History Main / LibationForTheDead

* In ''Film/TheGridironGang'', Willie and Kelvin are members of rival gangs. After football practice, Kelvin asks Willie if he'd like a bottle of water, but before Willie can grab it, he pours it onto the ground, stating "my dead homies drink before you do."

* In ''Film/TheGridiron Gang'', Willie and Kelvin are members of rival gangs. After football practice, Kelvin asks Willie if he'd like a bottle of water, but before Willie can grab it, he pours it onto the ground, stating "my dead homies drink before you do."

** Genzou, the policeman at Nami's home village, pours some sake on Nami's mother Bellemere's grave after the Straw Hats defeat Arlong. Referenced later when we see that someone [[spoiler:(Sabo)]] left three cups of saké at the graves of [[spoiler:Whitebeard and Ace]].

--->'''Seijuro:''' No one should have to leave this world without knowing the taste of good Sake.

* ''Manga/OnePiece'': Genzou, the policeman at Nami's home village, pours some sake on Nami's mother Bellemere's grave after the Straw Hats defeat Arlong. Referenced later when we see that someone [[spoiler:(Sabo)]] left three cups of saké at the graves of [[spoiler:Whitebeard and Ace]].

* In ''LightNovel/MushokuTenseiJoblessReincarnation'' Rudeus takes a bottle of strong liquor with him to [[spoiler:Paul]]'s grave and alternates between sipping it and pouring it on the grave while confessing his insecurities.

-->'''Second drunkard:''''''"I'm just gonna let it [[UrineTrouble pass through my kidneys first]]."'' [[note]]And most would probably consider actually doing this to be [[LastDisrespects quite disrespectful as well...]][[/note]]

* This is the common practice in the world of Creator/HarryTurtledove 's ''Between the Rivers''. In that world, ancestor spirits can talk to their grandchildren on a daily basis, so that the ghosts can just ask their people to pour a little beer on the ground for them and express thanks when they get it.

* In ''Series/ChicagoPD'', Voight has been known to pour out a drink for [[spoiler:Olinsky]].

* ''Anime/CowboyBebop''

* Partway through ''Anime/GravestoneOfDaisukeJigen'', Lupin empties a flask onto the titular gravestone, after [[spoiler:Jigen fakes his death.]]

* ''Manga/OnePiece'': Genzou, the policeman at Nami's home village, pours some sake on Nami's mother Bellemere's grave after the Straw Hats defeat Arlong. Referenced later when we see that someone [[spoiler: (Sabo)]] left three cups of saké at the graves of [[spoiler: Whitebeard and Ace.]]

->''"But ain't much that we can do\\

To see the boy you broke bread with six feet in the dirt"''

Libation is the tradition of pouring a drink (usually alcoholic) on the ground as a sort of offering, perhaps as part of a GraveMarkingScene. This trope is mostly about doing this in memory of dead friends. Traditionally, one pours on the ground before drinking oneself, as if drinking ToAbsentFriends while symbolically sharing the drink with those friends despite their absence. Will often involve TalkingToTheDead as well. May be regarded as DueToTheDead. "Libation" means "drink," but this can be done with other types of offerings, such as food, tobacco, or sweets.

* Literature/TheBible: "And Jacob set up a Pillar in the place where he had spoken with him, a Pillar of Stone; and he poured out a drink offering on it, and poured oil on it." [[Literature/BookOfGenesis Genesis]] 35:14
* In ''Literature/{{Dune}}'', Duke Leto Atreides makes the toast "Review, friends - troops long past review" by pouring out a flagon of water onto the floor (note that water is worth its weight in gold on the desert planet of Arrakis).

* In the Literature/{{Discworld}} novel ''Literature/ReaperMan'', Mrs. Cake literally does this with a glass of liquor for her spirit guide 'One-Man-Bucket'. Thus he gets the ghost of the drink after she kills it by setting it on fire.

* The traditional Irish folk song "Finnegan's Wake" has a variation: Tim Finnegan, known as TheAlcoholic in life, is brought BackFromTheDead when a drunken reveler at his funeral wake accidentally pours whiskey on his corpse. The reason for this variation is that the term "whiskey" comes from the Gaelic ''Uisce beatha,'' literally meaning "water of life." Finnegan got revived when he got doused with "water of life."

* Not exactly food or drink, but ''WebComic/NerfNow'' knows full well [[http://www.nerfnow.com/comic/206 what consumable to leave]] at the grave of your WorthyOpponent and fellow Engineer.[[note]]A box of ammo to give him more metal, of course.[[/note]]

* ''WesternAnimation/{{Arcane}}'': In the Season One finale, Silco is drinking from a flask while seated at a statue commemorating his dead blood brother Vander, and pours out some in his memory despite being directly responsible for killing him, as Silco is finally able to understand how Vander could choose keeping his children safe over revolution, as Silco himself now faces the same decision.

