advice on a magical housewarming (of sorts)...?

[lagalesa]

what sorts of cleansing or home-centred rituals would you use on moving into a new place?
I am looking for something simple and meaningful to do for my new room, and I would love to hear your ideas and practices, if you feel like sharing.

Comments

[wyldlingspirit]

I strongly suggest snagging a copy of Cunningham's THE MAGICAL HOUSEHOLD. There are many, many things in there that you can adapt to your needs. I just read it last night and, experienced hedgewitch that I am, found a lot of inspiration, ideas, and information that is useful to me.

[lagalesa]

thanks! I was actually looking at his Incense, Oils and Brews last night - don't have a copy of the Magical Household (and not sure what my chances are of getting hold of one before Sunday :/) but will keep my eyes peeled...

at the moment, I have the vague idea of wanting to include water from the Thames (but not for cleansing), in honour of the river that has shaped the way I live here; I also like the idea of using herbal aspergers to cleanse the space(although what herbs, I wonder... I've got it in my head that I would like to use myrtle, but I will have to research that, not to mention actually find some). And I'll want to make an incense blend...

[ladytairngire]

simple and meaningful - I make the rounds with a sage bundle, a candle, a small broom, and/or ritually purified water (I have done combinations of all of these). I also do a repetitive chant, something appropriate to the situation but simple enough to help me trance-out a bit.

The idea is to disperse all the psychic energy that lingers from the previous tenants and to infuse the space with clean, positive energy. If you have a patron you might consider blessing the space in His or Her name, or else you could claim the space in your own name - whatever suits you. In either case you would project your visualization of said energy into the space that you have cleared.

As for sharing the ritual - I recently included my four-year-old son in a cleansing/dedication of our house. I let him hold the smudge stick (under CLOSE SCRUTINY, MIND YOU). Actually, an extra pair of hands might help cut down on the ritual time, since you won't have to keep going back to start over with the new implement.

[dyta93]

my typical simple is salt, bread, wine and creating a protection or charm for the entry (above the door). The charm can be made to look like a decoration of your choice and be charged with either what you want or don't want to enter your intimate space. I usually combine the salt and bread into getting some awesome soft pretzels. After making the charm and hanging, I will toast the spirits of the new place and offer them some of the feast. Also like to be able to share the breaking of the bread with someone close.

[ianphanes]

I include making an offering to the spirit of the place. I make an annual offering to the spirit of the place on New Years as well.

[lughnie]

I also recommend The Magical Household, even if you can't find a copy right away. It's a great resource.

If you want to do a purification, then I'd burn some incense- when I first moved in, I carried burning incense around to every room to bless the whole place. You can ad lib your own blessings from the heart while you do it. It really makes the place come alive. You can also set up a simple altar and burn some white candles for purification. And of course, blessing the place with some salt-water does wonders. :)

Bright Blessings, and best of luck to you!