Offerings – A thing offered, a gift or contribution
Since my dedication to Hecate, I've spent most of my dark
moons creating an altar indoors and weather permitting, outdoors to leave my
offerings to her. I take leeks, onion, eggs,
honey, garlic and at times regional flowers to place in my sacred spaces.
After my ritual inside the house, I take her gifts out to
the crossroads and leave them there. On
special occasions I also do a blood offering.
Historically, some followers of Hecate sacrificed black dogs and black
bulls to her. Though not across the
board, many did indeed practice this. In
the clip below Sorita D’Este talks about the relationship of sacrifice of dogs
and the Goddess.
My blood offering to the Goddess is not from any
animal. I use my own blood as an
offering. Using a lancet from checking
blood sugar levels I simply add a few drops of my own blood to the offering
bowl before I carry it outside. Blood
offerings are completely personal and I wouldn't recommend trying this unless
you've had some training in how to correctly check blood sugars. You do not want to create a permanent injury. Blood offerings are not required in the
service of the Goddess Hecate, this is a personal choice that I have made.
I also take part in Hecate’s Deipnon or Supper. I've changed it up a bit to meet with our
modern times.
"Ask Hekate
whether it is better to be rich or starving; she will tell you that the rich
send her a meal every month [food placed inside her door-front shrines] and
that the poor make it disappear before it is even served." - Aristophanes,
Plutus 410
Instead of leaving my offerings at my “shrine”; or my altar
where no one would find them. I take non-perishable
food to Food banks and make offerings to charitable organizations in her
honor. Though historically, this was not
the intention of the Deipnon, I feel that this is a great way to honor the
Goddess as well as give something back to my community.
Offerings can be as simple as a flower; as serious as an
offering of one’s own blood or as complex as creating an entire meal and
leaving it at a cross roads for the Goddess Hecate. My offerings range across each of these.
Though the items offered to any of the Gods and Goddess of
the world vary in their type the main thing to take from this is that you are
giving back to your deity something considered precious. Something that would be considered a gift to
them, or a sacrifice for you to be without.
As with each of us, offerings are individual. Learning about what others offer can be inspiring
and enlightening. Just remember, it is
not necessary to do exactly what someone else does. Your offerings are special because they come
from you.
Namaste
& Blessed Be
Sosanna
)O(
*Note - This
blog post in no way encourages readers to do blood offerings or make any
sacrifice they are uncomfortable with.
It merely lists the way the author conducts her own rituals.
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