#mesopagan

[thescarlettbitch]

Y'all I'm about to start crying (positively) there is a man who has tried to recreate recipes from Mesopotamia and is sharing stories and he wrote a whole cookbook and he is talking about the gods!! He's talking about Inanna! Here is his website it's called Table Of The Gods! The cookbook isn't out yet but I've got the recipe for cookies and I can't wait to make them because they! May have been made her honor!!

[thescarlettbitch]

30 Days of Devotion

In an organized list

This is mostly so I can locate a specific day easily.

First, in case you haven't seen any of my previous posts, hey, I'm Red, I'm 23, I've been a witch and a pagan since I was about 11, I've been devoted to Inanna since I was about 17. This little project is inspired by the Aphrodisian Witch on tiktok and Instagram. I wanted to shake up my worship because I could feel myself neglecting my relationship with Inanna in favor of my ancestor work and my spiritual journey. She isn't offended or hurt by this, but I want to show my appreciation to her.

Devotion is a labor of love, and this also serves as my Yule Celebration. I am spending the entire month of December doing these acts of devotion as a way to refresh my practice for the new year, the 31st will serve as a day of rest and relaxation.

I will say I was genuinely worried that I wouldn't be able to think of enough things to do, I've been brainstorming this since about the middle of October, but honestly once I got going it was easy to come up with things. My original plan was only 20 days, but I've managed to come up with enough to keep going to 30! My original plan was much more labor intensive on days that I ended up only having time to take five minutes to devote, so I ended up reworking the days to fit better into my schedule.

Feel free to use this template for your own worship, or to take inspiration to create your own schedule that fits with your needs, resources, and practice.

Again: I'm a stranger on the internet, you know nothing about me, and I know nothing about you. What I do with my practice is not indicative of what you should be doing with yours. If you want to take inspiration, go for it. If you would never do what I'm doing, don't. I'm not telling you to. Your practice is your own.

Each day will be linked to its own post on how it went for me.

Day 1: altar cleaning

Day 2: new offering!

Day 3: ritual bath

Day 4: skincare and makeup

Day 5: painting

Day 6: writing a letter

Day 7: reading

Day 8: veiling

Day 9: painting my nails

Day 10: wearing a dress

Day 11: dancing

Day 12: watching Xena!

Day 13: self 🌶love🌶

Day 14: dressing in red

Day 15: new offering!

Day 16: listening to her playlist

Day 17: devotional patches

Day 18: physical therapy

Day 19: binding

Day 20: redying my hair

Day 21: taking 🌶pics🌶

Day 22: mirror work

Day 23: singing

Day 24: cleaning my room

Day 25: new offering!

Day 26: baking

Day 27 and 28: singing and coloring

Day 29 and 30: meditation and research

Oh, I feel so much better connected to her now. This genuinely feels so nice, and I feel so close with her.

[thescarlettbitch]

Offering ideas

Of course, the usual, I am not saying these are the only things you can give as an offering, just some ideas if maybe you're just starting out, or if you're tired of the same old offering.

As always, feel free to leave suggestions! I don't work with every single deity, so there are some I know a significant amount more about worshipping (obviously). And read the whole post before commenting, please. (CW, discussion of blood and s/h)

General

Candles

Incense

Crystals

Images of the deity

Any and everything you associate with them

For love/beauty deities

Orgasms

Make up

Love letters

Pictures of your loved ones/you

Florals, flowers (fake are acceptable)

Menstrual blood (if you're comfortable doing so)*

A lock of your hair (from a haircut, or maybe whatever falls out)

Aphrodisiac foods (chocolate, strawberries, etc)

Wine/juice

For war deities

Knives

Vent letters

Harsh liquor (like everclear)

Peppers, hot spices

Blood (again, if you're comfortable doing so)*

Lighters/matches

For art/music/creative deities

Guitar (or violin or cello or whatever) strings (if you have them)/sheet music

Make a physical mixtape of their Playlist — using a CD, it's not hard it's just time-consuming, but I'll find a link to link if you need it

Art supplies - paints, paint brushes, canvases, colored pencils, crayons, coloring books, etc

Your artwork

Scratched cds or records that are unplayable

Art museum tickets/brochures/pamphlets

For wisdom deities

Old textbooks

Books in general

Old school notebooks/notes/workbooks

Pens and pencils

History museum tickets/pamphlets/brochures

For nature dieties

Flowers (fake or real)

Potting soil/soil from your garden/yard

Compost bin (if doable)

Pressed flowers

Leaves collected from plants in your area (flowers or trees)

Gardening books/books on identifying plants

Animal iconography

Found feathers/antlers/claws/teeth (emphasis on found, and make sure they're safe— some are illegal to have and some may carry diseases so be careful)

Maps of wildlife/topographical maps

For death deities

Pictures of the dead in your family

Graveyard dirt (respectfully sourced)

Coins

Family heirlooms

Ethically sourced animal bones (again, be safe, don't touch roadkill or anything similar if you don't know what you're doing.)

