Shrines, Shrines everywhere!

Dear Neophyte,


I have a plethora of Deities I'd like to explore more and work with, but I'm completely out of room for anymore shrines! 


Im very adamant that it’s unkosher to invite a Deity into your home, especially a patron, and not even have a square foot of space that belongs to Them. It’s like having company over and not having a seat to let them sit in.

My wall altar idea was an ingenious one and a simple one that I think I will take up again. It’s a slide top wooden box (from Hobby Lobby) that I painted gold inside and out to resemble the Naos of an Egyptian shrine. In Egypt, the deity image was housed in a box and kept from view by anyone but Their priests. This assured purity. I wanted the same since everyone 


I used some carbon paper to create what is essentially Isis receiving an offering from me over an offering table. The table itself is empty and so are my hands, but She is cupping my hands to receive the unseen gift. Likewise, the image can be of me receiving an unseen gift from Isis. I left it blank on purpose because my needs and Hers may change over the years. I didn’t want to image to become outdated. Also, anyone who saw it might comment on the gift and taint the shrine’s purpose.

I kept Isis in her traditional garbs but when I reversed the female model to make myself, I changed it to the Amarna style dress, because I love the way they flow. They are beautiful. I added a priestesses red cord and accessed my room.longer-than-normal hair (though still Egyptian) to make the image be myself as a priestess of Isis.

Inside the shrine I put an image of Isis I hand carved (and then partially painted) and two ‘ever burning’ votary candles. I hung it on the wall where the image sat facing outwards from the box. And the slide top lit slid neatly into place over the image, protecting it from tainted views. 

It bothered me that I read on the Netjer.org forums that Isis in particular doesn’t like second-hand or broken images on her altar. Nothing is second hand, unless you count that all the supplies were purchases for me instead of by me, and the image is cracked.

I would like to do this for all of me patrons and line them up in a row on my wall, or even in a box shape. One for Set, Anubis, Sobek, the Muses, Isis, Hekate, and I guess the Hearth Goddess shrine could go in the kitchen. For that matter, the Muse shrine could go anywhere in the house. 


So, you see my problem?


Salutations,
Sesh