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Are you looking for some powerful spiritual practices to improve your life and well-being? Make yourself comfortable and let’s dive right into the list of spiritual practices for a happier life!
I by no means consider myself a spirituality expert, but my spiritual journey started pretty early and throughout the years I figured out some spiritual routines that work best.
These little things that I do for my spiritual development improve my life significantly by supporting me emotionally and mentally (and sometimes even physically).
Daily spiritual practices also help me:
- manifest my desires,
- get the very needed meaningful rest,
- make the right decisions,
- evolve as a person,
- keep my body and mind at peace,
- learn more about myself,
- connect with my higher self and the Universe.
And I really hope you can find something for yourself in this article. So let’s begin!
This post is all about the list of spiritual practices for a happier life.
👁 What is a spiritual practice?
According to Wikipedia, a spiritual practice is a discipline of regular actions or activities performed to cultivate spiritual development or create spiritual experiences.
And of course, just like with anything like this, practice makes perfect.
So in a perfect world, you want to do at least a little bit every day.
Don’t force yourself though. It works best when it’s enjoyable.
I also have my own theory of what a spiritual practice is.
It seems to me that apart from personal evolution and spiritual development, any spiritual practice’s side effect (and in combination — purpose) is raising our vibrations.
No matter what kind of spiritual practice you prefer — meditation, yoga, crystals, or journaling — the outcome will be the same. You raise your own vibrational energy through different channels.
As you may already know, any object has a natural frequency at which it naturally vibrates. Living creatures — including humans — do too.
To put it simply, when you experience feelings of peace, joy, or happiness, your vibrational energy goes up. When you are affected by grief, anger, or depression, your frequency goes down.
You cannot see or touch it, but you can feel and sense it. Some people are more sensitive to energy and can feel any slight change (I’m one example).
It’s critical to know that…
…The higher your vibrational energy is, the more powerful you are when manifesting desires, managing life situations, and controlling emotions.
🌞 3 types of spiritual practices
There are so many potential answers, but I’m going to give you my own theory.
Despite the fact that all these practices are called spiritual, their mission of raising vibrational energy is executed through three different channels.
These channels are:
1. Body
2. Mind
3. Nature
In other words, all spiritual practices can be divided into three groups according to what “tool” is being used for any specific practice.
So we have:
1. Spiritual practices performed using your body
2. Spiritual practices performed using your mind
3. Spiritual practices performed using resources from generous Mother Nature
Obviously, this is not black and white. Some practices are a mix of two, for example. But what I like about this classification is its simplicity and that it gives more understanding of the practice (keep reading and you’ll see what I mean).
It’s also important to mention that we shouldn’t neglect any one of these channels.
They work best in a combination, they are all interconnected, and all have to be taken care of. Otherwise, you won’t get ALL the benefits.
If you don’t want to get overwhelmed (and you know you might), make it easier for yourself. Choose one or two spiritual practices from each group below, and take it slow with getting into a habit.
✨ How to start a spiritual practice
First, set intentions. What do you want from this practice? Why did you decide to do it? How do you want to feel during and after the practice?
Secondly, choose a combination of a few spiritual practices that you would like to focus on if you already know what you prefer. If you are completely new to this, try a new practice every day to see which one brings you most joy.
Finally, create a ritual. You can come up with a little routine (lighting up a candle, opening a window, playing some soothing music), or even create a sacred space for your spiritual practices.
Some of the examples of spiritual practices listed below can easily become your daily spiritual practices. I made sure they are as diverse as possible. They are also the ones that I regularly do so there’s the proof. 🤓
They also totally fall into a category of spiritual practices for beginners since they’re very easy to start and you won’t get intimidated.
Obviously, there is so much depth into any of these practices. So if you feel like you are ready to take it to another level, you’ll find tons of information.
Alright! Shall we?
👣 The list of spiritual practices: USING BODY
🧘🏻♀️ Yoga
Yoga is one of the most ancient spiritual practices.
Its’ origins can be traced to India over 5,000 years ago. It’s mind-blowing that it’s relevant more than ever now, in the 21st century.
Not only does it improve your stamina, strength, and flexibility but it also reduces stress and anxiety, provides clarity of mind, and helps develop intuitive wisdom that is vital for a creative and successful life.
While practicing yoga, you are using your whole body which also contributes to a comprehensive approach toward spirituality.
I’m personally a big fan of yoga. I’ve been practicing it for more than 5 years now — on and off. I always feel amazing after a yoga practice.
