Giving Offerings to Earth

Our planet sustains us and gives us life. The ocean helps create the eco system that supports our entire way of life on Earth. This is why I like to give offerings to the Earth, to God, to my ancestors, to the sun. We can offer thanks and gratitude in the form of an altar or mandala. You can create beauty and leave it as the offering with a prayer, and perhaps later someone will find it. It doesn’t matter if someone else finds it. You are giving offerings to connect within you to your highest self, and to gratitude.

Giving offerings can be intuitive, and you can use whatever you find around you. I often use fruit, flowers, and add whatever foliage is around on the ground in the area. One word of advice I have is, treat this with respect. When you thank the land, offer fresh and ripe fruit, from your heart. Don’t just use the ones that are going bad which you want to throw away. Use intention and offer something important to you.

 

What to Offer:

You can give offerings of plants, herbs, stones, flowers, fruit, seeds, trees. I like to use fruit, but sometimes I use crystals. I also almost always use flowers. Some people even offer some of their hair. It’s the same idea which ancient cultures used, giving offerings to God. You can offer anything you feel is from the heart, like something you would enjoy having yourself. Remember, you can also use nature like wood, ferns, nuts, bones, pinecones, etc.

Creating Offerings as a Meditation:

You can simply arrange nature into a mandala with intention to clear your mind. This creates a sense of relaxation and connects you to the life force. As you arrange a mandala, you allow your artistic mind to come out, play, and create. This is helpful for anxiety and stimulates well-being.

Where and When to Give Offerings:

I enjoy giving offerings to Earth all of the time. Each time I go to the beach, volcano, or to the forest, I bring offerings. It brings me a sense of peace. Sometimes I find that the fruit I left, then fed someone who was hungry. I will see the fruit peels around and it makes me happy. You can even give offerings outside your home, in the form of a garden. This is another way to zone out and tune in to nature, and gratitude. I especially like to bring extra offerings when I am going to be collecting something from nature, like eucalyptus or seashells.

Creating and Giving Offerings as a Group:

It’s peaceful and endorses connection when you create with your friends and loved ones. Giving offerings together on a regular basis promotes good mental health for everyone, as you are reminding one another to become more present. Click here to read about how gratitude can boost your health and well-being.

It’s habits that keep you successful, and giving offerings while cultivating gratitude is an extremely healthy habit to have. I highly recommend gratitude journals, too! Make a list of 5 things you’re grateful for everyday and see how your mindset shifts.

Let me know what kind of offerings you like to give in the comments!

Wishing you wellness and happiness.

All my love,

Samantha