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Post by Deleted on Nov 4, 2013 16:20:08 GMT -8
I was taught to only use photos of the deceased in an akhu/ancestor shrine, back when I was Kemetic Orthodox, and that to use any images of living people was a really bad idea. It's like, putting them in the realm of the dead, even though they're not dead. It took me a long time to find a suitable photo of my maternal grandparents to use, because as it turns out, I only had one of them together, without anyone else in shot. I made do before that with a couple of things of theirs to represent them until I found an appropriate photo: a jewellery case I inherited after nanna died, and my grandad's Welsh flag that he carried as he marched in ANZAC Day parades, back when I was little.
Do you have room, perhaps, to have his photo on your ancestor shrine, and space nearby for her photo that's not ancestor shrine? So they're still close, but in their right places? I totally get not wanting to separate them, though, but if there's no space for her to be nearby but not on the ancestor shrine, I'm not sure what else to do.
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Post by Admin on Nov 5, 2013 10:32:05 GMT -8
I was taught to only use photos of the deceased in an akhu/ancestor shrine, back when I was Kemetic Orthodox, and that to use any images of living people was a really bad idea. It's like, putting them in the realm of the dead, even though they're not dead. See, that's what I thought too. I figured that one wall could be devoted to the dead. I'm actually considering having it be in the dining room, since it's the center of the household and the dining table is where the offerings end up. Plus my thinking around ancestor worship is that they are a part of the household, so I want them to be around. This is one area where I really feel the lack of continuity in tradition.
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Erin
New Member
Practotioner of the Creideamh Si and flamekeeper/priestess of Brigit.
Posts: 40
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Post by Erin on Nov 5, 2013 19:08:06 GMT -8
I was taught that it is bad luck for any of the living to be featured on an ancestor shrine, so I only place photos of the deceased there.
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Post by anfiasaloch on Nov 8, 2013 15:30:32 GMT -8
The hearth shrine we have set up above our fireplace has a special spot the ancestors and they are given offerings along with the gods in my daily practice, though at Oíche Shamhna I set a place at the dinner table, which is usually moved in front of the fireplace during festival days. I wish I had more photos, but my grandmother isn't willing to part with any of them for now, though I imagine they will be mine someday since I'm the genealogy-type of the family. For now, they have a candle lit in their honor and get gifts of the things I remember my recently deceased ancestors liked alongside food offerings.
As for photos, when I get them, I probably won't put photos of the living on an ancestor shrine, seems like spiritual common sense to me...
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