Samhain
From Association of Independent Readers and Rootworkers
Samhain or Sauin, also known as Last Harvest, Ancestor Night, Feast of the Dead, and Nos Galan Gaeaf is a seasonal Pagan and Neo-Pagan festival which is celebrated as one of the eight holidays on the Wheel of the Year, falling midway between Mabon at the Autumnal Equinox and Yule at the Winter Solstice.
Its name derives from the Irish language name for November, but because the Celts marked their days from sunset to sunset, the celebration actually opens at dark on October 31st. As an ancient Gaelic commemoration, it both precedes and derives some of its modern forms of activity from the Catholic two-day religious festival known as All Hallow's Eve, Hallowe'en, All Saints' Day, and All Souls' Day, stretching from October 31st to November 1st.
In the Northern Hemisphere it is held on October 31 - November 2 (alternatively from November 5 -- November 10) when the Sun is at 15° Scorpio.
In the Southern Hemisphere it is held on May 1 (alternatively from May 4 - May 10) when the Sun is at 15° Taurus.
Sometimes called "the Celtic New Year," Samhain is a celebration of the end of the "light half" of the Solar year and the beginning of the "dark half" of the year. It marks the time when cattle, sheep, and goats were brought down from the summer pastures to overwinter near the homesteads, and excess livestock was slaughtered as sacrifices and their meat was preserved for consumption during the winter. On the eve of Samhain, bonfires were lit and the festivities lasted into the night, opening a liminal space in which to make contact with the spirits and to offer them food and drink. The souls of the dead, as well as wild spooks, witches, and hags, were thought to walk and fly abroad at this time, and young people went door-to-door disguised as ghosts and spirits in order to receive offering of food.
Historically a Gaelic holiday, Samhain's roots can be traced back to neolithic times, for ancient passage graves have been found whose openings are oriented toward sunrise on this day. It is thought that at this time, ancient tombs were opened and offerings were placed for the ancestors, much along the lines of the Taoist seasonal festival known as Ching Ming Jie or Tomb Sweeping Day, albeit celebrated at an entirely different time of the year. As a celebration of "the thinning of the veil" between the worlds and an opportunity to commune with the dead, it is popular at the present time among those of Irish, Scottish, and Celtic descent, especially in the United States, where, under the name Hallowe'en, it is a major secular holiday as well as an important survival of ancient Pagan religious rites.
Modern activities that derive from Samhain and are associated with All Hallow's Eve include feasting, the lighting of bonfires, contact with ancestors, mediumship, the use of spirit boards and other tools of Spiritualism , divination with nuts and apples, the carving of pumpkin jack o'lanterns containing candles or lamps, bobbing for apples, and the ever-popular tradition of dressing in ghostly and witchy costumes and going door-to-door trick-or-treating for candy.
Credits
This page is brought to you by the AIRR Tech Team:
- Author: catherine yronwode
- Images: Ellen Clapsaddle, Unknown Photographer; photo-edited by catherine yronwode