For home/hearth deities

Ash from your fireplace

Pictures of your family (found or biological)

Portion of a home-cooked meal

Cookbooks

Old housekeys that don't fit the locks anymore

For parental deities

Parenting books

Old family photo albums

Anything that gives you a sense of safety/nostalgia

For health deities

Old/empty medication bottles

Medication before you take it

Books on medicinal practices

For sea/ocean/water deities

A bottle of water

Seashells

Sand

Salt

For wind/sky/air deities

Air freshener

A fan

Pictures of the sunset/sunrise/stars that you've taken

For traveller deities

Old licenses

Worn out shoelaces

Pieces of old shoes (cleaned) (if you feel the need to)

Coins

Old ticket stubs

Travel maps

Brochures for tourist spots

For queer deities

Queer history books

Anything you associate with being queer

Pride inspired things (pronoun pins, pride flags, etc)

For inventive deities

Printouts of blueprints

Anything you create (sculptures, paintings, music, anything)

Metal puzzles

* about blood magic

I did a poll asking the community their thoughts on the use of blood in witchcraft, you can find that discussion here.

Some people believe that it is the most dangerous form of magic. Some will tell you to not do it no matter what. I am not going to tell you what to believe on this, I am going to tell you to read about the history of blood magic, read about how people currently use blood magic, read about what could be considered a closed practice and what isn't, etc. Come to your own belief. Someone on my post mentioned to be aware of how you are collecting the blood, making sure that you're not going to trigger yourself and such, and I want to bring that up here too. By no means should you be regularly harming yourself.

[thescarlettbitch]

Every day devotion

These are simple acts of devotion that I do, as a devotee of Inanna (goddess of sex and war). I always try to at least do one act of devotion a day. I have a lot of issues that Inanna (and Lady Ereshkigal) are helping me through.

Say goodmorning/goodnight - whether it is right when I wake up or an hour or say later, right before I close my eyes or right before I do my nightly doomscroll, I try to say goodmorning and goodnight every day.

Washing my face - I try to turn things I know are good for me into devotional acts so I will want to do them. I usually only have the time and energy to wash my face once a day, but even so, it's still something.

Listen to music with her - usually done on my way to or from work, I will play her playlist, or another one, but invite her to listen with me, and I almost always feel her presence. If I get the feeling she doesn't like a song, my car radio screws it up and repeatedly pauses it until I change the song.

Drinking water - water is a necessity in life, and access to clean, cold, safe water to drink is a luxury that people who originally worked with her didn't have access to the way I do.

Eating food - I've made a post before about how Inanna is sad when I don't eat if I'm hungry, so if I was feeling her presence I will devote the act of eating to her.

Wearing jewelry - I have a lapis lazuli necklace I wear for her every day. It's simple, I got it off of etsy, but you could easily dedicate anything you have to them. I've had a (locally and ethically sourced) coyote Claw bracelet for a few years now and I am thinking wearing it for Lady Ereshkigal.

Veiling - I don't veil every day, I used to but it ended up causing me issues with my hair. Currently I veil about once a week, but it is something small that can fairly easily be done every day

Libation - libations are the act of pouring a liquid directly onto the earth, and it can be done with anything from tap water to top shelf Whiskey. If you have the means to pour out $100+ of liquor you go right ahead, I will continue giving my goddess(es) the first like ounce/ounce and a half of my daily coffee from my local shop. Or, if there is anything I try and do not like, they get the rest of it. Some people might think it rude to give them things you don't like, but I don't. If it doesn't go towards my gods it's getting thrown away, and that doesn't sit right with me. It's not getting drank by me so it might as well go to them.

Reading/writing/playing video games - I read a lot and I have a couple books I'm writing, one of which is specifically dedicated to Inanna. And I recently built a temple to her in the Sims 4, so whenever I feel like dedicating the time to her, I play in that save.

[thescarlettbitch]

Red Flags in Witchcraft and Paganism Communities

What they are, how to spot them, and common ones I've seen

My name is Red, I've been in the paganism community for about ten years, and I've been in various witchcraft communities my entire life. This isn't a callout of any one person on here specifically.

