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

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*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.