I couldn't leave the offerings for 24h either, I use candles with it and let it out until the candles end. Sometimes is very quicly and sometimes it take long hours, but it's what is working here. I'm planing to make a place for them on the room I use as my studio since no one would touch there but I feel bad because I would like to keep them in bedroom, but no man's land comes to mind.

Houck: Wow! That is a cool idea!=D

I have problems leaving out my offerings for so many hours too, especially since my family does not know about my spirit-keeping!=/ The second-last time I gave an offering, my sister saw the raspberry sitting on my table, and just picked it up before I could stop her! :facepalm:: (LOL! We have lots of wild raspberry and blackberry plants around our house, and since it's summer, I can offer super fresh, just-plucked berries!=D)

Most of my offerings can be placed in with my Spirits vessels in their charging box. Sort of a treat while they relax and recharge.

What I've found works wonders also, is simply taking my Spirits outside on a walk, or to a river or park as treats. This may not apply to everyone, but I have a lot of beast-like entities, and they love the outdoors. Especially when the moon is full and the sky is clear. I like to take them out and play with them. Yes, I actually run around like a loonatic and play with the Spirits and my hubby. They all seem to enjoy this quite a bit.

As for food, I leave a candy or treat on a small saucer near their vessel, and tell them to have at it. For the Spirits bound directly to me, I ask them to taste and feel through me.

This is just what I do. Bast bless.

ah, i place offerings out in the open near the box that holds the vessels on my dresser. I place out things like cookies, fruit and peels, i drop scented oil everywhere around the room, i light candles and fill the air with incense. Reading books, like on spiritual acts, metaphysical properties, and magick. And other books that we may just generaly enjoy!
But really i cant do this always, so i also have mainly songs on my ipod that i know bring about a connective energy between me and my spirits. Music that makes my energy rush and brings about a sensitivity are great! Also i love full moon walks at night! thats always fun!! also i noticed even when i can just make the best of the day - they enjoy that, they love knowing that they are a part of my life and that it is them that has made my life that much more interesting and allows me to develope! of course giving plenty of thanks, and blowing kisses in the air lol

I need to preface my thoughts with the remark that I have no experience with keeping spirits in the tradition that is largely discussed on this forum. Therefore it is important to note that my ways may not be suitable to your rituals and needs. As ever: interacting with spirits is a delicate business and one may make a grave error or cause egregious offense while carrying only the best intentions in one’s heart. So even if my advice seems sound to you, please think carefully before utilising it in your own situation and tinker with it as you have to in order to interact with your spirits.

If you want to furnish an offering to a spirit in your residence, but need to be discrete about it due to uninformed housemates, there are myriad little ways to accomplish this. One preliminary note that I must add is that some spirits may feel slighted or even directly offended by this practice: they may misinterpret your secrecy as embarrassment (‘You do not want anyone else to know because you are embarrassed about me. Am I that unimportant that you are filled with shame because of me?’). This is not a common phenomenon because most spirits understand the situation, but it is something that you should always remember. If you suspect your spirit may feel like this, explain yourself beforehand and be very clear about it.

Some methods that have worked for me in the past:

++ Purchase a book, preferably a hardcover. One that none of your housemates are likely to be interested in. Hollow it out and properly prepare the receptacle for your offerings. Customisation of such an offering vessel is very easy. Even the choice of book may play an influence. Leave a few pages near the front and back intact so you could still leave it lying open without attracting any attention. In case you do not glue the insides of the receptacle together, you can write a short prayer or respectful note on the margins of a new page with each offering. There are many places you can leave a book without attracting undue attention.

++ Hidden compartments. Look at any item you have in your home. Most of these can be easily adjusted so they have a little hidden space: a plastic container that is not transparent can be fitted with a false bottom that can be removed to put a small offering in. If you have a piece of clothing you do not use, you can use the inside of it, or sew an inside pocket into it. Many ways to use hidden compartments that are still effortlessly accessed. Plant pots that stand in a dead corner of a room can be used as well.

++ The above is also true for larger compartments: the back of a cabinet or shelf can be equipped with a hidden space if you put a false back wall on the inside. If you have a fireplace, you can hide a place for offering inside it, especially near the tail of the chimney. Forgive me for I do not know the English word, but with a lot of curtains, you can suspend or attach a little receptacle between their upper sides. Depending on your residence, perhaps you can use a loose floor plank, or ceiling tile, or air vent. A little more work would be to create a hollow inside your windowsill, although for obvious reasons this might not be very practical. If you have a birdhouse in the garden or another such feature, this can be excellent as well. Of course, this is provided that your spirit is not a true house spirit.

++ I do not know whether this is of use to the spirit-keeping tradition that most people here advocate and use, but I frequently interact with urban spirits who dwell in the city. The use of public infrastructure is very easy: alley containers, thrash bags, bellies of bridges, heaps on construction sites...

It takes little ingenuity to find an inconspicuous place of offering. I hope some of this can be of help to any of you.

I'm one of those people who has to be discreet and secretive because my family doesn't know. I've been Spirit Keeping since April and I only left offerings for about an hour in the kitchen in the middle of the night when everyone was asleep. A few days ago I got brand new cabinets and more storage space for my bedroom so I was able to take out all my clothes out of my bed-side drawer and that's where I keep the charging boxes and a couple vessels with everyone's offerings of stones, flower clips, sparkly objects, things like that. Like right now, I'm sitting on my bed as I type with my laptop and beside me I have my bed-side drawer wide open and inside I have the vessels with the offerings out, offerings of stones and a bowl of chocolate flavored, raspberry cookies! If someone suddenly enters my room, I can just close the drawer next to me and VOILA! No one would suspect anything!

Although I do share my room with my sister and she already did open my drawer once a few days ago but fortunately I had no offerings inside the drawer when she discovered it so it wasn't as bad as I thought it was. Anyway, I think it has been great so far! I can leave as many offerings as I want and I'll keep the vessels and everything out in the open INSIDE my bed-side drawer but if I suspect that someone might enter the bedroom, I will close the drawer so that nobody can see anything from the outside.

Athene2012 wrote:Houck this is a very good idea! I'm going to do this bc there is a place in a dresser to do that...and you didn't have any of them say they didn't like it? Do you put them both WA and DA together in there with their offerings? or do you separate into groups? just curious. I always wondered if this really mattered..especially cuz it literally can't be an issue when a person uses a master vessel.

Cheerz,
emzy

I divided them up into groups, and put them with their offering; and no...I have not had any complaints; they are always supercharged afterwards...lol. I agree, if you have a master vessel they will be together unless you have two master vessels; so far this hasn't been an issue for me.

Simeon: Wow! I really like the hollow book idea!=D I don't think my spirits mind me trying to be inconspicuous, as they seem to really like it whenever I put out an offering!=) And I think they do get that, as I have to explained to them already, that I don't mean any disrespect, and it's not that I feel shy about them, but if my family finds out, and they think I'm loony, or that "something evil" has gotten a hold over me, the sure end result is that their vessels will be gotten rid of...=0 LOL! And I'm sure they don't want it to come down to that!XD So I think they do know that they'll have to just make do with the situation for now...=/...=P

Offerings and such are all about "intent", just do whatever feels right, there is no right or wrong answer. As time goes on, you'll feel a certain way about doing something, or arranging this and that to a particular spot. They will definitely let you know, so I just leave it up to them.