Hi all, I read somewhere it is best to face the Altar towards to north, however for me it is not possible due to limited space. Is this ok?
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I have mine facing I believe SW for the same reason. I havent had any issues & it feels good where it is. I’m currently working what to do for a travel altar for the challenge & when I do something away from home, it’s also not always towards the North
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I had my first altar facing North, and my outdoors one faces North, but my main altar space now faces West.
I’m not sure it matters, just do what works for you in the space you have 
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It depends entirely on the tradition of Wicca or witchcraft you follow. If you don’t follow a specific tradition then you can face your altar in whichever direction you want.
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I have mine facing east, due to my bedroom’s layout and it works for me, I think that’s what’s important. To me, at least 
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Thanks everyone, i was worried that is i face my Altar inn a different direction it won’t be as effective, but to me it does feel right as i had a few places i could have cleared out like my dressing table or draws, but this spot just called to me
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As mentioned above, it depends on tradition and personal preference. If this is YOUR altar, for your solitary practice, you may do whatever feels right to you.
Having said that, the direction or quarter you face can dictate the energy of the work you’ll be doing.
So if you follow the Western tradition, for example, an altar facing West will be ideal for bringing the emotional essence of Water to your ritual; if it’s facing South it will be infused with Fiery passion; if it faces North it will be grounded by Earth, and if it faces East it will channel the wisdom and ideals of Air.
That’s just one idea. It shouldn’t be taken as dogma. And there are other possible associations as well (e.g. if you live in the Southern hemisphere you may use a different approach).
There are some more ideas in this forum topic: Directionally challenged
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That’s interesting to know. I don’t really follow any particular path or traditions as far as my altars are concerned, meaning I just kinda meditate with my tools and and let them tell me where their homes on my altar are, but both of my altars face a SW position. I’m a Cancer so it would make since that my gut instinct would be to face a western direction.
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Thankyou this is very helpful. I will check my actually direction it would be interesting to know…
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You’re welcome!
This is solid advice 
Agreed!
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My altar is completely based on where things want to live their days! I do have to give it a good dusting & wipe down though with some cleansing. My poor items have been sadly neglected with everything I’ve had happening. Since today is going to be cloudy & rainy, perfect day to work on my space!
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I have been keeping it clean such as not letting the kids any where near my Altar and also dusting off the ashes from the incense or herbs when they go everywhere, but that must be as it is new and i think as i add more items i will have to do a major clean up…
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I just also checked my Altar faces the east and when i did self-initiation my son’s phone (mine was dead), gave me wrong directions so the compass said north was south and east was west and so one… Lessoned learned and i think like others have to trust my instincts…
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What part of the altar is the face? If I am facing the altar is that the face? Or the other side?
If I am in front of my altar so that the items on it are oriented towards me, and I am facing North, does that mean that the altar faces South?
Sorry to be so wordy but this has always confused me.
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I think it means what way you altar table or space is facing, so if you pulled out a compass and looked for north for example, you would place your Altar that direction… For me due to limited space and privacy i used my study table which is more than enough room and since the dining room doesn’t get used much i get “some” privacy to meditate and do spell work. If i am wrong please correct me some one…
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Hmmm…Thanks for responding… but Im still confused! Is the side that I am on the face? Then say, if I am facing the altar, and I am facing North, is the altar facing South?
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It’s hard to explain so I made a drawing with my interpretation. To me, for example “altar facing North” means the altar is located in the Northernmost quadrant of the room.
I don’t think that the altar itself has a “face”, but rather it directs and receives energies from a specific direction. So in this case the altar is facing North, even though the things on it may be facing other directions. For example if there’s a statue on the altar, it may be facing you (towards South), but you and your work are still happening in the North side of your space.
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Thank you! That makes it very clear!
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Nice response. The picture explains it all 
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That was my interpretation too so
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