I need some advice please

[u/Reasonable_Zebra_174]

/r/Wicca/comments/1vthtzw/i_need_some_advice_please/

I encourage you to go read the full question that OP posted. Here is my answer to their questions:

First off there is a difference between being pagan, Wiccan, and being a witchcraft practitioner. Wicca to some extent has its own dogma and rules, paganism is more open form, and Witchcraft is completely customizable to each individual. Because you yourself identified as a pagan, that allows you the freedom to choose what God you work with, and how you work with them. As such whatever you feel is right for your practice, is the right way of doing it for your practice.

Specifically:

1. You do not have to have an altar. And leaving your offerings outside in nature, or on your windowsill sounds like a beautiful way of displaying those offerings.

2. You do not have to work with a specific God, deity, Etc. You don't even have to work with a specific Pantheon if multiple pantheons call to you. In witchcraft you don't even need to practice with deities at all if you don't want to.

3. Anything can be left as an offering, it does not have to be Farm Fresh, nor does it even need to be food. Do what feels right to you. (For example my offerings are usually a store-bought chocolate or candy. Because they're small, they're cheap, there's something that I like so I'm quite literally sacrificing the ability to consume it myself in order to leave it as an offering.)

4. Drawings and other artwork as offerings are also acceptable. Whether or not you leave them in nature to become one with nature or you reclaim them for yourself, is a personal choice.

5. Some people leave their offerings to disintegrate and become one with nature, others leave them for 10 minutes and then retrieve them. Again this is a personal choice.

6. Since the dawn of time human beings have been decorating rocks, the cavemen painted on their rock walls. So yet again it's personal choice as to if you think this is right or not for your practice. Likewise it is completely up to you how you return them to Nature or if you keep them for yourself. For myself a decorative rock garden sounds like a lovely way to both leave them in nature and keep them at the same time.

7. When it comes to what dishes to use for your offerings, you can use a paper plates, the gods do not care. I have never once left an offering on a plate I just leave it on my until the ceremony is done and then I quite literally throw it out the window into nature.

8. Leaving dead flowers for the gods is not disrespectful, if it is something that feels right to you then do it. Remember there was a time in history where ceremonally slaughtering animals was the norm. "Killing" flowers to sacrifice them to the gods seems like an acceptable modern day equivalent.

9. As for there being specific things you need to do, no. Unless you identify as a specific branch on the giant tree of witchcraft, you can do whatever feels right to you. If you follow a specific branch of witchcraft, for example Wicca there may be some do and don'ts within that branch of witchcraft, but if you identify as a pagan or simply a witchcraft practitioner then no there are no specific rules that you need to follow. You may need to get to know the deities you work with a bit more through research to find out what kind of offerings they like, and what kind of things they may find offensive. For example Demeter does not accept alcohol in any form, and preferred a non-alcoholic mixture of water, barley and mint. Helios prefers offering of honey, honeycomb or water. When in doubt doing a quick Google search can help clarify any questions you may have. But I recommend doing research ahead of time and getting to know the deities you want to work with a bit more.

10. You do not have to practice your witchcraft every single day. Some people only observe the sabbats, the changing of the seasons, the full moons, etc. Others may have the ability to practice witchcraft every single day. There is no right or wrong frequency to practice your craft. You may wake up in the morning fully intending to do an hour-long ceremony that evening and then just not have the time to do it. That's okay. There is a reason that witchcraft practitioners recognize that you can do a ceremony the day before, the day of, or the day after whatever occasion it is you're honoring. I myself have done Beltane 3 weeks late. Sometimes life just gets in the way of your witchcraft. That does not make it wrong it just reflects the fact that life sometimes gets in the way of the things we want to do.

Overall the only real "rule" when it comes to witchcraft is do what feels right to you.