People will celebrate however they like, but Ch'useok is one of the major festivals we celebrate. This year, it falls on Sep 28-30. It is often equated to the US's Giving Thanks holiday & Day of Mourning because of how far families travel to visit each other in order to have a reunion filled with food, catching up, and surrounding oneself with loved ones.
If you are someone who is not surrounded by a ton of family and close friends, here's how you can celebrate Ch'useok too.
FOOD: Cook up lots of food that you enjoy and that you believe your ancestors may have enjoyed.
WHO: are you offering to? You can keep it general as ANCESTORS, excluding those you knew were not-good-people. WHY: Ancestors require veneration and offerings in order to be their strongest in the underworld, but to also be more comfortable, and when we do these things, it helps strengthen our own connections and bond to our ancestors.
HOW: On a table, set up the food offerings, light a candle and incense. Greet your ancestors, state the offerings are for ANCESTORS (excluding those who were not-good-people from your understanding), ask them to enjoy the meal and bestow blessings upon you and your loved ones.
Talk to them. Go over everything that's happened thus far this year, the highs and the lows. Talk about your dreams, ambitions, goals, prayers. What you need their help with achieving.
For however long this takes (usually about 30-45 min), you can pack everything up. The food is considered blessed and should be reverted (eaten) if you'd like, otherwise it can be given away/tossed/composted.
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