A Self-Love Altar: How to Build One and Why
Readers, please enjoy this guest blog post by Tess Whitehurst, author of a number of books, including Magical Housekeeping, You Are Magical, Unicorn Magic, and the new Self-Love Superpower.
Why is it so hard to love ourselves?
It’s not, actually. Loving yourself is easy. It’s getting there that can be a bit of a trick.
If we could somehow escape unharmed from advertising, media, critical authority figures, the psychological effects of cliques in grades K-12, and the natural human tendency to feel like the odd person out, moving from self-harshness to self-kindness to self-love might not be such of a slog. I’m pretty sure no one does this. Still, that doesn’t mean cultivating a deep and abiding sense of self-love is impossible.
One way to start to magnify your self-love is to build a self-love altar.
As you probably know, an altar is a spiritual focal point: a place where you symbolically anchor your awareness of and reverence for the Divine.
You can also create an altar with a specific intention. This is a way of channeling divine energy and awareness into a dream, desire, or goal.
In this case, that intention is self-love.
Making a self-love altar is a powerful act. Just building it is an act of magic: it’s a bold declaration to yourself and the universe that you are choosing to open your heart to yourself, to let in more love, and to continually increase that love over time.
In the future, you can sit in front of your self-love altar while you journal, meditate, pray, or perform additional self-love and self-care rituals of any kind.
Just how does one make a self-love altar?
First, choose a flat surface: a small tabletop, a shelf, the top of a dresser, etc.
Next, choose an image or symbol of the divine. Anything that feels powerful for you will be perfect: a statue of a deity, a framed postcard depicting the night sky, a decorative globe, or a quartz crystal point might all be good choices. Once you’ve selected it, place that item on the flat surface.
Set your intention now. Perhaps close your eyes, place your hands in prayer pose or on your heart, and speak words from your heart. Invoke the Divine and tell the Divine why you are creating this altar: because you’d like to learn to love yourself unconditionally, every single day.
Your altar is already complete with just that one symbol and intention, but tune in and see if there’s anything else that will help you create a visual affirmation of your intention to love yourself. Here are some ideas:
- A picture of yourself as a child, perhaps hanging out with a beloved pet or being hugged by a grandparent
- A candle
- A flower or two from your garden
- Positive affirmations or other encouraging words
For additional self-love rituals and exercises you can do in front of your new altar, check out The Self-Love Superpower: The Magical Art of Approving of Yourself (No Matter What).
Did you make a self-love altar? Or do you plan to? Please share your thoughts in the comments below.
Our thanks to Tess for her guest post! For more from Tess Whitehurst, read her article “5 Peculiar Secrets to Self-Love.”
