Rituals 101: Guidance On Conducting Rituals & Divination From Powerful Spiritual Women
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Latina women have been leading spiritual revolutions in their communities for quite some time. Many pioneered and preserved our ancestral practices of connecting the mind, spirit, physical body, and planet so we can heal generational trauma with rituals, meditations, and intentions. Those of us with the gift to connect with divine guidance are often told to ignore or suppress it as a result of the common fear of the unknown.
Not everyone will understand that deep dive into the darkest waters of the soul. But, if you’re being called like a warrior to battle, fear no more, armor up, and honor your path. It is a beautifully empowering and fulfilling journey despite having to battle your own darkness and fears. Guerreras in the Chicagoland area are offering you the intro crash course to prepare you before you take your leap of faith and dive deep into your soul work.
Prepare Structure & Meaning
Expressing spirituality freely means you trust intuitively what is significant to you. Trust the synchronicities as a form of communication with your Higher Self, the universe, God, or the divine energy you connect with. Reflection and meditation enable you to look inward and allow any messages to come through in divine timing. Meditation is not just a practice for relaxation. You can transform and transcend in meditation by simply being open to receiving guidance from spirit guides and ancestors.
This article explores key points to consider such as cleansing and protection, clear intentions, effective tools, and working with your guides. After all, you are exploring another realm you’re not familiar with in order to develop and strengthen your relationship with your spirit guides, angels, archangels, and ancestors.
Cristina Puzio, Pilsen’s go-to reiki healer and psychic, recommends structuring your ritual and divination practice like a meaningful story with a beginning, middle, and end. She also strongly urges you to begin your ritual with an opening prayer and end with a closing prayer.
“Just like we do in our realm, we must spend time to get to know the spirits, saints, and archangels who are guiding us. We develop a deeper relationship with them,” says Cristina.
If you have more questions about how to prepare, conduct more research, and ask other trusted spiritual leaders you trust.
Ritual Purposes*
Cleanse & Protection
− Healing
− Emotional Wounds/Trauma
− Generational/Ancestral Trauma
− Intuitive Guidance
Manifestation
− Life Purpose
− Abundance
− Life Partners/Spiritual Tribe
− Gratitude/Celebration
Safety First
Cleansing
As a spiritual being, the heaviest energy you can carry is stuck energy. It is important to cleanse yourself of low-vibrating energy caused by everyday life. Whether it’s the tensions from work, a toxic relationship, or an emotional day, cleansing your energy allows you to be intentional about being in control of your mood, emotions, and sense of self. Trusted tarot reader and intuitive spiritual woman, Charlene Reynoso, also known as Que Mala Bruja, recommends we do not sit with any low-vibrating energy for too long. Release and let go.
“When we are opening ourselves up, we are opening ourselves to all types of energy, which can lead to some emotions you are not prepared to deal with. It is super important to be consistent and disciplined about cleansing,” says Charlene.
Cleansing Rituals To Raise Your Vibration*
− Shower using essential oils and/or Epsom salt
− Cleanse your living or workspace with cleansing tools like sage, candles, or crystals
− Make time for meditation, prayers, or affirmations
− Connect with and honor nature
− Make time for movement: yoga, exercise, or any form of dancing
− Chant or sing
Protection
We must protect ourselves from the unknown of the spirit realms. Like moths are attracted to the light, dark entities thrive on fear and consume the light of those who brightly shine in the spiritual world.
“The spirit world has good and bad just like we do here on Earth so that’s why you have to protect yourself,” says Cristina.
Charlene also strongly recommends to “begin working with your ancestors but be intentional. You can be specific about who you are comfortable working with and ask for those who wish to assist you with your highest good, protect you, love you, and develop your spiritual abilities.” One way Charlene connects with her ancestors and asks them for protection is by honoring them with an altar or ofrenda adorned with gifts of gratitude and love as offerings. The beauty of expressing freely is that you don’t have to honor your spirit guides in the way other people do. You can learn and explore but ultimately you choose what you give meaning to as a result of your intuitive guidance.
