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    Hunting and Gathering

    This morning while foraging for saskatoonberries (jam here I come!), I was thinking about how at peace I found myself, and how connected with the great Divine, and with nature I felt. How natural it felt to be searching for my food in a bush, rather than in a grocery store aisle.

    Foraging and living off the land are a super important component to my life and practice. I'm not much for magic, or spellcasting, or even ritual, and oft times, my altar lies in dust, while I explore the great outdoors. I live and breathe to spend my time outside.

    What do you like to forage for, and how does foraging (or hunting - I'm a vegetarian, so there is none of that for me) - how does it affect your practice? And to what degree of importance do you put on it?


    Mostly art.

    #2
    Re: Hunting and Gathering

    Well, doing my own gardening and picking berries, and then eating them or serving them to friends, does make me feel closer to nature, and closer to God at the same time ^_^, in the same way spending time in nature makes me feel, I suppose.
    hey look, I have a book! And look I have a second one too!

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      #3
      Re: Hunting and Gathering

      I've truly enjoyed hunting in the past, though I haven't been able to go in recent years for various reasons (mostly pertaining to my schedule). I think that hunting gives us a chance to actually honor the life that we are taking and feel its impact which is kind of hard to do over a chicken nugget at McD's. When you are the one taking life from an animal, you understand that very distinct line. You can often see the animal cross over. It's very powerful and emotional.

      It may sound silly, but when it comes to foraging plants, I wouldn't know where to start. I am terrified that I would end up like the guy in Into the Wild, confusing this kind of potato/berry/shroom with that one which is extremely poisonous and endangering my entire family. The idea of natural poisons really, really scares me. Almost to the point of being a phobia. If I'm not absolutely, one hundred percent sure of it, it's not going in my mouth. And on top of that, we don't really have any good foraging spots nearby that I'm aware of. Not to say they don't exist, I'm sure they do, but I don't have a clue where to start looking for them. And half the year it's moot anyway.
      We are what we are. Nothing more, nothing less. There is good and evil among every kind of people. It's the evil among us who rule now. -Anne Bishop, Daughter of the Blood

      I wondered if he could ever understand that it was a blessing, not a sin, to be graced with more than one love.
      It could be complicated; of course it could be complicated. And it opened one up to the possibility of more pain and loss.
      Still, it was a blessing I would never relinquish. Love, genuine love, was always a cause for joy.
      -Jacqueline Carey, Naamah's Curse

      Service to your fellows is the root of peace.

      Comment


        #4
        Re: Hunting and Gathering

        I'm vegan, so there's no way in hell I could ever hunt. I feel bad enough if I'm forced to, or accidentally, kill a bug. Taking another mammal's life would just feel like murdering someone from my perspective. Having said that, I'd MUCH prefer if everyone hunted rather than ate pre-killed food. Like Shahaku said, just so they understand exactly what it is they're doing. Taking a life should be something every meat eater understands, they should at the very least see the slaughter process so they know and can respect where their food comes from, and the sacrifice that has been made for their pleasure.

        As for foraging, it's something I'd love to do, but I live in the middle of a city. Not much here to be gathered, certainly nothing I'd feel safe eating.
        Yikes, all that cultural appropriation that used to be here tho

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          #5
          Re: Hunting and Gathering

          I'm very suburban but I have friends nearby who grow all their own veggies/fruit, and raise/butcher their own cows, chickens, geese, & pigs. I've never been there on butchering day but I've been there for dinner and the difference is amazing. Just like really fresh, home grown veggies are better than store bought, same for meat.

          The only actual hunting I took part in was of squirrels but the ex-bf killed & cooked them. I was a vegetarian for years and would be again if I had to kill animals for myself. I put bugs outside rather than killing them, when possible!
          sigpic
          Can you hear me, Major Tom? I think I love you.

          Comment


            #6
            Re: Hunting and Gathering

            Originally posted by Shahaku View Post
            It may sound silly, but when it comes to foraging plants, I wouldn't know where to start. I am terrified that I would end up like the guy in Into the Wild, confusing this kind of potato/berry/shroom with that one which is extremely poisonous and endangering my entire family. The idea of natural poisons really, really scares me. Almost to the point of being a phobia. If I'm not absolutely, one hundred percent sure of it, it's not going in my mouth. And on top of that, we don't really have any good foraging spots nearby that I'm aware of. Not to say they don't exist, I'm sure they do, but I don't have a clue where to start looking for them. And half the year it's moot anyway.
            I've been foraging for two decades, and this is still my rule. Put it this way, you can eat anything....once. BUT, with that being said, toxicity is a matter of dose+absorption, and not all that many plants in the US will kill an adult from a single berry/leaf/root/twig...there's even a method to figuring out if an unfamiliar plant is safe to eat or not, if you are ever in a survival situation (how do you think our ancestors figured it out?).