I still remember that one time when I went to a 3-hour moon salutation yoga class. When I left the studio I felt like I knew how to fly.
Bonus tip: combine this practice with another one for a better result. For example, smudging or aromatherapy.
Best YouTube channels: Yoga With Adriene, Yoga With Tim
Best apps: Down Dog, Becoming Balance
💆🏽♀️ Listening to your body and intuition
Your body always knows what is better for you. Especially, if you are a woman because we are very connected to our bodies.
Just listen to it throughout the day and silently observe.
Any time there is a question to be answered, a problem to be solved, a situation to be handled, observe the sensations in your body. What is it telling you?
Does your body feel warm and comfortable when you are thinking about this particular event, opportunity, or person?
Or there is some doubt? Some discomfort? Maybe you feel an urge to cross your arms or slouch?
Listen to every little thing and try to unravel these secret signs. Because they are telling you exactly what you need to do.
Try to listen to your intuition as well.
I know it might sound difficult — like what do you mean to listen? Is it a bird signing by the window to be listening to it? It’s not that blunt but you’ll get the hang of it after practicing for a while. It usually can be traced afterward by looking at decisions that you made for no reason that came out to be the best ones.
This is one of my favorite exercises that help me connect with myself and tune into my gut feeling. Find it here: a weird but effective self-discovery exercise.
RELATED POST: Here’s Exactly What To Do When You Are Feeling Uneasy
🌺 Aromatherapy
Aromatherapy is a spiritual practice that is performed by… using your sense of smell.
It was very surprising to me when I first heard about it years ago but then it made sense immediately.
As an HSP, I am extremely sensitive to smells. And I used to think that it only adds a lot of inconvenience to my life until I learned about essential oils.
Essential oils are generally very gentle on our noses (if used properly). So if you are sensitive to strong smells but you want your home to smell nice, this is for you.
They are also natural and contain no artificial stuff that is not good for us. This is a huge benefit for me because I always get nauseous from being around strong synthetic scents.
On top of that, inhaling the essential oils aroma stimulates areas of your limbic system, which is a part of your brain that plays a role in emotions and behaviors. Therefore, it affects your mood directly.
There are a lot of ways to benefit from aromatherapy.
You can use an essential oil diffuser, or put a couple of essential oil drops on your hands or under your pillow, or use it in a room spray, or carry a little bottle with you… And so on.
Check out this great article with a lot of ideas.
Best essential oils for…
ANXIETY: valerian, lavender, jasmine, holy basil, bergamot, chamomile, rose, ylang ylang
ENERGY: peppermint, sweet orange, spearmint, rosemary, lemon
EMOTIONAL HEALING: rose geranium, neroli, patchouli, sweet basil, grapefruit
POSITIVITY: cedarwood, sage, peppermint, cypress, frankincense, vetiver, pine.
🙇🏻♀️ The list of spiritual practices: USING MIND
🧘🏼♂️ Mindfulness & meditation
This is one of the most ancient spiritual practices as well.
It is one of my go-to spiritual practices that I try to do daily.
There are tons of advantages to meditation. It helps with managing stress and focusing on the present moment, increases self-awareness, boosts the mood, increases imagination and creativity, and many, many more.
Any kind of meditation — guided, observing your breath, body scan — is great.
Start with a 5-10 minute guided meditation every day and watch the positive changes in the way you feel.
To practice mindfulness, you can also go for a walk with no destination. Don’t put your headphones on: listen to the sounds around you. Watch people passing by, walking their dogs, meeting up with friends, having dinner, buying groceries. Watch the weather change. Try to notice as much as possible.
Best YouTube channels: Mindful Peace, Great Meditation, Enhanced Guided Meditation
Best apps: Simple Habit, Insight Timer
📝 Journal
Again and again, I emphasize the importance of journaling — because it’s just the BEST thing for your well-being.
It can also be a powerful spiritual tool. It helps you connect with yourself, your dreams and aspirations, your dark side… and the Universe.
Spiritual journaling to try:
1. Scripting — helps with manifestation. Scripting is writing down a description of your perfect life as if you were already living it. Define every little detail: what you see when you wake up in the morning, how your day starts, what you do, who you interact with, etc. Try to take your time with it to fully experience all the positive emotions.
2. Love letter to the Universe — helps to trust yourself and the process. Write a letter to the Universe confessing how much you appreciate that you are taken care of. List all the things you are grateful for in your life. Express your admiration for the Universe for all the wonders it carries and allows us to explore.
