When have you experienced sacred space? The first example that comes to most people’s minds is being in a church, synagogue, mosque, temple, or gurdwara. There are also geographical sacred spaces around the globe, a few being the City of Jerusalem, the Kashi Vishwanath Temple in India, the Lourdes Shrine in France, and Mecca in Saudi Arabia.
Sacred space exists for all traditional religions and non-traditional belief systems, too. However, what is rare in western society is a sacred space in our home. I would like to shake up your current perspective of sacred space and inspire you to explore creating it in your home.
What Does Sacred Space Mean?
From a large perspective, sacred space traditionally has been described as a place where religious figures and congregations meet to perform a religious ceremony. It is basically about sacred spaces for groups. Thomson Gale describes it this way in the Encyclopedia of Religion:
“First, sacred spaces are places of communication with divinity, places where people go to meet the gods. To designate a place as sacred imposes no limit on its form or its meaning. It implies no particular aesthetic or religious response. But if sacred places lack a common content, they have a common role. To call a place sacred asserts that a place, its structure, and its symbols express fundamental cultural values and principles. By giving these visible form, the sacred place makes tangible the corporate identity of a people and their world.” [1]
What I mean by sacred space is different. I propose that we have a dedicated, physical space in our home that has been made sacred, and we use it for meditation and journaling. The impact of having personal sacred space is powerful! Imagine stepping into the room where you have your sacred space set up. You might even be rushing through the room with your mind focused on something else. Then upon glancing at your sacred space, you experience a huge surge of peace inside your heart. You pause, your blood pressure drops, and you “fall” into your calm center. Sounds appealing, right?
Is it Right for Me? What are the Challenges?
It is right for you if you want to bring more peace into your life. It is right for you if you want to cultivate a deeper relationship with the Divine Within.
“Your sacred space is where you can find yourself again and again.”[2]
Joseph Campbell
One of the greatest blocks to overcome in creating sacred space involves relationships. These relationships are with the people and pets who live with you. Setting the foundation of supportive relationships is integral to having success with a sacred space. This is because we need to feel supported in having and using it. It is also important because we need to know that we will not be disturbed when we are using it.
What Should It Look Like?
It is up to you! It can be inside your home or outdoors in your yard or both. However, if you want to have two sacred spaces, choosing a primary one to use most of the time will strengthen the power of what you do in that space. How you design it to look and what you put in it is a very personal choice. Start with whatever appeals to you. You can always change things as you evolve on your path.
Is it Worth the Effort?
Having a sacred space in our home and using it regularly allows for the Divine Within to open up. It is where we can reflect on the day as we write in our journal. It is a place of quiet that induces meditation. In addition, regular use of our sacred space makes it easier to return to it. This is because we are building energy there, and that energy we have built actually draws us back in. It also resonates outward into the room, and eventually the whole house, affecting those who are near it.
It Sounds Too Serious for Me
Yes, it certainly can appear like serious work. However, it can be a whole lot of fun! There are as many ways to have fun creating sacred space as there are ways to express the joy of the Divine. I remember one Tree of Life Sanctuary Spiritual Satisfaction program colleague who hung a picture in her sacred space of the smiling and winking “Buddy Christ” from the 1999 film, “Dogma”.[3] Now that is an expression of Divine Humor!
As always, I invite you to explore these topics in your own unique way, by yourself or with others. Share with me about how it is going and what blocks you are running into. You can use the comment section below, or for more privacy, email me at Info@TreeofLifeSanctuary.org.
I have devoted my life to the uncovering of my Divine self and supporting those who are also seekers of the Divine within. One way I do this is through the Your Path~Your Spiritual Satisfaction group coaching program that I created. It includes a self-assessment on the topics I have discussed in this article. If you would like to learn more about it, please join me and the Tree of Life Sanctuary coaching team, at one of our regular information gatherings. Click here to learn more.
[1] “Sacred Space.” Encyclopedia of Religion. Encyclopedia.com. 18 Nov. 2018 <https://www.encyclopedia.com>
[2] https://www.brainyquote.com/topics/sacred
[3] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Buddy_Christ
Written by Laura Abernathy