Setting Up Your Altar

What is an altar? An altar is a table or flat-topped block used as the focus for a religious ritual, especially for making sacrifices or offerings to a deity. And creating an altar is a sacred way to call spiritual energies into your home. Reinforcing your intention to invite more peace, serenity, and love into your space. An altar be used for prayer, meditation, chanting, or just a place of beauty and connection to the Divine. Now one does not need a definitive altar, many practitioners only set up for a ritual- or even have small travel altars. You can have an outdoor altar or a garden altar, which are perfect for connecting with nature. Kitchen witches often have kitchen altars, you can even have a bathroom altar if you prefer the privacy- or simply don’t have any other space for it.

Traditional Altars

Traditional Altars maintain the same fundamentals: Cloth, Candles, Feather, Incense and incense holder, Crystals, Herbs, Pentacle, Images, Athame/knife, Bowl/chalice, Cauldron, Wand/staff, your Book of Shadows or grimoire. Ultimately, you’ll want the four elements represented.

South: Fire: masculine: orange, red- Athame, sword, candle.

North: Earth: feminine: green, brown- pentacle.

East: Air: masculine: yellow- feather, incense.

West: Water: feminine: blue- bowl, chalice, cauldron.

To represent the Gods or spirits: You can use symbols, images, or use candles. Can be white. Can be gold for the masculine and silver for the feminine.

Remember there is no right or wrong way to set up your altar. It is YOUR sacred space, set it up the way YOU would like it. And if you can’t afford all of the traditional tools there are limitless possibilities for substitutes and just décor you like. When I first began practicing I just laid a scarf on my old trunk and covered it with rocks and candles (most of which were birthday candles that were held up by bottlecaps). Over the years I acquired tools and built It to fit my personality. So just start collecting things that speak to you. Do you like that rock? Put it on your altar. Found a lucky penny? Put it on your altar. Have a favorite tarot card? Put it on your altar. Have a deity but can’t afford a statue? Print off a picture- or even better, draw one. Got an old t-shirt? Lay it out and draw a pentagram on it, draw sigils, runes, etc. Do what feels right. And it’s not uncommon for one to decorate their altar, whether it’s to worship your spirit animal or to celebrate one of the Sabbats. So have fun and get creative!