The Witch's New Year

Halloween, like most holidays, seems to me be to be a bit overblown.  The commercialism has competely turned me off any possible positive aspect of the season, if there even is one.  And it was this thought that got me thinking about the history of Halloween and the reasons behind why children have taken it as the God-given right to demand candy from me.

According to HalloweenHistory.org, and as most people already know, Halloween is an evolved, less religious, more commercialized version of the ancient Celtic ritual of Samhain (pronounced "sah-win").  As the last of the harvest was brought in, and it was too late in the year for anything else to grow, the farmers began looking towards and preparing for the long, cold nights of winter.  And, of course, when thinking of dark, barren, and cold, it's a very small step to think of the dead.

Samhain is the time when the ancient Celts believed the boundary between the dead and the living was most thin, and it was assumed that the spirits of the underworld walked among the living.  When they would light bonfires in celebration, the fire would attract insects, which would attract bats, which are creatures of the night in their own regard and helped to further the belief of the ever increasing supernatural darkness.
       
The Christian Church, in an attempt to draw attention away from the pagan tradition, made November 1st the Feast of All Souls, or All Hallows.  Samhain, then, became All Hallow's Eve, which over time became "Halloween". 

It was a tradition in medieval Europe to go "souling" from door to door in which the poor would beg for food in return for prayers for the dead, which later became "trick or treating".  This was encouraged by the Church, because it effectively did away with leaving food for the faeries and spirits to insure a safe and prosperous upcoming year. 

Wicca.com states; "Originally the "Feast of the Dead" was celebrated in Celtic countries by leaving food offerings on altars and doorsteps for the "wandering dead". Today a lot of practitioners still carry out that tradition. Single candles were lit and left in a window to help guide the spirits of ancestors and loved ones home. Extra chairs were set to the table and around the hearth for the unseen guest. Apples were buried along roadsides and paths for spirits who were lost or had no descendants to provide for them. Turnips were hollowed out and carved to look like protective spirits, for this was a night of magic and chaos. The Wee Folke became very active, pulling pranks on unsuspecting humans. Traveling after dark was was not advised. People dressed in white (like ghosts), wore disguises made of straw, or dressed as the opposite gender in order to fool the Nature spirits."

This evolved, as one would assume, into the well-known "Trick-or-Treating".  The food, ale, or money given was seen as "insurance" nothing bad would happen, kinda like the "security" of the Mafia; if you pay for it, nothing happens, if you don't your store tends to blow up.
Given this culture of marketing and advertising, it's easy to see how this became as overwhelming as it did.  It was brought to you by the same people who made Cinco de Mayo an American holiday.

Samhain is the first of eight sabbats, or holy days.  The others being; Yule, Imbolc, Ostara, Beltane, Litha, Lughnasadh, and Mabon.  It is considered the beginning of the Celtic new year, which runs from 31 Oct. to 30 Oct.  It is also called Ancestor's Day, because it is optimal to contact dead relatives, what with the boundary being so thin.  To me, this is somewhat reminiscent of when North and South Korea allow relatives separated by the war to see family members they thought were dead for the first time in 60 years.

According to Wicca.com, "this was the time that the cattle and other livestock were slaughtered for eating in the ensuing winter months. Any crops still in the field on Samhain were considered taboo, and left as offerings to the Nature spirits. Bonfires were built, (originally called bone-fires, for after feasting, the bones were thrown in the fire as offerings for healthy and plentiful livestock in the New Year) and stones were marked with peoples names. Then they were thrown into the fire, to be retrieved in the morning. The condition of the retrieved stone foretold of that person's fortune in the coming year. Hearth fires were also lit from the village bonfire to ensure unity, and the ashes were spread over the harvested fields to protect and bless the land."

All in all, I think I like the old tradition of Halloween.  For those who like a good fright, even though we know it all to be superstition, at least it SEEMED more genuine.  Although, I grant you, people who dress up like Lady Gaga are pretty scary....

So, as the day slowly draws to a close on this the first day of the Witch's New Year, I raise a toast to my ancestors who came before me, and I wish you all a safe and happy year to come!