Usual disclaimer -> I am not an expert. This is just my experience from the last ten ish years.

What is a red flag?

A reg flag is a behavior that let's you know something/someone is illegitimate, misinformed, or, at worst, actively trying to do harm.

How to spot them

Pay attention to the content in their posts. Simply being aware of these flags is going to make it easier to spot. If something seems off to you, that's probably a sign to steer clear.

Common Red Flags (and why)

Refusing to cite sources - this tells me that they don't have any, or they know their source is not credible.

Claiming that there is only one true interpretation of texts - interpretation is one of the dividing factors among academics, people whose entire career and life are dedicated to understanding the classics, no one interpretation is correct.

Posts constantly contradict each other - this isn't to say that people can't learn and adapt their belief system, but if they are constantly posting contradictions without acknowledging them (for example saying "gods aren't their myths!" And then turning around and saying "omg Zeus is a man whore and if you worship his you're a misogynist")

Claiming that they know everything there is to know about a subject - one of the foundations of this practice is being open to learning all the time. You're never done learning. You may know a lot but you do not know everything

Claiming priesthood - as much as I would love to be a priest of Inanna, traditional priesthood is not achievable in the modern world. Priests had to have studied their entire life, learning from the priests before them, climbing the hierarchy, etc, the level of dedication that they went through is simply not available today. Additionally, saying you are a priest/ess creates a power imbalance between you and the other practitioners, allowing for manipulation and misinformation to spread. If you claim you are a priest, a beginner is going to see you as a figure of authority and accept whatever you say without question which is DANGEROUS. Even if you are going into it with pure intentions, we are only human and we are capable of error, and as a community, we have to acknowledge that it makes room for people with little to no experience to take advantage and spread misinformation.

"Modern medicine blocks your True Power" or other similar bullshit - just. No. Do not replace your normal modern medicine with essential oils and herbs. Herbs and plants do have medicinal properties, like, genuine medicinal properties (garlic is an antioxidant, ginger is anti-inflammatory, etc) but they should be used in tandem with modern medicine, they should not replace it. We have modern medicine because the plants only do so much, and most medicine is derived from plants— on a large scale. Aloe Vera for burns but antibiotics for infections, as I saw one post say years ago. Additionally, that belief is ableist and dangerous for people with mental illnesses and is a step away from Christianity's "God made you that way so taking medication for it is a sin"

Disrespecting closed practices - this goes without saying in my mind, but I'll say it for anyone who might not know. Certain practices are culture/race specific, such as voodoo/hoodoo. If you are not a member of the culture then you are not welcome in that space, and to try to encroach on that practice is extremely disrespectful, and to me, tells me you won't respect any boundary. That said, I'm not talking about people who are members of a closed practice posting about it, everyone has a right to their privacy and they do not owe anyone an explanation of "Yes I am black or Jewish or indigenous" be respectful of people's privacy. I've seen lots of people who are practitioners in a closed practice have a pinned post or maybe something in their bio that says "I am a member of this closed practice stop sending me hate"

Exclusionists - terfs, homophobes, transphobes, Nazis, those people who believe that magic comes from the uterus and only women can be witches, etc. That's just. Gross, for one. And for two, such a not historically documented thing. **this red flag DOES NOT APPLY TO CLOSED PRACTICES unless it is happening within the closed practice (like saying that mixed people cant practice voodoo/hoodoo bc they have white in them or smth) (i dont know anything about closed practices as i am not a member)** -> also if I see someone with the whole "only women can be witches" thing say something along the lines of "men weren't killed during the witch trials" I will scream because. Yea. Men weren't killed because they weren't hunting witches. They were hunting women. They just used the term witch to make it seem morally correct. They burned women. Not witches.

Pay me money to be initiated into the church of (deity/religion/pantheon) - that is a scam. There is no one true official church or temple for any of the pagan religions, and even if there were, it's a religious building, you shouldn't have to pay to join. These people are preying on our desire to find a community. You can join hundreds of digital temples to your god(s) on discord for free simply by browsing their tag on tumblr. Speaking of discord temples -> be weary, most of them are run by people who might not know what they're doing, so be very careful. Know and understand basic internet safety, and take everything with a grain of salt. Servers in general can become a funnel of misinformation or worse very quickly. I don't see anything inherently wrong with the concept of them, as it is a way to make friends within the community. I typically just stick to the tumblr community.

