What Is Smudging?..

People have been burning sage or smudging, as it is sometimes known, for hundreds of years. The practice dates back to prehistoric times and it has been used world-wide. This was back in the days of no phones or email, so how did these dudes know what they were doing?? People were on opposite sides of the world, all doing the same thing with the same plants, intriguing don’t you think?!

Sage cleanses the energy of an individual, a group or even a home or space. It leaves a herby smell lingering in the air where it has been burned.

Scientists have observed that sage kills up to 94 percent of airborne bacteria. It offers rapid delivery to the brain too which is said to assist with many kinds of healing, deeper levels of awareness and enhanced spiritual awareness. When burned sage releases negative ions which is linked to supporting positivity too.

I like rituals but I love rituals with intention. When you burn sage, create an intention, a positive intention. Energy is the source of everything. Whether you are feeling funky, speaking to yourself in a negative voice or you want to shift something that’s unhelpful. Use smudging to let go of negative energy. 

When you are burning your sage, open the window so that you can let what you want to let go of float right out of the window. This is such a great ritual. It’s been something that I have been practicing regularly for the past year. I do it when I am feeling ‘stuck’ and it helps me in redistributing my energy. 

For me, the smell has a soothing effect and I immediately feel calm and connected. This could be both the healing properties of the sage and the ‘anchor’. What’s an anchor?..

A ‘neurological anchor’ is smelling something that makes you feel calm, excited or whatever the emotion you felt when you first experienced that smell. More on that next week…

Have you got any words of wisdom, or questions about smudging?