Sandy Martinez, the owner of MoonlitCrab, also creates and blesses jewelry with crystals and stones to use for protection and specific intentions. Like many spirit beings sensitive to energy, Sandy honors the vibrational energy of crystals and stones to use as tools for cleansing and protection. Charlene also wears jewelry pieces blessed in sacred rituals and reminds us of the psychological effect it creates to wear protective jewelry reminding us of our specific intentions.
Protection Rituals*
− Wear blessed jewelry
− Create an altar with offerings or an ofrenda
− Meditation, prayers, and/or affirmations
Check Your Intentions, Chica
The key to effective rituals is clear and specific intentions. Every spiritually talented woman will agree on the importance of intentions. Tarot reader and mujer poderosa, Bianca Herrera, also known as Bodacious Bruja, reminds us to first check our intentions.
“Make sure your intentions are not affecting or attempting to control others. I am a crisis worker and even in my spiritual practice I have a lens of consent because I believe everyone has their own agency, will, and behaviors,” stated Bianca.
Spirit beings with good intentions work from a place of love.
Bianca continues by saying, “Make sure what you are desiring, focusing on, and manifesting is about you or something good. It’s coming from a place of love and consent.”
Sandy also reiterates that words are so powerful that you need to be as specific as possible and verbalize what you want. Be mindful of the energy you are putting out and the energy you are working with.
Tools to Work With
Lastly, it is crucial to honor the tools you are working with. Everything is energy. Tools enable us to incorporate the fundamental elements: earth, air, fire, and water. These elements are fundamental to our well-being and humanity. It is a sacred connection to use these elements in our rituals because we do so to honor our connection to the planet, the life force within it, and the oneness or connection of all existence. Charlene stresses that tools like sage and palo santo are not the only tools we should resort to.
“Sage is not a Band-Aid!” states Charlene.
Most importantly, she urges us to know where our tools come from.
“It is a life and energy force you are choosing to work with so make sure your tools are ethically sourced and sustainable. You can grow your own herbs and plants or consecrate the ones you purchase,” says Charlene.
Sandy also recommends expressing gratitude for your tools and their purpose in your ritual. Finally, do not forget to support our pioneers who have paved the way for us to practice freely. Develop relationships with your local botanicas before you purchase mass-produced tools.
Incorporate Fundamental Elements*
Earth
Herbs, Plants, & Incense
− Clean your house with agua de canela for prosperity
− Salts protect and cleanse
− Garlic keeps evil spirits away
− Rosemary and eucalyptus revive the senses and mental abilities
− Roses are good for relationships, self-love, raising your vibration, and healing
Use Crystals & Stones For:
− Cleansing
− Protection
− Manifestation
− Abundance
− Healing
Air
− Practice breathe work and/or exercises
− Consider chanting and/or singing
− Use the smoke produced by burning herbs, plants, or other earth tools to cleanse and protect
Fire
− Burn incense, herbs, plants
− Light a candle
− Set up a fire pit for an outdoor ritual
Water
− Clean your space with Agua Florida
− Use a chalice of water either overnight or pour into a container
− With permission and gratitude, use purified water from the mountains, oceans, rivers
− Cleanse with baths/showers and other tools
− Explore the benefits of embracing cold/ice water for healing or cutting chords with stuck energy
Permission and Gratitude
It is a privilege to tap into ancient wisdom and guidance through the use of our planet’s resources. It is important to honor our connection to our guides, the wisdom they provide, and the tools that aid us in our practices like a gift we treasure. We must also express our gratitude to our guides and angels who protect, love, and support us in our work. Gratitude, patience, and trust are acts of devotion to our guides, ancestors, and angels. Without trust, we’re blocked from knowing truth. The patience to trust comes from knowing divine timing, a strong belief that all comes to fruition at the right time for all those involved like magic. Healing, transformation, and manifestation take time but are worth the wait.
All must be done with specific intentions.*
Read more about the powerful women, Charlene, Sandy, Bianca, and Cristina, in “Pueblo Mágico Pilsen Produces Matriarchal Latinas Leading in Healing Rituals, Divination, and Manifestation.”
