Every millenial has dabbled with a skin care regimen, meditation practice, or bedtime routine at some point. However, without mindfulness, we overlook the joy, presence, and intentionality that rituals deserve. The practices can become robotic and outright boring. Here are the seven qualities to cultivate, to turn any routine into a heart-warming ritual.

 

Gratitude

Many of us wake up to an alarm clock and jump out of bed, taking the day for granted. We lose sight of the gift it is to be here. When we acknowledge the people, events, and situations that are blessing us, we create flow and harmony for more. Begin to integrate the feeling and vibration of gratitude into your morning practices to shift your regimen into a rite.

 

Reverence

By leaning into reverence, we step out of our own worries and subtly surrender. Deeply honor the presence you’re calling upon as well as the elements that are a part of your ritual. If you’re sitting down for a meal, have reverence for the soil that the food was grown on, the farmers that grew it, and the animals that may have been sacrificed. If you’re engaging in a Moon Ritual, admire the wisdom the moon shares with us. Recognize the lineage of teachers, ancestors, guides, and their wisdom that they are bringing forth. Equally important is honoring your own evolution. Honor where you are today. Honor what you’re learning.

 

Presence

We enjoy rituals because they are often the times that we are the most present and engaged. It’s not all time that we’re aware of our surroundings. We’re not taking in the visuals, scents, tastes, and sounds. We always have the option to experience life as it is rather than how it should be. Practice presence by staying with your sensations and experiences. Even a walk in the neighborhood can be a ritual if we are in the moment. Can you notice the scents, the colors of the leaves, and the sounds of cars passing by? Presence is the key to hearing your soul’s intuitive whispers. If you’re seeking to receive guidance, it’s essential to slow down and notice the signals, hunches, and thoughts in your consciousness.

 

Intentionality

What makes a ceremony ritualistic is the purity of heart that we bring to it. Are we engaging in a tea ceremony to feel a certain way or to simply connect with the tea’s presence? Set the intention to connect with Spirit, or to deepen your understanding of yourself when you engage in your next ritual. When participating in a tea or cacao ceremony, aim to cultivate a connection with the plant. See how it interacts with your mind and body with a neutral observation. See how the energy of your ritual shifts with your deepened intentionality.

 

Joy

Rituals are opportunities to nurture our heart’s desires and joys. If your spiritual practice ever feels like a routine, you may want to consider how you can bring the joy back into your experience. What can you celebrate in your spiritual practice in order to shift your routine into a ritual? It can be small tweaks like taking your practice outside, listening to music, or moving at your own pace that make our rituals heart-centered.

 

Connection

We enjoy Full Moon and New Moon gatherings, often because of the community we form. Weddings are also celebrated rituals because they present opportunities for gathering. Our human nature craves belonging and the rights to be seen and heart. See if you can use rituals as a way to connect with others. While not every ritual needs to be a reason to gather, consider sharing your passions with others by hosting a book club or Kirtan.

 

Oneness

Rituals give us time and space to become one with a deity, or element of nature. When we’re taking a bath, we connect with water to understands it’s beauty and shortcomings. It offers a mirror for us to see our own shadow. It also offers medicine if we are receptive to learning from it. Allow yourself to be completely engrossed in the ritual you’re partaking in. Let it consume your attention. Notice how the essence of your being and the essence of the water is the same. There is no separation when we look beyond the physical realm.

By bringing the qualities of reverence, gratitude, presence, intentionality, joy, connection and oneness, we can transform any practice or routine into a ritual. Practice cultivating these aspects into your workouts, spiritual practices, or meal preps, to experience grace and ease. Seemingly ordinary parts of our everyday life can be full of meaning.