How many things vie for your attention each day? How many hours do you spend sitting in front of electronic devices? For many of us, daily life has an overabundance of things to do.
I don’t know about you, but I’m busier now, in my sixties, than when I was thirty. Completing most of the items on my business and learning To Do list requires many hours using technology and working on some type of electronic device each day.
And then there are the non-work related things that we need to do, like meal preparation and clean up, house chores, laundry, and looking after pets and plants. Perhaps you noticed I didn’t even include quality time with loved ones, leisure activities, helping others, or doing errands outside the home—all important too. The many things we do every day can take a toll on our mental, spiritual, and physical well-being.
Disconnect
Now more than ever, it’s vital to unhook from technology and life’s many demands and nurture our spiritual side. That can take many forms, and we can accomplish it in many ways. When we unhook to focus on spirituality, it helps us relax, realign, recharge, and reconnect. I’ve found it’s much easier to do that when in a sacred space.
Sacred spaces come in all shapes, sizes, and locations; they can be inside or out, in the city or the country, grand or modest. I’m not necessarily referring to traditional buildings like temples or cathedrals. Instead, it is an area we can separate and designate as a place to pause from the ordinary and everyday routines—a place where we’ll find a reprieve from the world outside of ourselves. I’m thinking of something simple that anyone can find or create. The spot is unimportant; it’s the intent that makes it sacred. We might discover it…
- nestled in a forest among the trees
- underneath a starry night sky
- close to an inspiring view
- with a paved path through a city park
- with a rustic trail to cycle on
- with a giant boulder or wooden bench to sit on
- with a sandy beach near the water
- tucked away in a quiet corner of a room
- in an empty hallway where you take a few moments out of a hectic workday.
Ways to Use Your Sacred Space
It’s also a set-apart time that could be a special day of the week, a set time each day, or random moments throughout your day. It can become whatever you need it to be. A place we can use…
- to worship
- for self-care
- to meditate
- to get grounded and centered
- to recharge our energy
- to realign our thinking
- to gain a new perspective
- to commune with something greater than ourselves that we feel connected to, such as the divine or deities
Wherever it is, it should be where you want to spend time. A special place that you set apart for sacred communing in however that looks for you. When you enter, your body gets the message that you can leave your worries and to-do list behind. Where you can relax and allow your breathing and heart rate to slow down. A special place to connect to your form of spirituality, where you can breathe and just be.
This post is written from my perspective and is the first in a series about Sacred Space. Over the next few weeks, I’ll continue to share ways to create different types of spaces and ways to use them. Topics will include places at home, in the garden or yard, in wild spaces or parks, and how to set a sacred place in time.
A future blog post will focus on creating a sacred space in our homes.
Do you have a sacred space that is meaningful to you? Please share about it in the comments below.
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