Raymond
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HAPPY SAMHAINSAMHIAN (pronounced: SOW-IN or SOW-EEN)
October 31st.
Samhain's origins date back to the ancient Celtic times. Samhain is often named the "Last Harvest" or "Summer's End". The Earth nods a sad farewell to the God.
Symbolism of Samhain:
Third Harvest, the Dark Mysteries, Rebirth through Death.
Symbols of Samhain:
Gourds, Apples, Black Cats, Jack-O-Lanterns, Besoms.
Herbs of Samhain:
Mugwort, Allspice, Broom, Catnip, Deadly Nightshade, Mandrake, Oak leaves, Sage and Straw.
Foods of Samhain:
Turnips, Apples, Gourds, Nuts, Mulled Wines, Beef, Pork, Poultry.
Incense of Samhain:
Heliotrope, Mint, Nutmeg.
Colors of Samhain:
Black, Orange, White, Silver, Gold.
Stones of Samhain:
All Black Stones, preferably jet or obsidian.
The pagan God dies at Samhain yet we know that He will once again be reborn of the Goddess at Yule and the cycle will continue.
This is the time of reflection, the time to honour the Ancients who have gone on before us and the time of 'Seeing" (divination).
As we contemplate the Wheel of the Year, we come to recognise our own part in the eternal cycle of Life.
While almost all Celtic based traditions recognise this day as the end of the "old" year, some groups do not celebrate the coming of the New Year until Yule.
Some consider the time between Samhain and Yule as a time which does not even exist on the Earthly plane. The "time which is no time" was considered in the old days to be both very magickal and very dangerous. Even today, we celebrate this holiday with a mixture of joyous celebration and 'spine tingling" reverence.
The Celts, generally celebrated their New Year on November 1.
This day marked the end of summer and the harvest and the beginning of the dark, cold winter, a time of year that was often associated with human death.
Celts believed that on the night before the New Year, the boundary between the worlds of the living and the dead became blurred.
On the night of October 31, they celebrated Samhain, when it was believed that the ghosts of the dead returned to Earth. In addition to causing trouble and damaging crops, Celts thought that the presence of the otherworldly spirits made it easier for the Druids, or Celtic priests, to make predictions about the future.
For a people entirely dependent on the volatile natural world, these prophecies were an important source of comfort and direction during the long, dark winter.
To commemorate the event, Druid priests built huge sacred bonfires, where the people gathered to burn crops and animals as sacrifices to the Celtic deities.
During the celebration, the Celts wore costumes, typically consisting of animal heads and skins, and attempted to tell each other's fortunes.
By A.D. 43, Romans had conquered the majority of Celtic territory. In the course of the four hundred years that they ruled the Celtic lands, two festivals of Roman origin were combined with the traditional Celtic celebration of Samhain.
The first was Feralia, a day in late October when the Romans traditionally commemorated the passing of the dead. The second was a day to honor Pomona, the Roman goddess of fruit and trees.
The symbol of Pomona is the apple and the incorporation of this celebration into Samhain probably explains the tradition of "bobbing" for apples that is practiced today on Halloween.
By the 800s, the influence of Christianity had spread into Celtic lands. In the seventh century, Pope Boniface IV designated November 1st 'All Saints' Day', a time to honour saints and martyrs.
It is widely believed today that the pope was attempting to replace the Celtic festival of the dead with a related, but church-sanctioned holiday.
The celebration was also called All-hallows or All-hallowmas (from Middle English Alholowmesse meaning All Saints' Day) and the night before it, the night of Samhain, began to be called All-hallows Eve and, eventually, Halloween.
Even later, in A.D. 1000, the church would make November 2 All Souls' Day, a day to honor the dead. It was celebrated similarly to Samhain, with big bonfires, parades, and dressing up in costumes as saints, angels, and devils.
Together, the three celebrations, the eve of All Saints', All Saints', and All Souls', were called Hallowmas.
The American tradition of "trick-or-treating" probably dates back to the early All Souls' Day parades in England. During the festivities, poor people would beg for food and families would give them pastries called "soul cakes" in return for their promise to pray for the family's dead relatives. The distribution of soul cakes was encouraged by the church as a way to replace the ancient practice of leaving food and wine for roaming spirits. The practice, which was referred to as "going a-souling" was eventually taken up by children who would visit the houses in their neighborhood and be given ale, food, and money.
The tradition of dressing in costume for Halloween has both European and Celtic roots. Hundreds of years ago, winter was an uncertain and frightening time. Food supplies often ran low and, for the many people afraid of the dark, the short days of winter were full of constant worry.
On Halloween, when it was believed that ghosts came back to the earthly world, people thought that they would encounter ghosts if they left their homes. To avoid being recognised by these ghosts, people would wear masks when they left their homes after dark so that the ghosts would mistake them for fellow spirits. On Halloween, to keep ghosts away from their houses, people would place bowls of food outside their homes to appease the ghosts and prevent them from attempting to enter.
Jack-O-Lanterns (which were originally hollowed out Turnips before Pumpkins were introduced to the British Isles) were used to frighten away evil spirits.
Pagans honour the Goddess Hecate (pronounced: HECK-A-TAY) at Samhain. Hacate is often depicted as a 'dark Goddess' and she must be appraoched with great care and respect.
To modern pagans Samhain is usually a very "dark" time. This is reflected in the many ceremonies and rituals that take place on this day.
Costumes, Masks and face-painting are incorporated into many rituals at Samhain and the whole affair takes on a dark almost 'sinister' feel.
Ancestors are welcomed into the rituals and this is usually a night of mediumship and (true) ghost stories.
A great celebration and feast is usually held after such sombre rituals where the dead are welcome to join in the merry-making.
The life of the God is also celebrated after the mourning of his 'death'. We now look forward to when he will be re-born at Yule - a time of much merriment and feasting.
A Happy (but dark) Samhain to you all!
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david hobbs
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Happy Samhain to you Raymond.
Blessed be.
Darker nights and colder days.
It means a lot more when you acknowledge the seasons.
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meiah
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This is a good time of year, as the results of effort are reaped, and plans laid for the coming times.
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Raymond
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It's a great time of year, dark and mysterious. A wonderful time for the black arts.
I love it.
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Samjaza
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Looking forward to Friday.
Forour brethren south of the equator its spring to summer time? do they still celebrate Oct1st/Nov 1st ~the marking of the autumn/winter procession as slipping into the era of death?
Is it pecurliarly a celebration for the northern hemisphere in temperate climates.
And what of the tropics. Do they just celebrate summer type gods. 
Anyway. Blessed Be all. Happy Samhain.
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