Throughout history, people of nature religions found something sacred everywhere they looked. There was no clear-cut boundary between what was religious and what was not, what was magical and what was not. Examples of this can be found all over Europe, where people had Goddesses and Gods for virtually every part of daily life. From ovens and doorways, to bridges and wells -- everything was sacred! Latin, and the languages which descend from it, were shaped by Pagan cultures. Language assigned gender to every person place and thing, perhaps reflecting the idea that all things link back to a specific Goddess or God. Every person place and thing truly is a part of nature!
Historians and archaeologists uncover bits of ancient lore and share their treasures with us. We love to marvel at something old and rich in years. But while the richness of history gives us valuable perspective, we should not overlook the present. In this way, we learn from the progression we make over time, the flow from yesterday to today. Today, every thing is still just as sacred as it was in days of Old.
Look to your own surroundings and see the sacredness in everyday life. The seasons and cycles still tell us much about the nature of many things. Every year, every moon, and even every single day waxes and wanes in a similar fashion. What do these cycles mean to you personally? How do you mark their special points and midpoints? How do you celebrate them? You may find that even simple events like your morning shower can be a special ritual, marking the beginning of your own "Wheel of the Day."
The town in which you live is full of sacred sites and shrines! The busy concrete roads you travel every day are sacred. And so are the many crossroads we pass along our path. However trivial they may seem at the time, each of these crossroads and intersections bring us where we need to be. Many roads have names or route numbers; we can address them personally and thank them for our many safe journeys. Remember this the next time you are frustrated in rush-hour traffic or lost on a dark, lonely highway.
Remember how your own neighborhood felt as a child? Every tree or bush or sewer pipe was unique and familiar. As we mature, we need not lose that familiar feeling. Notice the things around you. Take time not just to smell the roses, but to read the billboards and to hear even the noisy commotion all around you. You may find that they speak just as clearly as the rivers, winds and thunder.
Your own home is full of sacred beings! An entire pantheon lives in your pantry! Your kitchen is not just the place you cook; it is a temple for the herbs, fruits and animals which give us life. Each of them is a relic of a bygone life form, with spirit deserving our respect. See each meal as a ritual, a blessed event which brings new life to that which we have harvested. These "food relics" become part of you; they live again through you.
Throughout your home, photos of loved ones can be a shrine to that sacred someone. Perhaps your own family's Mother Goddess? Or your own beloved Lord of the Wood? A photo captures and stores the light and energy of the moment in which it was taken. Mementos of any special occasion capture a bit of that energy, like the charge within a battery or a charm. Feel it the next time you "release" that energy, as you open an old photo album, uncork that special bottle of wine you've been saving, or just open up your favorite junk drawer! Things around your house store bits and pieces of your life. They come into contact with the sound of your voice, the heat from your body, the energy from your thoughts. They hear your most private conversations; they feel your heartbeat race. And just imagine the dreamy stories your pillow could tell. . . No wonder packing and moving all your possessions out of your home is so traumatic. The energy built up little by little over the years is all released in one sudden moving-day whoosh!
Your plumbing and faucet, furnace and electrical wiring, fans and windows, floors beams and walls -- are these not the Elements themselves? Do they not combine to give you a fifth, making your house into a home?
And within yourself, many, many sacred things can be found. Every atom of every cell has its nucleus, its center. Within us are many Suns! Our fingers and toes, arms and legs branch like the limbs of any tree. Our tiny capillaries feed larger veins and arteries, no different than rivers or streams helping a drop of rain flow to the ocean. And within our spirit lies the spark of all life, like a pilot light which burns as long as we do.
If we choose to see the sacredness in all things, even the most mundane parts of our lives will become magical. Perhaps someday, thousands of years from now, historians and archaeologists will uncover age-old tales of deities which bless our microwave ovens or look both ways through our aluminum sliding glass doors. Perhaps they will see how we made every day sacred.
