While on a business trip and doing some last minute work in my project managers hotel room, I noticed she add some type of wood box on top of her clothes bureau which had a tea-candle, a small water bowl, a small flower vase, incense sticks and a bowl of rice placed inside of it. ‘Hey’, I said, ‘What is that?’, and walked over to take a closer look. My project manager proceeded to tell me that it was an alter. I said that I didn’t know Mumbai Hotels had alters and that my room didn’t have one. She just laughed at me and said that she has a travelling alter. I told her I really don’t know what an alter is, that I’m not religious and asked you to explain what all those things are inside the box.
She told me that one does not need to be religious to create an alter. She said that I could create my own personal alter. An alter can be as simple as a coffee table, a stereo speaker or on top of a television. I just looked at her quizzically and laughed. She told me she considers all space to be sacred and an alter is her way to show gratitude and to create an atmosphere of peace in everyplace her body is, she even told me that the bests of all alters is the alter within myself, an inner alter. I told her that it would be hard to put a bowl of rice, a flower vase and a tea-candle inside, but I guess I could try. She laughed and told me those objects are just symbolic of the elements of life. Water, Earth, Fire and Air. That I already have those elements inside, so I need not worry.
She got up from our make-shift work area, walked over to her alter, lit the candle and the incense and mumbled some words I did not understand. But, when she turned back around, I did understand the aura of peace and serenity she now displayed.
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