Happy Samhain

Long ago at the end of the third and final harvest, the Celts celebrated Samhain.  It was a time to commune with and remember the dead, a celebration of the eternal cycle of reincarnation.  One of the possible sources for the origin of the name Samhain is from the Irish Gaelic word “samhraidh read”, which means the summer’s end.  It marked the end of summer and the beginning of winter for the Celts.  The day after Samhain is the official date of the Celtic New Year.  This day was chosen as the date to celebrate because it was at this time the sun was at it’s lowest point on the horizon when measured by the ancient standing stones.

Samhain is popularly known as Halloween today….taken from the words Hallowed Evening.  The holiday remains much like it was long ago despite the efforts of the Church at that time to demonize it by turning it into a night of evil spirits and terror.  Unfortunately, their efforts throughout the years have made some embrace this notion.  Evil and terror has nothing to do with the holiday as it was originally conceived. 

Samhain is a time when some believe the veil of consciousness that separates the land of the living from the dead is at its thinnest.  This veil is made thin by the God’s passing through it to protect and attempt to hold back any spirits crossing into our plane with the intent to do harm.   Our ancestors protected themselves from this threat by carving faces into vegetables and placed them in windows.  It was common practice to leave a candle in the window as well…. to guide earth-walking spirits along their way and to leave plates of food for visiting spirits.  Today, people place jack-0-lanterns with candles on their porches and give out treats to visitors. 

Halloween today has demonized the Celtics Crone, a woman who was revered as a woman of power because of her knowledge and wisdom that came with her age and many life experiences.  The common image of her stirring her cauldron filled with evil potions was derived from the Celtic belief that all souls return to her cauldron of life, death and rebirth to await their reincarnation.  Her cauldron was considered by the Celts as the great cosmic womb, not a vessel for evil.

Halloween has changed since the time of the Celts and is now celebrated with costumes, parties and of course, trick or treating.  We can’t forget the scary movies either……the ones that make it difficult to stay in a dark house by yourself, or venture out onto a lonely road. 

Happy Halloween…….Happy Hallowed Evening………Happy Samhain!  Light your candles, carve your pumpkins and leave out your treats…..you never know if one of those spirits may slip through the veil………  🙂