Halloween's Beginnings

For when the last day of October rolls around with its aroma of crisp apples and fallen leaves we know that magic, mystery, and things that go bump in the middle of the night abound in the darkened night.

Tonight the barrier that separates the land of the living and the land of the dead cracks open allowing the shadows to come out to play.

We refer to it as Halloween but it goes by other names:

Samhain

Shadowfest

Old Hallomas

All Hallow's Eve

Festival of the Dead

This night is the most important of the yearly eight annual Shabbats or paranormal holy days that are celebrated by the pagans and Witches throughout the world. It is a time when the spirits of deceased love ones and friends are honored and to gaze into future.

People usually associate Halloween with monsters and ghouls. To the modern day witches or pagans the Jack- O-Lanterns that light the night are the most sacred for you put aside your troubles and enjoy pagan amusement and merriment.

In the Middle Ages, Europeans believed that on Halloween witches flew through the night sky celebrating the Shabbat until sun rise. To this day witches and pagans still celebrate this holiday pretty much as it was in the Middle Ages with:

Rituals including flying

Chanting

Song and dance

Sacred bonfires

Traditional pagan feasts

Amatory events

To pagan's world over Halloween is:

A night of ancestors,

A harvest festival

A time of magic and fun

New Year's Eve celebration

All rolled into one. Halloween's root may be pagan but it should be enjoyed by all regardless of age, cultural background, or religious point of view.

As the pagan path shines its light on those who are experiencing a growing spiritual need to reconnect with Mother Nature and her ancient ways.

Wicca, an earth based religion, embraced by many contemporary witches is growing worldwide. It is a positive and spiritual nature oriented like that of Native American shamanism. Devils are not worshiped and no evil spells are cast to harm others. Most of today's witches want to live in harmony with nature, using their knowledge of magic to help and heal the world around them.

Most children do not know of the pagan origins or its significance but most sense that there is something more than dressing up in a costumes. So let the doors to other dimensions stand ajar for the good of all with history, myth, superstitions and all.

References:

A Witch's Halloween by Gerina Dunwick

Learn more about this author, Susan Kersten.
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