This is an invitation to clear and energise your sacred space and create a sanctum. To be in service to our own good experience in this ceremony, we prepare by taking care of set and setting. Set and setting has a significant influence on every experience—especially the transformative—and it is important to hold set and setting in the highest regard. 
Set is how we are “setup” for an experience. How we show up. The person we have become…a meld of our beliefs, our personality, our loves and fears, our secrets, our experiences so far, our qualities, how and where we grew up, what we judge, our health. It is our state going into the experience…how we are feeling, our mood, our wishes, what we are expecting, what we are intending. How we are set to experience it. Our mindset.
Setting is the environment where an experience takes place. The physical place, inside or outside, the time, the weather, the feeling, and arrangement of the space. It is shaped by how the people feel towards each other, the culture, the facilitation and process of the experience. It can be individual. The setting contains the experience, and it can contain fire, music, special lighting, significant sounds, sensory plushness and pillows, immersive scents, sacred objects nourishment, moon beams, whatever suits the experience.
We all play in this space. For some it is the ritual of making your bed. That place where you deliberately show photos of people you love. It can be hosting a party. The way sitting together around a fire makes you feel. Your daily rituals. Your personal ceremonies. Instagram. Prayer. They are all experiences (some that transform) underwritten by set and setting. Think about those times when you have made a conscious effort around set and setting in service to an experience. A special event. A ceremony. You can sense when care has been taken. You can tell when love has been infused into an experience. It’s a vibration.
It is the master craft of a shaman, priest/ess or a great host to curate—to take care of—a ceremony or transformative experience by taking care with set and setting. For your ceremony, YOU are the master craftsperson. You are the shaman.
Ways to take care of your set and setting for ceremony
Prepare your self
Why are you doing this? What is your wish for this experience? What is this experience in service to? Turn “the way things are” off, quieten yourself and reflect. Prepare to do something new, surrender and go with the flow. Go on an adventure. Be aware, be free, be curious and open yourself to new lessons. Connect to your source. Develop a relationship with yourself. Get in touch. Open to the possibilities of the soul’s expression and potential.
Prepare your body
Do what you do to get into a high vibe¾a purified state of being. Be very intentional about the energy you bring to this. Cleanse yourself inside and out by dieta, ocean, whatever this is for you. Make any plans and preparations that will physically hold you for the next 40 days and 40 nights.
Prepare your sacred space
We are activated by what surrounds us. Look deeply into your spaces – physical, digital, whatever space it is that you spend time in. Our spaces are a physical imprint of us and is mirror of our state of being. This is the epicentre. It is your vehicle for creating, for changing, for impacting. What do you see? How do your spaces make you feel? Are you spaces alive? Are you bringing through your magic here? What do you want to pay attention to?
Ask into your future. Connect to your amazing spaces of energy. Have a conversation and ask how you work together. What goes where? How do you feel? How do you behave? What does your space need from you?
The tradition from the ancients of space clearing allows us to activate our spaces filling them with a sense of harmony, as well as depth and meaning. Start by removing clutter, distractions, mend fragments and leave no debris. Remove influences that hold you back. Organise, deeply clean (especially clean the windows for they represent your ability to see in and out). The process of altering your environment starts with little acts like rearranging your desk. Consider the energy, the arrangement, how you want to feel. A thoughtful space is a pleasant experience. Use cues, objects, scents, décor, colour to enhance and support.
Clear your space
Purify the space with your thoughts and there are many tools you can use to clear a space, and using nothing but a pure heart and great intention is effective too. You can use smoke, scent, sound, music you love, mist, sun, intention, the elements, nature. Open yourself to the possibility there are forgotten rituals and ceremonies waiting in the ether for you to remember; try to remember your forgotten ceremonies.
As you clear, breathe the energetic of your intention into this living space nurturing our integration from the inside out. Change the composition of your space to become your sanctum. Everything is alive and connected and responding to our intention.
Prepare your experience
Dedicate time for this sacred work each day and night. We call it temple time. Connect with the sun and the season. Connect with the moon cycle. Consider surrounding events that will affect your dedication. Plan ways to spend time in nature. Be prepared to connect to your tribe throughout this process. Have inspiring people around you.
Dedicate a journal and prepare to record your experience along the way—even carrying it with you. You can use the record to guide you next time your prepare for ceremony. What other tools do you need? Art supplies, sacred ceremonial tools, playlists, crystals, special artefacts, sacred texts. Prepare to bring back a jewel of self understanding that will guide you on your next adventure.
Over the days and nights that follow, may we continue to refine our sanctuary. Go deeper. Clean drawers and old files. Make sure everything functions. Consciously arrange. Be on purpose. People who don’t know you should know what you love and why you are here by observing your space. Delve deeper into symbols and cues to surround yourself with, elements that make you smile.
In loving service 
