Altars of Power and Grace
Transform your life through the wisdom of ancient India with a dash of modern magic. Altars have the power to create positive change through the beauty they bring into your life
I stumbled upon the concept of creating transformative altars based on Vedic knowledge. It began with the remodel of a house we bought to move into in Seattle incorporating Vastu principles of architectural design, my graduate work at Antioch University, and a quickly approaching trip to India.
That’s a lot for me to handle in any one year, yet alone over the course of a few months. The time to address my Graduate Committee with my thesis was due just weeks after returning from India. I felt pressured and thought I either had to drop out of school while this renovation and trip were happening, or somehow use whatever I was about to see and learn in India in my final project for school.
I was actually on my way in to school one morning, driving on the I-90 floating bridge heading west to drop out for the semester when I heard a voice, so clear and strong coming from the back seat that said, “Don’t do it!” I actually turned to look to see who was there…and then I took the first exit, once off the bridge and through the tunnel, and headed for my husband’s office, which was just down the street on Martin Luther King Drive. I remember turning off the engine and just sitting in the parking lot for the longest time rather stunned. Then, I turned around and went home not knowing how it was all going to turn out, but trusting that I could handle whatever was next.
As they say, that just may have been one of those pivotal moments; one that changed the course of your life even before you know it. The remodel of the house was moving forward and we left for India. I was on a quest…in fact the whole group of us who met up at an ashram in Bangalore were on a quest together. We were to be traveling throughout India with renowned spiritual teacher, Sri Sri Ravi Shankar, the founder of The Art of Living Foundation.
Everywhere we went, people honored the Divine through sacred ritual known as puja. Ordinary people and powerful priests all preformed these beautiful, intricate ceremonies honoring the holy traditions they followed. They were done in ancient temples and people’s homes, in shops in towns we visited, and at outdoor weddings. Throughout India, and in Bali, Europe, and Egypt for that matter, everywhere I had traveled to in the past decade, I saw this honoring, this bowing down to the forces of nature in acknowledgment of the unseen, all knowing presence at play in one’s life.
It was in Rishikesh, on the banks of the Ganges, walking through crowds of sadhus and wandering cows who had all gathered there on their way to Hardiwar for the Kumbla Meha that I had this thought. It was about the design of these altars that had been used for thousands of years. I thought, what if I took the five elements already used in a puja, but arranged the items according to Vastu, the science of environmental harmony and wellbeing…what would happen? And, that became the basis for my thesis and my first book, Altars of Power and Grace ~ Create the Life You Desire.
The picture here is from the book…the work that followed and the impact these altars have had on thousands of people’s lives over the years is for another time. More to come…
To learn about Vastu altars that transform your life, order Altars of Power and Grace here. Stay connected for more offerings about altars coming soon. Just join our mailing list to be kept updated.