Sage bundles and my faith

This blog is a littler later than usual as I’ve had a poorly little 6 year old.  She picked up a horrible virus of crazy spiking temperatures, which lasted a full week, poor wee soul was exhausted, as was I as sometimes only mummy will do when you’re feeling so poorly.

So when Anna was on the mend, I stumbled across an article about burning sage in the house or your workplace to ‘cleanse’ the area.  This sparked my interest as I felt we could really use a wee boost in the house and also sometimes in a workplace with lots of various complaints and illnesses arriving daily, it’s good to hit the re-set button.

My first reaction when I first ‘googled’ it was that it was more of a ritual than anything, but as I looked a bit further I found these awesome benefits;

*It cleanses the area keeping infectious bacteria and viruses at bay

*It releases negative ions (much like a salt lamp) neutralising pollution, dust and mold

*It can lift your spirits and is a great ally against stress as it has rich components that activate certain receptors in the brain

*It can enhance cognition and alertness

Believe me, after a full week of very little sleep and feeling like I’ve been stretched in every direction, I’ll take all those benefits in bucket loads!

I also came across the sage ‘smudging’ sacred practise done by the Native Americans, which involves complex rituals of prayer, dancing, trance-like states, and the burning of traditional herbs, like sage and sweet grass.   I am not Native American, I have a very strong faith in God and always have done, it has brought me through hellish times with my back and has given me abundant joy and hope that I could have gotten from nowhere else at really awful times in my life.  So no, I will not be saying ritualistic smudging prayers while I burn my sage bundles.  What I did was pray to ‘my’ God, asking Him to cleanse the rooms and bring His healing to Anna and keep our house well and happy.

I have received more than a few comments questioning my faith and beliefs since starting my journey with acupuncture and Traditional Chinese Medicine and I’ve always enjoyed a healthy discussion about how I believe God has brought me on this path to this point in my life where I can have some healing and renewal in my life outside of the westernised medicine I was so reliant on for so many years.

But when people call you a ‘white witch’ and bluntly state there’s no way I can practise acupuncture while having my faith, it does sadden my heart as I know if they took the time to walk a day in my shoes they would see something completely different, beyond their fear and immediate judgment.

But for now, all I can do is trust, and keep God and my faith central to all I do and pray that what I do will continue to help people on their own journeys.

So if you see me burning my sage bundles and have any questions about it, please come and ask me… I’m not here to brain wash any body, I’m here to learn, to grow and to do the best I can on this journey I find myself on. 

My fab wee mummy gave me a plaque, which I have hanging in my cabin, which quotes the bible verse, “Let all that you do be done in love”… this is something I try to live by daily and I hope my family, friends and clients feel most of all when they are around me and when I am doing what I feel really honoured and blessed to do within my work.

Sarah x