Tshog-kor (the full form is tshog kyi khorlo) is not a simple food offering but a profound and ritualised feast dedicated to a specific Vajrayana deity.

Thus Tshog Offering creates a sacred ritual space to practise higher tantras and, furthermore, the formation of a community and group practice. Literally Tshog-kor means “Offering in a Circle”.  

The main goal of performing it is to gather and accumulate merits and wisdom and to maintain and restore the commitment to the Dharma. This is believed to help with better rebirth in a place of peace, prosperity and fortune.

In everyday parlance we say a person has accumulated merits (tsho-sa) to refer to a prosperous and fortunate person. We also wish someone generous to be reborn again as a tsho-sa person.

Lastly, there is saying, Lha-Dre-Mi-Sum choe lam chi, (The three beings – deities, demons and humans have the same behaviours) and hence in Vajrayana we often seek from the deities and the demons (this beings to stay away from us), we also need to reciprocate their favours by offering our gratitude.

Tshog-kor is just a gesture – a thought, in the simplest of explainations.

Therefore the most important aspect of Tshogkor is to make prayers of aspiration (moelam) and dedicate the merit for the benefit of all sentient beings.