There's Still Time
May 6th marked the night of the New Moon...
They say that the energy of both the New Moon becomes available two days before and stays available two days after the actual New Moon. Tonight, I took advantage of the New Moon's energy, although waning, and spent some time refreshing my altar. An altar is a sacred space that you set up either permanently or temporarily. It holds trinkets that hold meaning for you:
* Pictures of loved ones
* Pictures of your Ancestors
* Keepsakes given to or obtained by you
* Spiritual symbols
* Notes, letters, words of inspiration
* Affirmations...
There is nothing ominous or heretical about altars. They are simply a space you have dedicated to remembering and honoring the Divine, whatever that is for you.
These are two of my altars. They are in my bedroom. The smaller one in the front, on top of the bookcase, is my meditation altar. It is where I come to meditate, perform Reiki on my Self, read and the like. The larger one behind it in the windowsill is dedicated to a specific purpose. It is a work-in-progress, as I have recently purchased a beautiful Mahagony Obsidian egg to be the center piece/focal point and some other new crystals I was called to. I am excitedly awaiting their arrival...
A closer look at my meditation altar and you will find some of the crystals and stones I meditate with, like amethyst, moss agate, polychrome jasper, blue kyanite, and malachite. There is a decorative owl tea light holder and two votive/jar candle holders for candles and a brass incense burner. I like to burn loose incense so I use this holder and charcoal discs. I even take the time to make my own loose incense, hand selecting items such as palo santo, rose petals, lavendar, sandalwood, frankincense, and other sacred scents and blending them together for a scent that is pleasing to me.
This altar is dedicated to a sacred purpose. The red jasper heart in the center which is surrounded by a ring of carnelian with a goddess pendant will be replaced by the Mahagony Obsidian egg I am awaiting. The items being displaced will simply be shifted to a new location on the altar. Red is a very powerful color and is intricately important to the purpose of this particular altar. I finally got around to planting the Wandering Jew clippings that a sistah-friend gave me. I hope it's not too late for them -- they were beginning to die... I'm sure it was because I waited too long after they rooted to plant them. I have faith though -- there are plenty of very moist and healthy leaves on the ends of the stems. Now that they are finally planted in soil, the roots shouldn't take long to heal and repair themselves, frolicking along through the moist dirt rather than languishing and rotting in a cup of water.
Working on these two altars today in the energy of the New Moon, with meditation music playing in the background (and the boob tube and all other technology turned off!) and simply being in the moment -- not plotting and planning the layout of the altars -- felt good. I allowed the altars to come together organically, without my stressing over the details, listening only to intuition. The only "planning" for these sacred spaces that I made was selecting new stones and crystals -- and even with that I let my intuition guide the selection.
All of this accomplished under the energy of the New Moon, one day out. Manifestation...
