Smudging Technique

Introduction
I wanted to share my techniques for smudging with you. Smudging the Native American tradition of burning sage to purify and bless a home, space, or person.
Smudging is used widely today by peoples of all religions. There are several thoughts about HOW smudging works. Some people believe that the smoke drives out negative energies, the way you'd smoke a bird out of your chimney. Others (Including myself) believe that negative energy sticks to the smoke, and then is carried away with it when you air out the home. I learned how to smudge from my family.

Why?
Most people who smudge do so for several reasons. Some do it regularly as a religious ritual, others do it to ban ghosts or evil spirits from their home. Some like the smell or the feeling of tranquility it brings. I smudge whenever I move into a new home, every New Years day, and every time I leave an old home for the last time to provide protection over the home and its new inhabitants.

Bundling
Smudging technique begins before the sage is lit. My family gathers their own sage from The southern Oregon/northern California desert. The sage is gathered from a variety of plants, so that no single plant suffers a large loss. It is then bundled with embroidery thread, with different colors of thread for different uses. Because all rituals are only effective because they are fed from believe and intent, what you assign to each color is up to you. (This works even if you didn't bind and gather the sage yourself.)
The sage is then hung and left to dry completely, a process which can take up to a week. You can find information of bundling herbs and sage to dry in the links section.

Getting Started
To begin the smudging ceremony, make sure you're home alone, or the family agrees to stay in one room for the duration of the ceremony. Too much movement disrupts the flow of energy.
Start in either your bedroom, of the place in the house you spend the most time in. (If multiple people are smudging at once, have each start in their personal spaces.) If you bless your house regularly, or are not having any spiritual problems, a full smudging is probably not needed. You may do only the Portal Smudging.

Full Ceremony
Begin at the door or doorway to your space. Light the sage, and then blow on it so it smokes just a little.
"Smudge" the area around your door by drawing the outline in the air close to the frame. Make sure you circle the door completely (even by the floor.) Burning sage can be a fire hazard, so watch for glowing embers if you are on carpet, and make sure they get stamped out. Slowly, draw a line of smoke along the craves where the walls meet the ceiling. Whenever you come to a corner, draw the smoke down the length of it as well. Do this for the entire room, and then the the portals (Described below).
Follow the same steps for every room of the house.

Portals
A portal is any place at which something can enter. Doors, windows, and heat vents are all portals. There are some that are less obvious, however. A doorway, even it doesn't have a door in it, is a portal. A mirror or fireplace too. Any divide or shift in the space counts as a portal, such as the landing on a flight of stars (Which actually has two portals. One for the division between each section of the stairs.) An artificial room divide counts as a portal. So to closet doors, and any space where there is a little "ledge" or similar structure along the ceiling, dividing up the room a bit. Portals should be smudged along their edges before passing through them, and then again on the way out. Once a portal and the space behind it has been smudged, the portal gets closed (if possible.) If several people are taking part in the smudging ceremony, it will be necessary to open all the doors and closet doors before you begin, so you can keep track of which spaces have been cleansed. Windows and outside doors need not be messed with. Be slow and thorough. Proper smudging can take a long time, up to an hour in large houses. Don't be in a hurry when you're preforming the ceremony.

Spirits
Smudging is often used to banish spirits and energies. If you are fighting such things in your house, write up a manta to speak over and over as you work. Something as simple as "You are not welcome here" is fine.
If you are smudging for other reasons, and become at all uncomfortable, or experience something strange (the sage acting odd, going out, or exploding, or feelings of sudden draft or cold are all good examples) then it may be necessary to vocally banish the spirit. Tell them they are unwelcome if they mean harm, or that it is time to move on. Be firm and clear, and do not show weakness.
For powerful spirits, smudging will only sedate them for a time, and must be kept up regularly to keep them subdued. If at any time you are injured during smudging by a force or spirit, then seek someone's help. Always go for the avenue of faith that you believe in, because it is believe that makes it work.

I hope this is of some use to some of you.
Love you all