Definitive generalizations - this I am a little guilty of, as I usually just assume other people are going to understand the nuance, which I'm trying to fix so my posts are more easily understood. The one definitive thing I will stick with, however, is that everything is dependent on yourself. It's your practice. It's your religion. Experiences vary from person to person, even if you are working with the same deity(s), things are going to be different. Everything is up for interpretation. However, saying "the gods love you" is a bit different than saying "you should never ever give your deity an energy drink that is so disrespectful and they'll hate you forever."

Using AI - I touched on this in my witch tips school edition post, but to reiterate, ai is antithetical to witchcraft. It actively harms the environment and the arts, demeaning creatives and everything witchcraft stands for. There is genuinely no reason to use it. Your devotional art doesn't need to be good it can be stick figures and it will be a thousand times better than the slop ai produces. I guess that's another definitive, but I don't really care because... no. If I see ai it will be blocked immediately. The gods are as modern as they are ancient but the whole concept of ai "art" is based on plagiarizing real artists who have put their blood sweat and tears into their art. Do your own research and make your own art. I could make a whole dedicated post on ai.

*Slightly adding to that last point, but more of a note— I have never used AI. There was one singular time that chatgpt got mentioned, and that was when I was trying to translate cuneiform that someone had sent in an ask, and my fiance used it to translate. My fiance no longer uses chatgpt or ai at all after I got onto him about that.

As always, I'm not an expert, let me know if there are any I should add or if you'd like clarification. These are just things that I deem red flags, yours might be different and that's okay. Hate will be deleted but if you want to be respectful, we can have a discussion on why you think one or more of these isn't a red flag. You will not change my mind on ai though.

Blessed be <3

[thescarlettbitch]

Getting a fortune cookie the day before my flight to visit my fiance that says "a loved ones company will bring you happiness" feels like a sign from the universe (and my ladies)

I dont usually (ever) believe in the fortunes from the cookies but... this one hits. It's going in the scrapbook.

[thescarlettbitch]

My MasterPosts

A masterpost under construction

A post with all the links to my various long rambly research driven posts :) this is a work in progress so be patient please :)

About Me and My Posts

Find a deep dive into my belief system Here

Find Why I Introduce Myself In My Posts Here

Find Why It's Hard To Pin Down My Timeline Here

Find Punk Witchcraft Here

Find My Relationship with Spirit Work (Coming Soon)

Find a long list of sources I've found related to my Deities Here

Find information on Honorifics and how I use them Here

Find My Witch Identity Explained Here

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About My Deities and Practice

Mesopotamian

Find information on Inanna Here

Find information on her queer history Here

Find an addition to her Queer History Here

Find information on Inanna's worship (and the way I worship her) Here

Find the Epithets of Inanna Here

Find my UPGs with her Here

Find Why You May Benefit From Working With Inanna Here

Find my UPGs with Lady Ereshkigal Here

Find Why You May Benefit From Working With Lady Ereshkigal (Coming Soon)

Find Rating Songs On Lady Ereshkigal's Playlist Here

Find information on Lady Ereshkigal Here

Find the Mesopotamian Pantheon Here

Find information on Lord Ishkur Here

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The Forgotten

Find a post about Forgotton Gods Here

Appalachian

Find Witch Things I Didn't Know I Was Doing Here

Find Appalachian Folk Practices (Coming Soon)

Find Decolonizing my Practice Here

Answering asks about my practice:

Find how I found Inanna Here

Find how they communicate with me Here

Find how I interpret Inanna and The Huluppu Tree Here

Find how working with Inanna has benefitted me Here

Find Inanna and Sul-Kale-Tuda Here

Find how do I work with Inanna as a teen Here

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Virtual Grimoire Posts

Recipes

Find my Sun Brewed Sweet Tea recipe Here

Find the Menstrual Cramp Tea recipe Here

Find Hot Cocoa Here

Find my Strawberry Kiwi Lemonade recipe Here

Find my Updated Strawberry Kiwi Lemonade recipe (Coming Soon)

Find Hot Toddy the Medicinal Cocktail Here

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Crafts

Find Charm Making Here

Find DIY Stickers Here

Basic Information

Find a list of herbs and spices and their correspondences Here

Find Crystals and their Properties (Coming Soon)

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Spells

Find How to Craft a Spell Here

Find my Good Luck Spell Here

Find putting someone in the freezer Here

Find Breaking A Hex/Curse (Coming Soon)

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Rituals

Find a Samhain Ritual for the Forgotten Here

Find a Mesopotamian inspired Ritual for the Ancestors Here

Find a Samhain Ritual for Lady Ereshkigal/other Cthonic Deities (Coming Soon)