            If you were interested in learning to forage, the best place to start with an IRL person that knows their plants is seeing if your region has a Native Plant Society (unless there are actually foraging classes in your area). If so, they often have nature walks, where you can learn the local flora. Many times someone in the group will be a forager...but even if not, you can always keep track of what you learn to identify and look up their safety for eating later. If not, there is nothing wrong with a couple of field guides and your backyard. Dandelions are edible, so is plantain, clover (regardless of color), wood sorrel (pink and yellow), violets, and a good number of other weeds...trees are even easier to figure out! If you aren't sure of plants in general, the one of best places to start is with this book....
            Wonderful Life: The Burgess Shale and the Nature of HistoryPagan Devotionals, because the wind and the rain is our Bible
            sigpic

            Comment


              #7
              Re: Hunting and Gathering

              Originally posted by thalassa View Post
              I've been foraging for two decades, and this is still my rule. Put it this way, you can eat anything....once. BUT, with that being said, toxicity is a matter of dose+absorption, and not all that many plants in the US will kill an adult from a single berry/leaf/root/twig...there's even a method to figuring out if an unfamiliar plant is safe to eat or not, if you are ever in a survival situation (how do you think our ancestors figured it out?).

              If you were interested in learning to forage, the best place to start with an IRL person that knows their plants is seeing if your region has a Native Plant Society (unless there are actually foraging classes in your area). If so, they often have nature walks, where you can learn the local flora. Many times someone in the group will be a forager...but even if not, you can always keep track of what you learn to identify and look up their safety for eating later. If not, there is nothing wrong with a couple of field guides and your backyard. Dandelions are edible, so is plantain, clover (regardless of color), wood sorrel (pink and yellow), violets, and a good number of other weeds...trees are even easier to figure out! If you aren't sure of plants in general, the one of best places to start is with this book....
              Thanks so much Thal! I'll definitely look into this book.
              We are what we are. Nothing more, nothing less. There is good and evil among every kind of people. It's the evil among us who rule now. -Anne Bishop, Daughter of the Blood

              I wondered if he could ever understand that it was a blessing, not a sin, to be graced with more than one love.
              It could be complicated; of course it could be complicated. And it opened one up to the possibility of more pain and loss.
              Still, it was a blessing I would never relinquish. Love, genuine love, was always a cause for joy.
              -Jacqueline Carey, Naamah's Curse

              Service to your fellows is the root of peace.

              Comment


                #8
                Re: Hunting and Gathering

                Well, so far this year, I have harvested from my garden or foraged:

                - wild strawberry
                - wild raspberry
                - saskatoon berry
                - arnica
                - calendula
                - dandelion
                - stinging nettle
                - rhubarb
                - chickweed
                - lavender
                - morels
                - lettuce
                - peas
                - honeysuckle
                - fireweed
                - spruce tips

                I've also found, but not used:
                - yarrow
                - wild rose
                - labrador tea
                - willow
                - milk thistle


                Mostly art.

                Comment


                  #9
                  Re: Hunting and Gathering

                  V, I feel very much the same way as you do. I feel most connected when I'm hiking, biking through the forest or fields, and gathering berries, wild herbs, and fruit. I also feel it when I tend and harvest my garden. I occasionally do rituals or divination, but most of my spiritual side tends to come out when I'm out and about, so to speak.

                  I've harvested from my garden:

                  -Stinging nettle (it grows in the pots and I make use of it rather than just pulling it and throwing it out)
                  -Sorrel (ditto)
                  -Chickweed (ditto)
                  -Lamb's quarters (ditto)
                  -Purslane (ditto)
                  -Arugula
                  -Lettuce
                  -Basil
                  -Lavender
                  -Mint
                  -Chives
                  -Green onion
                  -Lemon balm
                  -Parsley
                  -Tarragon
                  -Thyme
                  -Rosemary
                  -Sage
                  -Dill
                  -Oregano
                  -Tomatoes (cherry and regular)
                  -Snap peas
                  -Green beans
                  -Potatoes
                  -Cherries
                  -Strawberries
                  -Woodruff (I'm kicking myself for buying this plant. It grows wild everywhere, and it's very distinctive. Now that I know what it is, I see it everywhere).

                  There are many things that are growing that aren't ready yet, like eggplant, hungarian peppers, green peppers, chilis, gooseberries, and blueberries (these won't be harvestable until next year, since the plants are new).

                  I've foraged:
                  -More sorrel
                  -Wild raspberries
                  -Japanese plums (there's a tree just dropping them around the corner on public land!)
                  -Yarrow
                  -St. John's Wort
                  -Wild garlic
                  -Linden flowers

                  When the mirabelles are ready, we're going to pick those. Ditto for elderberry, apples, and pears. Maybe blackberries too. Hannes wants to go pick mushrooms. There are a few varieties he's 100% sure about. Anything else he leaves alone.
                  Last edited by DanieMarie; 01 Aug 2013, 01:50.

