Altar’s : A Guide

A comprehensive-ish list-ish guide to finding and creating altars in mundane, average, always around you places because heaven is earth and we have small bits of divinity all around us at all times.

Opening Yourself to Altars

1. get into a state of presence. Maybe for a moment, maybe after a meditation or during a long shower.

2. allow yourself to be curious

3. let go of aesthetic beauty and tap into spiritual beauty - the things around you that touch upon something inside of you

4. smell, touch, taste, see, hear, and feel the world around you

5. remember that an altar is a place of reverence; you are an altar, your presence is an altar, your time is an altar, your life is an altar

6. an altar becomes an altar because of how we view it, interact with it - because we let it be

7. altars can be dirty, messy, disorganized, chaotic, surprising, fleeting, dense, sparse, ugly, poorly lit, vibrant, tiny - they can and are everything, everywhere. this is to say, remove your ideas and notions about what makes an altar an altar.

Examples of Places To Find Altars

• car dashboard

• claw hand

• the garden

• the sidewalk

• dirty dishes

• spice cabinet

• purse/tote/wallet

• restaurant table

• medicine cabinet

• dressing table

• nightside table

• shoe pile at the door of a party

• yardsale

• curbside junk pile

• collections of clothes people have left in the thrift store

• ditches on a long drive

• signs

• phone numbers

• craft bin

• the fridge before a grocery shop

• the fridge after a grocery shop

• flea market

• farmers market

• super market

• trunk of the car

• junk drawer

• make-up bag

• backyard table

• compost pile

• mechanic shop

• garage

• attic

• first blooms

• last blooms

• sidewalk chalk art

• the kitchen after a dinner party

• living room table

• office desk

• book shelves

• community garden

• pile of bags at a sport event

• pile of bags at a sleepover

• everywhere in an old cottage

• under a rock

• in a tree

• on a trail

• mixed tapes

• laundry pile

• pantry

• music festival

• pile of shoes

• pile of coats

• old coat pocket

• picnic

• beach

• jewellery box

• the shower and bath

• puddle

• meadow

• field

• clouds

• weather in general

• inbox

• for-you page

• people

• the fridge

• letters

• a birth chart

Some Thing That May Indicate An Altar

• feathers

• rocks

• crystals

• the way the light is hitting something

• small pile

• big pile

• piles in general

• colour coordination

• buttons

• small toys

• angel numbers

• books

• poems

• graffiti

• plants

• animals

• keys

• drinks

• food

• herbs

• spices

• blooming things

• dying things

• animals

• the elements

• cups

• plates

• jewellery

• clothing

• songs

• sounds that make you pause

• smells that remind you of something

• smiles

• laughter

• candles

• bodies of water

• tables

• chairs

• pillows

• cards

• makeup

• perfume

• incense

• memorabilia

• tickets

• receipts

• treats

• fruits

• vegetables

• shells

• pens

• paper

• magnets

• collections of any kind

• hair

• nails

• paw prints

• hand prints

• finger prints

• tattoos

• paint

• jars

• glitter

• windows

• doors

• views

• circles

• spirals

• squares

• shapes in general

• patterns in general

• bugs

• butterflies

• insects of all kinds

• spiders

• bees

• ants

• herbs

• pots

• a feeling

• a smell

• a sound

• a texture

• a memory

• wanting to touch something

• wanting to slow down

• wanting to capture something

• wanting to witness something