offerings

[RainDance]

do you give offerings? and if you do what are your offers?
and how do you do it? in rituals? or.. etc.etc.

[Gypsy flower]

yes, and it depends on what I am doing, who my assists are and what they prefer :collapse:

[Romani Vixen]

I give offerings... to the Gods, to my ancestors, and to various spirits. It always involves at least a minimal of ritual... Prepare offering thinking of who i'm offering it to, assemble and declare who it is for and why. Most of the time I'll also light insence and a candle. so... just a little ritual! :)

For offerings to plant spirits, I'll put down the offering and say thanks. that's pretty much it. **shrug**

[Toki Wartooth]

I've made a couple of offerings. They can be tangible or intangible as far as I'm concerned. It depends on why I'm making the offering and to whom. I once offered Apollo a golden (yellow, you know) apple and peppermint (herb) just to revere Him.

As for Mercury, I made an offering of my own hard work, as opposed to any type of food or drink or anything. I did that to repay Him for all He's been doing.

Each is a sort of little ritual. It doesn't take a huge preparation or anything. It merely takes a little rearranging of the altar and a different set of mind.

[OpenHands]

RainDance,

"do you give offerings? and if you do what are your offers? and how do you do it?"

Absolutely. My offerings vary- often it's a small bit of food or drink, I burn incense and candles (candles are my modern equivalent of a burnt offering), donate money/time to community charities, and create prayers of praise. The offering itself or at least it's intent is presented in ritual.

The "doing" part varies. Depending on the reason why I'm giving the offerings (lunar observance, festival, keeping a promise, etc...) it could be a simple ritual done in one evening or more elaborate with offerings given for several consecutive days.

[RainDance]

thank you for all your replys guys.
for offerings like food and things like that
ho long do you leave them there? are there any proper ways of discarding the offerings if to be removed? sorry i want every detail > <

[Romani Vixen]

If it is a food offering, I'll leave it about 10 minutes... then go at it!!! :D The spirits have already had their fill... and wastefullness is just not cool (and untraditional for many cultures).

If it's a non food offering, it generally stays there. A few things, such as jewelry offerings, I will wear when it is appropriate to do so.

For a good number of years, I didn't do offerings. I didn't feel that it was necessary. I also felt that everything belonged to the Gods, so there was any point in me offering anything (before I started working with the spirits).

I have sence found drastic results in offerings! :)

Dont' worry about asking too many questions. lol It's better to have the information fully clarified!!!

[Darklord_Kodiak]

I offer the tobacco from my pipe and the thanks and repect that is deserved.

[WitchCraftWeaver]

I do food/drink offerings. Once the ritual is completed I take the food/drink outside (I live in a rural area) and give the offerings to the Lady and Lord by leaving them for their woodland creatures. They never last the night. ;-)

[Toki Wartooth]

Many people seem to give the food offerings to nature... as in, just placing them in some forest-y or grassy area and leaving them for the animals.

[OpenHands]

RainDance,

"for offerings like food and things like that ho long do you leave them there? are there any proper ways of discarding the offerings if to be removed?"

I deal with offerings in different ways. If I'm outside, I may simply pour the libation onto the ground and that's it- no altar needed. If I put the libation or food offering on the altar, I try to leave it until the next morning and then just pour liquids down the sink and throw the food in the trash. I'm not talking about tossing an entire pot roast in the trash, mind you. :) A couple ounces of liquid and a few bites of food is all I place on the altar. If I have more than I need it's eaten so I don't consider it wasteful. If I had the opportunity, I would burn what's left of the edible offerings. This is not practical right now though.

Keep in mind that what's "proper" for one person or religion/tradition may not be "proper" for another. If you belong to a particular religion or tradition, check with it to see how to go about giving libations and food offerings. If you're just doing your own thing, I would encourage you to consider the meanings behind particular offerings, how they are made, and what a respectful means of disposal might be. I have absolutely no problem tossing out food used as offerings because to me the essence of it is gone- now it's just old food. To someone else, this might be considered horridly wasteful and they'd want to burn/bury the food instead.