Why do we offer Milk & Bel Patra to Shiv?

Why do we offer certain foods, flowers & liquids to certain Gods? Here’s the tea.

Everything in Hinduism has deep meaning & symbolism, so we’re not blindly offering stuff to Gods but rather these prasadam are linked to their energies, which helps us connect with them faster & get their blessings.

Shiv for example, first appeared as the cosmic column of raging fire, which is what the Shivlinga represents & so the bel patta, water or milk you offer are cooling substances to calm this tandav or fire.

The bel patta is also one of the rare substances in the universe that is highly absorbent of the vibrations of the thing or deity its attached to - so offering it to the shivling & taking it back home helps us get Shiv’s energy.

it also stands Shiva’s ability to create, preserve & destory, which is what followers of Shaivism believe. And as per another theory, bell also helps in absorbing the vibrations of the deity it is offered to - so it absorbs Shiv Ling’s vibration for us

Shiv’s avatar, Hanuman is offered jaggery, laddoos or other energy-rich substances because he’s the God of Strength but interestingly, we also offer him sesame oil on Saturdays, the reason behind being that Hanuman is linked to the planet Saturn i.e. Shanidev, which is the deity who gives us the fruits of our karma so if we’ve done good, he’ll bless us & if we’ve done bad, we’ll bear the ill effects of those actions.

Now you’ll find different stories of how Hanuman saved Shani & then applied oil on his wounds, but the symbolism is that Hanuman is known for his devotion & service to Ram, so because he’s someone who teaches us to focus on our actions, he’s linked to the God of Karma.