust the Powers that Be? Well, the fact is that the Wiccan concept of the sacred Circle is a fairly modern one. While the circle has been considered a holy shape for millennia, and often used as a way to gather people for religious observances, there is no real proof that our early Pagan ancestors cast Circles at all. It's reasonable to assume that back then, when people were more intimately connected with the natural world, there was no need to construct a separate place to worship and do magic. Sacred space simply was. (This is all conjecture, of course, as is any attempt to figure out exactly what our forebearers' religious practices were. I'm going on logic, for the most part. I'm not one of those people who claims Wicca descended in an unbroken chain of Witches from primitive fertility cults; Wicca is a modern child, created from as much of the old traditions as anyone could find with a lot of ingenuity thrown in, and I see no problem with that. At some point in history every religion has been new; there was a time when people walked around saying, "Dig that weirdass Buddha guy. How long has he been sitting under that tree, anyway?") Unfortunately in this century the sacred groves have been paved, and the monoliths knocked over to make way for Starbucks. We have to put forth quite a bit of effort to find natural spaces anymore, and any we find are likely to have traffic noise not far away. Our lives are no longer in rhythm with the seasons and the cycles of the Moon, and our world operates in opposition to many natural laws. As a result, the modern Witch is faced with the need to create something out of almost nothing--to bring the sacred back home. My feelings on sacred space are a little different from many other Wiccans. I don't typically cast Circles in my home, because I have done a lot of magical work to set up my apartment as a permanent Circle. When I do rituals I call on the Elements and invoke the Lord and Lady, but I don't bring energy up from the Earth or anywhere else to form a Circle. The Circle is already there. Unless I'm doing something particularly dangerous, which almost never happens, I don't bother using up extra energy. I renew my "fortifications" every month or so, or whenever they feel weak, such as after a period of intense magical activity. Why do I do this? It all goes back to my basic spiritual philosophy: make each action an act of worship. Cooking, cleaning, sleeping, bathing--they're all rituals. The only difference is that formalized spells and rituals are a concentrated effort for a specific result. Think of it this way: if you're a good Christian, you go to church every Sunday and say your prayers every night (well, there are a lot of other things that play into it, but bear with me on the analogy). That doesn't mean you can't pray at other times when you are in need. In addition, living in a city surrounded by strangers I feel the need to make my home a haven for magic, beauty, and peace. When I am in my apartment I feel insulated from all my neighbors' emotional and psychic baggage. I feel safe. Before I started working with permanent sacred space, that was not the case. I was acutely aware of everything that went on outside my door, and afraid of most of it. Living in fear is a terrible thing, and nobody should have to do it, even though most of us do. Now, that doesn't mean I never cast Circles. I do so most of the time when I am involved in a magical action away from home. I even carry a "portable instant Circle" with me on trips to help strange places seem more like home. How do you go about setting up permanent sacred space in your home? There are as many ways to do that as there are Circle castings, but there are a few things you may want to try and incorporate. Afterward I'll outline an example of a ritual to set up the permanent Circle, then maintain it. Then I'll add a ritual to create a portable Circle for travel and emergency purposes.
1 -- Have a permanent altar. A lot of Pagans like to set up and strike their altars for each ritual, but if you have the space and live alone, or if your housemates are okay with it, I advise keeping an altar up all the time. Change the altar cloth and other decorations with the seasons--in fact, do this with your entire house. I also have small altars in the bedroom, kitchen, and bathroom, but the idea is to treat your whole dwelling as one big altar. 2 -- Keep
your house clean. A space doesn't feel very sacred if there's crap everywhere.
Try to clean with natural cleansers like vinegar and baking soda and minimize
the number of chemicals you bring into the house. Reducing the level of
toxicity in your sacred space will raise the level of spiritual vibration,
for lack of a less flaky word. 3 -- At each
Quarter in your main ritual area, or treating the whole house as one big
area (one may work better than the other if you have roommates), set up
either an altar, a piece of artwork, or just an object to represent each
element. Don't move these; they are the anchors for your sacred space.
I'll explain that later. 4 -- Create
a variety of protective charms for your house. These will reinforce the
magic you do to set up the house as a permanent Circle, and they'll cut
down on the frequency of your "recharge" rituals. 5 -- When
you perform magic and raise power, ground it into the permanent Circle.
If this becomes a habit, you'll find the Circle will stay stronger longer.
6 -- Arrange and decorate your home in a way that brings out your spiritual side. There's a wealth of Goddess art out there (though not nearly enough God art), and you can find posters and prints of totem animals, places you've been that you deemed holy, and the like. Have a lot of candles, and burn incense whenever you're home to help keep the air clear of negative energy. In my own home I have wall sconces with candles, Goddess posters, baskets of shells and stones, colored bottles, natural wreaths and seasonal stuff, and candles everywhere. Whatever makes you feel like you've entered a sanctuary of divine nurture, whatever makes you calm and centered and happy, is sacred.
