Purify and cleanse your home or office with smudge sticks made from sage and sweetgrass. Sage sticks are a tradition in Native American culture and are believed to rid a space of impurities, as well as to prepare a place for sacred ceremonies. Sweetgrass is usually burned first to invite all spirits into the area then the sage stick smolders, releasing the fragrant smoke into the air. According to Native American rituals, the sage stick should be waved in all four directions of the earth -- east for truth, south for renewed life, north for purity of words and deeds and west for realized promise and hope.
Cleansing
Rinse your home or office of negative energies with a sage stick. This technique is particularly useful when moving into a new place, where you would want to clean the air from previous occupants and their history. It also can help with an established space when it feels "stuck" or stagnant. Light the sage stick and keep windows and doors closed. Wave the stick from floor to ceiling, moving around the room in a clockwise fashion, making sure you reach all four corners that represent the directions of the Earth.
Purification
Your body may cling to negative energy as well as the lingering effects of a difficult event or person. Purify your body with a self-smudge ritual. Writing on the website SoulfulLiving.com, holistic health writer Jane Alexander recommends lighting the sage stick and fanning the flames to get a good amount of smoke. Start wafting the smoke toward your heart, then move the stick over your head and arms, then down the front of your body. Trace the sage stick down the back of your body. Throughout the ritual, gently breathe in the smoke and visualize the sage eliminating bad energies, thoughts and feelings that may have attached themselves to you.
Blessing
One of the advantages of sage stick rituals is the opportunity for spiritual reflection. Pause to consider all the good and less-than-good things in life. Help restore a sense of serenity and purity in your space by including a spoken blessing. Jane Alexander suggests beginning with such words as: "Sacred Sage, drive away all negativity from my heart; take away everything unworthy and impure." Next, speak to the four great spirits -- the east, representing air; the south, water; the west, fire; and the north, the Earth. You can then ask the great spirits for what you need, such as peace, inspiration, strength and protection.
Sage Stick Wisdom
To get the most out of sage stick ceremonies, respect the unfolding of the process and don't hurry it along by blowing out a sage stick. Let it extinguish on its own. You can place the sage stick in a heatproof bowl in a sink or on a stovetop when the ritual is finished and the stick is still smoking. Native Americans consider American white sage sacred and, thus, more beneficial for purifying purposes than the European version, which is used primarily for seasoning. You can heighten the cleansing powers of white sage and sweetgrass by bundling other herbs such as rosemary and lavender or sea salt into the sticks.
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