How to Prepare a Ritual Baño / Bath
In this blog post, I’ll be sharing the ways I was taught to prepare a baño. These instructions are not necessary if you are performing a bath for self-care or relaxation but should be followed if you are doing a cleansing, a hex breaking, a road opener, or an attraction bath. These practices follow curanderismo traditions. You’re again, welcome to make it your own, but understand that this is what I believe makes the baths most effective. This is a basic set of guidelines that will help you learn how to prepare a ritual bath.
A person in a white bathtub with milky water and flowing flowers.
Supplies
Regardless of the type of baño, you will need the following supplies:
1-7 small white candles or a larger candle to use for each day of the bath
Spell oil(s) or a blessed oil
Herbs and such to add to the bath
Herbs, spices, and/or seeds
Crystals (avoid the ones that end in “ite” like labradorite and selenite)
Salts
Milks: (oat, almond, goat, cow, coconut)
Citrus slices
A container that can hold a gallon of water
Liquor, spiritual cologne, or holy water
Hands cutting and organizing herbs on a wooden table.
Step one
The first step when you prepare for any spiritual bath is to cleanse your supplies with an herb wand or incense. Making sure your bath space is also cleansed can help as well. If you plan on doing your spiritual bath as a shower, cleanse the jar or pitcher where you will be putting your bath mixture.
Gather all of your supplies and your first white candle or the large white candle you will be using. You can dress the candle for added affect with the same oil you will be adding to your bath and a sprinkle of the same herbs.
Light the candle while you begin to prepare your ingredients.
If you chose to use citrus, you can begin slicing these. Oranges work best for road opening work, limes work for powerful cleansing, and lemon also helps to cleanse but is less strong of a cleanse and will also help with obstacle clearing.
Add your herbs and stir with intention.
If you choose to add milk avoid keeping the heat too high and instead add the milk towards the end or in thebath directly.
Bring your herbs to a simmer and let them simmer for 21 minutes at least.
Step two
Once your bath has simmered for 21 minutes or more, let it cool.
Strain it.
Once your bath is cool, separate it into the number of servings you will use for your bath.
Generally, I recommend doing a bath for at least 3 days in a row. Some baths need to be done for seven days.
If you will be showering versus doing a bath, take the single mixture into the shower with you. Do your standard shower, and then pour the shower mixture over your body at the end.
Add your single serving to a standard bath.
After you add your herb water to the bath, add your spiritual oils, along with a splash of either white rum, florida water (or other spiritual cologne) or holy water). Add any crystals you’d like to include as well.
Step there
It is important that you sit in the bath for at least 20 minutes to let the water fully penetrate your energetic barrier.
When you drain the water, let it drain completely before stepping out of the bath.
If you take a shower, or if you take a bath, it is best to avoid rinsing off when possible. If you use milk I know this may be difficult to avoid.
After the bath, it is best if you can air dry. This may not always be possible depending on the space you live in and the weather but do your best to stick to this as it helps you really absorb the energy of the plants.
When you are dry, avoid wearing dark colors to bed or for the rest of the day. If possible wear only white. Lighter colors help you avoid absorbing the energy of things around you while you settle into the energy of the bath.
A light counter wth two white towels and a green towel all in a pile next to two potted succelent type plants.
Additional things to consider…
If you are doing a cleansing bath, it is best to do a cold-ass bath mixture or shower. The shock of the cold water often helps you energetically shake off nasty vibes.
Salt is very cleansing, grounding, and protective, but it is not necessarily needed in every single bath. This is something I see people do and I think it can end up minimizing the efficacy of your bath especially if you are doing an attracting bath.
If you do a series of very deep cleansing baths, you should follow it by at least one sweet bath, then close it with a protective bath. When you do deep cleansing work, you clear out energy and thus open up space for new energies to enter which is why it’s best to follow a deep cleansing with a sweetening bath.