An object to represent each Element (I recommend a candle, as lighting them will become part of your regular activation ritual, but if space is a problem, try a stone painted or inscribed with something that reminds you of that Element, or whatever you can think of that would work) Your typical altar setup Salt and water and something to use as an asperger (a small branch of oak or pine, a rosemary sprig, a carnation, your fingers) Incense (sandalwood, frankincense, or myrrh would be good, though I like a smudging stick of sage or other herbs) A red candle
Now is the time to decide where in the Circle you want to keep your altar. I prefer to have mine in the North (although in my current apartment that wasn't possible), as I feel it grounds the Circle's energies, but the traditional Wiccan way is to have it in the East. I think it has to do with the rising Sun, but since I've never done it that way I can't be sure. Anyway, however you want to do it (or have to do it) is fine, but give it some thought. I recommend doing this ritual on a Full Moon, but a Waxing Moon would also be appropriate as this is the beginning of a new magical venture. That's as complicated as my timing usually gets, but if you're being picky you could time it in phase with the Moon's sign or the day of the week. The Procedure: 1 -- Take a purification bath or shower. Add herbal stuff to the bath if you like, or light a stick of sandalwood incense.
4 -- Hopefully you'll have made an effort to get the house clean before now; ask for a blessing on the salt and water, then add three pinches of salt to the water and stir clockwise. Visualize the water glowing with divine radiance and purity. Then, moving clockwise throughout your entire house, sprinkle the water using the asperger, visualizing all the negative energy and day-to-day psychic crap built up in the rooms dispersing. You may want to chant something while doing this to aid your concentration. 5 -- Repeat this procedure with the lighted red candle, then the incense. Basically you've just cleansed and blessed your house with the powers of all four Elements, the same way you'd do for a typical house blessing ritual. Now comes the interesting part. 6 --Taking your athame or wand (and a lighter if you're using candles), go to the first Quarter (whichever you start with when you cast a Circle) and draw down energy into the Elemental object, empowering it to stand as a guardian and representative of that Element's energies in your sacred space. Visualize that every time you call upon its power and light the candle, that Element will "awaken" and lend its power to your rituals. That means that all you have to do to activate your permanent Circle is light the candles. (You might also want to create a set of standard incantations to go with the candle-lighting, or just do it silently. Silence is its own incantation.) 7 -- When you've reached your altar again, perform an evocation to your patron deities, asking them basically the same thing--that they will lend their protective strength and aid to your Circle and keep your sacred space safe from all intrustions, natural or otherwise.
9 -- Instead of opening the Circle you cast earlier, visualize its energy melding into the permanent Circle's. Do that every time you have to cast a Circle in your sacred space, and you'll strengthen your home Circle even further. 10 -- Whenever you perform a magical act, you need only "activate" your Elemental candles or objects, evoke or invoke your deities, and get to it. (If you chose objects rather than candles, you can activate them by picking up the object, concentrating on it, and speaking a short incantation calling up its power) You never have to take down this Circle unless you move out, in which case you basically reverse the process, asking the Elements and whatever other entities you've called around to disperse and rejoin you at your new home. The objects you've used should be either replaced or thoroughly cleansed each time you move, to give you a fresh start in the new place. Ways to Maintain your Permanent Circle 1 -- Every month or so, (maybe pick a Moon phase) repeat the above procedure, except concentrate on the cleansing/blessing part of the ritual. You'll find that your regular magical practice will keep the Circle charged up fairly well, and you'll know when it needs more effort; when the noises outside get louder, when you get edgier, when it "feels" dirty no matter how much baking soda you've slopped around, are all signs it's time to raise more energy for your Circle. Yes, this all takes effort, but it's well worth it. 2 -- Be sure you cleanse the place if there's an argument, a break-in (which there shouldn't be), or any other kind of serious stress event. Even exam week will do it. A good way to make sure negative energies are kept at bay is to burn incense on a regular basis. Incense does its job with little participation on your part once it's lit. A Portable Circle The modern Witch-on-the-go often finds her/himself in a situation where they'd really like to do a quick ritual, but naturally don't have their whole retinue of tools and assorted Pagan regalia handy. It's all well and good to say an experienced Witch can cast without any tools at all (I did it for two years, I know it's possible), but when you're in a hospital waiting room or a hotel room or the bathroom before a job interview (don't laugh), it's damned hard to concentrate without any kind of focal objects. That's why we have tools, after all--to facilitate communication between our waking selves, our inner selves, and the Divine. Plus, they're fun. So, what's new-millennium Witch to do? Easy. Take a Circle with you. You Will Need: something small to represent each Element, and a fifth for Spirit/Deity (stones, small painted wooden circles, drawings, whatever mows your lawn) a small white candle in a jar with a lid, for safety's sake (the candle is optional) a lighter a drawstring bag some of those miniature incense sticks and a miniature incense burner (or a lump of Sculpey with a hole in it) (the incense is also optional) a half-ounce bottle of salt water The Procedure: Purify and charge all these items before you start using them, in whatever way you typically consecrate new ritual tools. Keep everything in the drawstring bag (if you're worried about stuff breaking, wrap it all in a handkerchief or fabric square that can serve as a tiny little altar cloth). When you need to cast a Circle on the road, sprinkle the salt water about to purify the area, then set things up and empower the candle with whatever your magical need is. (Use white, since it's all-purpose) You can get really creative with the Elemental objects, or use plain stones with symbols painted on them, or just a colored stone for each. The objects by themselves are quite effective as an instant Circle, with no fire or smoke involved to cause alarm. You'll use this a lot more than you might anticipate. You may even keep a set of written invocations and such folded up in the bag for when you're stressed and your imagination fails you.
Copyright 2006 Dianne Sylvan. All rights reserved. |