[QUOTE=liveinput;107266]I thought that you were supposed to ask permission from any living thing including plants before  you did anything with it...or did they change that....Now someone told me that they are here to please your needs....has what i been told and taught changed???[/QUOTE]

I've heard that before though I've never done it. I've never seen it as a formal "doctrine" that is taught. I have been known to be wrong though.

I think the short answer is "it depends".

I give a silent thanks to what I eat and exercise mindfulness of the wood that I put in the fire place being appreciative of the beauty of the grain and am amazed at how the energy I need is stored in the fibers and cells of the wood.

Reminding myself as I watch the fire burn that I am watching a chemical reaction and that energy, water, elements are being released and recycled. Nothing lost, just rearranged.

When I mow my yard (I call it harvesting mulch) I perceive myself as feeding my beloved trees.

If asking permission from the plants and animals that you use carries meaning for you and enhances your life and appreciation of them, by all means that is a wonderful thing to do.

If you feel silly doing that, and it doesn't add to your life by all means don't.

I live in a hunting culture where killing something is a sign of power and manhood. Personally, I think our culture would be well served with a dose of humility that comes with giving thanks to the animal for the life we've taken and exercising the responsibilty for not wasting it.

[QUOTE=liveinput;107266]I thought that you were supposed to ask permission from any living thing including plants before  you did anything with it...or did they change that....Now someone told me that they are here to please your needs....has what i been told and taught changed???[/QUOTE]

I've heard that before though I've never done it. I've never seen it as a formal "doctrine" that is taught. I have been known to be wrong though.

I think the short answer is "it depends".

I give a silent thanks to what I eat and exercise mindfulness of the wood that I put in the fire place being appreciative of the beauty of the grain and am amazed at how the energy I need is stored in the fibers and cells of the wood.

Reminding myself as I watch the fire burn that I am watching a chemical reaction and that energy, water, elements are being released and recycled. Nothing lost, just rearranged.

When I mow my yard (I call it harvesting mulch) I perceive myself as feeding my beloved trees.

If asking permission from the plants and animals that you use carries meaning for you and enhances your life and appreciation of them, by all means that is a wonderful thing to do.

If you feel silly doing that, and it doesn't add to your life by all means don't.

I live in a hunting culture where killing something is a sign of power and manhood. Personally, I think our culture would be well served with a dose of humility that comes with giving thanks to the animal for the life we've taken and exercising the responsibilty for not wasting it.

Perhaps you need to ask those who taught and told you in the first place as they seem to be the ones who supplied the supposed to that you are trying to comply with.

Or if you are asking as a Pagan,  you could just make up your own mind on the subject. Paganism after all isn't a religion, it is a spectrum of self-identifed and self-defined beliefs so one will find just about anything and everything if one looks far enough.

C.H.

The biggest problem is wiping out whole biomes! We have just come out of a [COLOR="Red"]long[/COLOR] drought. Please be gentle on the Earth.

Plants need sunlight, water, and some food. Sometimes they get diseased, and so need relief from pests. It helps if you prune away dead and diseased tissues. Siting is important. For example, ferns need to be protected from drying out. So placed mine in shady spots. And as ferns have inefficient roots, they need to be kept wet. So I water them whenever I see them!