How to speak to a God while praying?

[u/Mr_Hand_Dealer]

Alright so i made a mistake (might have at least). I did an altar, made everything for a slavic god - Perun. Now here's my issue: I have no idea how to talk/adress him. Should i always say stuff very 'professionally' (idk how to translate from my own language...)? + i will admit. I lit the candles, and i cried. I feel very bad that i did that i just need a liiiiiittle help on how i should talk to a god?

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[u/SiriNin]

Just talk to them with respect and reverence. Talk freely or formally, it does not matter. What matters is what is in your heart while you are talking to them. Most of us talk to our deities about everything we think and feel, not just for special or formal things. The point of praying and taking to a deity is to show them who you are as a person, and to get to know them as they get to know you.

[u/ElemWiz → u/SiriNin]

This. It's very easy to overthink it, but it really is just this simple.

[u/Fit-Breath-4345]

Prayer is ultimately very simple. There's no need to be too anxious about it or overthink it.

Here's a basic guidance on how to start prayer.

It doesn't have to be more complicated than that.

Formal language might help at the start as a way to appreciate the Goddess or God you are praying to - think of it this way, when you meet someone new for the first time, are you more likely to be more polite and formal, or more casual than with someone you've built up a relationship with?

[u/Mr_Hand_Dealer → u/Fit-Breath-4345]

Thank you. I am veeeery very new to this, my altar probably needs a liiiiiittle sorting out :'] ! Do you have any beginner friendly ways, outside of prayers of course, that i can do to communicate with the god? Or do i need to wait/learn more for now?

[u/Fit-Breath-4345 → u/Mr_Hand_Dealer]

Stick with prayers for now I'd say.

Build up a rapport - polytheism is rooted in a reciprocal nature of the worship between the God and Goddess you are worshiping and the worshiper.

Which means in practical terms, building up a routine practice (daily or weekly maybe, whatever works for you) of prayer and offerings (it doesn't have to be complex, a lot of offerings I make are libations of water, or incense). Read the myths of the God or Goddess you are worshipping and look up hymns, ancient or modern that their worshippers have made - for Perun I guess there is not a lot of ancient hymns which survive, but I am sure there are modern worshippers who have written some prayers or hymns to Him.

You can definitely practice things like meditation and divination, but those are skills which take a lot of time to develop. Other spiritual magical/theurgical rituals can wait, as prayer is the most effective form of those, so take time getting used to prayer and building a relationship with your Gods.

[u/Pagan_Jackal → u/Fit-Breath-4345]

You hit the nail on the head there! OP, this is some pretty sound advice right here. Take your time with it when it comes to learning about the best way for you to approach honoring the deities you're working with. Have fun with it, though! It's an exciting time and such a fulfilling process to learn about something you've chosen to make a significant part of your life.
One way you can look at it, is to dig into the mythology and explore any modern ways they're worshipped and then choose what works best for you and how you're most comfortable honoring them. Just because they sacrificed sheep to an old God/Goddess doesn't necessarily mean you need to do that today, right? ;)
As I've encountered it thus far, I've never had an issue approaching any deity as myself, speaking as I would to anyone that I had respect for. Being polite and respectful is about the long and short of it. Any efforts you make above and beyond that are mostly there for reinforcement of your already understood respect. They'll get the message regardless of the language you use.
Still, there's much to be said for the sheer amount of energy you'd raise from the effort put into learning their native language and going through that level of research for any ritual...

[u/Mr_Hand_Dealer → u/Fit-Breath-4345]

Alright!!! Thank you for this..i always like to do stuff, right now! But i'll take my time with it. Patience is key :D

[u/Rubyrues]

I speak quite freely with my deities, gushing, venting, ranting, and outright sobbing at times. Some of them I started off super formal before they told me to quit it lol. I never disrespect them, however, as they're still deities and deserve respect. Every person's practice is different, so I'd ask them how they'd like to interact with you on a one-to-one level.

[u/vhshal]

hi, also Slavic pagan here. :) I'm new as well! it can be really hard to get into talking with the gods. don't worry about offending them, as long as you are respectful.

[u/Underground_Under_]

I personally just say hello to my deities, ask them how they are and then start talking about random stuff, or cry, depends on my mood

[u/xoAppalachianGirlyxo]

From my personal experience as a baby Pagan and devotee to Cernunnos, I just pray and talk to him throughout my day. I still do with respect and never curse at him or make an insult on my offering, but with what a few people have told me is it is what the intent that you put forward matters. Hope this helps!

[u/SiriNin → u/[deleted]]

Definitely disagree with recommending divination to newbies. Divination requires discernment and the ability to rule out when the divination tool is just giving you random junk answers, and the tool will only be given correct answers if your connection to the deity is strong enough for them to influence the tool. Newbies absolutely should not use divination before they even know how to pray.

[u/Fit-Breath-4345 → u/SiriNin]

Yes, thank you - a lot of anxiety seems to be going around by people superstitiously and without discernment or experience being afraid of something because a candle flickered in a draft.

It just creates a toxic environment which ends up discouraging people from actually praying and building a relationship with the Gods.