How to Cleanse Your Home
Without being culturally insensitive at best and actively harmful at worst.
I’ve been meaning to share a post about cleansing your home for a while, but there’s nuance and cultural understanding to it. A 10-second video or a quick Instagram story just doesn’t seem like the right format.
First, a little background about me: I’m a member of the Isleta Pueblo tribe on my mom’s side and I’m German on my dad’s side. I also grew up in the American South and currently live in Appalachia— a place with deep rituals, superstitions and a culture of it’s own. I’m going to share what I know about cleansing from being a part of these cultures, but I encourage folks to research their own heritage, cultural and herbal practices.
The practices you share with your ancestors will always be the strongest.
Appalachia, where I live, has a rich tapestry of cultural beliefs stemming from Indigenous, Black, German and Scotch-Irish cultures.
Why you may want to cleanse your home
You just moved into a new place
You had someone in your home with bad energy
You had unfamiliar people in your home like a plumber, electrician, etc.
You had a home repair problem
You feel frustrated, heavy or sad in your space
You had an argument with someone in the home
Someone was recently sick or passed away in your home
These are all valid reasons for cleansing your home.
Cleansing your home is a common cultural practice used all over the world. In Japan one of the ways they cleanse their home is through mori-shio or salt-cleansing. Rosemary was burned in hospitals in France to purify the air.
Now, thanks to the rise of wellness culture, cleansing has become a trendy practice— especially cleansing with sage.
Why cleansing or “smudging” with sage is problematic
The harvesting of white sage by non-indigenous peoples is unsustainable. White sage which is used in the smudging practice only grows in Southern California and Northern Baja. The California Native Plant Society reports that “50% of white sage populations were lost to urbanization.” Couple this with illegal poaching on public lands due to global demand and you have a recipe for disaster.
Not only is using sage by non-native peoples unsustainable for the environment, but it’s also culturally insensitive. Native peoples didn’t get religious freedom until 1978. 1978! Many aspects of religious or spiritual ceremonies, most famously the Ghost dance, were prohibited by law. Sage is often used in ceremony. When non-native peoples use sage for cleansing, they ignore the fight that Native peoples had to endure to practice their culture and religion.
What if I already have some sage?
If you’re just learning about the problems with white sage, I thank you for learning and being open to growth. If you already have some sage and no longer feel comfortable using it, you may want to reach out to your local tribe and see if they can use it. If not, use what you have, commit to not buying it again and make a monetary donation to your local tribe. If you don’t know who’s land you are on, visit this site.
Cultural note: I was personally taught that you can never buy sage. It is ceremony and therefore, can only be gifted and should be harvested by someone you trust. Remember, native peoples aren’t a monolith and may have different beliefs.
What about palo santo?
Palo santo is another commonly used cleansing tool. Palo santo is harvested from a tree in South America. Although Palo santo is no longer on the “endangered” list, it’s dry-tropical forest habitat is threatened.
Additionally, Palo santo like sage, is used in ceremony by Indigenous peoples. There’s no reason for non-native folks to need or even use this tool.
There’s plenty of other options out there for cleansing in an educated and more effective way.
What cleansing practices are “open” to me?
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