Many Westerners have gotten so busy with moving that any semblance of moving ritual or practice has fallen by the wayside — all but the classic housewarming party, anyway. You might be scratching your head, wondering what else you should be doing when you move into your new home, and we don’t blame you. Lo and behold, there are a plethora of ways to bring good luck into your home on moving day. Some are simple, some are messy, so you can take your pick.
Leave the old behind
In many European traditions, it is customary to leave your old cleaning implements – like mops, brooms, and dusters – behind. These items symbolize the collected dust and grime of the old house, right? You’re better off leaving that behind. Similarly, get rid of any brooms or mops left for you by the previous residents. You don’t want to inherit their mess, either.
First, bread, and salt
This is one of the rituals for moving to a new home from the Jewish tradition. Before you let the movers carry in the first box, bring a loaf of fresh bread and a container of salt into your kitchen. Symbolically this ensures that your home will always be filled with food (bread) and that your lives will be full of flavor (salt). That sounds like what you want, right?
If you are willing to get a little messy, the Hindu tradition suggests boiling milk and rice and letting it overflow onto your stovetop. This is said to ensure an abundance of good food in your home and, if you make sure not to burn your concoction, add a little sugar and offer to share with your family and friends.
Choose an auspicious day
You know that you should never move on the 13th, right? There are many ways that you can approach this one, but consulting the numerology, moon phases, and astrology could help you choose a lucky day to move to a new home. Thursdays are said to be the best days to move and Fridays the worst, and moving in while the moon is waxing creates the best energy and momentum for building your new life. Be sure that Mercury is not in retrograde when it is time to sign your paperwork, either: this is a bad time to sign contracts or make big commitments.
Clear the space using Feng Shui
We won’t go in depth on Feng Shui here, but you can take one simple step by ringing Tibetan bells in each room to clear the space of bad energy. Turning on fans, opening windows, and letting in as much sunlight as possible are also great ways to get auspicious chi moving through your new home. If you don’t know what Chi is? Just take our word, you want lots of good chi in your house.
Throw salt, rice, and coins on the floor
Still not sure how to bring good luck to your new home? Here’s a fun one: before your moving truck arrives, throw rice and coins on the floor of each room to symbolically invite prosperity and wealth. Sprinkle salt on your window sills and doorway thresholds to ward off bad spirits… and ants.
Don’t forget the housewarming party
Invite your guests to help you fill your home with love, laughter, and light by bringing candles to chase the dark spirits away. Or… just to create a nice ambiance for a meal shared with your new neighbors and old friends. Either way, your home will start to feel a lot homier as a result.
Make sure to use our New Apartment Checklist to make the transition smooth and not forget anything.
