How long would you go without brushing your teeth, washing your sheets, or doing the dishes?
From the earliest age, you are taught how to cleanse yourself and your belongings.
Were you ever taught how to cleanse your soul?
We cannot see the stains or smell the stench, but we feel it deep inside when our souls need soothing.
Learning how to cleanse your soul isn’t something you’ll find on a college syllabus.
It’s likely not something your parents taught you, but something as simple as a spiritual cleansing can help us in every facet of our lives.
What Is Spiritual Cleansing?
Spiritual cleansing rituals aren’t based on one set of religious beliefs or a mystic hierarchy.
For some, the most they know about spiritual cleansing and auras is that it seems a bit, well, woo-woo.
Spiritual cleansing rituals allow us to spend hyper-focused time on the things weighing us down. It’s really about focusing on yourself, and the places deep inside you can’t get physically clean.
It’s removing obstacles to balance chakras, dissolving negative influences from the energy corridors of your mind and body, and addressing problems preventing you from being your best selves.
“The wounded mind must be reset like a fractured bone. It cannot heal itself without spiritual realignment.” – Anthon St. Maarten, Author
The more important question is, “What is a Spiritual Cleanse NOT?”
It’s not just sitting in a hot tub with fancy smells and pretty flowers while your mind still chugs away at negative thoughts and emotions.
Spiritual cleansing is hard work, especially in the beginning. There is no snap of the fingers or click of the heels that make the cleanse complete.
What Are the Benefits of a Spiritual Cleanse?
Whether it’s a spiritual head wash or a spiritual detox meditation, the benefits are the same as with anything that goes from soiled to clean – a clean slate.
Think of the last time you worked out in a gym.
Picture yourself lifting those heavy weights. Eventually, they became too heavy to carry, right?
You had to put them down and walk away. You also felt better after doing so. A spiritual cleanse helps get the world’s weight off your shoulders or ease the burden of a heavy heart.
It can help with a myriad of common struggles in life like:
- The random sense of dread or impending doom
- The sting of grief and the aching feeling that grief morphs into
- The adrenaline rush of an argument
- The “I wish I had said this” broken record that plays in your head after an argument
- The exhaustion from negative news cycles or too much exposure to tragedy on televisions or mobile screens
- The resentment you are holding onto after days, months, or sometimes years
- Uncontrollable mood swings you don’t understand
- Clearing out your mind and body when you need to make a tough decision
Ongoing spiritual cleansing treatments can teach your mind and soul to work together so you don’t get caught in a cycle of anxiety or depression.
When we obsess about negative things in our life, we are feeding the beast instead of nourishing the warrior within.
When Is the Best Time to Practice Spiritual Cleansing?
A human being is like a flower. We grow and shed parts of ourselves to allow the growth of new layers. We are usually not the people we were ten years ago.
Sometimes, we aren’t the people we were yesterday. With every new revelation of yourself, you need to find time for a spiritual cleanse.
There are key factors that will position you for this powerful spiritual event:
- Unplugged, uninterrupted time dedicated to the cleansing (Yes, even put the pets away for this one)
- A willingness and an open mind to handle the emotional toxins that you will release
- A judgment and distraction-free space
As with the cleansing of anything, the longer you wait to do it, the harder it will be. Don’t wait to take care of your soul until you are bogged down in emotional distress. If you do, allow yourself grace and several opportunities to get it right.
How to Practice Spiritual Cleansing: 7 Cleansing Ritual Activities
Truth be told, anything you feel soothes your soul could free up negative energy and cleanse your spiritual side.
You need to make sure that your attempts aren’t just to make you feel good in the moment, but to make you be better as a whole. It’s not always as easy as picking the low-hanging fruits of “shower and sage the day away.”
1. “Wholly” Water
While water plays a vital role in the people and religions of the earth, it’s also a natural cleaning element. It nourishes our body, fuels our energy supplies, and washes away toxic elements of physical and spiritual natures.
A spiritual cleansing bath has little to do with the loofah and new pumpkin-scented body wash. In fact, many people will shower themselves first to clean their bodies and then take the spiritual cleansing bath.
While your water doesn’t have to be “holy,” you should “wholly” appreciate the water you do have and take a moment of gratitude for having access to it. More than two billion people on earth don’t have this luxury, so be grateful and respectful of the water you have.
Once you are in the water, close your eyes (use a lavender-scented weighted eye cover if you need encouragement). Meditate and repeat words or phrases of affirmation.
When taking a spiritual cleansing bath, add in Epsom salts for muscle relaxation and toxin removal. Salts come in a variety of scents and textures. You can choose one that matches the mood of your spiritual cleansing.
2. Shed It In the Shower
A bathtub isn’t the only water source for cleansing rituals. With some creative meditation, you can envision your shower as a waterfall.
