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Give Your Altar A Boost With These 6 Simple Tips For Making More Magic

Dilshad Mehta
Author:
September 28, 2024
Dilshad Mehta
By Dilshad Mehta
mbg Contributor
Dilshad Mehta is a revolution coach, professional intuitive, deep release guide, and ritual hostess.
Detail of two glass jars with some medicinal herbs on an altar to perform rituals stock photo
Image by mbg creative X Miriam Cerezo Garcia / iStock
September 28, 2024

If creating your very own heaven on earth was a goal, altar-making would be one of its primary practices, yet it's often vastly underrated.

Altar-making is about creating a dedicated physical space for the things that are the most important to you. You’re not waiting for life to throw you a bone, nor are you waiting for life to happen to you—you're going out and happening to life. You’re meeting it halfway—and you’re creating a physical place (the alter itself) for that meeting point.

Consider altar-making your intimate, one-on-one, deeply personal connection to the universe. At the very least, it's a purposeful creative outlet.

Here are six simple ways you can amp up your altar and create your own heaven on earth.

1.

Find your "flying pig"

Joy and curiosity are energies that amplify intention.

Consider placing an item on your altar that makes you smile or giggle. For example, my "giggle item" is a ceramic statue of a flying pig. It has this curly tail and funny snout that just makes me smile.

If your altar looks strange or even weird to others, you’re probably doing something right. If someone looks at your altar and can’t figure out what it’s purpose is, you’re still probably doing something right.

2.

Uno reverse it

Imagine yourself being in the energy of the thing you want. Imagine yourself after the thing you want has occurred or finished it’s course. How are you feeling? Now go identify an object that matches that feeling, and place it on your altar table. 

For example, there’s another reason why the flying pig sits on my work altar table—because it represents the feeling of what it’s like for me and my client while we’re in session and after the session.

I love the feeling of the magic and joy that comes from the work I do with my clients. I see the energy of limitations, blocks, and old belief systems being busted open. I feel this energy of freedom, silliness, openness, and full-of-life feeling come through.

This is also an example of how a single altar item can have many functions. You don’t have to crowd your altars to make them potent. They can be packed with intention yet be simple in design.

3.

All hail the living!

Consider placing living plants on your altar to keep the energy of your altar fresh and lively. You might particularly consider using a plant that is rooted in soil, which provides a grounded, earthy, and lush container for what you’re trying to honor or create.

Secondly, this is a way you can bring the energy of Mother Earth into your intention. (After all, the place where we want our intentions to land is somewhere on this Earth.)

4.

No one puts baby in a corner

It really helps to think of altars as their own being, and just like “nobody puts baby in the corner,” you wouldn't want to put your altar in a dark, forgotten place.

Place your altar anywhere you can see it often. Where attention goes, energy flows, and vice versa. If you don’t like the placement after a few days, you can always change it. For example, I’ve kept altars on coffee tables, in my car, and in my hotel rooms.

Not to mention, a lot of authentic spiritual work is about experimenting with what works for you. In my tradition, for instance, placing your altar facing east (facing the rising sun) is considered a beneficial spot.

However, I find that experimenting with your own space first—before you go down intellectual rabbit holes—helps you get a baseline of your own setup. Then, you can add outside teachings on top of the firm foundation of knowing what works for you.

Lastly, altars do not have to be in fixed location. Taking them with you wherever you go or moving them around is just fine. I’ve created paper altars that are about the size of a regular notebook and I carry them with me in my handbag.

5.

Tickle me pink

Colors are powerfully symbolic. They convey information to you as soon as you lay eyes on them, which is why you want to include them on your altar. So decide on one or two main colors that represent your intention for your altar, then include them in some way on your altar.

For example, I used a deep, fleshy, pink color for my sacred feminine altar. For my abundance altar, I used pink, green, and gold colors. You can incorporate color through plants, paintings, altar tablecloths, and more.

6.

Come back to me, baby!

You could always create and forget your altar—that's certainly one way to do it. However, an interactive altar keeps you coming back to it, thereby reminding, renewing, and refreshing your intentions.

To make your altar interactive, consider placing elements that encourage you to revisit the altar and even do something while you're in front of it.

Examples of interactive elements are a candle, an oil lamp, a plant, spell jars, cookies, tea, or coffee equipment. These are things that require maintenance and/or interaction to keep you coming back to your altar.

The takeaway

Remember to have fun with your process! Play and be creative with it—spirituality isn’t about white-knuckled seriousness. Curiosity, play, openness, and magical connection will lead you to the purpose you seek. And it will be in a way that allows you to enjoy the journey to get there, as well. 

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