3. Daily spiritual check-up — helps to make spiritual journaling a habit and track your progress. Every evening before going to bed, open your journal and ask yourself three questions:
- How did I connect with my higher self today?
- One interesting thought or idea that came to my mind or was overheard today.
- What part of my life needs attention at the moment? What is one way I can use my spirituality to help it tomorrow?
4. Spiritual journaling prompts — help to learn more about your spiritual side. You can find some great ones at this link.
Here are some other journaling prompts worth trying:
Self-love journaling challenge
41 journaling prompts for creatives
RELATED POST: How To Start Writing As a Hobby (For Self Love And Creativity)
🌿 The list of spiritual practices: USING NATURE
🌪 Smudging
Smudging is traditionally a ceremony for purifying or cleansing the soul of a person or place of negative thoughts.1
You can use different herbs for this: sage, palo santo, cedar, sweet grass, and lavender are among the popular ones.
Palo santo is my personal favorite because its’ smell is just a-ma-zing!
For a quick smudging ritual, I open a window and light up a palo santo stick. I walk around my home, room after room, holding it in my hand. Whenever I feel like the space has been cleansed and infused with positive energy, I put the stick on a little plate and let it go out.
For a deeper smudging ritual, I open all the drawers, closets, and cabinets and do the same thing. That way all the stuck energy fades away.
You can buy the herbs in any spiritual shop or order them online.
🔮 Crystal healing
Crystals have also been with me my whole life as far as I remember.
My mom had a wooden casket filled with different crystals, minerals, stones, and beads. My favorite thing would be digging in that treasure box looking for beautiful sparkly pieces and she would tell me what they are.
Since then I’ve always been interested in crystals.
I have a small collection that I love and cherish. Most of my crystals are amethyst (it’s the crystal of my zodiac sign), rose quartz, and citrine.
Crystals help raise our vibrational energy because their own is higher than humans’.
They also cleanse from negativity and charge with positive energy.
Crystals work great in a combination with other spiritual practices like smudging and meditation.
It doesn’t mean you have to be carriyng crystals around everywhere you go, alright?
Just start small.
Here’s how I suggest buying your first crystal. Go to a spiritual or a crystal shop and just pick a crystal that feels the most right to you. Don’t look at the tags and don’t even look up crystals before you go. Trust your intuition and your body to tell you which one you need most at the moment.
Books: Crystal Basics by Nicholas Pearson, Everyday Crystal Rituals by Naha Armády
🎴 Tarot and Astrology
They are deeply connected. Each zodiac sign is represented by a card in the Major Arcana. Both astrology and tarot are based on the principle of four elements: air, water, fire, and earth.
These are amazing tools for deep introspection and intuition channeling.
Astrology has helped me learn and accept A LOT about myself. And I’m still on my journey.
Tarot readings have always helped me make the right decisions and supported me during hard times. They are also great for self-reflection.
Tarot has been in my life for a long time: my mom has been into readings since I was a kid. She owns a collection of about ten tarot decks.
This is a huuuge topic that I would never cover even if I wrote thousands of posts.
But we all gotta start somewhere, right?
Astrology: I would start with exploring your natal chart and the basics of reading it (it’s not as difficult as it sounds). Check out the resources I listed below.
Tarot: A good start would be getting a tarot deck (the Rider–Waite tarot deck is always recommended as the first one since it’s the most traditional one) and learning a couple of simple readings. Use this website about tarot to look at cards’ meanings.
Books: Tarot Made Easy by Nancy Garen, Tarot For Change by Jessica Dore
Best apps: The Pattern, Astrology Zone, Astro Future
Websites: Astrodienst, Tarot.com
🌜 Moon rituals
Moon rituals are an ancient practice that originated in Egypt, Babylonia, India, and China.
It was believed that all the life on Earth is influenced by the Moon phases.
Even some scientists nowadays believe that humans are reacting to subtle changes in the Earth’s magnetic field that occur with the Moon phases.
Here’s a very comprehensive article on all you need to know about moon rituals.
NEW MOON TO-DO’S: set intentions, plan new beginnings, say yes to new opportunities and experiences, meet new people.
FULL MOON TO-DO’S: ground yourself, cleanse your space, charge your crystals, release emotions, let go of emotional baggage, review your accomplishments.
Best apps: The Moon, Dara Lite
This post is all about the list of spiritual practices for a happier life.
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