by Ashley Lemus

Created on: March 25, 2009   Last Updated: March 28, 2009

The creating of an altar is first and foremost something that is used as a connection between you and your deity. It is a symbol of worship and of respect. It is a way to show our belief and to exalt our deity, or in this case goddess.

To create an altar for goddess you must first consider this; what makes goddess who and what she is? Goddess is power and fertility; the feminine. She is all in one the maiden, the mother and the crone. She is whole and a strength all her own, yet she is incomplete without her consort. At least that is how I perceive it.

Once you have determined what goddess is to you and what she means to you then you must determine where you wish to place your altar. I would suggest keeping it out of the way. You will not be using the altar all the time, so if it is in the middle of a heavily used room it might just be a bother. You do not want it in a small place either. The goddess is a vast, powerful being, why would you shut an alter to her off in a small room? You must not only pick items that represent goddess but also her connections to the world around you and your connections to her.

Do not try to simply buy everything you need all at once, it won't feel right. For the last year and a half I have been collecting up items for my altar. I, personally, am not a follower of goddess exactly. I believe in God as well as wicca. I believe in a feminine power source and a masculine power source; which I suppose you could call goddess and consort. My altar is not only a representation to God and those two sources, but to the four main elements as well. I have found items that call out to me, items that have personality. I found the most absolutely beautiful blood red glass chalice a few months ago at a Salvation Army store. I have a little glass for each of the four elements that I put representations in, such as dried roses for earth, water for water, etc.

An altar takes time and effort. It should not just be slapped together. My altar is home to my emotions and beliefs, as it should be for anyone. A truly good altar holds a little piece of yourself and is a gift for goddess.

Make sure to guard your altar against evil spirits as well. A few light protection charms will do very nicely. Keep it clean and well cared for. Never let an altar get dirty or go unused for too long. I believe it makes the magic of the altar stale, or that it weakens the connections that the altar was supposed to make.

An altar has no set formate of creation. It is entirely up to the maker of the altar.

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