Eating is a simple practice. We put food into our mouths, then chew and
swallow it. Nothing mystical about that, right?
Perhaps not. But because of
food's importance, it has been linked with politics, social structures, legal
systems, health maintenance, magic and, oh yes, religion.
Our lives still contain vestiges
of these earlier practices. Prayer (or
saying grace) before meals is perhaps the most common. It is popular not only in Christianity but
also in many other religions. The urge
to give thanks for food prior to eating has its origins in the Pagan sacrifices
common in ancient Egypt, Sumer, Greece, Rome, and many other cultures. Portions of the food were burned or placed in offering
bowls. The food is now simply blessed. People continue to offer food to deities in a
variety of religions around the world, especially on feast days. This is even found in some Christian groups.
The idea today is the same: verbally or psychologically linking
food with deity. Long ago, humans spent
most of their time ensuring a steady supply of food, which could be wiped out
by fires, droughts, insect infestations, torrential rains, storms, and
unseasonal freezes. Unable to physically
prevent such catastrophes, humans naturally turned to their deities for
protection.
When the harvest had been spared, our ancestors thanked their
deities with offerings of food. This may
have been buried, flung into the air, or tossed into a fire. The portion earmarked for the deities wasn't
consumed by humans.
Even today, with tremendous botanical knowledge and global weather
reporting, farmers in most parts of the world are still at the mercy of natural
forces. The increased knowledge and
tools available to farmers and agribusinesses can't stop such events from
destroying their crops.
In many parts of the world that suffer food shortages, food has
become a tool of politics. People are
starving on every continent and within our own borders. Emergency supplies shipped to the hungry are
often held up by government intervention, or are funneled to those in power.
These two factors-the uncertainty of our food supply and its
scarcity in many parts of the world-should deepen our appreciation of food.
Our ancestors worshipped food,
seeing it as a gift from the hands of their deities. Food magicians don't worship food, though we
respect it as a life-sustaining substance containing the energies of the earth.
Food is a manifestation of divine
energies that's vital to our survival. Approaching
food from this frame of mind makes it easier for us to utilize it as a tool of
self-transformation.
About prayer: if you don't subscribe to any particular religion,
and haven't been in the habit of praying before meals, there's no reason for
you to begin to do so. Prior to eating,
simply attune with the food (all of the food, not just that which you're eating
for magical purposes). You can easily do
this by placing your hands on either side of your portion of the food before
beginning to eat. Sense their energies
for a few seconds. You need say nothing. This simple act, which you can do in front of
those who know nothing about your magical studies, prepares your body to accept
the food. You absorb its essence (power) before absorbing its manifestation.
If it is your custom to pray before meals, continue to do so. Religion and magic have always been closely
linked-religion worships the energy that created all things; magic utilizes the
energies in those things that have been created.
You can also include a prayer to your deity while eating, or
address your conception of deity during the magical preparation and consumption
of the food. Though this may seem to be
a new idea, it isn't. It's performed
around the world by millions of non-Christian, non Western peoples.
Eating (and the resultant digestion) is an act of transformation. Our bodies change food into the fuel necessary
for our continued physical existence. Be
aware also of the higher aspects of food every time that you eat.
Earth, who holds the growing seed,
Sun, who ripens field and tree,
Shining sun and gentle earth,
Thanks for all you bring to birth.
Sun, who ripens field and tree,
Shining sun and gentle earth,
Thanks for all you bring to birth.
Cunningham's Encyclopedia of Wicca in the Kitchen by Scott Cunningham
http://www.americanwiccan.com/theritualofeating.html
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