and spirituality.
Chapter 6 – Altars and their Preparation, offerings
To worship the Holy Death you must prepare an altar. This altar represents the door that communicates with her, that attracts the energy of her kingdom to our world. It is a consecrated space where we place the objects and images that underpin our devotion, and fill us at a spiritual level.
However, I must state that setting up an altar in a country such as Mexico is not the same as preparing it in other countries in Europe or in the rest of the world.
To begin, I will describe how altars are prepared in Mexico from where they originate.
First of all, I recommend you to look for a special place that is spacious and comfortable. If you want to set up a private altar try not to show this place to curious people. It is better to keep it hidden, since its effects will be stronger with people who have faith and worship the Holy Death. Conversely, if it is a family altar, it should be set up in a quiet, well-ventilated room in which people can go to pray.
If possible, the walls of the altar should be black to protect the home, office or business, the ceiling purple, and the area of the altar should be covered with a purple veil in the form of a curtain. Set up the altar facing the wall where the sun sets: that is, oriented towards the west. Place a small table at the bottom of the altar and cover it completely with a black cloth or tablecloth (the cloth should reach the floor and cover all four sides of the table).
As far as possible, use utensils that are of natural origin so that the attraction of energy and light is more powerful.
The tablecloth may be changed depending on the colour needed for the requests; thus boosting the attraction of the right energy for each request.
Once you have the place to put your altar, make a box. This box should be a bit smaller than the altar and made of wood, iron, clay, metal or any other product of plant origin. The Holy Death will be placed on top of this box, at our own height or even at a higher position as a clear manifestation of respect. Line the box with a piece of fabric or velvet, – red on the inside and black on the outside-, and add a padlock or a small lock to it. This box will be called the depository. The objects of power that will serve as a guide to the celestial spirits towards the altar will be kept inside this box and the person in charge of the altar will guard its key.
It is recommended to keep in this box the bones of nocturnal animals or –in your case- memories of a deceased person, soil from the cemetery, ashes, or soil from archaeological places with great energy from our pre-Hispanic ancestors.
Quartz, magnets and other crystals should also be stored in this box.
When ready, wrap all these things up in a purple cloth –preferably-, and tie them with a thin black or purple ribbon. Then, put this package inside the depository and cover it with a black cloth.
Finally, place the Most Holy Death on top of the box and put candles on each side, together with the flowers and the incense. It is suggested to also put a clay plate, an ashtray and a crystal glass, which are the exclusive utensils of the Most Holy Death.
Tuesday is the most auspicious day to put up and consecrate this altar. It is perfect to do this in the mornings since the Holy Death has just woken up, she is very strong and has an entrepreneurial energy, and she loves challenges; in the evenings, she is in the fullness of her power, and at nights, the energy of the hidden forces manifest. To set up the altar, the person must be calmed and relaxed, without haste or worries because he or she must dedicate himself or herself in body and soul to the Holy Death.
As for the image of the Most Holy, you may choose any figure you like. They are usually made of clay, resin, fibreglass or papier-mâché with the different symbols that I mentioned before.
You must decide whether you want a full-body image, an image sitting down, or on a throne, etc. and also which colour you want depending on your spiritual needs. You can also put several saints, dedicated to special works and can place them with their own offerings. It is preferable that you choose an image that gives you confidence, faith and devotion.
You can also choose a printed image or a picture of the Holy Death, if you have no space. You should also choose the one that inspires you the most, and gives you confidence, faith and devotion. The way the Holy Death is represented does not matter, since she is in all her different forms.
The advantage of choosing a picture or an image is that you can carry it around, and take it and put it anywhere.
To continue the altar must be consecrated.
This must be done by someone who knows and manages energies in the mortuary theme, and everybody should choose the person they trust the most. However, if it is your own altar and you do it yourself, you can ask for it with a lot of faith, since you will be the one who will attend it and worship it. For this, you will have to clean yourself first and then clean the altar. Before doing any ritual, it is very important that you do this: you must wash yourself and purify your body, soul and spirit. You must take a hot bath to open the pores to help you to receive the energies you are about to generate.
Then, you have to dress in white and while you are getting dressed you must pray:
Oh! Lord, forgive me I beseech you,
I have had mistakes, but I regret,
I ask for your forgiveness, for all the evils
that I have consciously and unconsciously caused,
I offer you good behaviour,
since the forces that I invoke are in good faith
and I do not intend to do any harm,
but I do it because I think
in the happiness of this person and mine,
if You decide otherwise, I accept it.
Pray 3 Lord’s Prayers and 3 Hail Marys.
Cleansing Ritual
This must be done before doing any other ritual, since the environment must be clean from energies to invoke the Holy Death.
Ingredients:
– 1 mortar to mix everything
– 1 white candle
– cleaning mix (as a granular mixture): one part of incense, one part of myrrh, one part of rue, one part of lavender, a pinch of chilli powder
– 1 censer to put the mixture
– 1 glass with salt and water
To begin with, you must wash yourself as I said before, because it is essential that the environment is clean and cleanliness is done on the physical plane.
Use the mortar to mix the cleaning mixture, enough to perfume and purify the environment you want to clean. When you are ready to start, light the candle and relax, visualise the negative energy leaving your body and see how you are washing yourself. Let the candle burn to the end and throw what is left (even if it has not been completely burnt out).
It is important that when you have finished cleaning yourself in the inside, you visualise that all this negative energy burns and disappears.