Using a shower bomb or steamer, you can create an aromatic landscape for your spiritual cleansing.
Speak words of gratitude before you enter the shower, and then feel the water rushing over you. Focus on the parts where you feel the water cascading.
Inhale and exhale in deep, controlled breaths to absorb the fresh air and let out the stagnant stuff stuck inside.
Allow the force of the water to hit your hardened areas. Maybe it’s a broken heart, a feeling that you’ve lost your voice, or stomach aches from anxiety.
As the water strikes your body, imagine it washing away all the toxic spiritual dirt.
3. Soak in the Sun, Stars and Moon
No, don’t go lay out by the pool with tanning oil. Remember, we aren’t doing anything to your body. We are doing things for your soul. The cycles of the sun and moon bring powerful properties.
For example, in yogi tradition, during the summer solstice, it’s common to do 108 sun salutations (we won’t tell if you skip a few Chaturangas).
You can also practice the moon salutation flow on the arrival of a new moon. Each year has 12-13 new moons, so you have at least a dozen times you can practice this in a year.
Soaking crystals or water in the full moonlight is another way to “charge” the elements. Believers of the moon’s power consider crystals or water soaked in the light of a full moon to invigorate any person, place, or thing with the moon’s energy.
When you think of how the moon moves the tides, it becomes an abundant power source and energy flow.
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4. Use Common Scents
All too often, we grab medication to ease what makes us moody. Nature provides plants that produce essential oils to help with negative emotions. They aren’t called “essential oils” for nothin’.
Try some vetiver on pulse points to ease anxiety. You can add a few drops to a cleansing ritual or to your shampoo for a spiritual head wash.
Bergamot is great for inflammation and a healthy heart. Being in the citrus family, it’s also a great bug deterrent if you are practicing a spiritual cleansing bath in nature or meditating outdoors.
Thieves oil has long been used to block bacteria and viruses or to cleanse them away from our personal spaces. Did you know that Thieves oil was first used in the 14th century?
During the bubonic plague, bodies were stacked on each other after people succumbed to the illness. However, their remains were still highly contagious.
As the story goes, the thieves wanted to take the valuables from the bodies without getting sick. They used the Thieves oil mix to take the valuables and stay healthy.
5. The Need for Yoga Nidra
How often do we think to ourselves, “I would be in such a better headspace if I just got a good night’s sleep?” Here’s how to start a practice of Yoga Nidra when you really want to sleep soundly.
As a wonderful bonus, you’ll find your Atman, or true self, at the end of this effortless journey.
- Surgically remove the mobile device from your hand. Turn it off and put it in another room.
- Get comfortable on a yoga mat, the floor, or your bed. Use a fluffy pillow to support your head.
- Either play a podcast of a Yoga Nidra chant or speak the flow to yourself.
Yoga Nidra’s sole focus is taking each part of the body at one time. You acknowledge it, focus on it, relax it completely, and let go of any blockages or toxicity. You never even have to stand up during this yoga flow.
In the end, you’re filled with feel-good serotonin, anxiety is released, and the body is in a natural, raw state free from worry.
6. Smudge Stuff or Spaces
Sometimes our environment will be the harbinger of negative energy and not necessarily our souls. If you had a nasty fight with your husband in the bedroom, you could spiritually cleanse – “smudge” – the space with herbs like sage.
A bundle of dried cedar can remove negative associations from articles of clothing or dissipate the toxic energy left behind in a former roommate’s bedroom.
When you move into a new space, rosemary works wonders. It could be a physical space such as a new house or a new mental space on the first day of a new healthy eating routine.
Plant your herb garden to create custom dried bundles for extra spiritual cleaning comfort. You can use these just for yourself, share with friends, or sell them on a crafting website like Etsy.
You’ll be able to focus your mind on positive actions without getting neck-deep in anxiety or grief.
7. 30 Minutes of Serenity
Whichever option works best for you, treat the activity as when you were a kid eating lunch at the pool and had to wait 30 minutes to get in the water again.
Give yourself a good half an hour to rest, relax, stretch out, sit wrapped in your towel, or sprawl out naked. Bonus if you are going right to sleep afterward.
Let your body and hair air dry from any water-based activity. Repeat words of affirmation to yourself or meditate to clear your mind of any thoughts.
It is also a great time to do some journaling. After the spiritual cleanse, write down how you feel and set your intentions moving forward. Whatever you do, DO NOT grab your phone and start scrolling through TikTok’s potentially toxic feed.
Final Thoughts
You’ll find that how to cleanse your soul can be different with different emotions. You might experience different levels of success with each option.
Don’t expect a miracle overnight. The toxic elements that reign in our souls don’t accumulate overnight and won’t leave overnight.
With regular practice, you’ll find yourself better at handling negativity and putting forth a genuinely positive attitude straight from your soul.
