Samhain is Gaelic/Celtic celebration/festival of the dead, representing the end of the “light” part of the year and the beginning of the “dark” part of the year. Also, according to some scholars it was beginning of the Year for the Celts , a Celtic New Year If You will.
This is the time of the year, when according to Occultists, the veil between this and the Other - world ( world of the dead ) is thinnest and both benevolent ancestral spirits and harmful spirits seeking revenge or simply joy in harming others linger all around, walking free. On this very day it is easiest to get in touch, or commune with the spirits , ghosts and all sorts of supernatural creatures.
The very name, translates from old Scotish to “summer end”, and the name Halloween is actually shorten(ed) from All Hallows Even, which was the full name. All Hallows eve is a Christian interpretation of the festival , and the original All Hallows day, was “moved” from may to 31st of October, in order to suppress and diminish pagan celebration.
And what does this holliday represent in Wicca ? It is considered by most Wiccans to be the most important of the four 'greater Sabbats'. It is generally celebrated on October 31st
in the Northern Hemisphere, starting at sundown, even though some traditions celebrate it on the first day of the November. Samhain is considered by some Wiccans to be the time to celebrate the lives of those who have passed on, and it often involves paying respect to ancestors, family members, elders of the faith, friends, pets and other loved ones who have passed on/ died. In some rituals the spirits of the departed are invited to attend the festivities. It is seen as a festival of darkness, which is balanced at the opposite point of the wheel by the spring festival of Beltane, which Wiccans celebrate as a festival of light and fertility.
Customs and believes
It was customary to pay respect to the dead on this day, as well as do some cleansing work. Wiccans will not cast spells on this Sabbat, while all sort of other magick practitioners will make sure to use empowering and amplifying energies of the day, as it is said that magick spells cast on this day will be multiple times stronger. Due to that fact and the fact that spirits roam freely on this day,
makes it a good idea to protect Yourself , and Your home on this, powerful and potentially dangerous day.
People and their livestock would often walk between two bonfires as a cleansing ritual, and the bones of slaughtered livestock were cast into its flames
The Gaelic custom of wearing costumes and masks, was an attempt to copy the spirits or placate them. In Scotland the dead were impersonated by young men with masked, veiled or blackened faces, dressed in white Samhnag turnips which were hollowed-out and carved with faces to make lanterns — were also used to ward off harmful spirits
Dumb supper is a Wiccan ritual , where the spirits of the dead were “fed” by setting extra place at the table, extra plate and the meals are ate in silence, sometimes sitting in circle.
Candles are lit on window sills , near homes and hollowed pumpkins are placed around one’s dwellings to honor the dead and protect from harmful spirits
Jack o’ Lantern , the Irish
In old Irish myth, Certain farmer, Jack was a drunk and gambler . One night, after hi s usual card game, he went home and on his way he met a demon, nearby an old tree. Pretty drunk, he was he was not afraid, instead he dared the spirit, to climb the old tree. As soon as the spirit climbed the tree , Jack carved a cross on the tree, imprisoning the spirit in the tree that way. Angry spirit, in retaliation, hexed and cursed Jack to wander and roam on the Nights such as that night ( it was All Hallow’s eve ) with the only light he had with his side, a carved beet with candle inside.
Spells for Halloween
Dr. Shadow’s suffumigation
- 3 parts of Dittany or Crete
- 2 parts of Lavender
- Good pinch of Saffron
- Gum mastic , some
- Dried Amaranth flowers or few buds of Balm of Gilead
This incense will cause spirits to become visible and materialize and is my personal recipe based on European herbalism.
All Hallows Protection spell
“ When the white dog is out
And torts all abut
Under the clouds
That cover the Moon
And the hag with her broom
Rides high on the winds
And the cat on the fence
Spits even on friends
Then it is right
To conjure a light
Against every spirit
That shadows the night
Thus say
Let the pumpkin’s
Candle glare
Into Darkness
Everywhere
Burn all evil
From the Air
When it is dark
And the black trees roar
Set Jack O’ Lantern
To guard by the door.
By Valerie Worth,
“The Book of words”
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Spirit fumes potion
Infusion of Dandelion roots, and/or Thistle , and/or Lavender, still hot and fuming, on altar or near bed will invoke spirits
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