After the ritual?

[-Sky-]

Hello everyone,

After a ritual or a spell,what do you usually do with the items you've used?

I am very troubled about what i should do with left overs(like candles) and offerings.

Blessings,
~Anna

[Kmartin60]

Hi, I'm probably the least one would chose for advice on magic rituals....I am a REAL NEWBIE! But I have done my 1st ever moon spell the other new moon, and I went by some of what I have read, and some advice I had seen given, etc.etc. Basicely, when I was done, (was interrupted!) since I couldnt let it completely burn out or down, I pinched the incense, and the candle, thanked them for what they had done...and packed them carefullly away! Till the next time. I hope it does'nt affect the spell, but have also gathered from everything here and on other spots it all really boils down to INTENT! I surely hope so! :-) LOL I'm sure as others post to your question there will be answers that will be put in MY B.O.S! giggle.......
Bright Blessings, Kim

[Amelserru_halqu]

Do what feels right. If you think everything should be virgin each time then use new goods each time, if you want to use it again, use it again. Basically it's all about belief, if you believe something will go awry if you use the same stuff over and over again then it will, if you don't, it won't. From a psychological stand point it's best to keep things used in rituals out of mundane life as it helps set a wall between the mundane and magical mindset, but even that isn't an issue for everyone. Offerings however should in my opinion not be used by you, I mean you offered it away right? But again there are different rules for each person, so just do what feels right and you should do ok.

[cheddarsox]

I usually leave things in place for awhile, at least overnight if possible, and longer if that feels right.

I often leave them outside, so any lingering associations get cleared by exposure to sun, wind, dew etc. Then, I throw away, compost or reuse as is appropriate.

Sometimes, I give things away at the end of ritual.

Like a wedding, in ritual I try to use something old, something new, something that was a gift and something I created my self.

cheddar

[CelticMoon11]

It depends on what is left over if you have made yourself something to assist then you dont just chuck it away unless thats the point of the ritual

I don't think it is necessary to throw things out either it is wasteful and expensive, waste not want not, do you think people "back in the day" would've wasted thing? Me thinks not :D that's just my opinion though

[Jenett]

I reuse candles that will be used for the same purpose (so, for example, things like the Lord and Lady or quarter candles) until they run out.

If I don't go through a whole stick of incense (I normally do), I will stub it out and use it at another time (for meditation, for example, or when I'm focusing on something related - catching up on notes in my BOS, or drafting a ritual or whatever.)

Food and drink offerings, a small token amount is kept for an offering after group ritual (usually bread and wine, sometimes some other form of cake/cookie or fruit) and the rest gets handed around again until it's gone (or added in to the potluck meal for after ritual.)

For personal ritual, I usually have a very small amount of food and drink, and eat/drink it during the ritual. (The deities I work with in personal work seem to prefer that.)

Spell components, I usually design so that I'll either use them up, or so that I'll create an ongoing spell token that focuses and directs that working. So if I'm working with a candle, I either pick a small candle to start with, or I simply plan to burn it down over consecutive nights. (do ritual on the first night to set the intention, then leave it burning while I'm home for a set number of nights, burning down 1 part for each night until it's gone.)

I've done quite a bit of paper and pen based spell work - that usually goes in a special box for the spell working (or wrapped in fabric, etc.) and is kept until the spell is completed. It then goes into my 'old spell tokens' pile, and gets burned next time I'm at a fire that that's appropriate for (our group does at least one or two of these a year.)

[fangedeshana]

I chose "Other" because it depends on what the purpose of the ritual it is, and what items we're talking about.

I don't use many items in magical work. I use focus candles (quarter/elements/spirit) that I reuse for all rituals until they burn out. I also use insence, which I don't reuse because I never have any left! lol.

I have "cakes and ale" after ritual, which I mostly consume myself to get grounded and replenish my energy, but a small token is burried/poured on the earth.

Anything that is biodegratable, and wont harm the enviroment I burry, or toss to a large body of water if its relevant to the ritual.
Everything else I either keep if it's able to be used, or is disposed of as safely as possible.

