Your home altar: beyond the Instagram aesthetic
- Inbar Lee Hyams
- Feb 9
- 3 min read
Updated: Aug 26
February 9, 2025
Consider the profound irony that the weekly verses containing Judaism's most important moment - the revelation at Mount Sinai - is named after a non-Jew, the Midianite priest Jethro. This suggests a radical universalism at the heart of Torah.
In the third month after leaving Egypt, the people camp opposite the mountain, and Moses ascends to receive instructions from God. There's a three-day preparation period where the people must purify themselves, and boundaries are set around the mountain that neither people nor animals may cross.
On the third day, there's an incredible theophany - thunder, lightning, thick cloud, and the sound of a ram’s horn growing louder and louder as the mountain itself is smoking and trembling. It's in this awesome setting that the Ten Commandments are proclaimed.
The people both draw near and stand far off - suggesting that approaching the sacred requires holding paradox.
This week, we'll create an altar space to help us navigate these beautiful contradictions in our own lives. (Like my dedication to a tech-free bedroom, unless Mercury is retrograde and I need to Google what that means for me at 3 AM.)
Lunar Wisdom
We're in the waning gibbous moon phase - a time of reflection and gradual release. As the moon's light slowly diminishes from its recent fullness, it mirrors the Israelites' journey from the overwhelming direct divine encounter to a more sustainable relationship with the sacred. This is an ideal time to examine what intensities in our lives need to be "dialed down" so we can better hold life's paradoxes. Did that morning practice that started as "light a candle and sit quietly" somehow evolve into "light the perfect candle at the exact right angle while burning the precise amount of sage and chanting in Sanskrit with your crystals arranged by chakra"? (Sometimes a tea light and three deep breaths works just fine.)
Room of the Week: Creating Your Sacred Altar
Your altar will serve as an intermediary space - helping you navigate between everyday life and divine wisdom. Consider placing your altar in either the 8th gua (Still Mountain - the area of Wisdom and Self-Cultivation) or the 3rd gua (Arousing Thunder - the area of Family, Community, and New Beginnings).
Choose a dedicated shelf or table in a quiet corner and give it a thorough cleanse with intention
Arrange items representing the 5 elements from left to right. Don't overthink the items - choose what feels good and elementally appropriate:
Wood: Fresh flowers or a small plant (new growth)
Fire: A candle or crystal catching light
Earth: A stone or ceramic object
Metal: A bell or metal bowl
Water: A small bowl of water or mirror
Remember: Your altar is a living space for wrestling with questions, not a static display for Pinterest.
(Add image of bagua map)
Daily Energy Focus
Starting on Sunday, 2/2/2025
Sunday (Yang/Sun)
Set up your altar following the instructions above. As you place each element, say hello to it - either silently or aloud. Once complete, sit quietly with your altar for a few minutes, noticing what wants to emerge. No need to force an epiphany - they rarely come on schedule anyway.
Monday (Yin/Moon)
Light a candle on your altar and observe how it's both constant and ever-changing. What paradoxes come to mind in your own life? Look for places where family patterns or friendships both support and challenge you.
Tuesday (Fire/Joy)
Add something new to your altar that represents transformation. Spend a few moments contemplating what this object symbolizes for you.
Wednesday (Water/Flow)
Choose one item from your altar that represents something you're ready to release. Remove it mindfully, thanking it for its lessons.
Thursday (Wood/Growth)
Sit in silence with your altar for five minutes, embracing both stillness and movement. Notice what arises without trying to resolve it. Sometimes the most spiritual thing we can do is just sit with our discomfort.
Friday (Metal/Structure)
The structured energy of metal asks of you: commit to writing what you've noticed about holding contradictions this week. Place your journal or a written note on your altar. Be honest - no one is reading it but you.
Saturday (Earth/Grounding)
When the week is complete, dismantle the altar from right to left (the opposite order in which you assembled it), taking a moment to thank the wisdom that came through each element. And yes, it's okay if some of that wisdom was ‘maybe I don't need another altar workshop.’
