Sacrifices

[TrippinBTM]

I don't understand this. Cultures throughout the ages have practiced sacrifices, and even today, a lot of new-age types will offer a bit of whatever they're eating, drinking, or smoking to the earth. Basically throwing out good useful stuff. I have two issues with this.

1. If it is such a gift from the earth/the gods, why are we throwing some of it out? Isn't that wasting a gift?

2. Animals don't sacrifice any of their food, and the earth/gods seem to still provide for them. Why do we humans waste our stuff

Where does this idea come from? Why would the earth/God want us to burn part of the harvest? The only answer I've ever heard are that the gods need our food and drink to live (basically, we provide for them or else), or that it's a sign of thanks and trust, that we are so sure the earth/God will give more in the future that it is ok to waste it.

Seems stupid to me, either way. It does no respect to the wheat plant or the cow you slaughtered for your food to just throw some of it away. I say, eat it, be thankful, and don't waste. Make the wheat's death or the cow's death be for a reason, not just to rot away.

[the dauer]

In the Temple Cult of Ancient Israel, the sacrifices were eaten for food, either by the kohanim or the people who brought it or both. The Hebrew word for sacrifice does not mean sacrifice. Instead of giving something up, it's a coming close or drawing near. There were levites singing and playing instruments, incense was burning. It a coming close, it was basically what they used then for prayer. All at this giant BBQ.

Sin was not the main reason for qorbanot. There were daily qorbanot and in addition to that there were some qorbanot where basically you celebrate and you might invite people over. There were only certain sins for which a qorban would be required.

Why a qorban? That's the way people in the area would deal with their gods, so it was adopted and adapted to the Temple.

Dauer

[feministhippy]

In most cultures, it's really more of a symbolic ritual than the literal "Here G-d, have some of my dinner- now grow my crops" interpretation. We all look at these ancient examples of people who would commit a sacrifice every time there was a drought, but in reality, most cultures aren't like that anymore. Most cultures do that like they do other rituals- it's not that G-d (or g-ds. Or whatever you worship) will really do this and this because you gave him a chicken, it's that sacrificing this chicken, it makes you feel closer to him.

I kind of feel sorry for the chicken, though.

[TrippinBTM]

In most cultures, it's really more of a symbolic ritual than the literal "Here G-d, have some of my dinner- now grow my crops" interpretation. I guess I just don't get what it symbolizes. Yeah, ritual is an important force for peoples everywhere, but I just don't see how this makes sense.

And if you eat the sacrifice, it isn't a sacrifice, it's dinner. Well, it is a sacrifice, but only from the chicken's perspective.

[Bhaskar]

It is symbolic, indeed. It is a reminder of that we should dedicate all our actions and the results of those actions to the lord. This is the essence of karma yoga. If it is truly practised in the full spirit of it, not only do our actions become wholesome and beautiful, we are also freed from the karma resulting from them. Why? Because there is no sense of doership. This is what krishna called "seeing action in inaction and inaction in action." The famous verse of srimad bhagavatam sums it up beautifully:

kayena vaacha, manasendriyairva
budhyatmana va prakriter swabhavat
karomi yad yad sakalam parasmai
narayanayeti samarpayami.

Everything i do with my body, speech, mind, senses, intellect, instinct or nature, I dedicate to the lord.

[the dauer]

Trippin, I think most would agree that when the Temple stood in Jerusalem, there were sacrifices being performed. What they did do was burn some of the fat on the altar. I think the English word sacrifice is just a poor term. Perhaps offering would work better.

Originally, the only meat that was eaten was meat that was "sacrificed" at the tent of meeting. But eventually this was extended so meat could be eaten anywhere but the same rituals laws that applied to meat in the Temple would apply to meat eaten elsewhere(I don't remember when the permission was extended.) This allowed for a mental connection between food on the table and the Temple itself, service to God.

There is a mythical parallel for this permission in the story of Adam and Eve through Noah. No meat was allowed to be eaten until after Noah when God caved and allowed man to eat meat. With all the horrible stuff according to the story, I think the idea was that if man was allowed to eat meat and thus satisfy some of his less dangerous cravings, all the other stuff would happen less. There wouldn't be so much of an attempt to toss off the yoke.

The reason for all the ritual surrounding the offering is because of the animal's life. Torah says the life is in the blood, or the soul is in the blood depending how it's read. That's why the blood is spilled. It is a matter of respect for the life of the animal.

Dauer