What should you say when you're smudging a house?

There are many reasons an individual might choose to smudge with sacred medicines but one common reason to perform a smudging ceremony is to cleanse a house, apartment, or single room.  

Smudging a house could take place on the day you move in, a traditional practice that helps to banish negative energies left over from its previous inhabitants.

Smudging your home or a single room could be part of a daily cleansing ritual, one that helps you to feel at peace with yourself and your routine.

You could also choose to smudge your after a negative event, before making a big decision, or before and after a change occurs in the home.

No matter why you choose to smudge your home, the most important thing is to smudge with intention, and with the desire to produce a positive outcome.

Smudging can both banish negativity and attract positivity, so as long as you begin the smudging ceremony with the clear intention of cleansing and purifying yourself and your home, you will find success.

While smudging, some people like to recite a smudging prayer to help focus their intentions and produce a positive outcome.

If you are new to smudging, aren’t sure what to say, or are wondering how to craft the perfect smudging prayer for your unique situation, you have found the right place!

Here, we’re going to give you five easy tips to help you create the perfect smudge prayer to say while you are smudging your house.

Why are you smudging?

There are tons of reasons to smudge your house, so to focus your intentions and to create the best and most personal smudging prayer, you need to pinpoint exactly why you need to smudge.

What circumstances exist that preceded the decisions to perform the smudging ritual?

• Did you recently move to a new home?
• Are you getting ready to move?
• Have you recently gone through a major life change?
• Have you recently become an empty nester?
• Did your partner recently move in?
• Did you and your partner get into an argument?
• Why are you smudging?

Once you know the ‘why’, you will be able to figure out what needs to be fixed.

You can’t address a problem if you don’t know what the problem is.

If, for example, you are smudging your house because you recently moved there, and want to make sure it is cleansed for your family, you can say something like “I send all negative energies away and to the Light, and welcome positivity and love into my new home.

What medicine to use to smudge your house?

Each of the sacred medicines used in the Indigenous culture has unique meaning and importance, and is commonly associated with having different properties.

Sweetgrass, for example, is specifically associated with strength, community, and positivity, and is a great choice if you are smudging after an argument or to create a stronger bond within your household.

Cedar is commonly used to bless a new home, as it is thought to actively attract good energies and chase away the bad.

Sage is sometimes used to protect the home from evil spirits, and is commonly burned to cleanse both body and spirit.

Once you know why you are smudging, you will be able to choose the appropriate medicines, and you will be one step closer to the perfect smudging ceremony to cleanse your home.

Setting a Goal for Smudging your house:

Once you have identified the problem you want to address, and have chosen the right sacred medicine, you can determine what the end-goal of your smudging ceremony will be.

If you had an argument with your partner, your end-goal may be to rid the home of negative energy, release tension, and to move forward together towards a more positive future.

If you recently moved to your home, your end goal could be to make yourself feel at home and to make it feel welcoming as you settle in.

Choosing and focusing on a goal is also a good way to help yourself to think of what to say while you smudge.

During the ceremony, you can include your intentions and goals in your verbal or mental smudging prayer, for example: “I welcome in positivity to move forward, and banish the negative thoughts and feelings I was experiencing.

I thank the Creator and Mother Earth for these medicines and the cleansing powers they possess. I release my anger, and accept understanding.”

How to ask empowering questions during your smudge?

Empowering questions are questions with answers that are positive and can influence you to look for the good in your situation.

Asking yourself empowering questions and actually answering them can both help you to focus on manifesting positivity, and help you to connect the smudging ceremony with those empowering answers.

Some examples of empowering questions you could ask yourself include:

• “What am I grateful for?”
• “What was successful about today?”
• “What have I done recently that I am proud of?”
• “How do I help make the lives of others better and more positive?”
• “Who do I have in my corner? Who loves and supports me?”
• “What is something I am excited about?”
• “What is something positive I want to achieve?”

Each time you answer one of these questions, you will reaffirm within yourself that you are powerful and able to create change.

By simply acknowledging your own accomplishments and focusing on the positive things in your life, you can change your overall mindset, and help yourself to move forward productively. 

Smudge Prayer Examples:

Not quite ready to try creating your own personal smudging prayer? No worries - we have plenty of examples to help get you started! First, I often begins my smudge:

“Chi-miigwech to the Creator for giving us this beautiful life. Thank you for these sacred medicines to help protect us, heal us, to feel good, and to live a good life.”