* ''WesternAnimation/{{Arcane}}'': [[spoiler:Silco]] pours out part of their drink in honor of their blood brother at their statue [[spoiler: despite being directly responsible for killing him, as Silco is finally able to understand how Vander could choose keeping his children safe over revolution as Silco himself faces the same decision.]]

* In ''Theatre/{{Heathers}}'', Heather Duke and Heather McNamara, accompanied by Kurt and Ram, go out to the cemetery to pour a jug of Thunderbird over the grave of the recently deceased Heather Chandler, "y'know, from her homies," but Kurt and Ram end up drinking the booze instead.

* In ''Anime/{{Monster}}'', Lunge brings a bottle of beer to [[spoiler:Grimmer]]'s grave. Earlier, Reichwein had [[spoiler:brought scotch to the grave of recovering alcoholic Richard Braun, [[TearJerker saying that it was okay to have it now]].]]

* Reinhard von Lohengramm in ''Anime/LegendOfGalacticHeroes'' poured a glass of white wine onto the glass windows [[spoiler:in the Alliance National Museum of Art which he appropriated as his headquarters after he conquered the Alliance]] against the setting sun as a sign of respect to those who have died due to the war.

* In ''Film/KingArthur'', Bors pours out a measure of wine on the grave of his dead friend [[spoiler:Dagonet.]] His intent is clear as sits down beside the grave marker and encourages his friend to "Drink... [let's] get drunk" before taking a hefty swig himself as his fellow knights depart.

This is [[OlderThanTheyThink an ancient practice]] in some parts of the world. Compare OfferingToTheGods: some religious traditions involve sharing drinks with divine beings, including ancestors or long-dead heroes revered as {{Patron Saint}}s. Such traditions should generally go there, since this trope is about mourning a personal friend or loved one.

Libation is the tradition of pouring some drink, usually alcoholic, on the ground as a sort of offering, perhaps as part of a GraveMarkingScene. Sometimes for the gods, sometimes to the dead. This trope is mostly about doing it in memory of dead friends. Traditionally, one pours on the ground before drinking oneself. Will often involve TalkingToTheDead as well. May be regarded as DueToTheDead.

In the modern era, this is usually associated with the hip-hop subculture, where this is called "tipping" or "pouring one out". Commonly done with a 40 oz Malt Liquor. However, this is [[OlderThanTheyThink actually]] a very ancient practice in some parts of the world.

Can be done with food or some other type of offerings, such as tobacco or sweets as well, but less often, despite "libation" meaning "drink".

Does ''not'' include putting flowers on a grave or making offerings to gods.

Often [[{{Parody}} parodied]].

** Which has a consequence to this day. Orthodox Judaism has elaborate rules for when wine is or is not kosher, largely due to this practice: it was common practice in the ancient Mediterranean to spill a drop for the gods whenever they poured wine. The Greeks (who were culturally dominant in the time and place Literature/TheTalmud was written) were particularly fond of libation-pouring, but practically everyone did it, and most societies also used wine in other rituals. A Jew therefore had to assume that any wine he saw had been used for a pagan libation, and thus non-kosher, unless it had been handled exclysuvely by Jews. The exception was if the wine had been heated (''yayin mevushal''), which supposedly rendered it unfit for pagan sacrifices. It's not clear whether any Gentile society actually followed this rule (''maybe'' some Canaanites did), but apparently the ancient Hebrews believed it did, and this is why kosher wine is often heated (which modern rabbis have interpreted to include pasteurization).[[note]]Why these rules are still applied when [[UsefulNotes/{{Christianity}} the only other large religion that uses ritual wine anymore]] (1) is an offshoot of Judaism and (2) typically takes great care to clearly delineate its ritual wine from all other wine is a topic too complicated to discuss here.[[/note]]

** Which has a consequence to this day. Orthodox Judaism has elaborate rules for when wine is or is not kosher, largely due to this practice: it was common practice in the ancient Mediterranean to spill a drop for the gods whenever they poured wine. The Greeks (who were culturally dominant in the time and place Literature/TheTalmud was written) were particularly fond of libation-pouring, but practically everyone did it, and most societies also used wine in other rituals. A Jew therefore had to assume that any wine he saw had been used for a pagan libation (and thus, non-kosher). The exception was if the wine had been heated (''yayin mevushal''), which supposedly rendered it unfit for pagan sacrifices. It's not clear whether any Gentile society actually followed this rule (''maybe'' some Canaanites did), but apparently the ancient Hebrews believed it did, and this is why kosher wine is often heated (which modern rabbis have interpreted to include pasteurization).[[note]]Why these rules are still applied when [[UsefulNotes/{{Christianity}} the only other large religion that uses ritual wine anymore]] (1) is an offshoot of Judaism and (2) typically takes great care to clearly delineate its ritual wine from all other wine is a topic too complicated to discuss here.[[/note]]