For special rituals I may even make a little 'keepsake' box. I have a box I have decorated to my liking that is specially for my milestones... spiritual naming, self-dedication, special birthdays, pregnacy, menopause, etc... my little Life Box. I plan to start one from birth for my children and if they wish to continue them, they can create their own box and I will pass on to them the collection of things I have stored from their birth and special rituals they had.

[arianrhods_daughter]

I agree with what a few have said here: It depends what the ritual is for, I reuse everything because I don't believe my family members long past would have let usable items go to waste, and it is more environmentally friendly and sustainable

[Teresa]

It depends on what kind of working I was doing. Some things go to the crossroads for disposal, others are buried in the backyard, some even go to the graveyard while others are tossed into running streams or rivers . It depends on what remains as well as what kind of ritual it was.

[-Sky-]

You all gave me wonderful ideas!Thanks for the information!Unfortunately,i have trouble burying things.I live in an apartement so i can only bury small things in my flower pots.I have thought of burying them in the near forest or graveyard but since other people live in that area too i dont want to be seen.

So i usually reuse some candles that are dedicated to specific purposes(deity/quarters/tarot/meditation candles),pour the liquid offerings,and throw the left overs.Most of the times i feel a bit guilty for throwing away almost new candles but i prefer to use virgin ingredients in spells and rituals.

I agree with what a few have said here: It depends what the ritual is for, I reuse everything because I don't believe my family members long past would have let usable items go to waste, and it is more environmentally friendly and sustainable
I don't think it is necessary to throw things out either it is wasteful and expensive, waste not want not, do you think people "back in the day" would've wasted thing? Me thinks not that's just my opinion though

I have never thought of it in that way.But you are both very right!I will try to not waste very much from now on.Although i've got to admit that i am not a very practical witch.hehe

Like a wedding, in ritual I try to use something old, something new, something that was a gift and something I created my self.

This is a very good way of keeping the tradition.I like it a lot!

[CelticMoon11]

Glad to have helped lol it makes it hard in apartments I have a small garden but its full of so many creepy crawlies im too scared to venture out there lol

[Philosophia]

Personally, it depends on the ritual. If its simply small amounts of food I can't eat (like an apple that has blessed with specific oils) then I put it in the ground and for the earth. Other small, rubbish things (like burnt paper and ash) I put into the earth. However, I'll reuse everything else.

[Vitkyng]

I tend to reuse anything except the actual spell candles.. so God and goddess candles and elemental candles last me more than one ritual.

[Meadhbh]

It really depends on what I have left over. I won't keep half used incense or anything like that unless I really like the scent or it cost me a lot of money. The candles I may keep if they were used simply for burning and not for something that had a purpose. Food ect. I'll leave out for the fae or whoever else may want it.

[Nitefalle]

I don't do a lot of spells, mainly just rituals on the Sabbats(some call it lazy, I call it pragmatic), but here's an idea for candles: you can get a couple of shoe boxes and label them (healing, love, protection, etc.) and if you don't use all of an ingredient for a spell or ritual, you can put it in the appropriate box. That way, energies aren't mixed up and everything in the box sort of charges all the other things in the box. Also, as Vitkyng mentioned, you can reuse certain things. You could get great big pillar candles for the elements (or whatever you use for circle) and things like that, that way they last a long time and every time you use them, they absorb more power for that specific purpose.
As for things like offerings, I always leave them outside. Even when I did live in an apartment, I used to leave things on a paper plate right outside my door (although my door led directly outside, not to a hallway). None of my neighbors ever said anything or disturbed it.

[-Sky-]

Even when I did live in an apartment, I used to leave things on a paper plate right outside my door (although my door led directly outside, not to a hallway). None of my neighbors ever said anything or disturbed it.

But what happened to the things you left there?Did animals eat them?

[Shasta]

i haven't thrown away anything i've used, but haven't reused them either, i usually just put everything into a drawer i made up for it, and if it was a really important ritual, i wrap the candles up in fabric before putting them in my drawer. i just feel weird about throwing things away like that, but sooner or later, i'll have to do SOMETHING about it