The Art of Altarcraft
This hands-on workshop invites you into a sacred exploration of ritual and intention. Together, we will delve into the timeless practice of altar-making in ways that honor your unique path and deepen your relationship with the unseen.
Altars are living, breathing portals, places where the physical and the spiritual weave together, anchoring intention and nurturing connection with spirit and the forces of place.
In this workshop, we will explore the threads that unite altar practices across diverse traditions, empowering you to create altars that reflect your personal path, values, and vision -- whether rooted in known lineages or guided by your intuitive connection to spirit and place.
What You’ll Experience:
The Essence of Altarcraft
The purpose and sacred elements of an altar.
Exploring the rich diversity of altars, from ancestral and grief altars to those for daily intention, relationship, or healing.
Cultivating intuitive practices to honor your creative spirit and connection with sentient nature.
How to approach altar-making with cultural awareness and respect, aligning your practices with personal integrity and reverence for tradition.
Weaving a Communal Altar
Together, we will co-create a collaborative altar, weaving individual offerings into a collective expression of transformation and connection.
Crafting Altars at Home
Practical steps to create an altar that reflects your intentions and aligns with the energy of your space.
Caring for your altar through offerings and ongoing relationship.
Balancing intuition with thoughtful consideration, ensuring your altar honors tradition and avoids cultural appropriation while remaining deeply personal.
This workshop offers a sacred invitation for anyone seeking to deepen their connection with ritual, tradition, and the sacred, no matter your level of experience. Whether your altar is for healing, transformation, or manifestation, this workshop offers inspiration and guidance to bring your vision to life.
Details:
Date: December 16, 2024, 6-8pm
Location: Groundfloor Club, San Rafael
Cost: $28
What to Bring:
A small item (stone, flower, leaf, shell, etc.) to contribute to the communal altar.
Your Guides:
Tracy James, Ritualist, Spiritual Herbalist: Tracy James coaches at the intersection of shamanism, leadership, eco-sentience, and mindful embodiment. For over 20 years, Tracy has integrated ancient and modern approaches into the Nature-based somatic coaching methodology she terms Elemental Energetics™. Tracy has lived in the Amazon jungle in Peru and carries deep knowledge of northern Amazonian indigenous plant medicine practices and has 15 years experience supporting journeyers in psychedelic integration. Learn more about Tracy's work and about joining her in plant spirit initiation practices at www.livingelemental.com
Marion Segal: Marion (Ruta) Segal has been cultivating communities from a young age, having grown up as an only child in a single-parent household within a communist society. This upbringing instilled in her the values of interdependence, vulnerability, creativity, and resilience. She learned to gather people naturally, fostering spaces of belonging and inclusion in creative ways. After moving to NYC and then the SF Bay area, she felt inspired to dedicate herself to weaving meaningful connections and communities.
In addition to her work as a community builder, Marion is a healer and visual artist. Her work is deeply guided by the indigenous wisdom of the Mexican/ Mazatec, West African/ Dagara and Lakota cultures, via her teachers - Julieta Cazimiro, Malidoma Somé and Lewis Mehl-Madrona. She also approaches her work through the lens of the Tibetan Buddhist philosophy and lineage held by Anam Tubten.
Marion is certified in Creative Arts Therapy from the New School University in NYC and holds MA from CIIS in San Francisco. She has been in the healing profession since 2007, and was the founder of Creative Pier, the first healing arts studio in NYC.
Her ongoing studies, training and certifications include the Hakomi method, Somatic Experiencing, Hypnotherapy and Narrative Healing, Bioenergy Balancing, Sound Healing, Nonviolent Communication, Relational Somatic Healing, and Reiki.
She is currently a PhD candidate researching community restoration with creativity, mindfulness and loving-kindness. As a teacher, healer, artist, and storyteller, Marion embraces a deep love for people and the natural world.
For more about Marion, visit: https://www.theheartof.us/marion