Spiritual Health and Hygiene
Photo by mrjn Photography on Unsplash
Spiritual hygiene goes beyond baths, incense and cleanses. Of course, I recommend that most people take a spiritual bath 1-2 times a week for maintenance and a series of customized baths to address specific conditions and situations. And floor washes and clearing the energy in our homes are essential parts of keeping ourselves healthy. Energy can linger. It can stick to us. We have to be vigilant in cleansing ourselves and our spaces of the energy that does not belong to us. It can negatively affect our mind, body and spirit. But how do we cleanse ourselves of old, stagnant energy of past trauma and pain? This requires a deeper level of ritualistic cleansing and clearing.
When we suffer a major loss or shift in our life, part of our grieving process is removing the representations of what is no longer so that we can properly heal and move forward. For example, when I separated from my ex-spouse, I intuitively knew I had to clean out my living space and reclaim it as my own. As I went through all of our belongings, it was a funeral for the life that we had created together. I threw away a lot of stuff. I bought some new stuff. I got a new mattress and new sheets. It was not enough for them to just move out. I had to forcibly push out and remove my former spouse’s energy from my home. We cannot move into our future while living in the energy of the past. This applies to all kinds of situations and major shifts in our lives: friendship breakups, family estrangements, changes in our job situations, death of a loved one, displacement… We have to emotionally move through loss but we also need to make our living spaces reflective of the changes we are going through. You may not want to throw everything away. I once was reluctant to throw away some gifts from a former lover. I placed them in the back of my closet, out of sight. I eventually had to throw away everything from this person, including items I had allowed them to borrow in order to finish my grieving process. I treated myself to brand new sheets and everything because I needed to completely remove all traces of their energy from my life. And then once I did all of that, I smoked all corners of my home with camphor. This level of cleansing also applies to our digital lives too. Social media and smartphones should also be cleared of lingering energy that no longer serves us.
There are other ways we can protect our spiritual health and hygiene.
Avoid gossip. I know that in the age of the internet, reality tv and social media, the “kiki” and the “tea” are highly sought after. But gossiping about people and speaking negatively about their lives is spiritually dirty. Best to refrain from this behavior.
Limit social media. Social media is very much a part of daily life in the 21st century. But it’s not all there is to offer in life and can cause depression and anxiety. Remember to stay grounded in life outside of the internet. Reach out to friends and family by phone to remain connected and (post-pandemic)make plans to see each other.
Spend time in nature when you can. We as humans are part of nature. Modern life leads us to believe we are not. It is vital for us to spend as much time as possible in community with our non-human relatives. The plants, the soil, the animals, the rocks, the trees...We are all one. It is the divine order for us to be among them. Our aura is reset when we allow ourselves to reconnect to the Earth in this way.
Keep envy in check. The energy of envy is unhealthy and can also send negative energy out to people of whom you are envious. Ask yourself why you are envious. It is usually a reflection of a deficit we perceive within our own lives. You have two choices: 1. Pour energy into the things that will make you feel more fulfilled and whole or 2. shift your perspective on your life and be grateful for your journey.
Stay hydrated and focus on eating whole foods when you can. Have an electronics curfew in the evening and develop healthy bedtime rituals to ensure you get adequate sleep at night. You can use herbal support to help with falling asleep and staying asleep. Our spiritual health is contingent on our physical and emotional health. All aspects of ourselves are housed in one body. We cannot separate them.
Thank you for reading today and I hope you are able to use some of what I wrote to remain healthy, whole and nourished.
xoxo Hoodoo
