Often the best way to start is to actually do some physical cleaning in your home.
Make sure the dishes are washed, the bathroom is clean, and clutter is put away.
Open the curtains or shades and let in as much natural light as possible. Sunlight actually kills germs. Open the windows for a while too, even if the weather is bad. Fresh air is very important to energetic cleansing. Get a fan and place it near an open window or door facing out to pull the air in the house out and if you have a second fan, place it on the opposite side of your near an open window and facing in to pull fresh air into your home.
Sweep or vacuum the floor starting in the center of your home and moving outward. If you vacuum, empty the vacuum when you finish and take the contents out of your home. If you are sweeping, take the dirt from your floor outside your home.
Now you need something to burn.
I use copal which is used by herbateros and shamans here in Mexico. In many places people use white sage which is also good. Palo Santo is also good as are rosemary, lemongrass, bay leaves, cedar, lavender, peppermint, clove, dill, dandelion, ginger, basil, chamomile, and pine. These herbs actually kill bacteria and germs when they are burned. Keep in mind that the energetic cleansing you are doing has its roots in science!
Take your herb, bark, or resin of choice and light it and create as think a smoke as possible. I use a copal incense stick and a little bowl of copal resin. I light the incense stick and then touch it to the copal resin and it creates a thick stream of smoke. The idea is to get the smoke in places that are the most prone to stuck or negative energy. Your bed, your shower, a place you sit often, your dinner table, your workspace. Really focus on these areas. Bring the smoke down close to the floor so it can float up and touch these places. The chair, the bed, the tale, your computer, your phone, your journal, etc. If you like, you can play some quiet music in the background while you are doing this. Classical music works well, as do native flutes, drums, chants, or music that is designed for raising your vibration. You can find lots of examples on youtube. Choose something that resonates with you.
Work your way outwards towards the windows of your doors. Take your time. If you feel drawn to places, cleanse them without worrying why you were drawn to that particular spot. Just trust the feelings you have and go with it. It is not necessary to say anything while you are doing this, but you can if you like. Just stick with something simple like, I am cleansing you now, be clean. Or you can hum a chant or tune you know if you like, something calming. If you come to certain areas and feel like there is something specific there, speak to it. You might be smudging your computer and feel led to say something like, all negative energy that entered this home and my mind through this computer needs to leave. Or you may feel impressed to tell bad dreams and thoughts to leave when you are doing your bed. Or to tell the stress of daily living to leave as you are doing your bathroom and shower. I always fill places in with good energy when I tell something to leave. So If you say, “All stress from daily life, you need you leave,” as you are smudging your bathroom, follow it up with inviting in the opposite thing of what you commanded to leave, like, “ peace, tranquility, and joy, I invite you to come fill this place.” Again, this is backed up by the science rule that nature abhors (hates) a vacuum.
Sometimes, I sprinkle water from a sacred cenote at the entrances to my home.
I do it after after I smudge everything. That includes the doors and windows. If you want to do something similar, use water from a very clean place somewhere in nature. A cool, clean lake. A mountain river. A remote beach. You can even catch rain-water and use it for this if you like. The water not only cleanses, but also provides a barrier of protection at the entrances to your home.
Cinnamon, lemongrass, citronella, eucalyptus, all varieties of mint, geranium, and marigold are also good blockers and can be sprinkled on door thresholds and windowsills. From a scientific perspective, these plants help keep bugs away.
As you place the protective substance by the entrances to your home, you can repeat something simple like, “I forbid any and all negative energies and things that are not in the best and highest interest of those who live here to enter this home. I DO invite all things pure and motivated by love to enter here.
I love keeping a pretty salt bowl.
When you have done the cleansing and protecting, you can then place a bowl of salt near the door. In the same way that salt absorbs moisture, it will absorb any negative energies that try to enter your home. I like to make the salt bowl pretty. I use pink salt in a small glass bowl and I add a few dried herbs to it like a sprig of rosemary, a sprig of mint, and cinnamon stick a few cloves and a few all spice berries.
Keeping a salt bowl by the door will also give you a visual cue to leave behind the stress of the day when you enter your home, which is your sacred space. You can replace the salt bowl when you feel that it isn’t absorbing things anymore. That time frame will vary depending on how things are going with you and the atmosphere in your home. I change mine every three or four times I cleanse my home.
Another fun thing to do is to add some potted plants to your home that are natural cleaners. Look specifically for plants that clean the air. Some examples include: Aloe vera, pathos, English ivy, philodendron, snake plant, bamboo, fig, peace lily, spider plant, Boston fern, gerber daisy, and rubber plant. Of course, there are others. You can look them up on-line. It is important to keep your plants in good health and remove any dead leaves regularly.
You can also add wind chimes near your entrances.
I really like the natural bamboo ones. As the blow in the wind and tinkle their little fairy sounds, they create wave vibrations that protect the entrances to your home. I have a little chime on the screen door at the front entrance to my home. When the wind blows through the house, it chimes gently and whenever anyone enters or leaves, it stirs up the air.
Another thing I do to add some good energy and keep things feeling wonderful after I do a cleansing is to place a big pot of water on the stove and add spices to it like cinnamon sticks, cloves, allspice berries, and orange peel or lemon peel. Bring the water to a boil. Then turn it down to a simmer and let it simmer for as long as you like, making sure to add water if the water level gets low. Some days I will do this for hours.
Don’t be overwhelmed by all of this, just do the things that feel good to you. You will likely do some things one day and others on another day and then occasionally do a deep cleansing where you do everything.
And above all, do your best to fill your home with love =)
HUGS
laura