Altars 101
Altars are a great tool to help create a safe, magical place in your home that you can go to when you meditate, brainstorm, perform spells, journal and read. An altar is a collection of items that are personally meaningful and provoke a high vibration within your spirit. Items that will allow you to manifest things and experiences in your waking life through spell work and ritual.
Firstly, understand that an alter does NOT have to be a huge cabinet or shrine table, altars can be of any size and stature and work best when you feel comfortable and cozy near it.
Here is a list of basic tools you may use on your altar.
Book of Shadows: The most important tool of all; A journal, detailing your spellwork, experiences, symbolism and musings. Put meaningful things inside your journal such as dried flowers, herbs, sigils and anything else you find fancy and wonderful.
Pentacle: A five pointed star, representing manifestations in our physical world. Usually cast in metal, bone, chalk or ink placed on the altar for protection and help in manifesting. Is also a great tool for health and money related spells.
Censer: This is a holder for burning incense and smudges, usually an abalone shell. The censer represents the aspect of Air on your altar, as it holds the materia that intermingles with the Air in your space. Some folks use a cauldron as a censer, which is perfectly acceptable. The censer may also be placed at the East, when casting a circle, to invite the element of Air.
Classic Witches Broom: This should be a ritual broom used to cleanse the area before casting. You can even use your regular house broom to draw from your own personal everyday power. Use it to sweep the area where you will be casting, sweep away any negative energies and then whip it up in a circular motion to call in its cleansing powers. Herbs, feathers, gems, ribbon, and other adorning items may be attached to it to personalize and strengthen its power.
Chalice: A cup on a stem made of glass, crystal, wood, ceramic or anything you prefer. Representing the element of Water. It’s use it to call upon the emotional and sensitive energy of Water. Great use for relationship spells and emotional healing.
Wand: A piece of long wood, cedar, oak, willow, reed, or other natural material used to be a conduit to your own personal energy. You can use wands to cast a circle, direct energy, and manifest. This is great to use in career magic, travel and creative energy spell work.
Images: Collect and display images of your favorite Gods, Goddesses, Deities, Guides, Angels and anyone you look upon for guidance and help in spell work. Allow these loving friends to guide you and help you in your intentions. Let them be of assistance to you. Draw upon their energies.
Cauldron: A Cauldron is used to mix potions, brews, oils etc to perform a variety of magic. Be sure to consecrate your cauldron for its intended purposes prior to using it for any magic. A cast-iron cauldron with a lid is best, with its rim no wider than its widest point. I recommend a cauldron on legs, so you can burn a small candle underneath to create simmering brews.
Bell or Singing Bowl: Sound is amazing to clear energies and use as vibrational healing. Bells and Singing Bowls can be used at during rituals and spell work to intensify the intensions, clear energies and harness specific imagery to be seen while hearing the sound.
Ritual Sword, Dagger or Knife: Great for cutting and clearing any energetic hooks and cords that need to be disposed of. Also used for communication spells, study magic and intellectual guidance.
Offering Bowl: This can be made of any material. I like to use a ceramic dish, shell or plate. In it, you may place offerings to your deity or guides to show gratitude. You can place fresh flowers, fruits, vegetables, pinches of salt, collected herbs from your garden harvest, or any other relevant offerings as appropriate to the ritual. Anything that is beautiful or special to you, or symbolic of the purpose for the offering, can be placed in the offering bowl.
Candles: Use candles as needed for appropriate spells and rituals. Read more about candle magic here.
• For North: black, green, or brown
• For East: yellow or white
• For South: red or orange
• For West: blue or aqua
• For Center: white, silver, or gold.
Candles are used to invoke and hold the Powers of each direction. You can use different colored candles to achieve different manifestations (read more here). Most times, large pillar style candles represent the God and the Goddess and are usually set on either side of the Pentacle in the altar to signify balance. You can get creative with your candles too and do what seems lovely to you. Call upon the Maiden, the Mother and the Crone with your candles if you wish.
Feather: To call upon the element of Air. Use a feather to clear away energies and call upon freeing symbolism and attract ideas from your higher self. Feathers are a great tool used with goal setting magic.
Stones or Crystals: Specific crystals are used for different things. Their energies can be invoked when used in your altar. Crystals help with grounding and calling in the Earth element.
You can create an altar anywhere and for anything! You can set up an altar only when you need one. You can keep your altar items in a box if you’d like. Do what you want to and have fun with it! Look at these ideas to get your mind stirring.
1 Closet altar: You can set up your altar in your closet, in case you don’t have space or you are not allowed to have an altar in another place. Great for closet witches or young witches who aren’t “allowed to practice magic”. Keep shining beauties!
2 Bathroom altar: This is also for the case you don’t have liberty to have it somewhere else and you need privacy. Also, great use for beauty and goddess magic!
3 Travel altar: You can create your own version that is compact! Take it with you and find things to add to it along the way.
4 Outdoor altar: Great for use in grounding and connecting to nature. You can use it to incorporate nature mandalas and call upon the elements, Earth, Air, Water and Fire.
5 Kitchen altar: Used when conjuring spells in recipes. Make your magic edible!
6 Yin-Yang altar: Divide your tools into feminine (left) and masculine (right). Opposites attract, just call upon these energies to work together, create balance and unify.
7 Seasonal altar: Decorate with the fruits, colors, and symbols that best represent the season.
Here are some images of my altar. This is set up in the spare room of my house.
Here is the box I use to hold all of my Tarot decks. I have a bird perched on the top with long tail feathers symbolizing the element of Air. I also have the fan that my grandmother got for me in Japan. Excellent to use when calling upon Air and movement magic! You can see my skinny little chalice and a little shell I got from the Atlantic ocean for emotional and transformative Water energies. I also have pictured a little piece of wood that is painted like a box of matches. This is to remind me of the story of the Little Match Girl.
Ah, the crystal ball! Used for scrying and conjuring clarity in clairvoyant images. I also have my pentacle in this image but you can’t really see it! It is made from bone and hemp along with some enchanted healing moonstones!
My crystal mandala with daily card in the middle! I have set up my favorite crystals in line with the chakras, allowing cosmic energy to flow freely into my altar and bless the card I have chosen to meditate on for this day. Also pictured: my lucky purple pick. Essential for self empowerment spells!
Sage, sweetgrass and some white candles for cleansing and clearing the energy.
Colored candles for spell work, kept hidden in a little box. I also have a Moon Phase mandala made for me by a sweet goddess Cori Jane from one of our Full Moon Goddess Gatherings. I also have handy my Book of Shadows, the Wemoon Calander to keep up with astrological events and the essential Handbook for Hot Witches.
I also have a singing bowl that you can see in the first picture. I still need to get myself and caldron and dagger but this is working for me! Basically, an altar is a special spot just for you. It is up to you to be creative and call upon your own personal magicks!
Do what you like and allow yourself to create something comfortable and sacred to you. Please share your altars in the comments below. I would love to see where you’re working and what you’re working with!
Happy casting!
xo//Jonali*