prayer meal

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Prayer meal is usually cornmeal, which is used by various Native American peoples in the Southwestern parts of the U.S. as a sacred offering to the spirits in a wide range of traditional ceremonies. Cornmeal, carried in small baskets or pouches, can be used in sand painting, and also sprinkled over a site, a person, or an animal that needs blessing or healing. The offering of prayer meal is a common feature in many celebrations, ceremonials, and hunting rituals, but can also be utilized in personal daily spiritual practices.

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"Sacred altar, made of corn meal, in the antelope kiva at the pueblo of Walpi, Arizona, ca.1898" by Ashley Van Haeften is licensed under CC BY.

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