Rituals for Living: Brainstorming Ideas

A couple weeks ago, Katherine and I talked about Rituals & Routines on our podcast. The conversation made me realize that I don’t really have a lot of daily, weekly, or monthly rituals for living. I have a lot of daily, weekly, and monthly routines, but routines are different from rituals.

I believe that rituals help us slow down, ground ourselves in the present moment, and unlock our ability to soak in and savor the present moment. Routines help us do things efficiently. Both are important. Both can co-exist and balance each other out.

Some ideas that immediately come to mind:

• Intentionally reading a passage from this book about conscious living each day.
• Massaging oil into my skin before getting into the shower and listening to some kind of self-affirmation meditation while I do it. This idea comes from my research on Abhyanga, which is Ayurvedic self-massage.
• I’ve also been thinking about rituals associated with the cycles of the moon (like these).
• I may want to put an evening ritual into place, related to my stretching and my 5-year journal practice.

And here are some related books:

• The Power of Ritual: Turning Everyday Activities into Soulful Practices
• The Book of Blessings & Rituals: Magical Innovations for Healing, Setting Energy, and Creating Sacred Space
• Ritual Baths: Be Your Own Healer
• Wild Rituals: 10 Lessons Animals Can Teach Us About Connection, Community and Ourselves
• Seasonal Self-Care Rituals: Eat, Breathe, Move, and Sleep Better
• Rituals for Transformation: 108 Day Journey to Your Sacred Life

I definitely don’t want to rush into anything. My time already feels so limited and constrained. I don’t want to jam-pack it with new things willy-nilly.