Find 30 Days of Devotion Here

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Tips/Ideas

Find Disabled Witch Tips Here

Find Modern Witch Tips Vehicle Edition Here

Find Modern Witch Tips Apartment Edition Here

Find Modern Witch Tips School Edition Here

Find Devotional Acts Here

Find Offering Ideas Here

Find Deity Research Questions Here

Find Every Day Devotion Here

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Beginning Your Practice

Find Red Flags Here

Find FAQs Here

Find Intuition vs Anxiety Here

Find Devotee vs Deity Work vs Worshipper Here

Find Sacrifice vs Offering vs Devotional Act Here

Find Prayer, What Is It? Here

Find Disposing of Spent Offerings Here

Find Avoiding Burn Out Here

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Book Reviews

Th Way Of The Ishtarite by Siri Nin Here

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[thescarlettbitch]

Samhain Ancestor Ritual

Inspired by Mesopotamian Worship

Hey all, I'm Red, I'm 23, I've been pagan since I was about 13, and I've worked with the Mesopotamian pantheon for about six years. My general list of sources is located here but I'll also have a list at the bottom of this post.

Info

The underworld, the place Lady Ereshkigal rules, is often called Irkalla (or Ereshkigal, similar to how the Greek underworld is often called Hades). There was no hell or heaven, no asphodel or fields of punishment or elysium. There was no reward for living well or punishment for living poorly, kings and farmers and priests all went to Irkalla.

Irkalla is directly parallel to the mortal plane, under it. The spirits eat mud and clay, unless their living relatives give them sustenance through libations— pouring liquid from vessel to earth. It was thought to flow from the cup, into the earth, then directly to Irkalla and into the mouths of the deceased.

The Ritual

As this is my first big Ritual for my ancestors, I plan on doing this very elaborately.

Offering

I will libate a bottle of bourbon. My family has lived in the Appalachian region of Kentucky for many generations, bourbon is in my blood. It won't be top-shelf but it won't be bottom of the barrel either, I think I'll get a $30 bottle. (*note, I'm doing this as a way to honor them, and I have the extra money and am over 21. If I don't have the money, I would just libate a bottle of water.)

I think I will also sit out an offering of food, but I'm not sure what. Probably a family recipe, most likely soup, and light a candle.

Other offering ideas are flowers and art, family photos.

Location

I'm torn between my grandmother's grave and the woods. My grandmother is an important figure in my life, but I think she deserves her own specific ritual for her birthday, so I'll probably do the woods.

Prep

Obviously I have to buy the bourbon and make the soup, but I will also take a long shower, get myself very clean and dressed very well. I'll be invoking my ancestors, I want them to see me dressed well. I'll bring a blanket or a towel to sit on so my good clothes don't get ruined.

Meditation

I'll probably meditate before and after libations, centering myself before and just sitting with them after.

Prayer

As I libate, I'll recite the following prayer

Dearest ancestors, I invite you to join me for this meal. I give you this bourbon to give thanks for all that you have done. Without you I wouldn't be here. May this drink nourish you.

Beyond that, I'll probably engage in a conversation with them, telling them about my life and my attempts to research and trace my lineage, stories I've heard, and other such things.

Instruction

Shower/cleanse yourself. Dress nicely.

Prepare offerings (or prepare and then shower)

Be sure to bring something to do, I'll probably bring my lunch and sketchbook so I can sit with them and sketch

Arrive at the location

Light the candle/incense

Center yourself

Set out the food offering and begin libation while praying

Focus yourself, feel their presence. Sit with them as you do your activity/eat your portion of food

To end, thank them for joining you, wish them well, snuff the candle/incense

Leave nothing behind.

What to do with spent offerings

I'll make a post on this specifically, but I'll put a brief description here.

Spent offerings are offerings that you've given to a spirit/deity, but they can't exactly take it with them so you're left with it. Food, flowers, art, etc.

Some people will tell you to bury the offerings in the earth if they're natural/food. I don't disagree with this, but I do want to emphasize that some things can harm wildlife, so be careful with that.

Composting, if you have a garden, or just throwing the food away.

Flowers you can leave on a grave, as with art or photos, or leave on an altar/dedicated space for the spirit/deity until they start to wilt, and then throw them away.

Make sure the spirit knows that you are just removing the item by saying "this item needs to go, this is not a show of disrespect I am just rotating offerings."

Sources

Mesopotamian beliefs in the afterlife

Burial in Mesopotamia