In Latin, “salvare” means to heal and salvia – the species
name for sage – is a direct divination.
Sage heals. Throughout
history, sage has been used in ceremonies and for medicinal purposes. Sage is found in the Russian steppes
and throughout Western North America.
It’s incredibly adaptable and can survive temperature extremes and
periods of drought. Sage has been
used to cure night sweats, hot flashes, and headaches. The Navajo, in addition to using Sage
in ceremonies, used it to cure headaches and fever. They made infusions of the leaves to cure intestinal worms
in their sheep and goats. They
applied hot poultices on the leaves to relieve migraines. The “49ers” made sage poultices to help
heal gunshot wounds.
It is placed in medicine bags to protect sacred items. Before entering a sweatlodge, sage is
used to purify the body. During
the sacred Sun Dance, dancers wear sage wristlets and anklets for protection
and purification.
You can use sage in your own life to enhance your energy,
cleanse your space and invite protection.
Every person, rock, plant, animal and home has an auric
field which can attract and capture negativity. If this energy is not cleansed, it can create illness and
depression. Our aura extends
around our physical body and is constantly receiving information. When we are around negative, angry
people or in homes and stores that have witnessed arguing, yelling and sadness,
our aura absorbs this energy like a sponge. Just as we need to clean our body once a day, we also need
to clean our energetic body.
Smudging yourself with sage allows you to do this quickly and efficiently.
You can find smudge sticks and loose sage on line or in
metaphysical stores. They are
inexpensive and easy to use.
To begin smudging yourself, light the smudge stick and usher
the smoke around your body. Start
at your head and brush down and away, constantly flicking and motioning the
negative energy to the floor.
Called aura brushing, you can simply motion the smoke down around your
head, arms, chest and legs. Ask a
friend to help you smudge your back – again being mindful to brush the smoke
down to the ground where mother earth can absorb and heal the energy. Alternately, you can place the sage in
a burn proof bowl and allow the smoke to grow heavy and thick. Stand over the bowl and perform the
aura brushing technique described above.
Turn around in a clockwise direction to ensure the smoke encompasses all
parts of your energy.
To smudge someone else, you will need to find where their
aura begins. Some people have
large auras – they project and push their energy out while others have very
small auras, preferring to remain hidden and keep their energy tucked in. The average person’s aura extends about
six inches from their physical body. To determine the boundary of someone’s aura, rub your hands
together to awaken and activate your hand chakras. Position your hands about two feet away from their body,
palms facing out. When you touch
their aura, you will feel either a temperature change or an invisible barrier
pushing against your palms.
Sometimes you might feel a pressure or stickiness. Other times, you’ll feel a
heaviness. Either way, the air
will feel different when you hit the auric boundary.
Now, light your smudge stick and fan the smoke around the
person’s auric border moving in a clockwise direction. Begin at their head and moving
clockwise motion the smoke down and around their body. Ask them to turn around and do the same
thing to their back and sides.
Then begin to spiral inward, closer and closer toward the person’s physical
body as the energy feels cleaner and lighter. Once the aura feels cleared, focus on the chakras. Starting at the root chakra, motion the
sage smoke toward this energy center moving up to each chakra finishing at the
crown chakra. When this is done,
ask how they feel. They might feel
a heaviness in one spot, so focus there and motion your sage smoke toward it.
When these steps are completed, take a large feather (most
metaphysical stores sell turkey feathers but any feather will do) and use the
feather to move smoke down the body.
Then, beginning at the feet, motion the feather up and around your
body. This will fluff up and air
out your aura ensuring that your energy is completely cleansed.
Depression feels like a blanket, a weight on the soul. Anti-depressants, a healthy diet,
exercise and therapy can help. But
this sage technique is also a great mood lifter. Plus, it’s free and completely natural! Go into a small room
like a bathroom. Crack a
window. Fill a small heat proof
bowl with loose sage leaves and light them. Allow the smoke to filter up and around you. Spend these moments sending up prayers
for happiness, health and protection.
Repeat, “I am ready and willing to release my sadness. I allow into my
space only that which enlightens and uplifts me.” Ask your angels and guides to take away your sadness and
help you feel better, happier and ready to release this depression. When the sage leaves are completely
burned down, open the window wide and safely dispose of the sage ashes.
Sweetgrass – sometimes called Vanilla Grass – has a lighter,
sweeter energy than sage. It’s
used to seal in the good energy and invite more happiness and positive energy
into your life. Grown in the
Plains area of the United States (Montana, Wyoming, and the Dakotas), Sweet
Grass is relatively inexpensive and easy to find. After you’ve completed saging yourself, burn some sweet
grass to lock in the good energy.
Our home is a reflection of us. If our home is messy and chaotic, then inside we’re feeling
messy and chaotic. If our home
needs lots of improvements, it symbolizes the improvements you still need to do
on yourself. If your home looks
uninviting, then you’re telling the universe and all its gifts to stay
away. When I am asked to cleanse a
person’s home, I am so often shocked to see that they have bushes and shrubbery
growing past the windows. Or they
keep all their drapes and blinds closed – during the day! Not only is this really bad Feng Shui, but
think about what message you are sending.
“I don’t care about my house.
I don’t want you to see in or come in. Stay away.” To
ensure positive energy in your home, keep it cleaned and organized. Get rid of clutter and
accumulations. Do you really need
that stamp collection? Do you
really think your kids will fight over your collection of Hummel figurines? Do you really need 54 pictures of the
family cluttering up your counter tops and shelves? Probably not.
Invite the light in.
Open the blinds and drapes.
Curtains should be replaced every five years and washed at least once a
year. Clean your blinds of dust
and open them to let the light in.
Before smudging your home, say a small prayer. Invite your angels and guides to assist you. Call on Arch Angel Michael to usher out
any negative entities or energy.
Light your sage stick or loose sage leaves in a heat proof bowl. Allow it to burn until a good, thick
smoke emerges. Fan the flames out
with your feather so you’re left with smoke. You want to work with smoldering smoke, not fire. If you’re having difficulty getting the
smudge stick to burn, crush the end of the smudge stick to let air inside. Once you’ve got a good smoke
established, begin at your front door and proceed around each room in a
clockwise direction. Motion the smoke around the windows and doors saying, “I
seal this home in love and light.”
Fan the smoke into the corners and over the furniture saying, “I break
up and dispel all negativity. Only peace, health, wealth, love, happiness and
joy can abide here.”
Everything has energy.
Everything. The energy of depression,
anxiety, stress, arguments and harsh words lingers. Since it’s lower level energy, it tends to hide in crevices
and corners. So make sure to
motion the smoke into all your closets and storage spaces too. Don’t forget to smudge bathrooms, the
attic and the garage.
When you’re done saging, safely stamp out your sage
stick. I usually leave mine in the
sink for the rest of the day just to be safe. Then open several windows allowing the negative energy to be
ushered out. Thank your guides and
angels for their help. Wait about
an hour and then close the windows.
You can now burn sweetgrass to seal in the good energy. I also like to light a candle to invite
more light into my home.
Your work environment needs to be
cleansed too, but chances are your boss won’t approve of you burning a sage
stick. So instead purchase or make
your own sage spray. I make a sage
cleansing spray that I sell on my website called Crystal Clear. I use Holy Water from my church
and add sage, lavender, cedar, frankincense and myrhh. I also use dried sage and lavender and
sprinkle cleansing crystals into the bottle such as carnelian and clear
quartz. Spritz your office daily
with this spray to absorb negativity, stress and anxiety.
