How to Offer Food to Sentient Beings

During festivals and holidays, you can offer food to your deceased karmic creditors and family members, allowing them to celebrate joyfully as well, and to prevent them from feeling envy and causing you illness. You may also perform this offering regularly at other times. After meals, the leftover rice grains at the bottom of the bowl—just seven grains are sufficient—along with a bit of vegetable soup or greens can be used for the offering. The mantras for the offering are found in the daily liturgy books for morning and evening recitation.

When making the offering, you can use rice or crumbs of steamed buns; a small pinch is enough. Then, rely entirely on the power of visualization. With skillful visualization and the strong blessing power of the mantra, the food will multiply vastly—the more it multiplies, the more sentient beings benefit, the greater the positive connections formed, and the greater the future blessings accrued. A portion of rice the size of a little finger, mixed with a bit of vegetable soup, or even just seven grains of rice is sufficient—this small amount, combined with visualization, is all that is needed. Place the prepared rice or crumbs on a platform outside the house or on a balcony, then recite the mantra. The spirits will come to receive the offering. The mantra is as follows:

"You spirits and ghosts, I now offer you sustenance. May this food pervade the ten directions, for all spirits and ghosts to share." (Recite once)

"Om, Muling, Svaha." (Recite seven times)

While reciting, visualize the offered food as complete with color, fragrance, and flavor, pervading the Saha World, all great mountains, the foot of every mountain, every riverbank, the shores of the Four Great Seas, and all places beneath Mount Sumeru. The broader the scope of your visualization, the better—the more the food multiplies, the more sentient beings are aided. After reciting the mantra seven times, snap your fingers three times to complete the offering.

You may also offer rice water to sentient beings. The first rinse water from washing rice bowls, containing a mixture of rice water and vegetable water, can be offered to spirits by reciting the mantra seven times with visualization. All spirits will then be fully nourished. Splash the rinse water onto a platform, avoiding areas around peach or pomegranate trees. The mantra is as follows:

"With this rinse water, like the nectar of the heavens, I offer it to all spirits and ghosts, may they all be fully satisfied."

Then visualize the rinse water, like heavenly nectar, pervading the Saha World—mountains, seasides, and all open spaces—while reciting the mantra seven times: "Om, Maxiu Laxi Svaha." Simultaneously, splash the rinse water out in seven portions.

Those with weak constitutions are susceptible to disturbances from spirits. If visualization is inadequate, the spirits may become resentful upon failing to receive the offering and retaliate, causing physical discomfort for a day or two. If you feel apprehensive, refrain from making offerings until you have practiced and strengthened your visualization skills.

Our parents, family members, and relatives from beginningless kalpas past are beyond count. The vast majority suffer in the Three Evil Realms, primarily in the ghost realm, enduring hardship without food, drink, or clothing. Yet we eat so well daily and still waste food. Saving just a morsel the size of a fingertip is enough to satisfy them. For the sake of these vast multitudes of suffering beings, offering the food we would otherwise waste each day benefits both ourselves and sentient beings. It is also an act of filial piety and repayment toward our parents and teachers of past lives.

While we who study the Dharma now have hope for liberation, countless sentient beings still suffer—especially those connected to us, our parents from beginningless kalpas, and those we have harmed in the past. Their suffering is profound. We should regularly dedicate merits to them, recite more sutras and mantras, cultivate virtue, and dedicate it all to them. With every act of goodness we perform, we should dedicate the merit to them. When their blessings accumulate sufficiently, they will have the opportunity to escape the bitter sea of the Three Evil Realms, obtain a human body, and encounter the Dharma. By practicing the methods, they may gradually transcend the cycle of rebirth. In this way, we effectively deliver sentient beings.