ancestral elevation ≠ an invitation

I was holding space for one of my fave people recently, when they shared that they’ve been getting an intuitive nudge to perform elevation rites for one of their ancestors.

They admitted to struggling with this nudge - and their hesitation was completely valid! This particular ancestral spirit was less-than-kind (to say the least), and they were nervous that by offering this person elevation rites, that they would be welcoming them into their own home, their own life, and perhaps even putting their well ancestor’s in harms way.

All!! Valid!! Concerns!!

What I shared with my friend is that ancestral elevation rites ≠ an invitation.

When we offer elevation rites to our harmful ancestors, we are not giving them the green light to be a part of our lives. We aren’t necessarily offering them forgiveness (unless we want to), nor are we expressing tolerance for their problematic choices.

For our ancestors who caused harm, elevation rites:

(a) remove their unhelpful, hurtful, or abusive influence from our lives. If you are thinking about that ancestor, when you are feeling called to perform elevation rites, it is a sign that the ancestor is close by. It means that, before elevation, they are ((whether you realize it or not)) casting their influence over your life. Those weird, self-critical thoughts? That weird fear or anxiety? That desire to hide yourself? Sure, it could be coming from inside of you - or, it could very well be the unhelpful, hurtful influence of that ancestor. Elevation gets the ghost off your back.

(b) passes that ancestor to the helpful spirits who will hold them accountable. A harmful ancestor doesn’t just get to jump into the realm of your well ancestors bc you perform elevation rites. They don’t get to pass go and collect $200 on the way. Instead, they are ushered away from your life, and into the hands of spirits who are capable and ready to guide them through the lessons they need to learn, the changes they need to make.

(c) stop that ancestor from influencing anymore of the living (or dead) with their harmful perspectives. Even if that ancestor isn’t bothering you, it doesn’t mean they aren’t bothering someone else. Ancestral elevation is our duty, as descendents of our less-than-savory ancestors, to reconcile the harms caused by that spirit, and stop them from continuing that misbehavior.

Is it fair, that we have to play a part in cleaning up their mess? Idk!

I suppose it depends on the nuances of your unique situation. In some cases, no, it’s not fair. But, my sweet angel, life isn’t always fair. Sometimes we have to do things we don’t want to do, because they need to be done. I don’t particularly want to do the dishes, or put away laundry, or get my oil changed, or fight against fascism. And yet!!! I must.

In other cases — whether we realize it or not — we can be perpetuating those unsavory ancestor’s harmful legacies. Through our beliefs, our actions, or our inaction. In these instances, we are responsible for the mess, too, and as such, we gotta do our part to clean it up.

At the end of the day, I am an abolitionist. I believe that no person is too far gone, no person is too lost, to get their shit together and do the right thing. If I believe in rehabilitation and reconciliation for the living, then I must apply those same principals to the dead.

I don’t want to neglect my unwell ancestors, because if I do, I’m letting them continue to be a problem - which is kinda not cool, bc, through elevation rites, I do have some power to change that.

This doesn’t mean I have to be besties with them. It doesn’t mean I have to hang their picture on the wall. It doesn’t mean I need to venerate them with my ancestors wise and well.

It does mean that I am doing my spiritual part in making this world a better place.

Espiritismo isn’t just about making my life better. It’s about making life better for all.

So I wont deny those ancestors who caused harm… no. I’ll do something about it, instead.

Want to learn more about Ancestral Elevation Rites and Ancestral Veneration? Check out my Ancestral Veneration 101 Bundle or join Moonshadows, where we have all the content from that bundle and more.