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                    #10
                    Re: Hunting and Gathering

                    I got into foraging a few years ago though unfortunately most of the Natural areas around me are super fund toxic recovery sites, so I'm still pretty skeptical.

                    Comment


                      #11
                      Re: Hunting and Gathering

                      I don't do much wildcrafting anymore. Mostly due to the fact many plants and such are semi-protected or should not be transported around from place to place as it can disrupt the local fauna to do so. From a state and federal park aspect in most places it's illegal to gather them or remove them from the boundaries of the park. The things I do gather tend to be from gifting from the Green People or Standing Ones though sometimes from the Stone People or the Winged ones. Occasionally from the four legged ones in the form on antlers or bones. The fined ones not so much so except as a food source or inspiration from watching them in the water.

                      Hunting to me is vastly different in that when I did one honored the spirit of the kill and the spirit of the greater species. You used every part of the kill you could and probably even blooded yourself or was blooded by an elder by the animals life force. At one time a significant aspect of the many lost male mysteries.
                      I'm Only Responsible For What I Say Not For What Or How You Understand!

                      Comment


                        #12
                        Re: Hunting and Gathering

                        I think alot of people don't realize this, but (in the US) collecting feathers, bones, antler, etc can be just as illegal as gathering protected plant species, unless you have a collectors permit, as may be required by federal and state regulation. There are exceptions for parts from something hunted by permit, non-native species, some non-migratory birds, and for legal purchases that were legally collected, and a few others. And often (since most plant munchies are invasive or nusiance natrualized species) you can get permission from the individual park athoruity if your intent is to rid their ecosystem of those plants (like garlic mustard, kudzu, etc), and you demonstrate some knowlege and ability. Additionally, from an ecological perspective, minor to moderate disturbance increases biodiversity...and, I've personally found that the plants usually don't mind.
                        Wonderful Life: The Burgess Shale and the Nature of HistoryPagan Devotionals, because the wind and the rain is our Bible
                        sigpic

                        Comment


                          #13
                          Re: Hunting and Gathering

                          Originally posted by thalassa View Post
                          I think alot of people don't realize this, but (in the US) collecting feathers, bones, antler, etc can be just as illegal as gathering protected plant species, unless you have a collectors permit, as may be required by federal and state regulation. There are exceptions for parts from something hunted by permit, non-native species, some non-migratory birds, and for legal purchases that were legally collected, and a few others. And often (since most plant munchies are invasive or nusiance natrualized species) you can get permission from the individual park athoruity if your intent is to rid their ecosystem of those plants (like garlic mustard, kudzu, etc), and you demonstrate some knowlege and ability. Additionally, from an ecological perspective, minor to moderate disturbance increases biodiversity...and, I've personally found that the plants usually don't mind.
                          Especially raptor feathers as those are actually turned into the federal government and then handed back out from what I recall. A few Native American's I've spoken to said they had to put in for permits to get them or go on a waiting list for them to become available. Antlers not so much for White Tails but i'm not sure about caribou, moose or elk antlers. Horns from bulls are also not protected from what I recall though it seems more times you get the full skull or skull bridge with the horns like on a Texas Long Horn.

                          I've discovered that a good time to go looking for many species or bio-diversity is after a major fire or flood. Lots of new growth and old growth survival that seems to explode afterwards though it may be a few days to months before you can really see it stand out. Well in mountainous regions coastal regions seem to thrive after a good storm comes ashore and tears the coast line up, which also makes for good shell hunting as well.

                          It does amaze me how many people gather or collect (Wildcraft) things but really have no idea of the permits or laws that pertain to it in most areas. Nor the actual damage or introduction of invasive species into other places because of it. Even the impact upon local wildlife that may depend upon a given plant for survival and a single bud or flower could be the difference between life and death for some of them.
                          I'm Only Responsible For What I Say Not For What Or How You Understand!

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                            #14
                            Re: Hunting and Gathering

                            I don't think Canada has those laws...

                            I mean, don't take fossils from the Burgess Shale, for instance. But I've never heard of someone not being allowed to collect a feather. I have 5 snowy owl feathers in my room right now that I found on Baffin Island last year - and I'm pretty sure they are legal for me to have...


                            Mostly art.

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                              #15
                              Re: Hunting and Gathering

                              Originally posted by volcaniclastic View Post
                              I don't think Canada has those laws...

                              I mean, don't take fossils from the Burgess Shale, for instance. But I've never heard of someone not being allowed to collect a feather. I have 5 snowy owl feathers in my room right now that I found on Baffin Island last year - and I'm pretty sure they are legal for me to have...
                              Canada does not have a law about collecting bones or feathers. Basically, as long as you don't harm the animals to get them, you're all good.


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