Ways to Honor

There are a myriad ways in which we can honor our ancestors and bring their influence into our lives. At Samhain, or Halloween, many pagans take part in what is known as the "Feast of the Dead" or the "Feast of the Dumb." This is a celebration and honoring of those who have crossed the Veil. In many instances a place setting is sat for each of the departed that is being honored at the family meal. The full place setting shows that our departed are welcome and considered a part of the family. In some houses the entire dinner is spent reminiscing about the "invisible" family members at the table. The times shared with them, the things that they taught, and the reasons we appreciate them. At the Feast of the Dumb, the family eats in silence. Not a word is spoken. This both is symbolic of the silence of the grave and the separation from the material ways of communicating. It provides the family a time to be introspective, to think deeply about the beloved departed that they are honoring. In many homes, it is traditional to not eat all of one's food at this dinner and to also prepare cakes and breads in the shape of a body that are placed on the plates of our visiting departed. After dinner, the leftover food is taken outside and buried in the ground or left for animals to consume. It is an offering of appreciation both to the Earth and Nature for providing for us, and for our ancestors for assisting us in our lives.

Perhaps one of the simplest and most beautiful ways of honoring our departed that still goes on today is the use of a Lasa House or a Lare Shrine. This is common practice among those of the Stregha faith. The shrine is basically constructed in such a manner as to have two columns with a temple style roof. Usually the shrine has room in it for a small burning dish, candle, and offertory plate, as well as a representative of the spirits of the ancestors. These shrines sorta serve double-duty as shrines to the ancestors and to the nature spirits. One idea that I really like is to place a small thimble that is capable of standing on end, a twig, a small tea-light or b-day candle, a sharp needle, and a coin in the shrine to represent the elemental tools. While the traditional image of these shrines is indeed beautiful, they can be somewhat difficult to make and may not fit your style exactly. If you have ever seen the movie "A Fairy Tale" and seen the natural houses that the child constructs, you can see the potential in that as well. If time permits I will try to get some rough plans together for how to make one in basic and upload it here. Either way, make use of your mantle, your bookshelf, a corner table, anywhere that you can place a small candle to light in memory and honor of your ancestors.

In Africa, it is believed that Drums evoke and call to the ancestral spirits. Drums are used to communicate with the ancestors and ask them for assistance in ritual and life.

The Chinese are well-known for their ancestral worship. At the time of the Chinese New Year a great festival takes place to honor the departed ancestors spirits. They set off firecrackers, make offerings of melons, red dates, confections and other items. They spend time in worship as a family unit and bury or burn paper money as a means of offerings to the Gods and Ancestors. It is of interest to note that a prevalent holiday to honor the departed is for them at the New Year. The most prevalent holiday for those of the Wiccan faith and many other pagan varieties to honor the departed, is also at the Celtic New Year, or Samhain (Halloween). The celebration of the ancestral forces at the New Year reinforces the influence these spirits will have on our lives throughout the coming year, provides thanks and gratitude for their presence through the passing year, and also reinforces the great cycle. In Wiccan belief the holiday of the New Year is strongly representative of a time between times, the old is not gone and the new is not born, they are both occurring simultaneously. The old is shifting, becoming the new and in that time when it is considered to be in between the two is when the Veil is thinnest, and Wiccans speak with and honor their deceased. This reinforces the understanding that all things new spring from the old, that death is only a means to birth, and birth only a progression from death.

Soul after Physical Death

Virtual Shrine

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