Cleansing the home.

A house cleansing ritual is a way to remove any negative energies that might be lurking in your home.  This is especially useful when...

• Moving into a new house,
  
  
  
  
There has been a lot of negativity there,




You've had a run of bad luck,




You sense an unwelcome energy-being or ghost,




Any time the energy feels heavy, dark, lethargic, or grungy.

In fact, it's wonderful to do a purification ritual for your home regularly.  You will really notice a difference in the feel of the house, and the smoothness of your life as well!  Negative energies have a habit of collecting in our living spaces, and this affects our lives. 

Purifying and blessing your home is like Feng Shui without moving the furniture.

WITCH TIP:   This may help with getting a ghost or "demon" to move on, but it may not.  I'm no expert on exorcism, but as I understand it sometimes they need help, or a firm hand. 

This ritual is not designed to handle very intense, negative beings that may fight back, and I wouldn't recommend it for that.   My advice is to find an expert to help you, or a ritual specifically designed and thoroughly tested for just such a problem.

 

There are many different ways to cleanse and purify your house.  Here is one of my favourites. 

3-Fold House Cleansing Ritual & Blessing

This  is a 3-fold cleanse, purification, and blessing. Part of the appeal of the Three-Fold House Cleansing & Blessing Ritual is that you can easily do it on your own, and it is very effective.

It uses 3 different smudges.

1. Sage


2. Cedar


3. Sweetgrass

Wiccan Gods and Goddesses for House Cleansing Ritual

Here are some Deities that could be appropriate for this House Cleansing Ritual:

Wiccan Goddesses

Artemis is always helpful for protection, Hera or Hestia/Vesta or Durga or Frigg for hearth and home, Tara (white for healing and serenity or red for bringing good things)

Pagan Gods

Govinda as preserver and protector, Vishnu to maintain. Shiva is always perfect for a purification ritual.

   Begin your house cleansing ritual by grounding, casting a Circle, invoking the elements/directions, and inviting any deities or guides you may like to help you. (This step is not strictly necessarily, but it will increase the potency of the work and also provide protection against unpleasant energies.)

    Light a candle, invoking Divine Light and/or welcoming the Element of Fire.  Wash yourself with the Light. 

    Then apply the sage to the candleflame, and get it smouldering.  Go around the house in a counterclockwise (Widdershins) direction, wafting the smoke into every corner and closet.

Pay particular attention to areas where water, electricity, or gas comes in or out, where the electrical panel is located, any heat sources, and appliances.

Remember the hallways are rooms of a sort, too.

    In the centre of each room, draw a circle or pentacle Above, and one Below. 

    At every window, and even more so at every entryway, work the smudge in a circle spiraling in to the centre, or draw a pentacle with the smudge. 

    While smudging with the sage, repeat this prayer:

   Cleanse this house and make it clear —

Only good may enter here!

    When you've completed the house, snuff out the sage. 

    Light the cedar, and go around the house.  Use the same process, except for the rest you will go clockwise (deosil).

While smudging with the cedar, repeat this:

   Blessings grace this cozy place it

   All joy and peace may it embrace

    After you've gone through the whole house, snuff out the cedar, and light thesweetgrass.

While smudging with the sweetgrass, in a clockwise (deosil) direction through the house, repeat this:

   Infinite Power of the Divine

   Protect and bless this house through time!

    Once you've done the inside, go around the entire outside of the house with each smudge just as you did inside, and repeating the pentacle seal on every entryway.

You may also do this around the entire property (unless other families live there too).

    End with this completion:

   By the Power of the Divine

   This home is Blessed!

   Blessed Be!

    At the end of your house cleansing ritual, devoke any deities, guides, and elements/directions you've invoked, open the Circle, and snuff the candle.

Take a moment to feel the energy of the house now.  It should feel very light, spacious, and clear.

Mirror Cleansing

Here's an optional cleansing ritual for mirrors. You can do mirrors the same way you do doors and windows.  But try this once and see what happens.

At each mirror, start by smudging a counterclockwise spiral starting in the centre and working your way outwards.  Then change the motion, going back and forth from top to bottom as if wiping the mirror clean.

You can use this incantation:

   Cleanse this mirror, cleanse and bless it

   Only good may be reflected!

Do this as part of your house cleansing ritual, or at any time, for example... 

• Whenever you feel that it is unpleasant to look in a mirror
  
  
  
  
• Whenever you feel your mirrors have seen things that you don't want to hold onto
  
  
  
  
• When you get a new mirror

House Cleansing Ritual Cautions

Because you're using fire and smoke in this ritual, be sure to take adequate safety precautions.

Fire

• As always working with candles and smudges, be careful around flammables.
  
  
  
  
• Don't leave candles unattended
  
  
  
  
• When you're done smudging, and an hour later, check that the smudges are completely extinguished, and that no sparks are smouldering around the house
  
  
  
  
• See the article on smudging for more tips on using a smudge.

Smudging Smoke

• While smudging your smoke detectors may go off if they are very sensitive, or if you are producing a lot of smoke.
  
  
  You can disarm them, but remember to put them up again after!
  
  
• You don't need a lot of smoke, only a trickle is sufficient.  This is a lot of smudging... if there's a lot of smoke you might find it hard to breathe. 
  
  
  
  
• It's best to let the sacred smoke settle in to the house if possible.  But if anyone has trouble breathing or finds it unpleasant, simply air out the house.