When we talk about personalizing pagan practice, we often speak in terms of philosophy and preference. It’s rare for us to speak with the same energy and depth about personalizing our paths to better fit our bodies and their needs.

This type of accessibility is at the center of the work we do in the Ableism-Impacted Reclaiming Alliance (AIRA). Earlier this year, I served as AIRA’s representative on a council discussing the Principles of Accountability, a new set of guiding principles for Reclaiming that seeks, among other things, to allow for greater accessibility in our tradition. While this work is far from finished, I’m beyond proud of the progress we’ve made, as well as the similar growth I see in other pagan traditions.

Structural changes like those happening in Reclaiming are only part of this growth. While groups like AIRA are working to make collective practice more accessible, only you can create a personal practice that works for your body, mind, identity, and lifestyle.

Below are a few tips to help you craft a spiritual practice that meets your needs, whatever those needs may be.

Let go of the idea that your practice needs to look a certain way.

Step away from the Pinterest board! There’s nothing wrong with taking inspiration from social media, your favorite pagan authors, or even fictional sources, but we should remember to prioritize function over aesthetics.

Let’s take incense as an example. The image of fragrant herbal smoke curling up towards the heavens is a key part of spiritual aesthetics. And yet, many people can’t use incense at all due to asthma or other respiratory conditions, sensitivity to scent, lack of a well ventilated space to burn incense in, or any of numerous other reasons.

Letting go of aesthetics means prioritizing our own needs over doing things a certain way.

Listen to your body.

Sometimes you won’t know that something is a problem until it’s REALLY a problem. This is especially true for those of us with dynamic disabilities, meaning our symptoms change from day to day. Tuning into your body and honoring its needs are the best way to avoid overdoing it and possibly hurting yourself.

Mindfulness practices can help. Practice noticing your body and how it feels without judgment. Before ritual, connect with your body and take stock of how you’re doing. Do you feel up to this?

If you struggle to connect with your physical body, consider working with a therapist, somatic practitioner, or another professional who can help.

Work with your body, not against it.

We need to acknowledge that some things just don’t work for us. We need to be willing to seek out alternatives that are a better fit for our needs.

To use myself as an example: I have a very poor heat tolerance due to my chronic illness. I also live in the Southeastern USA, where summer temperatures can get up to 100 degrees Fahrenheit (38 degrees Celsius). I could push myself to do outdoor rituals during the summer, but if I do I’ll end up exhausted and in pain. Indoor rituals are the choice that works for my body and its needs.

It’s not enough to listen to our bodies. We need to act based on what they’re telling us, whether that means bringing things indoors, sitting down for an entire ritual, or rescheduling for a day when we’re feeling more up to it. There’s no shame in honoring your needs!

Take breaks when you need them

Sometimes what our bodies need is rest. Not a short break between activities, not switching to an activity we can do sitting down, but actual, do-nothing rest.

As Devon Price says in the book Laziness Does Not Exist, “‘Wasting time’ is a basic human need. Once we accept that, we can stop fearing our inner ‘laziness’ and begin to build healthy, happy, well-balanced lives.”

Make peace with the fact that sometimes you need to do nothing. Take a nap if you need to. Spend a day in bed or on the couch if you need to. Tend to your body’s need for rest like you would other basic needs like hunger or thirst, even if it means stepping back from your practice for a while.

Craft ritual supplies ahead of time

A big part of disabled life is taking advantage of days when we have more energy and fewer symptoms, both in spiritual practice and beyond. My practice revolves not around the cycle of the moon or the Wheel of the Year, but around my own body’s cycles of activity and rest.

Crafting ritual supplies ahead of time means I have pre-prepared rituals on standby for when I really need a spiritual boost on a low energy day. It’s much more doable for me to grab a candle, a premade incense blend, and a premade anointing oil than it is for me to spend time and energy gathering supplies. Because everything has already been crafted with intention, I don’t have to put as much of my own energy into ritual when I feel bad.

Do yourself a favor and prep some basic, grab-and-go rituals ahead of time so you have them onhand when you need them. (And yes, store-bought ritual supplies are fine.)

No matter who you are or where you are coming from, I encourage you to apply these practices to your own path. You deserve a spiritual practice that works for your body, not against it. 

For more details: https://www.collectiveinkbooks.com/moon-books/authors/sam-wise

Hailing from the foothills of the Appalachian mountains, Sam Wise (she/they) is a Reclaiming witch and eclectic pagan with years of experience combining magic, activism, and queer culture. Sam is a member of AIRA (the Ableism-Impacted Reclaiming Alliance), where she serves as the current representative to BIRCH (Reclaiming’s decision-making body). They are also a member of the Fellowship of Fire and Ice, where they are part of the ritual team. Sam has a passion for combining folk traditions with modern practices to create accessible, affirming magic.